Mrs. Mubarak speaks on library expansion effort in Egypt
Egypt, Education, 4/29/2002

The Egypt's First Lady Suzanne Mubarak, head of the Integrated Care Society, said that the society began this year a new stage of surging forward to wider horizons by launching giant projects, including the Maadi Library, the largest cultural project, which represents a new giant edifice to be added to the edifices set up by the society and present a unique model of distinguished library services.

The Maadi Public Library will be opened in June. Its opening, Mrs. Mubarak said, realizes a new dream which becomes true as part of cultural action and voluntary work which governs the work of the society.

Mrs. Mubarak was speaking at a meeting of the Board of the Maadi Library at its premises in Maadi, south of Cairo, at the end of a tour of inspection made by Mrs. Mubarak Sunday, the third in a series of visits which Mrs. Mubarak is making to follow up work in equipping the library.

Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak said that the march to set up libraries began 20 years ago by setting up school libraries in popular densely-populated areas.

This was followed by building libraries in larger populated areas. "Today we reach the stage of giant projects which reflect the development of the work of the society in keeping with our ambitions to launch cultural projects on the lines of the Maadi Library," Mrs. Mubarak said.

Mrs. Mubarak said that the Maadi Public Library will be a cultural centre and a centre for all activities at which seminars will be held and artistic and theatrical performanceswill be shown.

The library will try to satisfy the cultural tastes of all ages, children, youth and the elderly, and those with special needs.

She said that the Library has a theater which will present distinguished works for the inhabitants of Maadi and will help discover talents.

The Maadi Library will serve neighbouring areas and will reach shanty towns. The services of the library will be extended to the residents of these areas at the places of their residence for one year.

After that they will be amalgamated in the various activities of the library. Mrs. Mubarak asked that small exhibitions be arranged at the lounge of the library every three months.

The Maadi Public Library was built on an area of 4500 square metres. It is surrounded by a 3,000 square metre garden.

It has a children's section which accommodates 110 children. The library displays about 200,000 titles in the various branches of knowledge, arts and literature which serve all members of the family.

It is equipped with a data base and a hall for seminars and conferences and a workshop.

The theater will present distinguished shows and opera works. The Opera House will present operas during a day of the week which will be devoted to this purpose.

The first floor houses three halls for computers for children and two halls for adults in addition to an Internet cafe.

The second floor has a hall for adults which accommodates 110 people and a hall for periodicals and another hall for various purposes.

The Maadi Public Library was built with self-efforts under the supervision of the Integrated Care Society. It is one of the largest libraries in Cairo.

Mrs. Mubarak had laid the foundation-stone of the library in 2000.

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