The National Libraries of Iran, Canada and Australia: Past and Present Compared

Through a comparison of the past and present of the National Libraries of Canada and Australia with the National Library of Iran، this paper presents a critical understanding of the development process and the programs of the National Library of Iran and assists better planning for its future. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research method was a comparative study. The comparative librarianship checklist (Simsova، 1970) was used for data collection. The collected data was used for comparing the three libraries from general aspects such as status، structure، management، services and programs. The National Library and Archives of Canada was more successful than the other two due to privileges such as accurate planning، wide support of library services، techniques for safeguarding national heritage، harmony with archival services and efforts for encouraging people to use information for national development. The following suggestions have been made for improving the conditions of the National Library of Iran: revision of the statute، reconsideration of the management style، revision of the way of integrating the national library and the national archives، and reconsidering planning methods.