The Director General of Culture, Anxo M. Lorenzo, participated today in the opening of the XII National Congress of Mobile Libraries at the Cidade da Cultura. The event, taking place throughout this weekend at the Gaiás, hosts over 80 professionals from Galicia, Asturias, Castela e León, Catalonia, Castela-La Mancha, La Rioja, Madrid, Navarra, Valencia, and Portugal, and also features a display of mobile libraries (furgotecas).
The representative of the Consellería de Cultura, Lingua e Xuventude stated that mobile libraries “constitute an essential public service for bringing culture closer to citizens, especially in rural areas”. In this regard, he highlighted the three routes of 'As Furgotecas' that the Xunta has launched in the rural areas of Lugo and Ourense, covering 30 municipalities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants, with “work that goes beyond book lending and includes reading advice, digital support, training, and cultural programming”.
Anxo M. Lorenzo welcomed these types of meetings, considering them fundamental for “exchanging experiences and reflecting together to advance the development of itinerant library services”. The program includes presentations, visits, and a round table with specialists from Spain and Portugal. Additionally, there will be a guided tour of a mobile library exhibition in the Gaiás parking lot, as well as a miniature bus library exhibition in the CINC building's lobby.
The 'Furgotecas' are a mobile library service that facilitates access to reading, information, and learning in locations without their own infrastructure. Present in 30 municipalities in the provinces of Lugo and Ourense, they use three vehicles that run periodic routes, with each serving nearly a hundred stops. Since their launch, these mobile libraries have registered 72,284 loans and 59,125 visits.
This congress coincides with the weekend of Library Day, celebrated tomorrow, October 24. Entities within the Xunta's public network will mark the occasion with workshops, storytelling sessions, concerts, and gifts. The Library of Galicia, located in the Cidade da Cultura, will host a workshop to create mini-books at 5:30 PM. The Ánxel Casal Public Library in Santiago will hold a children's concert at 12:00 PM and award books to 'Super Readers'.
Other libraries are also joining the celebration: the Miguel González Garcés Public Library in A Coruña will have a storytelling session at 12:00 PM; the Lugo Public Library will present the theatrical piece 'Contamos contos lobos?'; the Nós Library in Ourense will feature a concert by Paco Nogueiras; the Antonio Odriozola Public Library in Pontevedra will organize the 'Biblioteatro' workshop; and the Juan Compañel Library in Vigo will host a storytelling session by Bea Campos.
