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REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Indonesia's largest Islamic book fair, Islamic Book Fair (IBF) 2025, targets 300,000 visitors over five days of implementation, from Wednesday (18/6/2025) to Sunday (22/6/2025). This target is increased compared to last year, which recorded about 225 thousand visitors.
According to Republika.co.id monitoring at the exhibition site on Saturday (21/6/2025) from noon to afternoon, visitors to this largest Islamic book fair are increasingly arriving. Not only from the general public, but also from boarding schools.
The chairman of the IBF 2025 Committee, Husni Kamil, said public animo towards IBF this year remained high even though its implementation coincided with a period of rising classes at many boarding schools. “We have a target of 300,000 visitors. To this day it has been more than half. It is still Saturday and Sunday, which usually spikes occur,” Husni said when he met at the exhibition site, Saturday (21/6/2025).
In order to attract visitors from boarding schools, the IBF committee has initiated the program “IBF Goes to Pesantren”. This activity established collaboration with a network of 167 boarding schools, including direct visits to 11 of them.
“We are not just promoting, but really building relationships with boarding schools. Therefore, the majority of visitors from Wednesday to Friday were queuers,” Husni said.
IBF 2025, which carries the spirit of Islamic literacy, also involves 222 publishers, both from the country and abroad. Some publishers are from Saudi, Egyptian, Kuwaiti, and Malaysia. The presence of these foreign publishers also enriches the variety of collections, especially the classic books that are in demand among the santri.
Husni said the support of Bank Shariah Indonesia (BSI) jiha was very important in the implementation of IBF this year. BSI is not only a major sponsor, but also a partner in a non-cash payment system.
“All transactions in this exhibition are made through the BSI payment channel, both debit and QRIS. All participants have had their systems prepared by the BSI team,” Husni said.
Hikmat Kurnia, Chairman of the Indonesian Publishers Association (IKAPI) of DKI Jakarta, explained that the difference in implementation time from the usual (August-September) to June had little impact on visitors in the early days, because the new school year of the boarding school has not yet entered. However, enthusiasm rose again at the weekend.
“Usually the IBF is an entertainment event after the players are only two months in. But because it is now held before new pantries come in, the effect is felt at the start. But Saturday-Sunday is still crowded,” said Hikmat.
Hikmat added that IBF is not only a book selling event, but also a meeting room and an inter-school competition. Activities such as the Quran's careful smart contest and entrepreneurial training are also an attraction for visitors to the santri.
“The Santri must feel capable and confident. The IBF is where they show their ability, not only in religious science, but also in entrepreneurship and independence,” said the IBF executive. IBF 2025 exhibition will still take place until Sunday (22/6/2025) at Jakarta Convention Center (JCC) Senayan with various interesting programs on the Literacy Stage and the Creation Stage. People from different circles, especially Muslim families and students, are expected to take advantage of this moment to increase Islamic insight and strengthen support for the literacy struggle of the Ummah.
