30 August 2006
IFLA, UNESCO FORM ALLIANCE TO MEET WSIS GOALS
The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) has formed a strategic alliance with UNESCO to help meet the goals of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) action plan.
The partners will establish a multi-year strategic plan of cooperation to implement parts of the action plan that pertain to libraries.
The WSIS plan, adopted by the U.N. in 2003, recognises the importance of libraries in ensuring access to information and knowledge and in preserving cultural and linguistic diversity. The plan seeks to extend the benefits of Internet and digital technologies to poor countries that cannot afford them.
One aspect of the IFLA/UNESCO alliance will be on developing new digital library services that could result in setting up a universal digital library that would be accessible from anywhere in the world.
For more information, visit:
- IFLA: http://www.ifla.org/index.htm
- IFLA/UNESCO Public Library Manifesto: http://www.ifla.org/VII/s8/unesco/eng.htm
- UNESCO: http://tinyurl.com/kt5ps
- WSIS: http://www.itu.int/wsis/index.html
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