ISLAMABAD: The Portuguese embassy has set up a ‘Camoes Corner’ at the National Book Foundation.

Portuguese High Commissioner Joao Paulo Sabido Costa and National History and Literary Heritage Division Secretary Aamir Hassan attended the opening ceremony of Camoes Corner, which is named after the national poet of Portugal Luis Vas de Camoes. According to a press release, a number of people attended the event.

Speaking at the opening, Mr Costa said Camoes Corner has been designed in the shape of an arch, and consists of books by Camoes and other famous Portuguese writers.

“This corner will definitely play a vital role and be a cause of close friendly cultural and literary relations between both countries,” he said.

Mr Hassan praised the efforts of the National Book Foundation in promoting a culture of book reading.

As part of the foundation’s efforts to inculcate book culture and promote books among people, the foundation’s managing director Dr Inamul Haq Javed said it will also establish corners named after “eminent poets and writers of our brotherly Islamic and other friendly countries”.

He said the Nazami Ganjvi corner was set up in the name of the Azerbaijani poet in 2014, followed by the Hafiz Shirazi Corner named after the Persian poet of Iran.

Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2017