Five foreign translators, authors and publishers emerged winners of the Fifth Special Book Award of China, established by the General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) Tuesday and held at the National Center for the Performing Arts. Politburo member Liu Yandong was on hand to dole out the prizes.

Since 2005, the award has chosen 22 winners from France, Russia, and Germany, such as translator Howard Goldblatt, author Robert Lawrence Kuhn and publisher Tan Tat Thu, for those who contribute to the promotion of Chinese culture abroad. From this year, each is awarded 50,000 yuan.

This year's  winners include Indian translator Dr BR Deepak, Japanese translator Lizuka Yutori, Dutch Sinologist Kristofer Schipper, British publisher Stephen Bourne and American author John Naisbitt, explained Liu Fuhai, director of GAPP's Foreign Exchange and Cooperation Division.

Mr. Yutori, from Chuo University in Tokyo, is the first Japanese to win the award. 30 years of teaching, translating, and researching had finally paid off,  said Yutori, who's translated many contemporary Chinese authors' works into Japanese, including Yu Hua, Wang Anyi and Su Tong.

Known for The Taoist Body, Kristofer Schipper, 77, thanked the Chinese government for honoring translators.

Stephen Bourne, CEO of Cambridge University Press, was awarded for establishing the Cambridge China Library program, a series of books covering Chinese culture and history.

"The award reflects [that] our organization shares a philosophy with China to spread knowledge around in order to ensure greater understanding of each other and publishing media is one of the greatest opportunities to achieve that," he said.

John Naisbitt, 82, co-author with wife Doris of 2009's much-derided China's Megatrends said he had been privileged to witness the extraordinary changes in China during the last 44 years.