The culture ministry plans to actively support the promotion of locally produced children's books overseas in an attempt to garner a wider global readership.

Speaking at a meeting with publishers on Friday, Minister Choe Kwang-shik praised the recent achievements of local publishing houses, especially in the area of children's books.

In the past three years, children's literature accounted for nearly half of the 5,000-odd book copyrights Korea sold to other countries.