A Cervantes Cultural and Information Centre, complete with an enormous exhibition hall and a 40 000-volume library, is planned for Sofia.
The centre, whose purpose is to promote Spanish language and culture, will also include 120-seat and 150-seat rooms, 14 classrooms and a multimedia hall, and will be housed in the former building of the US embassy at 1 Suborna Street.
The announcement was made on June 18 by the institute’s secretary general Teodoro Conde in the presence of the Spanish ambassador to Bulgaria, Fernando Arias Gonzalez, and Deputy Foreign Minister Gergana Gruncharova.
The centre in Sofia is expected to be the biggest of its kind in Southeastern Europe and will become fully operational this autumn.
“It is high time that such a centre opened in Bulgaria,” the ambassador said.
He thanked Foreign Minister Solomon Passi whose efficiency, good work and professional attitude had helped find a building to house the centre.
The Cervantes Institute is a Spanish state organisation set up in 1991.
Its headquarters are based in Madrid and Alcala de Henares, the birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes.
The Institute has opened centres in 40 countries.
Spanish is the official language of 400 million people in 21 countries.
Around 40 000 Spanish speakers live in Bulgaria. The language is studied in 13 high schools across the country.