Bulgarian library system

Bulgaria has a well-developed system of libraries. In the year of 2000 there are 6,942 libraries of different kinds: - Public libraries are most of them – 3877 - 2599 are school libraries - 381 are special libraries - university libraries are 84 of number. All these libraries own approximately 96 million documents and serve 1,8 million users.

After the Liberation (1878) the state has not established a parallel network of libraries, but fully depends on the libraries of the chitalishta.

During the period of socialism (1944-1989) a part of libraries at the chitalishta have been transformed into municipal libraries (including 27 district libraries).
With the changes in society that started in the beginning of the 1990s, Bulgarian libraries followed the tendencies of de-ideologization, modernization and technological renovation. In 2000 11 district libraries are transformed into regional libraries.

By law, the Ministry of Culture coordinates the national public library policy, but without adequate funding it is not in a position to carry out a consistent government strategy for the library sector.
A number of documents - the Bulgarian constitution and legislation, as well as government programs, information society and e-government strategies, guarantee free access to public information and define the role of libraries in the dialogue between governments and citizens.
At the same time, funding for public libraries is far from needed - there is almost no central government funding, and municipalities can provide only small part of the necessary resources from their very restricted budgets. That makes library development extremely difficult and very slow.

Internet resources
Government information
National Assembly
Council of Ministers
National Strategy for Information Society Development and Program for Development of the Information Society in Bulgaria
E-Government Strategy
Access to Public Information Act

Most of Bulgarian libraries have already maintained automated catalogs of books, periodicals and other special collections. A telecommunication link between public libraries on the local and the national level is still not established. Because of lack of funds and insufficient equipment only a few public libraries have Internet services for their users.

In 2003, Bulgaria already has its first community information centers with their doors wide open to local populations, providing in the spirit of democracy, equal access to up-to-date national and local government information in response to the urgent needs of their communities for such information in support of community, local business development personal development.

Undoubtedly nothing could have happened and will not happen without the exceptional efforts of our librarians - devoted professionals who understand the key role of public libraries in democratic society.

Organized in our library association, the Union of Librarians and Information Service Officers in Bulgaria, established in 1990, Bulgarian librarians work for the formation of a national library-information policy providing for an improved access to information.
More information: www.lib.bg (ULISO)

Bulgarian librarians learn from the experience of their European and American colleagues and have been and are active participants in several international projects. Some of them are:
www.pulmanweb.org
www.eblida.org
Sister Libraries, Campaign for the World's Libraries, etc.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND PARTICIPATION THROUGH THE CHITALISHTE NETWORK (“Chitalishte”)
Project site: 300 locations in Bulgaria
Funding: United Nations Development Program (UNDP), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), MATRA Program of the Netherlands government
The goal - to strengthen the community role of the Chitalishta as traditional cultural and educational centers and offer working models for their participation in local community development.
Results: 25 Internet Centers throughout Bulgaria provide Internet access for communities
The Centers for Administrative Services provide easy access to local government information and organize seminars to help both citizens and local government officials know more about how and where to find latest legislations and regulations they need.
Most of those centers have been established and operate within or with the support of the Chitalishte libraries.
More information: www.chitalishte.bg

OLD VARNA PROJECT
A good project is going on between Varna Regional Library, Varna State Archive and Varna Regional Museum and VASSAN Media for creating a historical chronicle of Varna available in the web site of the Regional Library.
More information: www.libvar.bg

INFORMATION CENTER of the Central Library of Sofia
Mission of the project is to create new services for the citizens relevant to the information society technologies.
More information: www.libsofia.bg

KIDS ON THE WEB – PROJECT OF DOBRICH MUNICIPALITY LIBRARY
The idea - to draw in the children to the modern means of communications and information, to introduce and joint them to the opportunities of the world wide web for making contacts and for searching information in according to educational standards and programs.
More information: www.libdgabe.dobrich.net

LIBRARY SERVICES FOR DISABLED PEOPLE
Several libraries are extending their services and have already created possibilities for the visually impaired and the disabled to access information through traditional resources or via the Internet. Those are the libraries in Pazardzhik, Dobritch, Stara Zagora and Kurdzhali where at least one of the workstations is specially equipped for use from the visually impaired.