2023 National Library of Korea Budget 98.5 Billion Won... Expansion of VR Reading Content

2023 Budget 98.5 Billion KRW
Collection of Ancient Documents, Improvement of Accessibility for Disabled, Preparation for Data Transfer

[Asia Economy Reporter Seomideum] The 2023 budget for the National Library of Korea under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has been finalized at 98.5 billion KRW.

According to the National Library of Korea, next year's budget actively reflects new support plans for enhancing accessibility for knowledge information vulnerable groups through the collection of ancient books and improvement of facilities for the disabled, as well as preliminary preparations for the transfer of materials to the National Document Preservation Center.

First, next year, a full renovation of outdoor facility structures, which have not undergone major repairs since 2008 and raised safety concerns due to aging, will be carried out to prevent accidents and improve visitor accessibility.

Efforts will also be strengthened for the transfer of books in preparation for the construction of the National Document Preservation Center in Pyeongchang, Gangwon-do. Currently, the saturation rate of the National Library of Korea's preservation storage is 91.4% (as of October 2022), raising concerns about insufficient storage space by the end of next year. Preliminary work to transfer half of the approximately 13 million books stored at the National Library of Korea to Pyeongchang will be conducted.

Additionally, the budget for developing experiential storytelling content distributed to libraries nationwide has been significantly increased. The related budget rose sharply from 59 million KRW this year to 559 million KRW next year. The plan is to provide converged reading content combining virtual reality (VR) technology and storytelling to libraries across the country.

The National Library of Korea stated, “By expanding national knowledge information and creating a knowledge information service environment applying high-satisfaction digital technologies, we will faithfully fulfill the role of the national representative library, supporting all citizens to equally enjoy happiness through book culture.”

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