New name for major international library conference

The biggest annual international gathering of librarians, the IFLA Conference, is to be known in future as the "World Library and Information Congress".

IFLA’s Governing Board decided on the new title last year. It was due to come into effect with the 2004 event to be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. However, it has now been decided to adopt it this year- for the meeting due to take place in Berlin, Germany, 1-9 August 2003.

The new title is designed to ensure that the event has a greater impact outside the profession and in the city in which it takes place.

"Although IFLA is very well known within the profession, the people in the street and the media have no idea who we are", said Ross Shimmon, IFLA’s Secretary General. "But everyone will understand what is going on when they see a banner proclaiming the World Library and Information Congress", he explained.

The Governing Board decided that the current title would be retained as a subtitle to ensure continuity. So, for Berlin, the event will be known as:

The Board also decided that the title may be translated into languages other than the five working languages of IFLA, where appropriate, in order to have even greater impact.

Further information from:

Notes for editors

The International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) was established in 1927. It has members in more than 150 countries, representing hundreds of thousands of library and information professionals.

The theme of the 2003 World Library and Information Congress is: Access Point Library: Media-Information-Culture.

The working languages of IFLA are: English, French, German, Russian and Spanish.