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Throughout the year, the public libraries worked closely with the District Councils and local organisations to promote
promote and develop further the Libraries@neighbourhood, a community-libraries partnership scheme. At year-end there were 86 community libraries throughout Hong Kong.
The public libraries continued to work with the Education Bureau to promote a 'Library Cards for all School Children' scheme designed to encourage primary school students to use the library services. Regular meetings were held with school librarians to foster mutual understanding and to maximise the use of library resources. Course materials from the Open University of Hong Kong are available in 16 public libraries to help people pursue self-learning.
Reference and Information Services
Reference and information services are provided at the Hong Kong Central Library and the five major libraries located at the City Hall, Kowloon, Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun. The Central Library also holds the permanent collection of books deposited under the Books Registration Ordinance as well as the depository collections of nine international organisations. Specialised reference services are provided at the Arts Resources Centre, the Hong Kong Literature Room and the Map Library of the Hong Kong Central Library, the Business and Industry Library, the Creativity and Innovation Resource Centre, the Basic Law Library at City Hall Public Library, and the Education Resource Centre at Kowloon Public Library. In addition, the Sha Tin Public Library hosts the specialised Sports & Fitness Collection for lending and public reference.
Web-based reference services form an integral part of the reference and information services. The Hong Kong Central Library provides an internet reference enquiry service in collaboration with the Sun Yat-sen Library of Guangdong Province, the Shenzhen Library, and the Macao Central Library, enabling readers to contact these co-operating libraries directly for information about their respective regions. A wide range of electronic resources, including an online database, electronic books, web resource guides and topical resources guides are posted on the library website for public reference. A thematic website offering sports and fitness information was launched in June.
Information Technology Initiatives and Digital Library Initiatives
Hong Kong's Library Automation System is one of the largest computerised systems of its kind in the world. It provides 24-hour internet library services, including online catalogue searching and reservation and renewal of library materials. In 2008, more than 17.86 million online renewal transactions were processed through the Internet and Telephone Renewal Services. The HKPL is planning to upgrade the system in the coming years and it will also carry out a pilot test on using Radio Frequency Identification technology for enhancing its services. The HKPL continued to expand the application of information technology and started to provide Octopus payment service at all static libraries in February. With the launch of the Government Wi-Fi programme, free Wi-Fi service was made available at 66 static libraries.
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