A new ‘Ukrainian bookshelf’ has been opened in the city of Siofok on the southern shore of the Balaton. The opening ceremony took place at the Library of the Balaton Regional Historical Research Institute with the participation of Ambassador of Ukraine to Hungary Fyodor Shandor. The initiative is being implemented under the patronage of the First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture and the Ukrainian Book Institute.
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Local authorities, the Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Siofok Zoltán Horváth, activists of the Ukrainian community, including Tmeya Timko, and representatives of the library joined the project in Siofok. They not only accepted the books but also provided Ukrainians with free access to the library card.
During the opening, the participants had the opportunity to talk to Ukrainian children who currently live and study in Shiofok. According to the diplomats, the children were interested in reading the books in their native language, which once again underlines the importance of such initiatives.
The books for the project were donated to the Embassy of Ukraine in Hungary by the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting as part of the ‘Ukrainian Children – Ukrainian Books’ campaign. This is not the first such shelf in Hungary: the largest one is located in Budapest, in the Szabo Ervin Metropolitan Library, which also offers a free subscription for Ukrainians.
The aim of the project is to make Ukrainian culture, language, and literature more accessible to Ukrainian citizens temporarily living abroad due to the war.
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