National Library Associations

National Library Association "Libraries of the Future" is a voluntary, membership-based association of legal entities and     citizens interested in supporting libraries and developing librarianship. Its members are institutions (27) and individuals (5).

Association Of School Librarians of the Russian World represents the interests of the largest library network in Russia, uniting over 46 thousand school librarians. The mission of the Association is to combine Russian cultural and intellectual resources furthering the development of Russian school libraries as educational and community centres for children and youth. The goal of the Association is to expand the role that school libraries play in society, as well as to provide social and professional protection for school librarians.

Russian Association of Electronic Libraries represents the Russian community of developers of electronic libraries and promotes the interdisciplinary discussion of the issues related to uploading documents online; assists the government in developing e-document policies; mediates Russia's integration into the global e-document environment. It has 18 membres, including 12 organisations and 6 individuals.

"Raising Readers": the main goal of the Association is to create an efficient and creative information centre, coordinating the efforts of professionals who implement a common policy encouraging children to read. One of the priorities is to establish cooperation between the members of the Association in order to expand the reach of projects aimed at creative development of the younger generation of Russians.

NALIP Goals are:

• To promote the profession of librarianship and bring to the forefront the value of information in nation building.
• To provide ongoing informational forum for people with common interest of all information related entities and professionals
• To advise and assist as necessary in implementation of programs and activities related to design, development and use of libraries and information related systems.
• To encourage and assist in development of its members to achieve relevant and required knowledge and skills to facilitate efficiency and effectiveness in the management of libraries and information resource centres and delivery of library services and other information.
• To promote the professional development of members, supporting and encouraging education, stimulating research, developing public awareness and exchanging professional information.
• To facilitate ethics, leadership and career growth of members.
• To play a pivotal role in advancement of national library and information managements in adherence to international standards, policies and applications.

Currently the membership is very small, less than 10 active members for 2019/2020. Some of the main areas of concern for the organisation include increasing membership of the Association, advocacy for the profession and libraries with stakeholders, and rallying for review and update of library legislation.

The Library Association of Singapore (LAS) is the national organization representing the interests of library and information professionals in Singapore. Membership comprises professional librarians as well as others who are interested in library and information work. LAS has about 400 members comprising  various membership such as Professional members, Associate Members, Institutional members, and Life members. LAS provides opportunities for networking, professional advancement and sharing of latest developments through its publications, talks, visits, conferences, training courses and social activities.

Suriname does not have a national Library. The Foundation NDS acts like an association without members. All activities are focused on the Surinamese library field. The NDS mobilizes the libraries to contribute to the online database of Suriname data and also organizes educational activities such as lecturers and training for professional development. Some of the major activities include:

• Launch of the online database "Nationale Database Suriname" (2005)
• Implementation of training programme "Library Assistant" (2010)
• Hosting the 45th ACURIL Conference (the Association of Caribbean University, Research and Institutional Libraries, ACURIL); Suriname filled the chairpersonship 2014-2015 (President ACURIL 2014-2015)
• Establishing the Regional Library Association (2015)
• Establishing the Library School Suriname (2020)

The Emirates Library and Information Association is a non-profit national association in the United Arab Emirates that is concerned with the affairs of libraries, information, documentation, archives, manuscripts, and their employees. The Association’s role is to improve and develop the professional and technical level of library workers, and to hold seminars, conferences, and training courses to encourage and disseminate research related to libraries and information. Its role is also to participate in the development of policies, standards, and specifications to help develop the performance of libraries and information centres. Moreover, it is also to strengthen relations and cooperation between libraries and information centres and provide necessary technical consultations.

CILIP is the UK's library and information association. Their purpose is to "unite, support and empower information professionals in all sectors". Their work is defined around four 'strategic' contexts (Environmental Sustainability, Digital Transformation, Equity and Social Justice and Leadership) and their strategic plan 'We Are CILIP' sets out 4 key roles:

• Recognition (professional certification and qualifications),
• Expertise (skills standards, training and professional development),
• Representation (advocacy, media, political lobbying),
• Community (networking, knowledge exchange)

CILIP has around 10,000 members from nearly 20 sectors, with the majority coming from University and Health libraries.

The School Library Association is an independent association which works to ensure that every school in England has access to a dedicated (or shared) library space, for the benefit of children and young people.

Uzbekistan currently has no library association functioning at the national level.

Main objectives of LIAZ are: 1) To unite all persons interested and engaged in library, documentation and information science by such means as conferences, seminars, meetings and symposia, and to promote research.  2) To improve all standards of librarianship, documentation, bibliography and information work in Zambia.  3) To advise and lobby government on issues relating to library and information services in Zambia. Currently it has 150 - 200 members.  LIAZ aims to promote professional capacity development of librarians in Zambia, facilitate the provision of relevant library services, and to advocate for library legislation.