The Qatar National Library (QNL)’s recently launched summer membership campaign under the tagline #Library4You aims to highlight its resources with the community, according to an official of the library.
“The campaign reflects how we think about our relationship with the community,” Fatima H al-Sahli, head of the Stacks Maintenance Unit in the QNL’s Public Engagement Department, told Gulf Times.
“Libraries have sometimes been seen as passive spaces, buildings where knowledge sits on shelves waiting to be found. #Library4You expresses the opposite: our active commitment to meeting every person where they are, with something genuinely useful to them,” she said.
Al-Sahli said that QNL is shaped around each person in the country, and the summer membership campaign aims to benefit each one of them.
“It can be for a child preparing for school, a student facing a project deadline, a researcher seeking rare manuscripts, a parent looking for a quiet hour with a good book or a first-time reader discovering the joy of stories,” she stated. “The library is shaped around each person who walks through our doors or opens the QNL app. That is the promise of #Library4You.”
The official said the campaign was launched during the summer because summer is exactly when the library matters most.
“Schools are out, families have time together, and there is more room to explore,” al-Sahli noted.
“Qatar’s summers are hot, and the library is a cool, welcoming, beautifully designed space, open to all and entirely free,” she continued. “It is also everywhere people are, through our app. Whether someone is a student or a retiree, a first-time reader or a seasoned researcher, the library has something to offer.”
The official highlighted that the QNL mobile app is increasingly central to how people experience the library.
“The app extends the library’s reach beyond its physical walls,” al-Sahli said.
“Through it, members can register, browse and borrow from our digital collections, reach e-books and research databases, follow events and programmes, and explore our services from anywhere,” she said.
“We are extending that reach further in 2026, with e-books and audiobooks planned for patients in hospitals and passengers on public transport, because lifelong learning does not follow a schedule and neither does the library,” the official added. “The app puts a full library within reach at any moment, and it is only beginning to show what it can do.”
Al-Sahli emphasised that the library belongs to everyone and that principle shows up in its architecture, programming, and policies.
“In 2025, we served 1,108 children and adults with disabilities through tailored programmes,” she pointed out. “Our community programmes reach well beyond that.”
“We run sessions for new parents, writing workshops for domestic workers whose stories have appeared in a published book, mentorship programmes that connect students with the brightest minds and leaders, and creative-writing programmes,” the official said.
Al-Sahli said that through the QNL’s app and other online platforms, families can reach thousands of children’s e-books, interactive stories, and early-learning resources that support a child’s literacy from the very first words.
The Children’s Library pairs hands-on innovation spaces with a full programme of themed activities, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) workshops, information-literacy sessions, and creative challenges.
“That range is what #Library4You means in practice,” she said.
“For students and others working late, we introduced a dedicated late-night study area that stays open until 6am, keeping the library available when people most need a place to think,” al-Sahli added.
“Seasonal programmes such as Summer Camp, Winter Camp, and the Summer Reading Challenge turn school holidays into time for discovery,” the official said. “Our aim is for every child to leave with sharper curiosity and greater confidence.”
