On 18 May, the Certification Ceremony of the Cyril and Methodius Route as “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” was celebrated in the framework of an International Conference in ZLIN, Czech Republic. The Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) awarded the certification to the Cyril and Methodius Route at its annual Governing Board meeting in May 2021.

The Certification diploma was handed to Mr. Radim HOLIŠ, Governor of the Zlín Region and Mr. Lubomír TRAUB, Deputy Governor of the Zlín Region and Chairman of the European Cultural Route of Saints Cyril and Methodius on behalf of the Council of Europe by Mr. Stefano DOMINIONI, Executive Secretary of the EPA. The Ceremony was attended by H. E. Václav KOLAJA, Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the Holy See, by Mr. Ilja KOCIAN, Representative of the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic and EPA Observer State for 2022 and by Pavel MACURA, Representative of the Archbishopric of Olomouc. The Certification Ceremony was attended by Representatives of the European Association of Saints Cyril and Methodius Route with network members in 8 Council of Europe member States: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia and Italy.

The Ceremony was followed by speeches from Mrs. Dana DANOVA, Chairwoman of the Managing Committee of the European Cultural Route of Saints Cyril and Methodius; Mrs. Slavia BARLIEVA, Deputy Director of the Cyril and Methodius Research Centre at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia and by Mr. Peter IVANIC, Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the European Cultural Route of Saints Cyril and Methodius. The full programme of the Certification Ceremony is available here.

The Cyril and Methodius Route is composed of a set of trails and cultural heritage sites focused on travelling in the footsteps of Saints Cyril and Methodius and their followers. It connects places, heritage sites, cultural institutions, academic centres and other tourist attractions across 7500 km. For more information on the Cyril and Methodius Route : Mrs. Zuzana VOJTOVÁ, Director; Ms. Martina JANOCHOVÁ, Manager; Mr. Martin PETERKA, Manager.