On March 3, Ukrainian mobile provider MTS announced that they will offer free 3G wireless internet for one year to Bibliomist participating libraries in five oblasts. The announcement came from MTS PR Head Victoria Ruban during a panel discussion on the importance of investing in libraries.
As Bibliomist is partnering with more than 200 libraries in 2010 to provide technology and training, national and local actors are seeking new opportunities to invest in libraries. For MTS, partnering with libraries is considered a natural extension of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs.
After announcing the MTS investment in libraries, Ruban spoke about the rapid development of the 3G internet network in the country, and about the cooperation of MTS with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Family and Youth to connect 60 schools and a number of orphanages in the country to the internet. Ruban added that MTS is always thinking about the sustainability of their CSR projects and promised to support libraries beyond the one-year offer, either through discounts or by facilitating a search for new partners and supporters.
Courtney Zukoski, Director of Academic and CSR Programs at Microsoft, summarized Microsoft’s support for public libraries in Ukraine - a software donation to libraries worth over $4 million. She said the library world is a world of access to information, and internet is an important element of it. “Today, knowing how to use information technologies is a requirement,” Zukoski said.
ULA Executive Director Yaroslava Soshynska emphasized that libraries are an important element of civil society development, that they often serve as the only free information access site for socially vulnerable population groups, and that they foster economic development by hosting business trainings and expanding the customer base for information products and new technologies.
The panel featured eleven panelists representing MTS, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Microsoft, the Ukrainian Library Association (ULA), the Union of Culture Workers of Ukraine, the Ministry of Culture, and local governments. They gathered at the National Parliamentary Library of Ukraine to present their perspective on why libraries are worth investing in to an audience of over 20 Kyiv-based librarians.
Applauding the panelists for their decision to invest in the library sector, Larysa Luhova, a member of the ULA Advocacy Group added, “Bibliomist is a bridge between the libraries of the past and the libraries of the future.” Olexander Baranov, member of the Consultative Council on IT Development of Ukraine’s parliament, pointed out that the development of the library sector in Ukraine can only be a result of continuous efforts by a variety of stakeholders, rather than a one-time investment: “The Bibliomist program is not panacea,” he said, “ it is a catalyst for change.”