PRESS RELEASE 3, avenue de Miremont CH – 1206 Geneva Tel: +41 22 704 1820 Fax: +41 22 704 1821 [email protected] Yerevan, Armenia, Elected World Book Capital 2012 Geneva, 5 July- For immediate release Yerevan was named as the “World Book Capital 2012” at the conclusion of the selection committee meeting, which was held on 2 July 2010 at UNESCO’s Paris headquarters. The city of Yerevan was selected “for the quality and the variety of its detailed, realistic, grass-roots programme, focusing on universal issues, and linking all the aspects and actors of the book chain”. The meeting brought together representatives of the International Publishers Association (IPA), the International Booksellers Federation (IBF), the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), and UNESCO. Says IPA Secretary General Jens Bammel: “Yerevan built an exciting programme focusing on freedom of expression, copyright, and activities for children who will be tomorrow’s readers, authors and publishers. We are very much looking forwarded to working with the various Armenian stakeholders, in particular the local publishers, to contribute to the success of Yerevan, World Book Capital 2012”. Yerevan, Armenia, is the twelfth city to be designated World Book Capital, after Madrid (2001), Alexandria (2002), New Delhi (2003), Antwerp (2004), Montreal (2005), Turin (2006), Bogotá (2007), Amsterdam (2008), Beirut (2009), Ljubljana (2010), and Buenos Aires (2011). Notes for Editors: Every year, IPA, IBF, IFLA and UNESCO designate a city as World Book Capital for the 12 months between two celebrations of World Book and Copyright Day (23 April). This initiative is a collaborative effort between representatives of principal stakeholders in the book sector and the cities which have committed themselves to promote books and reading. The current World Book Capital is Ljubljana, Slovenia. Buenos Aires, Argentina, will be World Book Capital 2011. For more information, please go to: http://www.internationalpublishers.org/index.php/literacy-a-reading/world-book-capital-cities Or: http://portal.unesco.org/culture/en/ev.php-URL_ID=24019&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html www.internationalpublishers.org 1 International Publishers Association More about IPA: The International Publishers Association (IPA) is an international industry federation representing all aspects of book and journal publishing. Established in 1896, IPA's mission is to promote and protect publishing and to raise awareness for publishing as a force for economic, cultural and political development. Around the world IPA actively fights against censorship and promotes copyright, literacy and freedom to publish. For further information, please contact: Alexis Krikorian International Publishers Association 3, avenue de Miremont CH - 1206 Geneva Tel: +41 22 704 1820 Fax: +41 22 74 1821 [email protected] www.internationalpublishers.org www.internationalpublishers.org 2 .