National Policies

The goals of the state cultural policy are: 1) acknowledgement of culture as means for development by the society, 2) search for new values and new ideas, 3) creation of conditions for reproduction and development of the society's creative potential, 4) formation of the civil society  The law, among other branches, includes libraries, archives and publishing industries.

The Strategy aims to ensure access to life long learning (LLL) forms through libraries, that are focused on new target groups - especially those with specific needs and those residing in remote locations. Public libraries are seen as well-established centers for informal and self-learning and, because of their recognition as centers of digital literacy training, among others, they are regarded as a proactive factor in the implementation of LLL initiatives to community benefit. The strategy also focuses on the modernization of school libraries into an attractive multifunctional spaces within the school environment – a place for reading, social events and contacts.

The Strategy highlights the role of reading and the role of libraries in improving literacy. Public libraries are included with programs to promote reading and to provide access to books for socially disadvantaged people. There are provisions for enrichment of the library collections,  creation  of conditions for use of materials on electronic media, free access to public libraries for the socially disadvantaged, etc.

Libraries are mentioned in two places in this Strategy. First, as a positive example of respect for the rights of disadvantaged people, quoting the Public Libraries Act (2009), which contains a specific text obligating libraries to provide an accessible environment and the necessary conditions for the use of library materials by persons with disabilities. Measures in respect of libraries and chitalishte provide for methodological assistance to improve accessibility in these institutions.

The Strategy shows alarming data about the decline in reading interest, with every fifth youngster having no books at home. The second strategic objective calls for the improvement of access to information and quality services for young people. The specific library-related tasks here are improving the access of young people to the Internet and digital content in public libraries in Bulgaria.

There are no national policy documents for libraries in Canada.

Policy is defined around two fundamental axis: access and memory which materializes in the Public Library System and the Heritage Libraries System. Its principal aim is to garanty the possibilities of access to all people to reading and information, and knowledge production without any barrier, as well as to retrieve, conserve, organise, control, and access bibliographic and documentary heritage. It integrates actors from national, departamental and municipal government, universities and research groups, librarians, non-governmental entities, etc. In addition, Colombia has other plans which support and consolidate the policy.

This document sets out the relevant rules, at ministerial level, to encourage the reading process at national level. In addition, it enhances language skills and makes it possible to strengthen the development of writing in the student community.

The plan establishes objectives, strategies and financing models for  development and  modernisation of libraries of the educational sector (transforming libraries into resource centres for learning).

The purpose of a national information policy is the access and optimal use of specialized and professional knowledge, scientific, technical, social and economic information, and techniques developed or available in the country, as a resource to solve development problems in all sectors of the society. The set of guidelines and guidelines that guide the preparation of planned actions, aimed at guaranteeing universal access to information for the realization of all kinds of activities (social, economic and political), arose in Cuba in the 1960s. Cuban libraries are part of the national information policy as holders and providers of information for free to all the population, they are one of the main institutions offering information, together with the archives and other institutions.

The Strategy evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of library activities, identifies threats to the system of libraries if it does not sufficiently reflect the changing social demand, and it actively uses the potential of the opportunities offered to the libraries. The Strategy represents the priority areas to ensure the future development of libraries.

This Strategy is a follow-up to the document The Strategy for the Development of Libraries in the Czech Republic for 2017–2020. The Strategy formulates the basic vision of the development of the library system within the three basic pillars: Libraries as pillars of civil society and natural centres of communities, Libraries as educational and training supporting institutions and Libraries as administrators of cultural and knowledge wealth.