Havana, February 1 (RHC) The 27th  International Book Fair was inaugurated in the San Carlos fortress of La Cabaña, in Havana.

On hand for the opening ceremony were Cuban first vice president Miguel Diaz-Canel and other high-ranking officials like the speaker of the National Parliament,  Esteban Lazo, and Abel Prieto, Minister of Culture, and Chinese ambassador to Cuba,  Chen Xi.

The Fair ´s guests of honor this year is China and it is dedicated to the historian of Havana and author, Eusebio Leal.

In his opening remarks, the president of the Cuban Book Institute, Juan Rodriguez Cabrera, acknowledged the great effort undertaken by the Cuban people and authorities prior to the event, in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.

“Our country believes in the enlightening role of reading. This Fair is an eloquent proof of the importance that the State gives to books, reading and events like this, in a global context where an expanding pseudo culture takes hold in the worst of fashion, denying cultural roots and patriotic values,” said Rodriguez.

The president of the Book Institute said that some 100 publishers and authors from more than 40 countries will participate in the fair.

Havana venues include the Morro-Cabaña fortress, overlooking the Havana bay, and a network of 22 other venues among them the University of Havana, Pabellón Cuba, in the Cuban capital.

The already traditional two-phase fair runs from February 1st through the 11th here in Havana and then, begins traveling across the country with activities in all the major cities and cultural centers island-wide until its official closure on May 13th.