Category 2 Centers

The Regional Centre for Book Promotion in Latin America and the Caribbean (CERLALC) is an intergovernmental agency, UNESCO partner – Category 2-, aimed at creating conditions for promoting reading societies.  It, therefore, directs its efforts to develop book production and circulation, promotion, reading and writing, and incentives and protection of intellectual property.  In this regard, it provides technical assistance to propose public policies, generate knowledge, disseminate specialized information, develop and offer learning processes, and promote agreement and cooperation possibilities.

Cerlalc:

• Advises and provides technical assistance to iberoamerican governments in the design and application of policies, projects and programs for promoting reading, books and copyrights.  
• Develops mechanisms that enable and optimize horizontal cooperation among member countries in areas related to its mission goals.
• Supports structuring of regulatory policies and instruments related to reading, writing, libraries, books and their free circulation, and copyrights.  
• Promotes agreement among involved stakeholders and promotes actions to strengthen the institutional character of accountable agencies.
• Performs specialized studies and research on national policies on reading and writing, library systems, book promotion and trade, regulations, comparative law and copyrights, with the aim of guiding decision making relative to public policy design.
• Provides specialized training programs intended for booksellers, editors, librarians, promoters, reading intermediaries and various agents involved in the protection and dissemination of books, reading and copyrights.