Cooperation with the National Library of Uzbekistan
The State Library of the Republic of Uzbekistan, founded in 1870 as the Tashkent Public Library, is Uzbekistan’s legal deposit library. In 1920, the then-State Public Library of Uzbekistan became the legal deposit for Turkestan publications. In 1947 it was renamed to Ali-Shir Nava’i Library after the Uzbek poet. On April 12, 2002, the library’s name was changed to the National Library of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
Project background
Since 2016, Uzbekistan has been pursuing a comprehensive digitization strategy in the area of its administration and public services under President Mirziyoyev. It was supported by LG Electronics, which carried out the tenders for major projects on behalf of the Uzbek government. The development of digital competencies of the National Library is an essential part of this process, withing which 60 new jobs were created. Regarding the necessary equipment, book2net met and even exceeded all requirements given in the corresponding tender and won the bit. In the summer of 2018, the first shipment of more than 30 book scanners arrived in Tashkent, where the devices were installed by our team. In 2019, new need for devices for the National Library branch offices around the country arose. This time book2net secured a shipment of 25 new book scanners to the country. The National Library intends to digitize its entire stock of books, newspapers, and photographs, making them accessible to the Uzbek public via the website. Thus, important cultural heritage from Uzbek history is preserved and made accessible to the local and rural communities all over the country and beyond.
book2net action
With both customized and standard solutions, book2net managed to fulfill all demands of the project and could effectively contribute to the country’s digitization process. In 2018 and 2019, 60 of our proven systems, including the X71 camera, the large-format scanners Hornet A0 and Flash A1, the Cobra V-shape system as well as the self-service scanners Public A2 and Spirit A3, were delivered to Tashkent and several other locations all over the country. All devices were installed by our technicians and the local staff was trained to assure high-quality digitization.
Results
The book2net team is proud to have made a significant contribution to the digitization of Uzbekistan’s literary heritage, which will now be available to a broad public and for further scientific research.
Watch the use of our equipment in the digitization center of the National Library in the video: