IN A first on the continent, the Al-Ikhlaas Academia Library and Resource Centre will be unveiled at the Islamia Centre in Imam Haron Road, Lansdowne today.
The state-of-the-art facility has been years in the making. The facility houses an interactive audio-visual suite, digital conference room, computer work stations with high-speed internet connectivity, and a children’s section with the latest tools to aid early childhood development.
Chairperson of the Library Trust, Dr Elias Parker, said the centre, worth more than R7 million, was the culmination of donors giving back to a community that enabled them to become successful.
“This will be an ever-evolving space as we will do a needs analysis on what the library’s users will ask of us. People need to gravitate to this space as we strive to catalogue materials normally not available to the man in the street,” said Parker.
“We are having a full weekend of activities in showcasing all the library has to offer and we welcome everyone to join. This space is open to the greater community and those from even poorer communities.”
Parker said discussions were held over options to assist in transporting residents from poorer communities.
Trustee Mohamed Jaffer said the second phase of the library was to make it a virtual facility.
“People anywhere in the world will have access to this library. We have created a digital platform as the youth are moving towards that space while also having the text available.”
He said as the needs grow, so too will the need to expand, and relevant government officials would be engaged.
Former South Peninsula High School principal Brian Isaacs, who has been invited to address the opening at the weekend, said: “It is encouraging to see where religious leaders go out of there way to include those of other beliefs for the greater good.
“The facility will be of great asset to everyone who seeks to utilise its many amenities.”
The opening, at 4pm, is open to the public.