July
The first municipal elections are held in Beirut since 1972.

August
ASSABIL contacts the new Municipal Council for the city of Beirut.

8 January
ASSABIL obtains legal recognition. "The ASSABIL Association, Friends of Public Libraries" is born.

5 December
Under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture, in partnership with the municipality of Beirut and with the support of the french Cultural Mission in Lebanon, ASSABIL orgnised a colloquium on public access to knowledge that was attended by 200 participants and representatives from thirty associations. The idea of establishing public libraries in Lebanon is adopted. The ASSABIL network is created.

24 January
ASSABIL signs an agreement with the Municipality of Beirut to establish Beirut's first Municipal Public Library.

October
The French Cultural Mission offers ASSABIL a stand at the annual French Book Fair. For the next five years, ASSABIL and its network of public libraries participate in the French Book Fair to promote libraries. We also participate in the annual Arabic Book Fair.

27 November
The official opening of Beirut's first Municipal Public Library in Bachoura, on the third floor of the Ambulance Building.

21 February
The Municipal Public Library opens its doors to the public.

April
On the occasion of International Reading Week, more than 1,000 students visit the Beirut Library and experience a public library for the first time.

August
Dr. Boghdana Hajjar, a member of ABL (Association of Lebanese Libraries) conducts a training session for 25 participants.

September
ASSABIL participates in a pan-African and pan-Arab conference on libraries in Rabat organized by IFLA, UNESCO, and ESI in Morocco.

October - November
Najla Khoury, Joumana Behlok, Mona Abboud, and Nawal Traboulsi conduct 10 training sessions on classification techniques and how to organize activities around books for 20 participants.

November
ASSABIL participates in the French and Arabic Book Fairs.

January
Dr. Chaaban ben Khalifa, president of ABE (Association of Egyptian Libraries) conducts a training session on how to use the Arabic thesaurus.

February
ASSABIL hosts a "Festival of Words and Music" on the occasion of its first anniversary.

February
Mrs. Linda De Vos, ABA (Association of German Libraries) conducts a training session on how to conduct activities about books, especially focused on young children, for 20 participants.

April
ASSABIL participates in a training session organized by the French association Adiflor (a book bank) and the BPI (Public Library of Information at the Pompidou Center) in Paris that included representatives from Hungary, Lebanon, Vietnam, South Africa, and Senegal.

April
On the occasion of International Reading Week, ASSABIL works with schools to organize a number of activities to commemorate Lebanese authors.

May
ASSABIL organizes a week-long seminar on working in public libraries in cooperation with COBIAC. Two professional trainers with expertise in this field (Ms. Carole Boneau and Ms. Mali Levreau) from ABF-PACA (Association of French Libraries in the Provence-Alpes Côte d'Azur region) conducted the seminar.

August
Two members of Assabil organize a training session for those who work in libraries. (21 participants)

September
ASSABIL participates in the AFLI (Arab Federation for Libraries and Information) conference in Beirut.

September
ADIFLOR and BIBLIONEF donate 40,000 French books to ASSABIL that arranges for their distribution to libraries and public schools.

October - November
ASSABIL participates in the French and Arabic Book Fairs.

10 February
The libraries of Beirut managed by ASSABIL and some of ASSABIL network libraries signed a partnership agreement with the Lebanese ministry of culture.

February 2003 - February 2004
With the generous financial support of AMIDEAST, ASSABIL organizes activities on human rights, the rights of children, women's rights, and the environment.

• Six individuals conducted 134 activities at 16 libraries in Lebanon.
• 4,700 people attended these sessions, one-third of which took place in Beirut.
• More than 3,400 books on these topics and a subscription to the journal "al-bia wal tanmiya" ("The Environment and Development") were distributed to participating libraries.

April
Two librarians (Nidaa Ghazal from the Municipal Public Library in Saida and Clarisse Chebli from the Municipal Public Library in Bachoura) received professional training in Marseille. Funding was provided by COBIAC and ASSABIL.

April
On the occasion of International Reading Week, ASSABIL organizes "the path of the book" an activity designed to allow schoolchildren to follow the path of a book from the writer to the shelves of the public library by way of the editor, graphic designer, printer, and the bookseller.

3 September
ASSABIL signs an agreement with the Governor of Beirut to establish a second public library in Beirut in the Jesuit Garden in Rmeyl-Geitawi.

September
The Goethe Institute sponsors a visit by a German librarian who works in the children's section of an international library in Berlin. She gives a seminar for young editors, illustrators, librarians, and writers and makes a donation of 100 books for young people. (50 participants)

October
ASSABIL participates in the French and Arabic Book Fairs.

Two large Arabic publishers "Dar Nahar and Dar Ryad Rayyes" donate 7,200 Arabic books to 24 libraries in the ASSABIL network. ASSABIL also receives donations of English books from Rotary International and the US Embassy in Beirut.

April
For International Reading Week, local and international participants (writers, illustrators, editors, storytellers) took part in activities organized for people of all ages. Invited by the French Cultural Mission, Marc Roger (a French storyteller who has been walking around the world) visited the Bachoura Library and took part in activities for public school children. Alberto Manguel, a distinguished writer who is currently living in France and is particularly well known for his book, A History of Reading, met with book clubs and the general public at the Bachoura Library.

September
Two librarians, Reine-Marie Richani from the Municipal Public Library in Hammana and Soha Shamseddine from the Municipal Public Library in Joun travel to Marseille for professional training. Funding was provided by COBIAC and ASSABIL.

October
For the fifth year, ASSABIL participates in the French and Arabic Book Fairs.

November
ASSABIL opens the second Municipal Public Library in Beirut in the Jesuit Garden in Rmeyl-Geitawi.

22 November
ASSABIL hosts a special training session focused on the network of ASSABIL libraries. Member libraries sign a protocol and discuss the need for a common set of internal regulations and a document spelling out the rights and responsibilities of volunteers. (27 participants)

18 December
Dr. Najla Bachour conducts a seminar on "Incorporating Fiction in the School Curriculum" for teachers and the libraries in the network. (27 participants)

19 December
Aline Hazarabedian and Clarisse Chebli conduct a training session on classification techniques. (27 participants)

January
Firas Al-Khateeb conducts a training session for the network of ASSABIL libraries on technology. Sponsored by UNESCO. (10 participants)

19 and 20 March
Introduction to UNESCO’s software program "Winisis" and the standardization of work tools by Basma Chebbani, AUB. (Financed by the Regional Commission of UNESCO)

2 and 3 July
"Digitizing Libraries and the Internet for Public Libraries," with Dr. Saad Azzhari. (Financed by the Regional Commission of UNESCO)

28 July
With Joe Haddad, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Libraries, the Rights of Citizens, and Public Spaces," on the responsibilities of municipalities and the rights of citizens. (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

29 July
With Nawal Traboulsi, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Physical Spaces, Services at Public Libraries, and the Need for Areas Dedicated to Children." (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

22 August
With Clarisse Chebli, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Simplified Classification Techniques for Public Libraries." (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

19 September
With Joumana Behlok, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Books and Young Children." (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

15 October
With Joe Haddad, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Libraries, the Rights of Citizens, and Public Spaces," (continuation and conclusion) on the responsibilities of municipalities and the rights of citizens. (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

29 October
With Hoda El Hajj, "Promoting a Culture of Information II: Art Books in Literature. Illustrations in Children’s Books and how to use them in Libraries." (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

5 November
With Hala Bejjani, "How to Fundraise for Public Libraries." (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)

23 November
With Hala Bejjani, "How to Fundraise for Public Libraries," (continuation and conclusion) (Financed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation)