During the academic year 1961-1962, when the Institute was in the Bari University Agronomic Faculty, in Via Amendola, MAIB library-documentation centre was started to offer materials to students and lecturers of the first irrigation course. The first library Head was Ms. Patrizia Intraccolo, who subsequently moved to the European Community in Brussels.

The new Institute site was inaugurated on October 27th 1972, in Valenzano, on the road to Ceglie, where it still is. At that time the library was located into two rooms on the ground floor of building A.
One room held the books and the other for customers.

In the 1980’s Eng. Nicola Fatic, worked hard to expand the library, and to make its resources available to Institute researchers and students. Towards the end of the 1980’s the library was moved to building B.

On April 10th 2002 the current seat of the Documentation Centre was inaugurated in building E behind the Great Hall, with CIHEAM Secretary General Enzo Chioccioli, cutting the ribbon.

Services:

The CIHEAM Bari Documentation Centre (DC) is a multimedia library specialised in Land and water resources management, Sustainable Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Technologies for Mediterranean Fruit and Vegetable Crops, Mediterranean Organic Agriculture.

Besides providing a vital service for MAIB students and for research, the DC is designed to be the ideal place to meet, discuss and have intercultural exchanges.

The library is entirely computerised via the SEBINA Open Library software and has around 6,400 volumes (over 11,000 titles).

FAO Depository Library: the CIHEAM Bari Library, as official designation held in Rome in 2013, gathers FAO publications and make a vital contribution to FAO’s goal of maximizing access to its publications and advancing knowledge in the Organization’s fields of expertise.

In addition, the DC edits:

• the Options Méditerranéennes issued by CIHEAM Bari (the complete series is available on the CIHEAM web site)
• a Newsletter (published every two months) with news and events concerning the library and its new acquisitions.