Libraries in Pakistan are struggling with dwindling footfall due to the growing dominance of digital media and emerging technologies.
Once vibrant centers of learning, many libraries now stand nearly deserted, reflecting a broader erosion of the country’s reading culture. Some book lovers attribute this decline to limited access to quality libraries, while others point to the absence of a national reading policy. Changing lifestyles and the attraction of digital platforms have weakened traditional reading habits, particularly among the youth, who increasingly prefer mobile phones over books. Advanced technologies have made it harder to engage younger generations with reading, as money once spent on books is now diverted to costly digital devices. When asked to choose between a book and a mobile phone, most students opt for the latter. This shift marks the beginning of a deeper cultural decline in reading and learning.
Libraries of different types, such as academic, public, special and national, are disappearing quietly, almost unnoticed. Once hubs of learning, research and community life, they are now abandoned or dysfunctional, leaving students, researchers and the general public without free access to books. Libraries usually provide access to essential knowledge resources and peaceful study spaces. Fewer people visit libraries in Pakistan, thanks to social media, mobile gadgets and digital entertainment that dull critical thinking. Many assume that everything they need is available on the internet—big salute to those who claim it.
Pakistan, a country facing political instability, economic challenges and prevailing security concerns, is now also confronting a serious decline in reading and library culture. Surprisingly, millions still lack reliable internet access and the majority cannot afford expensive digital devices. People living in slum areas have little exposure to credible online academic resources. For such marginalized communities, especially students from low-income households, libraries offering free access to information are essential. A library is more than a building with books; it is a quiet refuge for study and a lifeline for self-growth. Declining libraries in society mean taking away opportunities from countless individuals who rely on free education, which libraries provide without discrimination of caste, creed or faith.
The decline of libraries in Pakistan is not about dusty bookshelves or old reading rooms, but about the erosion of an important social institution. Libraries are community hubs that bring together people from different backgrounds and encourage literacy among the general public. Their role in reducing the educational gap between the privileged and the underprivileged is commendable. Education cannot exist without access to knowledge and libraries are the foundation of learning. From primary learners to postgraduate researchers, libraries have always served posterity. The decline of libraries in Pakistan is not just the loss of books, but the loss of opportunities, equality and generations.
Rising private education costs and limited public resources are widening the gap among Pakistan’s youth, and the disappearance of libraries deepens this divide. Many libraries are closing due to chronic underfunding, outdated facilities, government neglect, and lack of modernization. Each closure erases part of a community’s intellectual identity. Physical libraries and trained librarians offer what the digital world cannot, nurturing reading habits, critical thinking, and reflection amid growing screen distractions. Instead of being upgraded with digital tools, online archives, and collaborative spaces, libraries are left to decay. Unlike advanced nations that invest in library development, Pakistan continues to lose these vital institutions due to sustained financial neglect and weak policy attention.
The solution is not to abandon libraries, but to transform them. With proper attention from stakeholders and government machinery—such as the Ministry of Education and library departments—libraries should be revived as modern learning hubs offering digital literacy programs across Pakistan. Regrettably, numerous libraries continue to deteriorate because of financial constraints, governmental indifference, obsolete facilities and limited efforts toward modernization. The solution is not shutting them down, but transforming them to meet contemporary needs.
Pakistan has lagged in transforming libraries into community spaces where people can learn together, discuss ideas and exchange knowledge. While libraries worldwide are progressing, those in Pakistan remain stuck in time, burdened by poor facilities and outdated collections. Pakistan’s diminishing library culture is not simply the result of low readership but a complex outcome of government neglect, rising digitization, limited curation and failure to transform libraries into vibrant community centers. The current situation underscores the urgent need for policy intervention and renewed investment in library infrastructure to revive Pakistan’s fading culture of reading.
Saving libraries in Pakistan is not solely the government’s responsibility; it requires collective effort. Schools, universities, civil society and local communities must jointly shoulder the responsibility of protecting libraries from further decline. As long as libraries fail to evolve in step with society’s changing educational needs, their relevance will continue to diminish. Now is the time to revive and protect our libraries, because the generation we educate today will shape the Pakistan of tomorrow.
— The writer is Deputy Director Library at the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad.
