Babiš's government wants to support the project of the Olomouc SEFO

The SEFO project was confirmed by the representatives of the Visegrád Group countries with their signatures in Olomouc in 2008. The architecturally bold building was intended to showcase modern works from all over Central Europe; in the back, a garden with sculptures and archaeological finds was planned, and the museum was also meant to include an international research center. The Prime Minister today called the project unique and stated that the government wants to support it. "I asked the director to outline the funding needs. We will place the project in the same category as the (Prague) Invalidovna. It is certainly important, and I am taking it on as my own," Babiš said today in response to a question from ČTK.

He also pointed out that the current mayor of Olomouc, Antonín Staněk, has been nominated for the position of Minister of Culture in the next government by the ČSSD. "There is a clear positive conflict of interest in that. He will certainly monitor it, and I will help him," added Babiš.

According to the director of the Museum of Art, Soukup, the most painful threat in the case of postponing the project is the loss of international prestige. "The project has been known for at least ten years in Central Europe; many collection items have been supplemented by gifts from artists with the understanding that they will be exhibited in the Central European Forum. That prestige is important for us," he told ČTK today. He stated that delaying the construction also complicates the museum's activities. "We have full depots and no place to put collections; we cannot process them, photograph them safely, or invite researchers," he said. Over the past ten years, the museum has purchased items worth one hundred million crowns and still has them in storage.

"We have been waiting all this time for the project to secure financing. In two cases, in 2011 and then in 2016, we tried to obtain financial resources from the European Union, which was unsuccessful. In 2016, it was decided that the only option to finance it is the state budget, as we are a state institution," added Soukup.

According to the project's creators, it is one of the most ambitious post-war projects of Czech museology. However, the design of the SEFO building at the time of its inception divided the Olomouc public due to its futuristic appearance. The new central depot is expected to accommodate up to 200,000 works of art. The Museum of Art currently owns 90,860 collection items with a market value of approximately two billion crowns.