TEHRAN –The north-central Iranian city of Semnan was selected as the eighth Iranian capital of book during a ceremony in Tehran on Tuesday. 

The ceremony was attended by Iran's Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad-Mehdi Esmaeili, IRNA reported on Wednesday. 

Semnan was introduced as Iran's capital of books due to the maximum attention of its management organizations and people, as well as presenting creative plans and programs, the report added. 

It was decided during the event that due to the important features of four other candidate cities, namely Evaz, Sabzevar, Shahinshahr and Karaj, a ceremony will be held to appreciate their respective characteristics.

Among the candidate cities, Evaz in Fars province was considered worth appreciation for its public activities and attracting grassroots participation.

Shahinshahr in Isfahan province was appreciated for its active urban management in the field of books and allocating maximum facilities to organizations.

Sabzevar in Khorasan Razavi was recognized for its efforts to promote the discourse of the Islamic Revolution and introduce good books.

Karaj in Alborz province, was appreciated for its efforts to promote reading skills and design creative programs in the field of reading skills.

SAB/