The Global Libraries – Bulgaria Foundation launched the project “Increasing the training capacity of managers and employees in municipal libraries”, funded under the Erasmus + Programme. The duration of the project is 1 year. It will be implemented in partnership with 7 municipal libraries from across Bulgaria (Asenovgrad, Dimitrovgrad, Isperih, Karlovo, Kazanluk, Kotel and Samokov) which jointly form the Modern Library Consortium.
 
The project is a part of the Global Library – Bulgaria foundation’s overall strategy aimed at modernization, Europeanization and internationalization of Bulgarian libraries. The project’s main goals are:
 

• Overcoming the slowdown in the development of Bulgarian libraries with regard to European practice;
• Creating a well-defined procedure for effecting change on a national scale. 
   

The project activities include the participation of library directors and employees in two training programmes in modern library management and new library services in Spain and Finland; developing a training programme in Bulgarian language and conducting training sessions for employees at municipal libraries which are not part of the Modern Library Consortium.
 
By taking part in the project, librarians will improve their competence within modern approaches to library management, innovative library services, and interactive methods for working with library service users. They will also acquire new competences for working with local communities, for developing training modules, and will improve their presentation skills and leadership potential.
 
The successful implementation of the project will yield sustainable results and will contribute to the modernization of municipal libraries, which, due to their small number, often fall outside the target group of the library sector. Improving the qualification of employees at municipal libraries will help them to develop into change leaders at a local and national level.