Library Map of the World

Founded in 1990, SKIP is a voluntary professional organization of librarians and information professionals. The mission of SKIP is an effort to constantly improve the standards of library and information services, increase professional prestige and establish suitable conditions for the development and activities of libraries and information centres. SKIP has about 1500 individual and institutional members. It is organized regionally. Specialized activities are handled by sections such as that for public libraries, by clubs such as that for children's libraries, and by commissions such as commissions for legislation, publishing, automation, and international contacts. SKIP is a member of IFLA.

Founded in 1992, the Czech Republic Libraries Association unites public, research, special and university libraries. Currently it has 60 members, including the largest libraries in the Czech Republic (National Library of the Czech Republic, 13 central regional libraries, the Municipal Library of Prague). This association represents organizations, legal entities, but not individual members.  Professional activities take place within sections dedicated to bibliography, historical collections, information technologies, regional functions, acquisition, services, PR and marketing, information education for library users. SDRUK organizes professional events such as seminars and conferences for librarians, training and expert meetings and publishes professional publications.

ALCU unites academic libraries in the Czech Republic, currently it has 24 member universities.  The main objectives are as follows:  to promote, develop and support academic libraries in the Czech Republic;  to represent academic libraries during negotiations about State Information Policy and the national library system;  to advocate for university libraries and facilitate their negotiations with information providers in order to improve opportunities for cost-efficient purchase and licensing of electronic information resources;  to provide a platform for collaboration and partnership in various areas of interests on both national and international levels.

The National Library is established by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. It is the centre of the system of libraries within which it performs coordination, professional, information, educational, analytical, research, standardizing, methodical and advisory activities. It is a library with a universal library collection complemented by specialized collections. It acquires, preserves, continuously updates, and provides access to rich collections of both domestic and foreign documents, especially of Bohemica and documents from the social and natural sciences areas. It has in its permanent keeping a conservation collection and a historical collection.

The Ministry of Culture is the central State administrative body for the arts, cultural and educational activities, cultural monuments, matters relating to churches and religious societies, matters relating to press, including publication of the non-periodical press and other information means, the preparation of drat laws and other legal regulations in the area of radio and television broadcasting, implementation of the Copyright Act, production and trade in the area of culture.  The Literature and Libraries Division fulfils the tasks of the Ministry as the central governmental link for the area of literature, book culture, non-periodical press and librarianship.

The Strategy evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of library activities, identifies threats to the system of libraries if it does not sufficiently reflect the changing social demand, and it actively uses the potential of the opportunities offered to the libraries. The Strategy represents the priority areas to ensure the future development of libraries.

This Strategy is a follow-up to the document The Strategy for the Development of Libraries in the Czech Republic for 2017–2020. The Strategy formulates the basic vision of the development of the library system within the three basic pillars: Libraries as pillars of civil society and natural centres of communities, Libraries as educational and training supporting institutions and Libraries as administrators of cultural and knowledge wealth.

Adopted in 2001, last amended in 2017, this Act regulates the system of libraries providing public library and information services and the conditions of their operation.  Libraries covered by this act can obtain state benefits (e.g., in the form of targeted subsidies), and they enjoy an exclusive position as to other related laws and legislative standards (e.g., the copyright act, accounting act).  The library act is linked up with other regulations and recommendations which regulate certain areas of library activities such as inter-library loan services, rules for providing financial subsidies, and standards for providing public library services.

Legal deposit copy of non-periodical publications is governed by the Act No. 37/ 1995 Coll., on Non-periodical Publications, last amended in 2017. In principle, a publisher is obliged to submit two legal deposit copies to the National Library of the Czech Republic, one to the Moravian Library in Brno, one to the Olomouc Research Library, one regional legal deposit copy to the Municipal Library Prague and regional research library according to the location of the publishers´ office, and one copy of Braille publications to the K. E. Macan Library and Printing Office for the Blind. The law nonetheless does not cover e.g., audiovisual works, wall maps, or computer programmes.

Legal deposit of periodicals is governed by the Act No. 46/2000 Coll., on the rights and duties in issuing periodical press and amending some other laws (the Press Act), last amended in 2017. Pursuant to this law publishers are obliged to submit copies of printed periodicals to selected libraries. The law provides for a list of recipients, including the National Library, the Moravian Regional Library, the Parliamentary library, regional libraries, the Municipal Library in Prague, the National Museum Library, the Ministry of Culture CR, and the K. E. Macan Library and Printing Office for the Blind.

The current Copyright Law was adopted in 2000. The law is being constantly amended; the last updates were issued in 2021, and further ones can be expected in order to implement the EU Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market.

The exceptions or limitations of copyright related to the activities and services of libraries, archives, museums, galleries, schools, universities and other non-profit school related and educational establishments are provided in Art. 37, called Library Licence.
These include exceptions for conservation and archiving purposes, for replacement (where there is no commercial copy readily available), providing access on dedicated terminals (i.e., a library may make works belonging to its own collection available digitally on site to the public for research or private study), lending (with public lending right payable except by school, university and various national library institutions), cataloguing. There is also a broad exception for copying (although with the possibility for remuneration) and special rules for orphan works.  
The free use of works is permissible only in the cases, specified by the law, under the condition that it does not conflict with the normal exploitation of the work and the legitimate interests of the author are not impaired.

There are three Universities in the Czech Republic currently providing university degree education in Libraries and Information Science:

• Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Arts, Institute of Information Science and Librarianship,
• Masaryk University in Brno, Faculty of Arts, Department of Information and Library Studies,
• Silesian University, Faculty of Philosophy and Science in Opava, Institute of the Czech Language and Library Science, and Institute of Informatics.

Higher vocational education is offered by two high schools.  High Vocational School in Information Studies in Prague and Business Academy and Secondary Vocational School and Higher Vocational School in Brno.
The vocational qualification can be also obtained by validation of non-formal and informal learning.  Vocational qualifications are awarded according to the act 179/2006 by authorized bodies in accordance with the relevant evaluation standards. There are currently four authorized organization: National Library CR, Moravian Library, Jiří Mahen Library and Moravian-Silesian Research Library in Ostrava.
The system of education of librarians is complemented with training courses organized through library associations or large libraries.

Published by the Association of Library and Information Professionals of the Czech Republic (SKIP). It comes out 4 times a year with one yearly special issue. Thematically, it focuses on the field of librarianship and includes both professional contributions and contributions dealing with the SKIP activities.

Published by the Central Bohemian Research Library. The Reader is the oldest nationwide continuously published library magazine, founded in 1949. It contributes to the exchange of experiences and inspires libraries of various types, sizes and specializations throughout the Czech Republic.

Published by the National Library of the Czech Republic twice a year. It publishes theoretical studies in the field of Library Science and brings information about successful projects of both Czech and foreign libraries. This journal provides a platform for publishing the results of theoretical studies in the field of librarianship which could be used in practice. This general library professional journal brings reports from conferences, seminars and other library events and informs about new Czech and foreign publications from the field of librarianship. Since 2008 the main papers have been going through an independent peer-review procedure.

The nationwide library week usually takes place during the first week of October. It is organised by the Association of Library and Information Professionals of the Czech Republic, which selects a different topic for each year and invites libraries to join the celebration around selected topic. Libraries across the country provide various events and activities during the week to raise an awareness of opportunities and value of libraries for their users.

This annual three-day conference organised by The Czech Republic's Library Association and the Central Library Board of the Czech Republic is traditionally held in September. The purpose of this event is to bring together library and information professionals to discuss and share best practices in the profession. The current topics of the conference are chosen with regard to the needs and new challenges libraries are facing.

The traditional annual conference held at the beginning of December. The conference is devoted to the issue of cooperation of archives, libraries, museums, galleries and monument care in the use of information and communication technologies for the protection and access to cultural heritage.