Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1544188
7 gozotoday | FRIDAY • 2 APRIL 2026 NEWS SUNDAY, 26 TH APRIL 2026 10AM - 5PM CITADEL, VICTORIA, GOZO EDUCATIONAL EVENT FOR ALL THE FAMILY & ACTIVITIES FOR ALL AGES DISCOVER & LEARN WORKSHOPS INTERACTIVE SCIENCE FAIR ANIMATED ACTION DEMOS & EXPERIMENTS DEMOS & EXPERIMENTS EXHIBITIONS TOURS & TALKS TOURS & TALKS SCIENCE COMEDY, SCIENCE COMEDY, MAGIC & DANCE MAGIC & DANCE MAGIC & DANCE FREE ENTRY Printed Books Subsidy Scheme launched THE National Book Coun- cil (NBC) today launched the Printed Books Subsidy Scheme, which will provide much-await- ed assistance to publishers and other partners in the publish- ing industry in relation to the increase in the price of paper they have experienced in recent years. The NBC had already drawn attention to this , noting that between 2021 and 2022 the majority of publishing entities – three out of four (75%) – ex- perienced a substantial increase in book production costs. It is worth noting that 16.4% of them attributed up to 100% of these cost increases to an increase in the price of paper. These details were drawn from the Survey of Publishing Entities issued by the National Statistics Office. The annual fund for 2026 is €50,000, and the funds are dis- tributed on a first-come, first- served basis. Books eligible for the paperback subsidy are those published from 1 Janu- ary to 15 December 2026. The subsidy covers up to 40% of the total cost, up to a maximum of €2,000 per receipt and/or proof of payment. The Chief Executive of the National Book Council Mark Camilleri said that at this deli- cate moment in the publishing sector, the NBC is once again supporting the industry with direct and considerable finan- cial assistance intended to re- duce the burden on publishing costs. He noted that the launch of this scheme is part of what is expected of the NBC in the Strategic Vision for the next five years, which was launched in 2025 , and that the NBC is committed to working hand in hand with all industry partners so that the desired levels are reached in every sector of the industry. Subsidy applications are sub- mitted through Submittable , and the terms and conditions can be downloaded from the National Book Council website. The annual fund for 2026 is €50,000, and the funds are distributed on a first-come, first-served basis