On 8 October, the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme was presented on the occasion of the meeting of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Rapporteur Group on Education, Culture, Sport, Youth and Environment (GR-C) at the Council of Europe Headquarters in Strasbourg.

Mrs. Birgitta RINGBECK (Germany), Chair of the Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) presented the Programme accompanied by Mr. Stefano DOMINIONI, Executive Secretary of the EPA on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe and Director of the European Institute of Cultural Routes.

The meeting was opened by Ambassador Mr. Paruyr HOVHANNISYAN, Permanent Representative of Armenia to the Council of Europe and President of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers’ Rapporteur Group on Education, Culture, Sport, Youth and Environment (GR-C) and introduced by Ambassador Mr. Stephan MÜLLER, Permanent representative of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg to the Council of Europe and Chair of the Statutory Committee of the EPA on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

The recent achievements of the EPA on Cultural Routes were highlighted with 5 newly certified and 8 recertified Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe as well as the accession of Latvia. In addition, the presentation underlined the growing relevance of the Programme, which has been awarded this year with the Carlos V European Award by His Majesty the King of Spain Felipe VI, and the many activities carried out in the framework of the CM Chairmanship in Croatia, Finland and France as well as the 9th Annual Advisory Forum on Cultural Routes recently hosted in Sibiu, Romania.