The Presidential Library signed an agreement with the Chechen Republic

The first branch of the Presidential Library in the North Caucasus will open in the city of Grozny. The implementation details of one of the largest cultural and educational projects in the Republic of Chechnya were defined by a Cooperation Agreement signed October 24, 2013 between a subject of the Russian Federation and the Presidential Library. The document bears the signatures of the Director General of the Presidential Library, Alexander Vershinin and Head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov.

As it was noted at a working meeting in St. Petersburg, it had taken less than three months to initiate concrete action to implement in the Chechen capital the initiative to create a modern informational complex providing access to unique digital documents and materials on the development of Russian statehood, Russian language and the country's history. In July 2013 in Grozny were held preliminary talks on the issue. On behalf of the Head of Administrative Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Kozhin and Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov, heads of the Presidential Library and the region also joined the talks.

A branch of the Presidential Library will be housed at the National Library in Grozny. It is an ideal facility built in accordance with modern technologies. Located in a modern building, on the area of 18, 000 square meters, the National Library of the Chechen Republic has the necessary facilities and technical capacity to implement the project.

"We confirm that the leadership of the republic will continue actively and willingly to house there a branch of one of the three national libraries of Russia and bring it to the result. This is the will and decision of our leader, the Head of the Chechen Republic, the Hero of Russia Ramzan Kadyrov, who signed the agreement, noted its strategic importance for the country,"- 

said Murat Tagiyev, deputy chief of administration of the Head and the Government of Chechen Republic, who took part in the negotiations on the occasion of the exchange of agreements. He handed the address of the Head of Chechen Republic, who expressed gratitude to the Administrative Directorate of the President, Presidential Library and noted the need for further concrete action to implement the plans.

The address said in particular: "The agreement between the Chechen Republic and the Presidential Library is an important step towards the formation of a single information space. At all times and among all peoples the library was considered a treasure of knowledge to ensure the continuity of culture created by mankind. Today there are dozens of libraries in our region. We are working to restore the old archive, to enrich the library database and pass it over to future generations. I hope that the cooperation with the Presidential Library and the opening of its branch in Grozny will give a new impetus to the development of interest in the country's history, language and culture among the younger generation."

Director of the National Library of the Chechen Republic Edilbek Khasmagomadov said that it is possible to create a branch of the Presidential Library with a digital point for readers’ registration, a conference hall, a scan center and an electronic reading room with up to 100 workstations. To solve these problems we need to provide technological equipment and Internet connection, to train the qualified staff. Therefore, the interaction will also include the training of librarians from Chechen Republic to use modern electronic catalogs. In the framework of the cooperation we consider to digitize and make publicly available documents and books from the collections of the National Library of Chechnya. This will enable more comprehensive coverage of the peculiarity of the region in the Russian family.

Opening access to unique resources of the first national electronic library of the country is important for the North Caucasus, education of youth, unification of intellectuals. This will also allow deeper research by local scientists, students and graduate students, will open the way to knowledge through contests, competitions and lectures of the Presidential Library.

The Presidential Library, established in St. Petersburg in 2009, today is the nation's informative, innovative and cultural center, a national repository of materials on the history of Russia. Electronic holdings account for more than 290,000 items; among them are unique documents, books, film and photo materials.

In total, more than 40 regional centers of the Presidential Library have been founded in the Russian Federation.