– By Pushpa Sathish, Staff Writer

More than 50 public and academic libraries in the five counties of Greater Gwent in Wales, UK, will be linked through the “Gateways to Learning” project, undertaken as a joint effort by the University of Wales, Newport, and the Caerphilly County Council. The initiative hopes to provide adults online access to the region’s libraries so that they can develop their skills through e-learning measures. All libraries can be searched using branded Gateways areas that offer information, resources, guidance, e-learning materials, and computer access. With help from library staff and members of the project, learners can use skills picked up to obtain certification qualification validated by the Open College Network. The project will run till August 2007. Public Technology reports:

Project manager Christine Clark at the University of Wales, Newport, said, “Learners will hold a special membership card allowing access to all libraries and enabling them to search all the catalogues of partner libraries from a single site. A dedicated inter-library loan system will deliver resources to the user’s home library.”