DOHA: The Qatar Foundation Central Library (QFCL) will open by the middle of next year with an immense collection of print and digital books on varies subjects, reported an Arabic daily yesterday.

The library is one of the major projects of the Qatar Foundation will be a 45,000 square-metre building is designed by well-known Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. It will provide many new technological facilities for schools, universities and research institutes in Qatar.

QFCL as a partner with the World Digital Library, already helps to make material from cultures around the world available on the Internet in multilingual format.

It is also now developing its capacity for the digital conversion of important cultural artifacts with all Arab neighbour countries.

Also the QFCL will host the Heritage Library, an important historical collection that reflects the best in Arabic culture and achievement. The rare collections of the Library exhibit the depth and wealth of the Arab and Islamic civilizations, and demonstrate the extensive contribution of Arab and Muslim scientists, thinkers and pioneers to our global intellectual heritage.

The Arabic section of the library will accommodate around 85000 volumes including manuscripts, books, magazines and newspapers in different fields of research and arts, some dating to the fifteenth century till the Mid-twentieth century.

The foreign language section will have 25000 volumes including print books, periodicals and maps reflect on the whole interest of the Orientalists and European travelers and explorers of the Arab and Islamic heritage, some dating to the Mid-fifteenth century.

The Peninsula