Romania will be Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2028, the world's most important book fair and creative industries event, with a tradition spanning more than 500 years.
According to a press release issued on Wednesday by the Ministry of Culture, this status marks Romania's entry into an international exposure programme with major cultural, economic and diplomatic impact.
Following a memorandum initiated by the Ministry of Culture and approved by the Government on January 22, 2026, the Interministerial Committee for coordinating Romania's participation in Frankfurt 2028 was established through Prime Ministerial Decision no. 36/2026. Its first meeting, held on Wednesday, confirmed that the project has been assumed as a national strategic priority.
The interministerial group includes representatives of the Prime Minister's Chancellery, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Economy, Digitalisation, Entrepreneurship and Tourism, the Ministry of Environment, Waters and Forests, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Ministry of Investments and European Projects, the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration, and the Ministry of Finance.
The agenda of the first meeting included the approval of the Rules of Organisation and Functioning, the launch of discussions to establish a multiannual budget for 2026-2029, and the presentation of the project stages.
The official contract establishing Romania's Guest of Honour status at the 2028 edition of the Fair will be signed on Friday. From that moment, Romania will formally enter the preparation phase.
'Romania is not merely presenting itself in Frankfurt. Romania will present itself before the whole of Germany and, through this, before the entire world. Over the 20 years in which I have been consistently involved with this phenomenon, the book fair has clearly developed in this direction. The Guest of Honour country is selected following extensive analysis and evaluation, and during the preparation period it must adhere to the rules and principles of this industry. This is not just any fair. It differs greatly from the one in Leipzig, which is primarily oriented towards the reading public. In Frankfurt, addressing the global publishing industry represents a rare opportunity to draw attention to all forms and fields of culture. Every cultural and creative sector becomes a vehicle for presenting the country that has obtained this title,' said Culture Minister Andras Istvan Demeter.
Through this status, Romania will showcase not only literature, but also technology, architecture, design, music, gastronomy, tourism, education and innovation. Culture thus becomes a vector for strategic positioning.
For Romania, the stakes are twofold, given that Germany is its most important trading partner and leading foreign investor by ultimate investor criterion. Frankfurt 2028 therefore becomes a strategic instrument of public diplomacy and of strengthening bilateral relations at political, economic and academic levels, the press release notes.
'Following the Timisoara 2023 European Capital of Culture programme, participation in Frankfurt 2028 represents the most extensive strategic cultural endeavour of recent years, a national project with economic, diplomatic and identity impact, undertaken through interinstitutional coordination and aimed at long-term international positioning,' the press release added.
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