Opening Ceremony Biblioteca de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico

Good evening to all

It is a pleasure for us to receive representatives of 64 countries, who are attending this 34 International IBBY Congress. We give you a very warm welcome. We also welcome all members of our Executive Committee and each one of the representatives of the national sections of IBBY. Welcome to the teachers, reading promoters and friends of IBBY Mexico. Welcome all of you!

This Congress was thought about and planned as a space to exchange opinions, experiences and investigations about the issue of reading as an inclusive experience.

The Congress slogan “May everyone really mean everyone” is inscribed in the essence of the founding principles of IBBY, and the message of our founder Jella Lepman, who at the Inauguration Congress of our association in Zurich 1953, talked about international understanding through children and youth’s literature. This was the basis to form our international collective.

This is why it has been so exciting for us to work in the planning of this Congress and we are very confident that it will be fructiferous for all.

Mexico is in the process of a deep educative reform which will transform public education in our country. Among the many positive attributes that this reform embraces, is the opening of opportunities for civil society and the authorities to work together in issues such as reading and inclusion, which are precisely the themes of this Congress.

The presence of Minister Chuayffet here today, is a remarkable proof of this open dialogue between the educative sector and the social civil organizations which, like ours, are committed to contribute to this important task. IBBY Mexico has been fortunate to be able to maintain a positive and continuous dialogue with authorities in matters of education and we hope that we will continue working in the same way.

Moving now to the International ambit, I would like to take the opportunity of being on this tribune to propose something that we think is relevant for our Organization: humbly, but assertively, we want to invite IBBY to transform ours, into a more powerful Institution at a global level.

We firmly think that the experiences and ways of working of the 74 countries that integrate it have to become an influence in every society and government of these countries around the world. Let us imagine an IBBY which maintains dialogue with all sectors of our planet, private, public, social and international organisms in order to increase the number of readers who will contribute to create a much more just, equitable and inclusive world.

I want to thank the trust and support that the Ministry of Public Education has given us, and specially mention de backup and determined support of CONACULTA, that has been a very valuable ally during this last months.  To CONAPRED and Fundación SM our sincere and deep gratitude.

I also thank the Technical Committee for their valuable participation in the planning of the academic activities, and the Science Committee for their professionalism and thoughtfulness at the selection of the lectures in the parallel sessions.

Finally, I thank in a very special way the IBBY Mexico’s operative team for their devotion and commitment to get to this day in which we proudly welcome our guests, as we do in Mexico: with open arms.

We are sure that your stay in our country will be very pleasant and we are certain that we all will be enriched with our participation on this Congress.

Thank you very much