– Gyeonggi Cyber Library Service for Immigrants

On March 20, Gyeonggi Province launched a library service for multicultural immigrants in 10 different languages including Korean, English and various Asian languages. The website address is for the service http://global.library.kr.

Using this service, immigrants from diverse cultures, including marriage immigrants and foreign workers, can access information on the libraries in Gyeonggi Province in their own language.

The website includes guides in 10 different languages on how to use the public libraries. The information includes Gyeonggi Province¡¯s public library policy, a general introduction to the library, detailed information on neighborhood libraries, information on how to use a public library, and the Gyeonggi-do Cyber Library.

This guide will aid immigrants who lack basic library information, such as locations and opening hours. When it is difficult to visit the library, users can access various electronic contents through the Gyeonggi-do Cyber Library (www.library.kr).

In addition, to increase convenience for immigrants, a range of useful information such as living and administrative information is provided as well as an explanation of library terminology.

The 10 languages in service include Korean, Mongolian, Bangladeshi, Vietnamese, Sri Lankan, English, Indonesian, Japanese, Chinese and Thai.
¡°We don¡¯t think that we can solve cultural and language differences with one web page. But we expect that a small amount of effort and interest can result in a library service that is useful and convenient for all,¡± said a spokesperson for the provincial government.

In addition to this library service, Gyeonggi Province has worked in cooperation with the Korea Literature Translation Institute to translate selected works of Korean literature into a number of languages and stock these translations in public libraries.

The Province is also committed to enhancing accessibility to culture and information for foreign wives married to Korean men and foreign workers through plans to open small-scale multicultural libraries and museums.