Proposal: State funding to open bookstores in Romania

A draft law recently introduced in the Parliament proposes the granting of state funding for the opening of bookstores across the country, especially in cities were these are completely missing.

The law was introduced by National Liberal Party (PNL) deputy Ovidiu Raeţchi, who last year initiated The Pact for Books, a legislative package aimed at doubling the book consumption in Romania over the next two years.

The draft law covers the setting up of a Fund for the Promotion of Bookstores outside of Bucharest, with a yearly endowment of EUR 600,000 over three years, News.ro reported. Those who wish to open a bookstore would receive a non-reimbursable financing of EUR 30,000, while contributing minimum EUR 10,000 of their own funds.

Those who wish to open bookstores in cities where such spaces are missing would have priority in receiving funding. At the same time, the bookstores need to remain open for at least three years and organize cultural events constantly.

There are only 300 bookstores in Romania at present, Raeţchi explained. Their number decreased dramatically in the past years, also under pressure from online retailers. Romanians spend on average only EUR 3 to buy books in a year, according to data quoted by Raeţchi.

“We need this law: studies show that the mere existence of a bookstore increases book consumption and access to culture gives children high chances of succeeding in life,” the deputy explained.

The project is meant to encourage both entrepreneurial initiatives and attract large bookstore chains, which can organize top cultural events and bring important writers to meet the public.

The draft is called The Law of the Teleorman Bookstore. Teleorman is a county in southern Romania. The largest city in the county, Alexandria, was previously given as an example of a locality with no bookstores.

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