International Children's Book Day 2026 celebrated in Paphos

On April 2, 2026, the official celebration of International Children's Book Day took place at the Attikon Cultural Center in Paphos. Organized by the Cyprus Association of Books for Young People (Cyprus IBBY) in collaboration with the Paphos Municipality, the event highlighted Cyprus's role as the host nation for this year's global initiative. Cyprus was responsible for the official international message and poster, a responsibility held for the first time in 43 years. The central theme of the campaign, which reached 85 countries, is 'Plant stories and the world will bloom.' The project featured the message written by Elena Perikleous and illustrations by Sandra Eleftheriou, selected for the first time by students from 19 schools. Speakers included Dr. Christina Christodoulou, President of Cyprus IBBY, and George Pitros of the Paphos Municipal Culture Committee. Additionally, the Deputy Ministry of Culture hosted a press conference featuring Deputy Minister Lina Kassianidou and Commissioner for the Protection of Children's Rights Elena Perikleous to discuss the strategy for promoting child literacy. International Children's Book Day was established in 1967 to honor the legacy of Hans Christian Andersen.