Nova Scotia regional libraries receive $809,000 grant from Bill and Melinda Gates

NOVA SCOTIA, Canada -- Fifty-six of Nova Scotia's regional public libraries will soon be able to provide their patrons with more access to computers and the Internet, thanks to an $809,000 grant from Bill and Melinda Gates, Education Minister Jane Purves announced today. Separately, Microsoft Corporation will donate $327,000 worth of software to libraries receiving grants.

The grant, part of the Gates Library Initiative, a program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is intended to provide increased access to computers and the Internet for Nova Scotians in low-income areas who would otherwise not have ready access to these technological advances.

"On behalf of the people of Nova Scotia, I want to thank Bill and Melinda Gates for their generosity," said Minister Purves. "The Gates Library Initiative will give many people the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills through computers and the Internet."

The partnership between Nova Scotia and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation began in October 1998 with the launch of the Canadian grant program. The grant will provide funding for 114 Internet workstations in Nova Scotia public libraries and the establishment of regional training centres at libraries in Yarmouth, Halifax, Truro and Sydney starting in the Spring of 2000. Staff training and technical support are also included.

Public libraries in many Nova Scotia communities are eligible to receive cash grants to purchase computer hardware, Internet access and technology training for library staff. Grants from the Foundation are targeted toward libraries and library branches that serve communities where 17.6 percent or more of the population lives in poverty. Statistics were based on the Poverty Profile 1996 report issued by the National Council of Welfare in spring 1998.

According to a July 1999 Statistics Canada study, individuals in the highest-income households are nearly five times more likely to regularly access the Internet than those in the lowest-income households, creating what has been called the "digital divide"—the gap between those who have access to the power and knowledge of the Internet and those that don't. The goal of the Gates Library Initiative is to partner with provincial, territorial and state public libraries throughout the U.S. and Canada to provide access to technology for all people. As use of the Internet as a learning tool increases, it is becoming more important than ever to make technology available to everyone regardless of their age, gender or income.

"Our public libraries play an important role in educating people of all ages," said Minister Purves. "This gift, combined with other Departmental initiatives which included Internet connections to all 75 public libraries, will give more Nova Scotians the tools they need to gain knowledge and find jobs in the growing information economy."