About us

Who we are
Our core initiatives
Our achievements
Our library partners
Our organisation
Our funders

Who we are

eIFL.net is an international not-for-profit organisation with a base in Europe and a global network of partners. We work with libraries around the world to enable sustainable access to high quality digital information for people in developing and transition countries.

Founded in 1999, eIFL.net began by advocating for affordable access to commercial e-journals for academic and research libraries in Central and Eastern Europe. Today, eIFL.net partners with libraries and library consortia in over 45 developing and transition countries in Africa, Asia and Europe. Our work has also expanded to include a range of programmes and initiatives that increase access to knowledge.

The challenge. Access to knowledge is fundamental to education and research, the improvement of lives, and the creation of human capital upon which the development of societies depends. Libraries play a key role through the provision of high quality information resources and services. However, factors such as the high cost of commercial e-resources, legal barriers and poor technology infrastructure risk leaving many people around the world behind.

Our mission. eIFL.net enables access to knowledge through libraries in developing and transition countries to contribute to sustainable economic and social development.

Our approach. eIFL.net’s unique approach is to partner with libraries organised in national library consortia (groups of libraries that share common goals) thereby effectively reaching millions of people.

• We build capacity by organizing training events, developing tools and resources, providing up-to-date information on issues that affect access to knowledge.
• We advocate for access to knowledge nationally and internationally.
• We encourage knowledge sharing through peer-to-peer learning, best practice case studies, annual partner conference, regional cooperation among consortia.
• We incubate pilot projects for innovative library services.

Our core initiatives

• Access to Knowledge for Education, Learning and Research – ensuring well-resourced libraries, modern ICT infrastructure and skilled staff to provide essential support to students and scholars. eIFL.net programmes in this area include: consortium management, e-resource licensing, open access, copyright for libraries, and free and open software for libraries.
• Access to Knowledge for Sustainable Livelihoods – helping to transform lives through innovative services in public libraries. eIFL.net's Public Library Innovation Program provides support for activities in this area.

Our achievements

Our approach to developing and supporting library consortia has proved to be a successful and sustainable model of delivering access to knowledge.

Over the last ten years, librarians in our network have become effective advocates for access to knowledge in over 45 countries, and together we have achieved significant change.

• As a result of our activities, users have access to a wider range of e-resources than would otherwise have been possible.
• Through central negotiations with commercial publishers, we have achieved substantial savings in terms of time and money for the libraries in our network.
• Open access mandates have been adopted, and institutional repositories created, due to our advocacy and support, increasing the visibility and usage of scholarly output from researchers in our partner countries.
• National copyright laws have been improved as a result of our international advocacy, and through our efforts to build a network of local and regional activists in the library community.
• We have also enabled libraries to offer an enhanced service to their users through better ICT infrastructure.

Our library partners

We currently work with national library consortia in over 45 developing and transition countries in Africa, Asia and Europe – from Albania to Zimbabwe.

The network is expanding fast, and recent new members include Ethiopia, Kenya, the Maldives and Tanzania.

Our organisation

With over ten years’ experience and a successful track record, we have built a unique combination of professional expertise and in-depth knowledge of developing and transition countries.

The Director of eIFL.net oversees the running of the organisation and is supported by the Advisory Board, which includes elected country representatives.

A Management Board bears legal and financial responsibility for the organisation.

eIFL.net signs a Memorandum of Understanding outlining cooperation and responsibilities with library consortia. Each consortium designates an eIFL.net country coordinator who is the link between library members and our programme team. A participation fee, determined according to the country’s ability to pay, is levied to cover some of our costs. Our programmes are run by experienced managers in consultation with programme committees. Managers work closely with coordinators in partner countries, thereby ensuring that we are responsive to real local needs.

Our core team has deep professional knowledge in areas including consortium management, licensing and negotiations for e-resources, copyright, new forms of scholarly communications, and FOSS applications and technological innovations in libraries.

We also draw upon a network of experts around the world who volunteer their professional advice and support.

Our funders

We have received support from a wide range of leading funders including:

• Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• European Commission 7th Framework Program
• European Commission Tempus Program
• Ford Foundation
• Foundation Open Society (FOSI)
• John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation
• Koha Foundation
• Open Society Institute (OSI)
• Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA)
• Open Society Initiative for Western Africa (OSIWA)
• Tides Foundation
• UNESCO Information for All Program
• Wellcome Trust