"In the information society, where freedom of expression and freedom of information become increasingly dependent on the access to information and communication technologies, libraries can play a central role in ensuring that all people enjoy these freedoms" said today UNESCO’s Henrikas Yushkiavitshus at the opening of the 65th IFLA General Conference in Bangkok, Thailand. The Conference of the International Federation of Library associations and institutions (IFLA) is under the theme "Libraries as gateways to an enlightened world". The Conference, which runs until 28 October, is a world forum for library and information professionals to both retrospectively assess their roles and contributions to the building of 20th century progress, and to solve the negative problems which occurred almost parallel to the developments. At the same time, librarians will look at the possibilities for turning the challenges and crises of the outgoing century into opportunities in the 21st century Thai Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Patron of the Thai Library Association, said that " There is no denying that academic knowledge and general information are essential elements and motivating forces for all activities directed towards prosperity, peace, intellectual and scientific inventions, aesthetic creation and appreciation, mutual understanding of culture and religion, and the eradication of ignorance, injustice and poverty " She added . " Now is the time to decide on appropriate programme activities to fulfill the ultimate goal of library and information professionals wordwide: Information for All - All for Information " Text of the Opening Speech of Henrikas Yushkiavitshus Official Conference Website   Address by Mr Henrikas Yushkiavitshus Assistant Director-General for Communication, Information and Informatics (UNESCO) at the opening session of the 65th IFLA Council and General Conference Bangkok, 23 August 1999   Your Royal Highness, Madame la Présidente, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is an honour and pleasure for me to convey to you all the good wishes for success of the Director-General of UNESCO on the occasion of the 65th IFLA Council and General Conference. My pleasure is all the greater since this IFLA Conference is taking place, for the first time, in Thailand, a country so rich in culture and tradition and where there is so much to see and learn. This year's theme 'Libraries as gateways to an enlightened world' seems to me of fundamental importance, UNESCO's General Information Programme is now trying to go in the same direction. Information generates knowledge. In the emerging information society, in a world where knowledge and the lack of it can make a tremendous difference, information has been described as the missing link between prosperity and poverty and between ignorance and enlightenment. Information is valued as a strategic resource, a basic ingredient for economic and human development, and libraries, supported by new information technologies, have a key role to play in providing universal and instant access to information. Libraries, traditionally viewed as repositories of books and documents, are more and more seen as critical intermediaries in ordering and ensuring effective access to the vast stores of information. Access to information builds opportunities for openness, collaboration, respect for justice and the rule of law. This conference will provide an excellent opportunity to compare and share experiences and draw lessons from achievements and roles performed by libraries facing the challenge of change, the challenge for improving living conditions all over the world. In industrialized countries there is an abundance of libraries of all sorts and funding for these institutions is relatively plentiful. Libraries in most developing countries are, however, facing many obstacles. Economic constraints include a lack of funds to buy books and journals coupled with the generally rising cost of publications. There is usually also a scarcity of trained staff. Another fundamental problem affecting developing country libraries and information centres is their isolation from other libraries at home and abroad. Finally political impediments are also prevalent with many governments inadequately sensitized to the to need to improve library systems and services. Regretfully, the importance of libraries is not always reflected in national policies. It seems that some ministers have used libraries to become ministers and when they became ministers, they forgot about libraries. In many developing countries access to libraries has been very limited for much of the public, especially rural populations. And where public libraries do exist, they are often based on the European model of leisure reading rather than targeting development needs such as education and literacy, agriculture, health, and local entrepreneurship. This situation contributes to keeping the demand for information relatively small and thus accentuates the problem of low levels of production of information, which in turn increases the expense and reduces the relevance of local library holdings. This tendency is seen for example from the fact that in 1996 the number of books published in the United Kingdom was 1,845 per one million inhabitants as compared to 1.1 for one million inhabitants in Burkina Faso and 0.7 in Ecuador. When we look at the distribution of the public libraries in the world, we find a huge imbalance. According to the Unesco Statistical Yearbook, the ratio of public library use is only 0.2% in Uganda compared to 57.8% in the United Kingdom. Public libraries, in the United Kingdom, offer 2.2 books per person while only one book is available for 240 persons in Uganda. The number of books available seems to be telling us something about development. Human development is a comprehensive economic, social, cultural and political process, which aims at the constant improvement of the well-being of the entire population and of all individuals. Information is power and it plays an important role in reaching this aim. The Internet is providing libraries with an exceptional tool to reduce these obstacles to dissemination of information and resource sharing. The public library, as stressed by the UNESCO Public Library Manifesto serves as the local gateway to knowledge, providing a basic condition for lifelong learning, independent decision-making and cultural development of the individual and of social groups, on the basis of equality of access for all. Many public libraries are now present on the Internet, although very few of these are in developing countries. The new concept of a library "without walls", which can be accessed anywhere, provides tremendous scope for development, and this concept is particularly relevant for libraries in developing countries which can make use of resources on the Internet, along with collections developed in paper, audio-visual and electronic form, to serve the needs of local communities. Consulting a library's catalogue used to be an inward looking exercise, pointing search strategies only at the knowledge assembled within the library's four walls. Now, with the World Wide Web, search is outward looking: the boundaries have disappeared and search no longer stops in the library room. Access to information is now is as much the linkage to the outside world as it is the pathway to the internal collection - the two work hand in hand. Libraries help advance individual and community development. In particular, the public library is a significant resource for children and adult learners, and an important source of information on careers and training opportunities. Moreover, libraries help promote social cohesion and community confidence. Libraries are part of the cement that holds the social fabric together. UNESCO is committed to helping libraries benefit fully from information and communication technologies while reinforcing their traditional links and services to their client communities. One important area of reflection and action in UNESCO in this context are new models for the public library of the future in the service of development, for example as community learning and resource center (CLARCS) or as nuclei of multipurpose community telecentres. In the emerging information society, where freedom of expression and freedom of information become increasingly dependent on the access to information and communication technologies, libraries can play a central role in ensuring that all people enjoy these freedoms. This right of access should not be dependent on an individual’s ability to pay, language or level of literacy. Libraries are ideally placed to serve as public gateways to information highways, providing as they do access, guidance and training to users. Libraries may be one of the most cost-effective means for providing more people with access to a range of ICT-based services. That would be very much in line with the UNESCO Public Library Manifesto, which states that "the services of the public library are provided on the basis of equality of access for all, regardless of age, race, sex, religion, nationality, language or social status" and that "the public library shall in principle be free of charge". Today, there are all kinds of financial pressure on the public sector dictated by the tough logic of the market economy. I say that not to criticise the latter. UNESCO is not against market economy. Market economy - yes, but "market society" – no. UNESCO believes that collections and services should not be subject to any form of ideological, political or religious censorship, nor commercial pressures. In this context, I should like to congratulate IFLA on the setting up of the Committee on Free Access to Information and Freedom of Expression (FAIFE) and the recent creation of the FAIFE Office in Copenhagen thanks to the Danish Library community, the City of Copenhagen and the Danish government. UNESCO will co-operate with IFLA to promote the intellectual freedom rights, freedom of expression and freedom of access to information and the vital mission of libraries as gateways to knowledge. Librarians in the 21st century will participate in the restructuring of the learning environment, dealing with the shrinking life cycle of information, competition of information providers and a growing demand for flexible, self-paced learning. Librarians have seen the computer world change many times, with hardware and software getting obsolete in a matter of months. And yet, through all of this technological change, the old values of co-operation, professional solidarity and working together for the public good have endured. These values enable libraries and librarians around the world to work together to further access to the planet’s information wealth. Information and communication stimulate change, and change is essential for development. In the context of development, similar problems can be addressed in different ways, and the solution depends on natural and cultural environments unique to each society. It also depends on willingness to adopt or adapt experiences already existing elsewhere. Flexibility in acceptance very much depends on the cultural confidence and the degree of education of a society. The culturally confident societies do not resist change; they profit from the experiences of other societies taken through the filters of their own cultural identities. The younger people in the emerging democracies are acutely aware of their national and cultural identity and many of them seek not only the means to live but also a reason to live. UNESCO aspires to help them in this search. Most aid programmes have offered them material goods. Not so many have endeavoured to bring aid to the mind, to the spirit. But, as many "developed" societies themselves have found out, material ease means nothing without a free mind and spiritual wealth. In its action in the area of library development and access to knowledge UNESCO continues to rely on the close co-operation of IFLA and its constituent bodies. I should like to take this opportunity to say how much we in UNESCO appreciate the excellent collaboration of IFLA as well as those other non-governmental organizations with which we work in the library and information field. UNESCO, indeed, is not to be identified with its Secretariat based in Paris and in its field offices such as the Bangkok Office. UNESCO's roots are to be found in organizations and communities like yours, active in the pursuit of our common goals. It is up to us, to the intellectual community at large, to make sure that in tomorrow’s global society ideas flow freely, that not only the body, but also the mind has enough food to be shared without fear or mistrust. We owe it to our children, our children's children and to all generations to come. This is their right to a better future, in which libraries will have their rightful place. I wish you every success in this very important Conference and a most pleasant stay in Bangkok.      Contact: Axel Plathe, UNESCO, Information and Informatics Division