Where the ordinary and traditional measures have proved their incapability in dealing with today's complex and difficult issues , any society's progress and advancement could be hindered seriously without access to proper information.

At a period, that great emphasis is placed upon doing scientific research , the need for establishing powerful information networks is a must.

Presently, centers that are taking part in the grate task of informatics are increasingly adding up. Among the regional countries (Central Asia and Middle-East), the Regional Library of Science and Technology (RLST) in Shiraz holds special place. Having the highes, most earnest and serious support of the Islamic Republic of Iran's government, RLST in such a short period has been able to expand its programs and services among the scientific and technology communities within the region.

Nevertheless, the needs of the scientific community for library services change and grow with advances in knowledge and education .It follows that RLST can not be content simply to do better what it has done before.

Our duty is two-fold : to care for the advancement of knowledge and to provide new services.

RLST was established in 1991 under an agreement reached between the Islamic Republic of Iran's Ministry of Culture and Higher Education and the Third-World Academy of sciences. It was meant to act as the regional center for reference, study and bibliographical information and other services in relation to both scientific and technological matters.

How will the Regional Library of Science and Technology meet this objective, to supply information to all who can make use of it? We at RLST have been convinced that we can succeed only by working in partnership with those principally affected by RLST's developing activities.

A primary objective is to deploy RLST's own sources to provide services of high quality which will help its users to make better use of RLST's printed materials and its various databases, Thus, particular attention is being paid to improving the use an d accessibility of RLST's resources through the new information services; the bibliographical services are being organized so that the most effective use can be made of cataloging and indexing facilities; and the document delivery services continue to be dev eloped as a services to complement local and national collections.

The funds at RLST are employed to assist users, processors and disseminators of information to plan and develop their own operation with greater confidence and with a clear understanding of the possibilities for cooperation at the national and regional level.

Here, I would like to thank the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Ministry of Culture and Higher Education for their sympathetic financial and organizational support.

I hope that with the sincere cooperation of Rlst's devoted personal, we will be able to fulfill its long term goals by providing information needs of the scientific communities within the Islamic Republic of Iran as well as the regional countries.

Jafar Mehrad, Ph,D

President