National Libraries and People with Disabilities

Abstract

The purpose of national libraries is to provide full access to the information society for everybody, including people with disabilities. This paper describes the role of national libraries in the provision of library services to the disabled. It investigates the current national library services for patrons with disabilities and their service quality through a mailed questionnaire to 49 national libraries worldwide. However, some libraries chose not to participate in this research for several intervening factors. The findings depict the lack of adequate library services and programmes for the disabled. Furthermore, this study attempts to identify the reasons that national libraries are not fully accessible and encourages their greater inclusion in the planning and delivery of their services.