Based on the old Library of Alexandra, the most famous library of Ancient Times, this modern public study centre will be open to students, researchers and the general public. UNESCO has been associated with it since its inception in the mid-1980s, helping the city and the Mediterranean region to build a major educational, scientific and cultural centre for transmitting and sharing knowledge. It uses state-of-the-art information technology and is linked to major centres of learning all over the world. It will be able to store up to eight million books, including special collections on Mediterranean civilisations and large collections on science and technology, the humanities and the arts.