Some 80,000 people in Belgium officially speak German and live in East Belgium, where they enjoy independence in various sectors of public life, including education, culture and the media.
Language is an important factor in protecting the identity of German-speaking Belgians. Libraries, reading culture and language tuition are requested and promoted.
The East Belgian Media Centre is the strategic partner of several institutions and initiatives promoting reading within Belgium, but also in neighbouring countries, for instance in Luxembourg and France on the one side, and the Netherlands and Germany on the other.
Many projects for promoting reading are organised each year for schools and all population groups, often covering the whole region. A network of libraries provides good and low-cost access to the media for all citizens.
