OREANDA-NEWS. February 17, 2010. Ensuring accessible Internet access in regional libraries can be one of the effective ways to attract more readers, especially younger generations, Culture Minister of Belarus Pavel Latushko said at a session of the culture department of the Gomel Oblast Executive Committee.

Young people do not read a lot nowadays. They mostly do it for school curricula, the minister lamented. Children are now more into TV and computers. “If libraries had Internet access, young people would come to surf online. At the same time, a librarian would have an opportunity to approach every one of them individually. This will be an additional opportunity to introduce young people to culture. This is a good alternative to hanging out,” the minister believes.

To ensure Internet access is one of the most important near-term goals of the library services in the Gomel and other oblasts, Pavel Latushko said.

The session reviewed the performance of the culture and art institutions of the Gomel Oblast in 2009 and outlined the goals for 2010.