Argentina will host in 2019 the International Congress on the Spanish Language

Ministers Avelluto and Santos announce the election of Córdoba./ Photo: www.turismo.gov.ar

The Diplomat. 14/10/2016

The Argentinian city of Córdoba has been selected to be the venue of the 8^th International Congress on the Spanish Language in 2019, after overcoming the cities of Arequipa (Peru) and Málaga. The last edition in Argentina took place in the city of Rosario in 2004.

The announcement was made at the beginning of October by the ministers of Culture, Pablo Avelluto, and Tourism, Gustavo Santos, during the closing session of the 21^st International Tourism Fair in La Rural, at the fairground of Buenos Aires, according to information provided by the website of the respective Ministries.

The election of Córdoba was communicated to the Argentinian Ministry of Tourism by the director of the Cervantes Institute, Víctor de la Concha, through a letter, in which it was pointed out that, “once all the candidatures have been assessed and after consulting in the academic order of the Spanish Royal Academy, which has also collected the opinion of the members of the Association of Language Academies”, “an agreement has been reached, according to which the 8^th International Congress on the Spanish Language will be held in 2019 in the Argentinian city of Córdoba”.

The election was transmitted by Víctor de la Concha to the Argentinian Ministry of Tourism

“I am very excited and glad, because we are going to be together for the most important event of our language, which is the main heritage that all of us have in common, which includes very different geographies and millions of Spanish speakers”, Avelluto declared. “The Congress will allow attracting thousands of travellers”, Santos affirmed. “The business tourist spends three times as much as a conventional tourist”, he added.

The seventh edition of the International Congress on the Spanish Language, held in Puerto Rico in March, was attended by almost 10,000 people and more than 250 accredited media of 10 nationalities.

The International Congress on the Spanish Language is organized by the Cervantes Institute, the Spanish Royal Academy and the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language, with the collaboration of the Spanish Government. This International Congress takes place every three years and, so far, it has been held in Zacatecas (Mexico), Valladolid, Rosario, Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), Valparaíso (Chile), Panama City and Puerto Rico.