The Minister of Culture and National Heritage, Professor Piotr Gliński, the President of the Polish Historical and Literary Society, Professor Kazimierz Piotr Zaleski, and the President of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences, Professor Jan Ostrowski, signed an agreement on the establishment of a new cultural institution, the Institute of the Polish Library in Paris.

Thanks to the agreement, the most valuable collections of Polish cultural heritage gathered at the Polish Library in Paris have been taken under the care of the Polish state.

“This is a very solemn and important moment for Polish culture and heritage abroad, for the Polish community abroad and for Poland as a whole. For the first time, there will be an institution that will be co-managed by the Polish state and a foreign Polish institution. We have amended the relevant laws, thanks to which foreign institutions will be able to be 100% financed directly from the state budget, with a guarantee that their identity will be preserved”, said Minister Piotr Gliński.

He emphasised that securing the future of Polish institutions dealing with Polish culture and national heritage was made possible by the commitment of many people and institutions over several years.

“We managed to combine two substantive and legal systems: the Polish and the French. This process involved the maturing of all parties, both the Polish state and Polish activists from the Polish diaspora, as well as Polish cultural institutions operating abroad, to build a system that would meet contemporary challenges. These institutions must gain their stability, have a secured future, but also be provided with opportunities for development, i.e. take up new challenges and develop their current activities”, stressed the head of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.

The agreement was concluded for a period of 50 years. The Polish state, through the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, undertakes to fully finance the activities of the Polish Library Institute in Paris and to maintain its headquarters, granting subsidies of no less than PLN 10 million per year.

Adrian Andrzejewski