The Italian Ambassador in Berlin, Armando Varricchio, opened the Italy Pavilion at the Frankfurt International Book Fair. This year, the Italian publishing sector is present at the Pavilion, set up at the Fair by the ICE-Foreign Trade Agency in partnership with the Associazione Italiana Editori, with 147 representatives including publishing companies and institutional entities.
“It is an important moment and an excellent impulse in view of Italy’s participation as ‘Guest of Honour’ at the 2024 edition”, commented Ambassador Varricchio, recalling the importance of the publishing industry as the Country’s top cultural industry and fourth at European level.
The Ambassador continued: “the Germans explore our creative writing products with curiosity as they are the gateway to a Country that they love visiting assiduously and passionately and of which they appreciate the lifestyle, beauty, and creativity: all the qualities featured and promoted in our Pavilion.” Ambassador Varricchio went on: “In the runup to the 2024 edition, our promotional action involves all the relevant Italian institutions engaged in supporting the work of publishers and promoting a taste for creative writing.” The Ambassador also highlighted the participation at the Book Fair of the Italian Cultural Institutes in Cologne and Berlin, which are present in Frankfurt with a stand and a long agenda of meetings.
To promote the Italian industry, the ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by the Director of the AIE (Associazione Italiana Editori), Fabio Del Giudice, the Director General for Libraries and Copyright at the Ministry of Culture, Paola Passarelli, the President and the Director General of ICE-Agency, Carlo Ferro and Roberto Luongo, and the Head of the Office for the Promotion of the Italian Language and Publishing Industry at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), Simona Battiloro
