The eastern Chinese city of Wuxi is the latest centre to get on board a countrywide campaign to reward bookshops in a drive to promote reading and culture.

The government of Wuxi in Jiangsu province named seven bookshops that will each receive a grant of 30,000 yuan (US$4,500), mainland media reported on Thursday.

The campaign was launched in June 2016 and had been rolled out in metropolises such as Beijing and Shanghai, as well as smaller cities like Suining in Sichuan province, news website Thepaper.cn reported.

According to the central government’s directive, bookshops that have a “positive influence” on the city’s cultural and literary scene are eligible for the grants, and can nominate themselves based on operational ability, reputation and efforts to promote reading. A committee set up by the local government then draws up a shortlist and vets outstanding nominations.

Librairie Avant-Garde, Baicaoyuan and the state-owned Xinhua Bookstore are among the seven from Wuxi to be recognised in the city’s first such list, according to the city’s official WeChat account.