20-24 septembrie 2009 - Biblioteca Metropolitana Bucuresti

The world changes… so the library changes... 359of course!). Reading Aloud Days for pre-school children, and the ReadingAloud Competition for schoolchildren are other examples of cooperationnationally.Through the provincial library support centres an intensive expeditionof library materials throughout the country, e.g. for interlibrary loan,exhibitions etc. has created a strong logistic network. Newer policies, e.g.in the field of lifelong learning are developed in cooperation with nationalpartners in the field of jobseeking and – counselling, cooperation withadult education and educational television. All those activities require andadequate library structure.Bibliotheekvernieuwing: restructuring and innovationBased on an advice from the Council for Culture and a governmentreport (Meijerreport), a restructuring of library organizations was startedin 2000, taking a different shape in each province. The original idea ofupscaling was to create larger library organisations, called ’base libraries’,going beyond municipal/local authority boundaries. In this way, it wasbelieved that library organisations would improve professionalism,specialisation and have the necessary scale for the new informationinfrastructure. Libraries have made up their own provincial network planand receive support from their provincial authority. This means there isa variety in structural provincial co-operation and development: at thenational level, the three government levels have signed a contract (2003)and annex (2004) to cooperate for the new structure.The Minister of Education set the tone with his Perspective report for2003-2007: More than the sum:At the end of 2001, the library sector, the IPO [Association of ProvincialAuthorities], the VNG [Association of Netherlands Municipalities] andthe State started an innovation process so that the library can retain andstrengthen its pivotal role in the cultural infrastructure and in the knowledgesociety. (…) I am able to promise a considerable financial contributionfrom the intensification resources for the policy area of Education, Cultureand Science which can increase from two million in 2004 to an amount oftwenty million in 2007 and beyond. Among other things, this money willbe used to develop new products at national level, for example in the areaof IT. The funding will also be used to encourage best practices and toimplement a quality care system for the library system. (…) My aim is tohave a revitalised system by the end of 2008, from both the quality-contentand organisational perspectives (p. 17)