Archives
The Dutch archival system consists of the archives of the larger municipalities, the Regional Historical Centres, which manage the archives of provinces, water boards, and smaller municipalities. The National Archives manages the state archives and serves as a knowledge centre for digital sustainability. It works together with the National Archives of Suriname and the archives in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. Key themes in recent years have included digitisation—such as the creation of e-depot facilities—the shift from archiving after the fact to archiving at the source, open data, and information security.
A new Archives Act was passed by the House of Representatives on 18 February 2025. This Act replaces the 1995 Archives Act and is designed to better align with the government’s digital information management. Key changes include shortening the transfer period for permanently preserved government information from 20 to 10 years, and clarifying responsibilities for digital information management (see for more details on the new act chapter 4.2.2).
Libraries
The Dutch library network consists of 133 public libraries and 3.6 million members in 2023. In 2015 a new libraries act (Library Service Act) aimed to create a comprehensive network of libraries, both physical and digital. The law described five social functions of the public library: making knowledge and information available; providing opportunities for development and education; promoting reading and introducing people to literature; organising meetings and debates; and introducing people to art and culture. The evaluation of the law in 2020 showed that the physical library network had declined. There are municipalities and neighbourhoods without a public library, and too many situations where a library is present but insufficiently equipped (building, staff, collection, opening hours, activities). The Rutte IV Cabinet (2022–2024) therefore decided to include a duty of care in the law. From 2026 onwards, municipalities and provinces must ensure there are sufficient, fully functioning libraries. Funding for this duty of care will be provided through the Municipal Fund. In 2023 and 2024, the Cabinet allocated additional funds for municipalities without a public library. The special municipalities that make up the Caribbean Netherlands also received extra funding for their libraries. There is broad political consensus on these measures. At the time of writing this Compendium Profile, the law is in the consultation phase.
The KB is the National Library of the Netherlands. Since the foundation in 1798 the aim has been to collect as many publications as possible that were written in or about the Netherlands. The repository stores over 120 kilometres of written – and increasingly digital – heritage. The e-Depot contains some 40 million digital newspapers, books, magazines, e-books and websites. Together with the public libraries the KB promotes reading, digital inclusion and lifelong development, including the library for people with a reading disability. The KB hosts services such as the Online Public Library, Delpher (digital database of historical newspapers and books) and DBNL (the Digital Library for Dutch Literature).
For more information, see the Library Monitor (Bibliotheekmonitor ) and the Culture Monitor.https://www.cultuurmonitor.nl/en/domein/letteren/
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