Francophone Book Space aims to meet readers' needs relating to learning and researching documents in French. Photo toquoc.vn

HÀ NỘI  Many rare French books on the cultures and peoples of French-speaking countries are being exhibited at the Francophone Book Space in Hà Nội.

Launched by the National Library of Việt Nam (NLV) in collaboration with the International Organisation of Francophonie (OIF), the space aims to meet readers' needs relating to learning and researching documents in French.

According to the organisers, over 600 French books, supported by OIF, will be included in Hà Nội’s Francophone Book Space. Half of them are on social sciences, economics, education, languages, exact sciences, applied sciences, healthcare, agriculture, arts, sports, literature, and reference books. The remainder are children’s books.

The space features many valuable works like La Théo des Fleuves (The Theory of Rivers) by Jean-Marc Turine who has won OIF’s “Prix des 5 Continents'', a tribute to the richness of the French language and to the vast cultural diversity of which it is a reflection. He is also the author of many children’s favourite comic series.

Some of the books exhibited at Francophone Book Space in the National Library of Việt Nam. Photo toquoc.vn

Similar spaces will also be opened in the provinces of Hải Phòng, Quảng Ninh, Nghệ An, Khánh Hòa, Lâm Đồng, Cần Thơ, Bến Tre, and Bình Dương.

According to Kiều Thúy Nga, NLV director, the establishment of the Francophone Book Space at the NLV and eight libraries nationwide will provide useful knowledge for Vietnamese people in the fields of culture, society, science and technology of the Francophone community.

Trần Thị Mai Yến, acting chief representative of the OIF in the Asia-Pacific region, said she believed that the spaces will help promote French in Việt Nam, for the benefit of learners, teachers and people who love the language.

With nearly 6,000 works by authors from many French-speaking countries, the Francophone Book Spaces are hoped to contribute to enriching the existing books of these libraries, she added.

Initiated in 2012, OIF’s Francophone Book Space project aims to strengthen the public library network in Francophone countries by sponsoring French books.

Prior to Việt Nam, it has been launched in Ghana, Seychelles, Guinea and Armenia. VNS