Lazio Region allocates €25M for culture amid pandemic

The Lazio Region has announced a €25 million emergency plan to support cultural sectors during the COVID-19 crisis, covering live performance, museums, cinemas, and bookstores. The first measure, issued on April 29, allocates €1 million to help private theaters pay rent for March–June 2020, making Lazio the first Italian region to do so. Applications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis via LAZIOcrea, with responses within a week. Next week, over €8 million will be released for renovation of cultural spaces (€5.2 million) and operational support for museums, libraries, archives, and ecomuseums (€3 million+), ahead of the planned reopening on May 18. By mid-May, a package will support cinema rent payments. Summer initiatives may include drive-ins and open-air venues. For independent bookstores, a €500,000 emergency fund and a voucher scheme for Lazio Youth Card holders (10,000 cards worth €10 each) are being designed. The region also continues to support film production through its Regional Cinema Fund and European co-productions. Chief of Staff Albino Ruberti emphasized the goal of preserving both public and private cultural energies for the restart phase.