The Charter of the State Institution "The National Library of Belarus"

Chapter 1
GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The State establishment "The National Library of Belarus" (hereinafter – Library) is a state, republican, public library, the bearer of universal values, a treasury of achievements of Belarusian people, its national memory. The Library cannot be redeveloped.

2. The Library was created for an indefinite period, acts in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus and the present Charter.

3. The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus is the founder of the Library.

4. The Library is subordinate to the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus.

5. The full title of the Library:

• in the Belarusian language – дзяржаўная ўстанова “Нацыянальная бібліятэка Беларусі”;
• in the Russian language – государственное учреждение “Национальная библиотека Беларуси”;

the short title of the Library:

• in the Belarusian language – Нацыянальная бібліятэка Беларусі;
• in the Russian language – Национальная библиотека Беларуси.

6. The Library is a legal entity that has operational management of separate property, bears independent responsibility for its obligations, may on its behalf acquire property and personal non-property rights and bear obligations, be a plaintiff and defendant in court, has accounts in banks, including currency ones, a round seal with the image of the State emblem of the Republic of Belarus and its name, stamps, letterheads, its own symbols.

7. The Library is a noncommercial organization that has been created by the owner to achieve social and cultural goals, satisfaction of spiritual and other nonmaterial needs of citizens, other functions of noncommercial character in the sphere of culture in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus and the present Charter.

8. The Library is liable for its obligations with the financial resources at its disposal. In case of insufficient funds the subsidiary liability for its obligations is born by the owner of the Library property.

9. The Library location: Minsk, Avenue of Independence, 116.

10. The Library can act as a member of economic companies and investor in a limited company with the permission of the owner (or authorized body), to be a founder of foundations and other legal entities in the procedure established by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus and the present Ordinance.

11. The Library serves the information needs of users of the library and is:

• the national information and socio-cultural center;
• the republican center for the coordination and cooperation activities of libraries for the acquisition, creation, formation and the sharing of information resources;
• the republican industrial information center for culture;
• the national center of interlibrary subscription, the document exchange and redistribution center;
• the republican scientific-methodical center on librarianship;
• the scientific institution in library science, bibliography, bibliology;
• the republican depository of materials of the United Nations, other international organizations and interstate formations;
• the coordination and methodical center of the total network of libraries, the republican coordination and methodical center of the public libraries network.

12. The Library has the right:

• to determine the content, forms and methods of its activities in accordance with goals, tasks and functions stipulated in this Charter;
• to identify the sources for acquisition of library collections;
• to implement income-generating activities, including providing paid services;
• to create exchange library stocks;
• to exclude and realize the documents from the library funds;
• to set Library rules in coordination with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus, order of registration for users of the Library;
• to determine the collateral value of the most valuable publications in case of their lending, and in other cases established by the use terms of the Library;
• to take measures for compensation of damage caused by users of the Library, in accordance with the civil legislation;
• to determine the conditions of use of Library collections on the basis of contracts with legal entities and citizens, including individual entrepreneurs;
• to participate in the implementation of government and other programs aimed at the saving, development, dissemination and (or) promotion of culture;
• to cooperate with foreign libraries, foreign and international legal entities, including the international the document exchange, to enter into the established order in international organizations to participate in the implementation of international programs;
• to join in library associations (unions);
• to acquire, create, form and use information resources;
• to collect the documents in electronic form, if necessary create copies of documents in electronic form observing the requirements of the law on copyright and related rights;
• to bring out (temporarily) the documents from the library collections outside the country in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus;
• to use its own title, symbols, images of the building, reproduction of cultural values, stored in the library collection, with advertising or other purposes;
• to conduct cultural and educational work and cultural educational activities related to museum objects, scientific and auxiliary materials, as well as historical and cultural values;
• to identify the objects of museum value, to complete the museum funds for the registration, storage, study and popularization of the museum items, use them for aesthetic education and cultural development of citizens;
• to insure the property;
• to establish mass media;
• to maintain internal document exchange and redistribution of documents related to international document exchange.

The Library has other rights stipulated by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

13. The Library will:

• promote the rights of library users stipulated by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus;
• serve library users in accordance with the present Charter and the rules of library use;
• not use data about library users and their requests for other than research and librarian purposes;
• facilitate access for library users to the national and global databases;
• ensure the safety of library collections;
• if there are any book monuments in the library collection, ensure their saving and inclusion into the State Register of Book Monuments of the Republic of Belarus, other Union catalogues, databases;
• provide library users with current legal information of the Republic of Belarus and give them the access to reference legal information.

The Library has other duties provided by acts of legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

14. The Library collection is available to the public. Limitations for its use are determined only to protect the book monuments, as well as in cases stipulated by the legislation.

15. Changes and additions to this Charter shall be made in the cases and terms established by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

16. Reorganization or liquidation of the Library is conducted in the order established by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

Chapter 2
THE PURPOSE, OBJECTIVES, FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES OF THE LIBRARY

17. The main purpose of the Library is to satisfy general information needs of library users.

18. The main tasks of the Library are:

• acquisition of library collections of documents and ensuring their safety;
• processing of documents, creation of reference bibliographic apparatus;
• provision of library, information and reference-bibliographic service of library users according to their needs and interests;
• identification of objects of museum value, acquisition of the museum funds, accounting, storing, studying and popularization of museum objects, their use for aesthetic education and cultural development of citizens;
• fulfillment of cultural and educational work aimed at the assistance to the cultural development of library users;
• research activity in the field of library science, bibliography, bibliology;
• coordination among libraries to create common information space.

19. In accordance with the main tasks the Library performs the following main functions:

• generates, permanently saves and provides to library users the most complete collection of domestic documents and Belarusian studies, scientifically important international documents;
• organizes the access to national and global databases;
• forms library exchange collections for the implementation of the document exchange and redistribution of documents, as well as international document exchange;
• coordinates the cooperation of libraries with the bodies of scientific information, archives, museums and other legal entities in the sharing of information resources and the maintenance of the union electronic catalogue of Belarusian libraries;
• with priority acquires library collections from famous writers, workers of science, culture and art, their heirs, other citizens, as well as in second-hand book-shops and auctions;
• carries out research activities on library science, bibliography and bibliology;
• provides documents, bibliographies and other information in accordance with the right of citizens to library, information, and reference-bibliographic services;
• carries out cultural-educational work aimed to further the cultural development of library users;
• carries out publishing and printing activities, aims to prepare and issue information and methodological publications, scientific publications on library science, bibliography and bibliology;
• participates in forming and implementation of state policy in the sphere of culture on the issues of librarianship;
• ensures coordination and cooperation of activities of libraries on acquisition, creation, formation and sharing information resources, e-services;
• creates and maintains the State Register of Book Monuments of the Republic of Belarus;
• ensures creation and maintenance of other electronic information resources, including aggregated, the use of authority files and indices of the Universal decimal classification.

The Library fulfills other functions envisaged by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

20. The Library has various activities in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

21. If certain types of activities are subject to licensing in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus, the Library has the right to carry out such activities after obtaining the appropriate licenses.

Chapter 3
THE PROPERTY OF THE LIBRARY

22. The property of the Library includes assets, including the building and structures, equipment and other tangible assets, the cost of which is contained on the balance of the Library. The property of the Library is the possession of the Republic of Belarus and belongs to it by the right of operational management.

23. The Library is funded by the national budget.

Additional funding for the Library can be at the expense of funds of individuals and legal entities, including foreign ones, as well as cash received from non-repayable (sponsored) assistance, provision of services and other income-generating activities and necessary to fulfill the purposes set forth by the present Charter, matches these goals and subject of activities of noncommercial organizations, and other sources not prohibited by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

24. The Library can carry out income-generating activities. The revenues obtained from such activities and property purchased at their expense goes into disposal of the Library and is used in the prescribed manner.

25. The Library does not have right to deprive the property assigned to it and the property acquired at the expense of the funds allocated without owner’s authorization, unless otherwise stated in the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus or other legislative acts. The institution may pledge the property which is in the state ownership, in the manner prescribed by the legislative acts of the state property, unless otherwise provided by the President of the Republic Belarus and the property is in private ownership, with the consent of the owner of the property or its authorized representative.

26. The Library has no right to act as a guarantor, surety of third parties – legal entities of non-state forms of ownership (including share in authorized funds which are in the state ownership) and individuals (including individual entrepreneurs) on execution by these persons of their obligations under the repayment of loans provided by banks and nonbank financial institutions, excluding loans on construction of dwellings, unless otherwise stated by the President of the Republic of Belarus.

Chapter 4
THE MANAGEMENT OF THE LIBRARY

27. The management of the Library activity is fulfilled by the Director General. The Director General is appointed and dismissed by the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Belarus. A contract is concluded with the Director of the Library.

28. The Director General of the Library, in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus and the present Charter, will:

• organize the work of the Library and be responsible for the fulfillment of the set objectives and targets, head the Scientific Council of the Library;
• provide creation of conditions for saving of assets, efficient use of the Library resources for the solution of production problems and social development of staff;
• hire and dismiss employees of the Library;
• determine the amount, approve the structure and staffing of the Library staff within the payroll;
• approve the composition of the Academic Board of the Library, boards and commissions; determine the order and direction of their activities;
• issue orders and instructions mandatory for all employees of the Library;
• manage financial and material resources of the Library;
• issue powers of attorney
  
• ensure submission of reports to state statistical bodies;
• act on behalf of the Library; represent it in the organizations of the Republic of Belarus and foreign organizations;
• conclude contracts on behalf of the Library;
• open currency and other bank accounts; in respect of the Library employees apply the incentives and impose disciplinary measures;
• take measures aimed at the development and improvement of material-technical base of the Library, compliance with technology security and fire prevention measures;
• regularly (at least once a year) report to the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus, as well as provide the necessary information on the activities of the Library;
• be responsible for the results of the work of the Library, compliance with the requirements of the present Charter, fulfillment of obligations to the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus and the staff;
• apply for admission of the Library and its participation in international library organizations;
• distribute duties among Deputy Directors;
• appoint and dismiss Deputy Directors, chief accountant, human resources manager in coordination with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus.

29. The performance of the duties, provided for in paragraph 28 of this Charter, is assigned to one of the Deputies Director General by a separately issued order, while the Director General is on a work leave, in a business trip, or abcent due to reasons of temporary disability and for other reasons provided for by the law.

Deputies Director General have the right to sign powers of attorney to  be issued on behalf of the library in order to receive material assets for the library.

30. The governing bodies of the Library are the management, academic council, boards and commissions.

Chapter 5
THE LIBRARY STAFF

31. Employment relationship with the Library staff, including recruitment and dismissal, labor and rest, labor conditions, guarantees and compensation, are regulated in the employment contracts in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus.

32. The Library staff members decide:

• questions of conclusion of collective agreement with the employer, considering a draft agreement and authorizing their representative to sign it on behalf of the Library staff;
• other issues of self-government of the Library staff within their competence established by the legislation of the Republic of Belarus and this Charter.

Approved by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus on February 03, 2017 No. 24.
Changes were approved by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus on December 31, 2019 No. 204.