The holiday was established in 2001 by Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus. The date is timed to coincide with the founding day of the National Library of Belarus – the country's main book depository.

Currently, there are over 2,500 public libraries operating within the system of the Ministry of Culture of Belarus. Thanks to an extensive library network, non-stationary library services using bookmobiles, systematic computerization, and the connection of public libraries to the Internet, the number of library visits, including remote ones, increases annually.

The largest information centre in the republic is the National Library of Belarus, whose library collection comprises about 10.1 million items.

In our district, this holiday is celebrated today by the employees of the Lepel Centralized Library System.

Facts and Figures

The State Cultural Institution "Lepel CBS" consists of 15 libraries: 14 rural and 1 central district library.

Creative staff – 37 people

Readers visited in 8 months of the current year – 10,546 people

Book circulation for 8 months is 169,745

Library visits during this period – 80,828

Book collection – 179,488