the organisation dates back to its opening in 1949 as the cultural and information centres (cis) in sofia and warsaw. in the eastern bloc, further cis offices were opened in budapest (1953), berlin (1955) and bucharest (1981). in 1993, the organisation's name was changed from the cultural and information centres to czech centres and the range of operations was expanded to encompass exports and tourism with new offices opened outside of central and eastern europe.