Public Libraries Enter the Contactless Service Era... 34% Increase in Loan Volumes

62,9553 Books Borrowed Despite COVID-19 Closures and Limited Operations
Activation of Unmanned Lending Service, Including In-Car, Courier, and Postal Options

Last year, the average daily number of loans at public libraries showed an upward trend thanks to drive-through, courier, postal, and unmanned services. According to the nationwide public library statistics survey announced on the 27th by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Library Association, the average daily number of loans last year was 629,553. This is a 38% increase from 454,997 in 2019. The average daily number of loans per library also rose by 34%, from 401 in 2019 to 537.

Considering the closures and limited operations due to the spread of COVID-19, this is a remarkable achievement. The annual number of open days per library last year was only 187, a 36.4% decrease from 294 days the previous year. The number of visitors per library was 76,431, down 69.5% from 250,804 the previous year. Despite these adverse conditions, the increase in loan numbers was driven by the activation of non-face-to-face services such as drive-through, courier, and postal loans. Drive-through loans allow users to receive books they requested on the library’s website while remaining in their cars at parking lots, parks, and other locations. Courier and postal loans enable users to receive loaned books at desired locations even when libraries are closed.

The unmanned loan service (Smart Library), a representative non-face-to-face service, has also become established. Usage increased by 62.6%, from 776,850 cases in 2019 to 1,241,923 cases last year. A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official explained, "The demand is increasing every year as residents can borrow books unmanned 24 hours a day at public places convenient for local residents." The official added, "As non-face-to-face services are expected to continue growing, we plan to expand customized support," and stated, "We will support the installation of unmanned book lending machines at community convenience facilities and gradually increase internet access to digitized materials developed by the National Library of Korea."

Meanwhile, the number of public libraries last year was identified as 1,172, an increase of thirty-eight from the previous year. The number of registered members was about 27 million, accounting for approximately 53% of the population. However, the number of staff per library was 15, a decrease of 0.5 from the previous year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.