By LJ Staff

As the sun set in Egypt on October 16, a large group of proud local officials and international dignitaries proceeded into the new Alexandria library, or Bibliotheca Alexandrina. The modern complex, an 11-story building shaped like a giant disc, has been built on the site where scholars believe the famous center of learning destroyed more than 1500 years ago once stood. It is funded by a variety of countries and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The $225 million facility opened with approximately 240,000 volumes, far short of the eight million originally hoped for, and a new focus on a cyber-library. With an annual operating budget of $20 million to $25 million, the aim of recreating the original library's role as the world's greatest repository of knowledge has been scaled down to serve mainly Egyptians. The country's students and civil servants were given a three-day holiday to participate in the festivities surrounding the library's opening, which was postponed from April due to widespread political demonstrations.

Critics of the project have cited the government's censorship policy as well as the lack of relevance to education in a developing country. One report has Chief Librarian Layla Abdel Hady saying that potentially dangerous books will be locked up. Many of the reference books are considered to be obsolete, although they are backed up by electronic resources. The collection focuses mainly on Egyptian and Mediterranean civilizations.