The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) is an Egyptian institution of international character, devoted to the promotion of enlightened values, good governance, and sustainable development in Egypt and the Arab World, as well as elsewhere in the World. The BA issues an annual report and audited accounts. It is governed by an international Board of Trustees, and is not part of the Egyptian Government. It was established by a special law (law No. 1 for 2001) that attached it to the Head of State.
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the New Library of Alexandria, is dedicated to recapturing the spirit of the original Library. It aspires to be the World’s window on Egypt; Egypt’s window on the World; a leading institution of the digital age; and, above all, a center for learning, tolerance, dialogue and understanding.
To fulfill that role, the new complex is much more than a library. Not only can the Library hold millions of books, but it also includes a center for the Internet and its archive; six specialized libraries for audio-visual materials, the visually impaired, children, the young, microforms, and rare books and special collections; three museums for antiquities, manuscripts, and the history of science; a planetarium; an exploratorium for children’s exposure to science; three permanent exhibitions; six art galleries for temporary exhibitions; a conference center for thousands of persons; seven research institutes covering manuscripts, documentation of heritage, calligraphy and writing, information sciences, Mediterranean and Alexandrian Studies, arts, and scientific research; an Institute for Peace Studies; and a discussion forum.
Today, this vast complex is a reality, receiving more than one million visitors a year, and holding hundreds of events every year.