In keeping with the precautionary measures and preventive procedures taken by the UAE to fight the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Sharjah Public Libraries (SPL), an affiliate of the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA), announced that it will be offering global readers from all age groups free access to its ‘Digital Library' for three months. Valid from April to June, 2020, the free access will offer global readers more than 6 million eBooks and electronic resources in more than 10 languages. All users need to do is create their user profiles by accessing the following registrations link: https://catalog.shjlib.gov.ae/ The Digital Library comprises 21,000 scientific studies, a library of 30,000 videos in all disciplines, 160,000 eBooks, 5 million academic dissertations and theses, in addition to a collection of manuscripts, rare books and audiobooks. Ahmed Bin Rakkad Al Ameri, chairman of SBA, said: "The move is aligned with the cultural vision of Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, supreme council member and ruler of Sharjah, and offers readers from around the world the opportunity to harness their leisure time in view of the precautionary measures that is being taken. Moreover, it emphasizes that reading, learning, research can continue to prosper even under challenging circumstances, given the remarkable opportunities that modern technology offers." "As Sharjah marks its year as the UNESCO World Book Capital 2019, this initiative strengthens the emirate's call for continuous learning, and highlights SPL's efforts aimed at providing the latest reading and researching options to all those who seek it, across the globe. The entity's work to double digital resources started many years ago and has been translated into several meaningful partnerships and cooperation agreements with key international libraries that culminated in offering 6 million digital resources," he added. — SG
