Second edition of the International Literature Festival opens in Podgorica

The second edition of the International Literature Festival “Podgorica 2026” was solemnly opened today on the city’s main square, as Dan reports.

The Capital’s secretary for culture, Lina Lakiq, in her welcoming speech to the guests stressed the undisputed power of the book as a source of information and knowledge, noting that the task of the Literature Festival is to foster the development of the reading public and reading culture, and to encourage young people to write and create. “In the Capital, the book leads!” she declared, announcing the festival open.

The festival’s artistic director, Aleksandar Çukoviq, said that at a time when the world seems reduced to algorithms, the square turns into an oasis of freedom. “The festival proves once again an important truth: the book, as you see, has never left the centre,” he assessed at the opening, inviting citizens to make the square in the coming days a shared open-air reading room under the stars.

At the opening, a letter from the minister of culture and media, Tamara Vujoviq, was also read, in which she expressed joy at the diversity of this year’s programme and the participation of cultural institutions, libraries, domestic and foreign publishers, authors of different generations and readers.

The Italian ambassador to Montenegro, Laura Egoli, said that a book can be a deeply personal experience, but also an occasion to meet and exchange views; she stressed that Italy’s participation this year is presented through different languages of expression: literature, language, photography, sport and the sea.

The second edition will run until 4 October and will bring, during the six festival days, over 40 different programmes dedicated to literature, books and contemporary cultural creativity; the fair part will be open every day from 11:00 to 21:00 and entry for all visitors is free.