Library associations: The appeal of the President of the Russian Library Association to the 20th anniversary of its creation

At the website of the Russian Library Association is published an appeal by V. R. Firsov, President of the RBA to mark the 20th anniversary of its creation.

The Russian Library Association (RLA) is the largest library of socio-professional association of Russia. Members of the RLA are libraries of all levels, types and specializations, library societies and associations, educational institutions, as well as partners of libraries and other organizations contributing to the development of library science and culture in general. Geographical coverage of the RBA is 80 of regions of Russia.

The Russian Library Association (RLA) was founded on October 28, 1994 in Moscow at the initiative of the General Director of the National Library of Russia, the first president of the RLA V. N. Zaitsev, which was supported by the representatives of 19 public and professional associations of librarians.

May 23, 1995 in St. Petersburg was signed a Memorandum of the RLA. Founders were 30 federal and regional libraries and public associations. On the same day were confirmed the Charter of the RLA and powers of the personal workers of the RLA Council, elected in October 1994, for the period 1995-1998. Certificate of state registration of the Charter of the RLA was issued by the Registration Chamber of St. Petersburg on November 4, 1995.

The official publication of the RLA is "Newsletter of the RLA", the Association has an official website. RLA is engaged in publishing, producing monographs, manuals, studies, proceedings, etc.

In the address of the President of the RLA, in part: "… I see this anniversary - the 20th anniversary of the RLA - as an excuse to take a look at our social movement and activities of our association…

During the whole year will be held events to mark the anniversary of the RLA, and the culmination of the celebration will be the All-Russian Library Congress: the XX Anniversary Annual Conference of the RLA in Samara…

I want to mention another important event of our anniversary year. The Russian Library Association and the National Library of Russia with the support of the Minister of Culture of Russia V. R. Medinsky and the St. Petersburg Governor G. S. Poltavchenko last year submitted a bid to host the World Library and Information Congress – the IFLA General Conference in 2017 in St. Petersburg. We passed two rounds of the competition and reached the final. In February this year the IFLA delegation visited St. Petersburg, the final decision will be adopted in April as well as the city that will host the IFLA Congress in 2017. I have reason to hope that we will win, - and this will be a new stage in the development of our Association in cooperation with IFLA".