Abstract ＆ Presentation :

The library Services to People with Special Needs Section (LSN) was founded in 1931 as the Sub-committee on Hospital libraries of IFLA with the mission of promoting professional library services to hospitalized people who could not make use of regular library resources. But the Section quickly realized the needs of other people who are unable to use regular library services for whatever reason and expanded our target users. These groups can include, but are not necessarily limited to, people in hospitals and prisons, homeless people, persons in nursing homes and other care facilities, the deaf, and people with dyslexia and dementia.

Our mission is to provide an international forum for ideas, to share experiences, and to develop tools to promote and improve the effectiveness of library services to people with special needs.

In line with the mission, my presentation focuses on the LSN activities we worked on for the last five years such as developing and revising guidelines, promoting accessibility for libraries and library services including accessibility at IFLA Conferences with a special attention to the UN Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities and a concept of “No one left behind” based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also focuses on what we achieved and what we aim to achieve in the future through the activities.