Libraries in the early 21st century, volume 2: An international perspective 9783110292855, 9783110292756

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Libraries in the Early 21st Century Vol. 2

Libraries in the Early 21st Century

De Gruyter Saur

Libraries in the Early 21st Century Volume 2 An International Perspective

Edited on behalf of IFLA by Ravindra N. Sharma

De Gruyter Saur

ISBN 978-3-11-029275-6 e-ISBN 978-3-11-029285-5 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A CIP catalog record for this book has been applied for at the Library of Congress. Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available in the Internet at http://dnb.dnb.de © 2012 Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin/Boston Typesetting: Apex CoVantage, LLC Printing: Hubert & Co. GmbH & Co. KG, Go¨ttingen ⬁ Printed on acid-free paper s Printed in Germany www.degruyter.com

Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................

1

Part 1 International Librarianship 1.1 1.2 1.3

1.4

1.5

Jay Jordan OCLC: A Global Cooperative .......................................................

5

Robert Wedgeworth and R.N. Sharma From ALA to IFLA: A Primer on International Librarianship ....

17

Ching-chih Chen Technology Enabling Universal Access to World Heritage: Implications for Libraries ...............................................................

27

R.N. Sharma Academic Libraries and Technology in Developing Countries in the Twenty-First Century ...........................................................

53

Selma Alpay Aslan Use of Technology in Libraries in the European Union Towards 2020 .................................................................................

77

Part 2 Countries A–Z 2.1

Bangladesh Muhammad Hossam Haider Chowdhury and M. Shamsul Islam Khan Libraries and Librarianship in Bangladesh ................................... 101

2.2

Botswana H. Kay Raseroka and S.M. Mutula Retracing the Impact of Information Communications Technology on Academic Libraries in Sub-Saharan Africa: Case Study of the University of Botswana Library ...................... 129

2.3

Brazil Timothy A. Thompson and Cavan McCarthy Library Development in Brazil ...................................................... 145

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2.4

Caribbean Jennifer M. Joseph Technology and Caribbean Libraries and a Case Study of the University of the West Indies ........................................................ 183

2.5

Egypt Mahmoud Khalifa Information Technology in the Egyptian Librarianship Community ..................................................................................... 203

2.6

Ghana Helena Asamoah-Hassan Libraries in Ghana in the Technological Age ............................... 217

2.7

India R.K. Bhatt and S. Majumdar Libraries Through the Ages in India: Sojourn from Palm Leaf to Palmtop .............................................................................. 235

2.8

Iran Nancy Beygijanian Armenian Libraries in Iran: Will They Ever Be Able to Move Forward? .......................................................................... 275

2.9

Iran Nader D. Naghshineh Iranian Library Landscape: The Humanware Dilemma ............... 289

2.10

Iraq Shler Salih Faraj Libraries and Librarianship in Iraqi Kurdistan ............................. 297

2.11

Israel Pawel Trzopek and Amy Phillips The Library for the E´cole Biblique et Arche´ologique Franc¸aise de Je´rusalem ................................................................... 313

2.12

Italy Anna Maria Tammaro Library Automation in Italy Towards the Digital Library ........... 327

2.13

Kenya John K. Chepkwony The Development of Academic Libraries and Information Services in Kenya ........................................................................... 345

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vii

2.14

Mexico Jesu´s Lau and Javier Tarango Academic Libraries in Mexico with an Emphasis on the Use of Technology in Mexican State University Libraries .......... 359

2.15

Netherlands Marian Koren Libraries in the Netherlands ........................................................... 383

2.16

Pakistan Kanwal Ameen Libraries and Impact of Information and Communication Developments in Pakistan: An Overview ..................................... 415

2.17

Palestinian Territory, Occupied Majed Khader Challenges and Obstacles in Palestinian Libraries ....................... 425

2.18

Russia T.D. Velikova, S.A. Dobrusina and A.G. Goryaeva Inspection of the Book-Repositories of Russian Libraries ........... 445

2.19

Senegal Bernard Dione The Development of Libraries in Sub-Saharan Francophone West Africa with a Focus on the Senegalese Situation ................ 463

2.20

Switzerland Gabi Schneider Libraries in Switzerland ................................................................. 473

2.21

Taiwan, China Chao-chen Chen Development of Libraries in Taiwan, China ................................. 491

2.22

United Arab Emirates David G. Hirsch Libraries in the United Arab Emirates .......................................... 515

2.23

Vietnam Binh P. Le Information Technology in Vietnamese Libraries ........................ 531

About the Contributors .............................................................................. 543 About the Editor ........................................................................................ 553

Introduction There are 196 countries in the world in 20121 and all of them have schools, colleges, and universities to educate their children. Many countries in the western world and in developing nations have excellent educational institutions with good libraries to support their academic programs. There are many excellent public and special libraries also in some western and other nations. On the other hand, many developing nations are behind in their efforts to improve libraries and introduce technology in their libraries. Recession and bad economic conditions since 2008 have made a deep impact on the progress of libraries all over the world but poor developing countries have suffered more than developed nations. They are struggling to catch up to serve the needs of their population in this information age of the twenty first century. There are many reasons for the slow progress of libraries – including wars and uprisings – in countries of Africa, Asia and Middle East; this can be seen in countries such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Mali, Rwanda, Somalia, Syria and other nations. A few developing countries including Argentina, Brazil, China and India have made efforts to improve their libraries and have introduced technology because they want to make progress and improve literacy rate in their countries. Volume 2 of Libraries in the Early 21st Century: An International Perspective includes chapters from many countries of all continents. Authors have discussed the progress made by their libraries including introduction of technology in the information age for the benefit of their children, students, scholars and other citizens. They have also discussed the progress their libraries will make during the next fifteen years. It will help library leaders and political leaders of all nations to discuss the ways to bring equality of access to information in all nations in the twenty first century. I want to thank all authors who took time to do research and wrote chapters for the book, my daughter Mohini Sharma for her help in editing the manuscript and two graduate assistants Divya Sudireddy and Swathi Komatireddy for their help in preparing the manuscript for publication. I also want to thank the publisher and Dr. Alice Keller, Editorial Director of the De Gruyter/Saur for their guidance and for providing the finishing touches to the manuscript and preparing it for publication. It is a comprehensive book with first hand and up-to-date information on libraries of many countries from all continents. It will help students and faculty

1

“The Number of Countries in the World.” About.com.geography. http://geography.about. com/cs/countries/a/numbercountries.htm. Accessed April 24, 2012.

2

Introduction

of library schools all over the world to learn, understand, and gain knowledge about the development of libraries in many countries. It will help librarians to learn more about libraries in other nations, their strengths, and weaknesses. It will also help librarians of all nations to work together in the global village to bring much needed improvements in libraries all over the world. June 2012 R.N. Sharma, Ph.D

Part 1 International Librarianship

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative Jay Jordan Introduction The Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) is a nonprofit, membership computer library service and a research organization serving the needs of all types of libraries in the world. It is dedicated to the public purpose of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing library costs.1 More than 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories around the world use the OCLC service to locate acquire, catalog, lend, preserve, and manage library materials.2 In addition, “researchers, students, faculty, scholars, professional librarians and other information seekers use OCLC services to obtain bibliographic, abstract and full text information, when and where they need it. OCLC and its members cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat the OCLC Online Union Catalog.”3 This chapter will discuss OCLC and international librarianship in several ways. First, the structure, governance, growth and strategic direction of the OCLC cooperative. It then takes a look at OCLC’s partnerships around the world. Finally, it examines the growth in the materials cataloged by the OCLC cooperative and how those materials are being made available to users throughout the world.

The Structure and Governance of OCLC OCLC was founded in 1967 by the librarian Frederick G. Kilgour and the presidents of Ohio’s colleges and universities in the United States. OCLC’s mission was then, and is now, to further access to the world’s information and to reduce the rate of rise of per-unit library costs. In 1971, OCLC began providing online shared cataloging services to 54 Ohio academic libraries. The service made it possible for only one library to have to originally catalog an item. Other libraries would use the same 1 2 3

OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011, Dublin, Ohio, 2011: ii. http://www.oclc.org/news/ publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf. OCLC Homepage, http://www.oclc.org/us/default.htm. Accessed February 9, 2012. OCLC Annual Report, 2011: ii. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/ 214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf.

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information to catalog their materials. The savings in time and money were enormous. Word about this innovation in cataloging spread quickly, first across the United States, and then to other countries. By 1979, the OCLC computer network had been extended to libraries in all 50 states and one library in Canada. Ten years later, OCLC was in 38 countries. By 1999, OCLC was in 86 countries. In 2009 OCLC participants were in 171 countries. 2011 marked the 44th year of the OCLC cooperative. The original 54 libraries in Ohio participating in the cooperative had grown to be more than 72,000 libraries in 170 countries. It is interesting to note that in the 2008 financial year, revenues from libraries outside the U.S were 22.8% of total revenues. In the 2011 financial year, revenues from outside the U.S. were 25% of total revenues. So, OCLC is indeed becoming more global, and the governance of OCLC is becoming more global as well. Academic libraries have been one of the drivers of this international growth. Indeed they are the largest segment in the OCLC membership. OCLC has about 1,200 employees worldwide, of which about 750 are located in Dublin, Ohio, USA. The rest are in 27 offices in ten countries. It operates eight engineering centers in Australia, Germany, the Netherland, and the United Kingdom, as well as in the United States. OCLC also has three data centers, one in Dublin, Ohio and another 15 miles away in Westerville, Ohio. A data center in Europe opened in 2011. Two more data centers are planned for Australia and Canada in the next two years “These centers will employ state of the art technologies to ensure high levels of performance, reliability, scalability and cost effectiveness. Each center will provide service 24/7 and will be backed up by uninterruptible power systems and redundant heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. Moreover, the new centers will enable OCLC to comply with data privacy requirements around the globe.”4 OCLC’s governance structure has evolved with the growth in international participation. OCLC is a membership cooperative. From 1978 until May 2009, there were three parts to the governance structure. First, there are members – they are libraries that use OCLC services and contribute to WorldCat or share resources with others in the network. These members elect delegates to a Members Council, and the Members Council in turn elects six members of a 15-member Board of Trustees. There were 66 delegates on the 2008–2009 Members Council, including 16 delegates from outside the U.S. Thirty two delegates from outside the U.S. have served on the Council since 1978. The Members Council met for the last time on May 17–19, 2009. They completed most of the transition to

4

“Global Data Centers” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011: 4. http://www.oclc.org/news/ publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf.

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative

7

the new governance structure, which includes winding down the Members Council and implementing regional councils in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Asia Pacific. In April 2010, the new Global Council of 60 delegates convened at OCLC for the first time. There were 22 delegates from outside the U.S. on the first Global Council. The annual plan identified key areas in which the OCLC Global Council could productively advise OCLC’s strategic direction and development of services including WorldCat quality and sustainability, communication within the OCLC cooperation, cost sharing principles and models, collaboratively building web scale with libraries and OCLC’s web services, and WorldCat in the global information environment.5 There was a Virtual Meeting of the Global Council on June 17, 2011 which concluded that the Council had met its goals and concluded the year with good record of achievements. It was decided to hold face to face meetings in November 2011 and April 2012 for discussions and interactions. The OCLC Global Council is certainly the voice of OCLC members.6 OCLC is making steady progress toward its goal of becoming a global library cooperative. The development since 1979 has been remarkable and following dates are testimony to the progress. 1979 – 1989 – 1990 – 1993 – 1999 – 2006 – 2006 – 2007 –

first non-U.S. participant participants from 39 countries first non-U.S. Members Council delegate first non-U.S. Board member participants from 86 countries participants from 109 countries first non-U.S. Members Council President first Members Council meeting outside U.S. in Quebec City, Canada. 2012 – participants from 170 countries.

The OCLC Board of Trustees is structured so that a majority of the trustees are librarians or leaders in the library community. Only five of the 15 are elected from fields outside librarianship. And with only two exceptions, the Board chairs have all been academic librarians. Larry Alford, Chief Librarian, University of Toronto, Canada is the current chair of the OCLC Board of Trustees. The new OCLC governance structure is partially in response to the growth of the OCLC cooperative. In the last 10 years, OCLC has gone from 30,000 to 72,000 participating libraries. The number of participants outside the U.S. has

5 6

Younger, Jenifer A., “OCLC Global Council – The Voice of OCLC members” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011: 36. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/ 214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf. Ibid.: 36.

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grown from 3,200 to nearly 12,000. The new governance structure took effect on July 1, 2008. It is designed to extend participation in the OCLC cooperative to an increasing number of libraries and cultural heritage institutions around the world. As discussed earlier, the Members Council has transitioned into the Global Council, and the regional councils are now going forward in Asia Pacific, in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and in the Americas. Jan Ison of the U.S. served as the first president of the OCLC Global Council, Berndt Dugall of Germany is serving council’s President from 2011–2013, and ChewLeng Beh of Singapore who at present is Vice President/President elect will succeed Mr. Dugall and become president of Global Council in 2013. The governance of OCLC is indeed going global! New OCLC governance structure (adopted 2008)

Regional Council Members

Members

Members

Regional Council

Global Council

Board of Trustees

Regional Council

Figure 1: New OCLC governance structure: courtesy OCLC

OCLC’s Strategic Direction OCLC’s strategic direction can be summed up as building web-scale for libraries and focuses on four broad objectives: – – – –

create a compelling user environment make WorldCat Web Services a valued part of library operations increase OCLC’s global relevance and position of trust create system-wide efficiencies in library management

These objectives complement each other. Together, they are taking the cooperative to the next-generation of OCLC services.

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative

9

OCLC’s first major initiative in creating a compelling user environment began in 2006 with WorldCat.org. This search box made collections in OCLC member libraries visible on the Internet to people everywhere. The goal of OCLC is to have a person who is searching for information on the Internet using a search engine to end up in a library. WorldCat.org contains more than 531 million article records7 from sources such as the British Library, NLM, H.W. Wilson, MEDLINE, ERIC, GPO, and OCLC Article First. WorldCat has grown dramatically, and totals over 200 million bibliographic records and more than one billion holdings. And the number of records in languages other than English has also steadily increased, standing at 484 languages in 2011.8 WorldCat.org is experiencing steady growth, with millions of searches starting out on the Web and ending up in a library service. OCLC is clearly increasing the visibility of libraries on the Web. It launched a pilot program in Canada and the United States in 2008 to bring WorldCat in to the mobile mainstream. It was extended to France, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Since its launch there have been 1.6 million views of WorldCat.org using more than 1000 mobile devices through June 2011. The most popular mobile devices used to access WorldCat.org were Apple iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, accounting for three-fourths of all views.9 A production version of WorldCat’s local services optimized for mobile access was introduced in June 2011. It makes it possible for mobile users to discover items, see locations, shelf status, call numbers and levels of availability, place a hold, request the item or e-mail citations for content in their local libraries and in libraries worldwide. Any smart-phone or phone capable of running JavaScript or a Java-based Web browser, such as Opera Mini or Bolt, is supported.10 People can now use their mobile phones to access WorldCat Local, where 4G wireless downloads are 2,500 times faster than the original OCLC network. Wired networks are now 416,000 times faster.11 OCLC developed the QuestionPoint virtual reference service with the Library of Congress and launched it in 2002. BiblioSe´s@me is another virtual reference service operated by French public libraries that uses QuestionPoint as its platform. Ask Scotland, a virtual reference service launched in June

7 8 9 10 11

Jordan, Jay, “To the membership” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 3. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_ 2011.pdf. “WorldCat” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 14. http://www.oclc. org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf. “WorldCat Mobile” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 27. http://www. oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf. Ibid, 27. “Year in Review: 40th Anniversary of WorldCat” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 8. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_ usb_Annual_Report_2011.pdf.

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2009, is based on Question Point. OCLC has also introduced the QWidget, which is a chat widget that gives libraries the ability to embed a snippet of HTML code throughout their Web pages and in a variety of environments such as Facebook or MySpace. The production version of the Web-scale management services (WMS) was introduced in 2010. In addition to Canada and the United States many libraries in Europe including the Netherlands and Norway have acquired the WMS.12 In brief, OCLC is trying to take library services to where the users are and give them a compelling experience. The second area of focus is Web services. Distributed services and Web services are technical terms that are resonating throughout the information industry. They are also part of OCLC’s strategy to build Web-scale for libraries. OCLC has already implemented some Web services, such as xISBN, Identities and Terminologies. In 2008, OCLC invited a small group of developers from OCLC cataloging institutions in North America and Europe to use the WorldCat API, or Applications Programming Interface and become part of a Developers Network. This open-source, code-sharing infrastructure improves the value of OCLC data for all users by encouraging new Web Services use. The Developers Network has hosted two events for programmers and developers, one at New York Public and the other in Amsterdam. At each event they spent two days brainstorming and participating in coding mash-ups with a variety of systems and library services. Frederick G. Kilgour founded the OCLC Office of Research in 1978, and it has been conducting research and sharing it with the library community ever since. OCLC Research staff has developed the work agenda, which includes managing the collective collection of the world’s libraries, renovating descriptive and organizing practices, and architecture and standards. OCLC Research provides the OCLC cooperative with an infrastructure and interactive process for helping libraries, museums, and archives deal with the rapidly changing digital global community. Since the merger of the Research Libraries Group (RLG) and OCLC in 2006, OCLC research scientists and RLG program officers have been working closely together on behalf of the library, museum, and archive communities. Titia van der Werf joined OCLC Research based in OCLC’s Leiden office the Netherlands on January 1, 2012 as Senior Program Officer. She will coordinate and extend OCLC Research work throughout Europe and will have special responsibilities for interactions with OCLC Research library Partners there.13 Her appointment will further improve services and quality of OCLC Research. There are currently 150 Research Library Partner institutions around the world. These institutions support the work of the Partnership through the payment of annual subscriptions and active staff engagement in a program of

12 13

Jordan, “To the membership” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011: 5. Ibid.: 6.

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative

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work. Staff from the OCLC Research division coordinate and support the efforts of these affiliated institutions – libraries, archives, and museums committed to exploiting technology to make their collections accessible for research.

Virtual International Authority File Another example of OCLC’s global relevance and position of trust can be seen in a major international cooperative effort in the information age of the twenty-first century. Virtual International Authority File (VIAF) was started in 2004 and the collaborative efforts of the Library of Congress, Deutsche National Bibliotheque, Bibliotheque National de France and OCLC Research will become an OCLC service in 2012. The Virtual International Authority File matches and links the authority files of national libraries and groups of all authority records for a given entry into a merged “Super” authority record. By linking disparate names for the same person or organization, VIAF provides a convenient means for a wider community of libraries and other agencies to repurpose bibliographic data produced by libraries serving different language communities.14 Thom Hickey ,Chief Scientist of the OCLC Research is of the view that “VIAF has turned out to be a wonderful collaboration of major libraries around the world … We expect VIAF to be an important feature in the infrastructure libraries depend on in the future.”15 The long-term goal of the VIAF project is to include authoritative names from many libraries into a global service that will be freely available via the Web to users worldwide.

OCLC’s Partnerships Around the World In 2007, OCLC opened a representative office in Beijing, ChinaIn 2005 Shanghai Library hosted the conference. In 2008, OCLC was host for the fourth China-U.S. Library Conference, which brought together 60 leaders from libraries, museums and archives in China and the U.S. for three days of presentations and meetings. It was an honor for OCLC to be able to host this prestigious scholarly conference. In October 2009 China hosted the fifth China-U.S. conference in Beijing. It was well organized and well attended. The Jay Jordan IFLA/OCLC Fellows program provides early career development and continuing education for library and information science

14 15

“Virtual International Authority File” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 29. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_ Report_2011.pdf. Ibid.: 29.

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professionals from countries with developing economies. The program provides advanced continued education and exposure to a broad range of issues in information technologies, library operations, and global cooperative librarianship. Fellows participate in discussions with library and information science leaders, library visits, and mentoring programs. A total of 60 fellows from 33 countries have participated in the program since 2001. The OCLC community is very proud of its association with IFLA and its presidents including Ellen Tise, who served as President of IFLA from 2009 to 2011. She also served as a delegate to the OCLC Members Council for three years from 2005–2008. AMICAL is a consortium of 21 institutions of higher education located in 18 countries across Central and Western Europe, West and North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Russia. AMICAL is partnering with OCLC to offer consortial library services to participating members. AMICAL’s development has been made possible through the generous support of the Andrew Mellon Foundation.

Facilitating the Discovery of Library Collections OCLC’s fourth area of focus is to create system-wide efficiencies in library management. OCLC and Google are exchanging data to facilitate the discovery of library collections through Google search services. OCLC member libraries participating in the Google Book Search program may share their WorldCatderived MARC records with Google to better facilitate discovery of library collections through Google. Links from Google Book Search to WorldCat. org will drive traffic to library OPACs and other library services. Google shares data and links to digitized books with OCLC, making it possible for OCLC to represent the digitized collections of OCLC member libraries in WorldCat. This is another system-wide efficiency that benefits the entire cooperative. Thanks to a new API released by Google in 2008, WorldCat.org users now have an easy, seamless way to view digitized books available in the Google Book Search collection, right on the WorldCat.org Web site. A Google Preview Button will appear in the record display when the text of a work – either excerpts for in-copyright works or full text for public domain materials – is available online. Visitors can click on the button to access the content within WorldCat.org via an embedded Google viewport. This is a great enhancement to the discovery process on WorldCat.org. Google’s Book Search APIs represent an important advance in accessing the content scanned on behalf of libraries participating in the Google Book Search Library Project. Working together increases the presence of these libraries and their collections on the Web.

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative

13

In 2000, ABES, the consortium of French university libraries, began using a CBS system developed by what was then OCLC PICA to build a French academic union catalog. It provides a French-language interface for both cataloging and interlibrary loans, was Unicode compliant and perhaps most significantly, is managed by ABES staff in Montpellier, France rather than OCLC staff in Dublin, Ohio, U.S.A.

WorldCat Growth WorldCat has been creating system-wide efficiencies since August 26, 1971. As of June 30, 2011, WorldCat contained more than 235 million records and more than 1.74 billion location listings.16 In 2006, OCLC completed a four-year, $100 million project to build a new technological platform, and all OCLC users have migrated to the new platform. The new technological platform consists of reusable components that can be embedded and integrated into local library applications. It supports not only MARC, but Dublin Core, FRBR, and other standards. Perhaps most important for international librarianship is OCLC’s Unicode capabilities. This now supports 12 scripts: Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Cyrillic, Devanagari, Greek, Hebrew, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Tamil, and Thai. This capability is key to involving more academic libraries around the world. In 2008, OCLC batch-processed about 300 million records for loading of holdings into WorldCat. Overall, 34 national libraries have begun adding digital images, national files, and bibliographies to WorldCat by both batch loading and online contribution, exposing the richness of their collections to the worldwide library community. In the 2011 financial year, libraries added almost 39 million records to WorldCat, bringing the total at June 30, 2011 to 235,822,950 records. It’s interesting to note that it took the OCLC cooperative 31 years, from 1971 to 2002, to add the first 50 million records. WorldCat hit 100 million records in 2008, and since then libraries have added 135 million records. In February 2010, OCLC installed a new Automated WorldCat De-duplication system which has since merged some 7.1 million duplicate records. It must be added that the records added to the WorldCat go back to “Six millennia of records of recorded knowledge, from about 4800 BC to the present. A new record enters WorldCat every 1.2 seconds”.17 It includes records in over 485 languages of the world, including English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese,

16 17

“Growth of Location Listings” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011, Dublin, Ohio, 2011: 15. http://www.oclc.org/news/publications/annualreports/2011/214629_usb_Annual_Report_ 2011.pdf. “WorldCat” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011: 14.

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Chinese, Russian, Portuguese, Persian, Hindi, Urdu, Greek, and many other languages. In addition it has 1.74 billion locations listings.18 In the 2011 financial year, WorldCat grew by 38.9 million records. Libraries used WorldCat to catalog and set holdings for 449.9 million items and arrange 9.6 million interlibrary loan transactions. OCLC First Search Service users accessed WorldCat to conduct 58.0 million reference searches.19 Table 1: WorldCat records by format20

Format Books Continuing Resources Format (serials) Visual Materials Maps Mixed Materials Sound Recording Scores Computer Files Total

Total LC Records 7,951,474 656,480

Total Participantsinput 179,696,532 8,653,049

Total LC-created Participants-input 1,773,954 53,536

Total Records 189,421,960 9,363,065

203,376

6,997,620

19,474

7,200,470

286,513 49,089

3,430,241 4,018,822

8,730 4,110

3,725,484 4,072,021

333,724

8,039,789

64,044

8,437,557

100,219 9,567

5,479,080 7,933,787

56,759 2,981

5,636,058 7,946,335

9,590,442

224,248,920

1,983,588

235,822,950*

*Reflects total unique records after duplicate detection resolution is complete

In April 2008, OCLC passed another landmark. There are now more records for materials in languages other than English in WorldCat than there are records for English language materials. WorldCat is indeed starting to resemble its name! As of June 30, 2011, there are 58.5% non-English records and 41.5% English languages records in WorldCat. Four hundred and eighty five languages are represented in the figures. It includes 14,089,964 e-books, 167,711,500 works, 235,822,950 manifestations (records) and the total physical holdings are 1,735,365,613. There are 53.8 million electric database records and 43.7 million digitalized local library content.21

18 “Growth of Locations Listing” in OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011, Dublin, Ohio, 2011. 19 Ibid.: 14. 20 OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011. 21 Ibid.: 14.

1.1 OCLC: A Global Cooperative 250

15 236

197

200

150

139 108

100

50

86

39

41

44

47

50

52

55

61

67

0 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Figure 2: OCLC Annual Report 2010/2011: world growth since 1998

OCLC is building Web-scale for libraries, and it is being done on a global basis. Being a global library cooperative is not about exporting U.S.-based products. OCLC’s strategy is to leverage the knowledge, research, and experiences of its members around the world in order to build useful services, develop international standards, facilitate sharing of library resources and provide end-users with information when and where they need it. As OCLC has become more global, academic libraries around the world have led the way. Effective globalization is localization on a wide scale, and localization is more than translation of interfaces. Effective globalization requires localization at every point of use. It is about providing access to nonEnglish content. It is about building local alliances so that marketing, support, service, and market research is done locally. It is about joint development projects that utilize local technical resources. It is about partnerships to provide training and education with local language partners. In 2008, JSTOR announced that it is going be providing content free of charge to libraries in Sub-Saharan Africa now there is public domain data in WorldCat.org with links to Google Book Search and mobile phone access.

New WorldShare Platform OCLC has released a new platform that will let its member libraries create, configure, and share a growing number of new services and web-based library applications. The new OCLC WorldShare platform, a shared technical infrastructure, will serve as the host for OCLC WorldShare management services

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asa significant expansion of the Dublin, Ohio-based nonprofit’s Web scale management service that was launched on July 11, 2011, after a year of testing by early adopters.22 OCLC WorldShare provides a web-based platform for collective innovation with shared services, integrated applications, and streamlined approaches to managing library work flows. In combination with WorldCat, WorldShare will support the work of libraries of all types to collaborate in new, more efficient ways, reduce operating costs, and provide greatly enhanced user experience. WorldShare helps world libraries connect in new ways to operate, innovate, and collaborate.

Conclusion Forty years after the start of online cataloging and the WorldCat database, member libraries all over the world and OCLC are still innovating, still exploring, still working together for the public good. The OCLC cooperative continues to be a grand experiment in global library cooperation. Working together, thousands of catalogers and librarians around the world have created an incomparable library resource for research and education.

22

Eberhart, George M. “OCLC Launches New World Share Platform” American Libraries 43 ( January 2012): 18. http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/12052011/oclc_launches_ new_Worldshare_platform.

1.2 From ALA to IFLA: A Primer on International Librarianship Robert Wedgeworth and R.N. Sharma Introduction Libraries have been part of the human civilization for centuries but their growth has been very slow in many countries for various reasons including illiteracy, wars, poverty, shortage of funds, and national policies. Until recently a majority of libraries in the world developed collections and stored them in the four walls of library buildings for the use of their patrons. There was very little cooperation among libraries within nations or beyond borders. Librarians and libraries had little interest in international librarianship until the twentieth century. In earlier times, many scholars visited well known libraries to learn and to do research. The famous libraries of the ancient world included the Taxila University and Nalanda University of India during the 700s BC and fourth century respectively and the Alexandria Library of Egypt in 297 BC. During the first quarter of the twentieth century, a few American and British librarians visited developing nations to guide librarians and libraries. They included Asa Don Dickinson and W.A. Borden of the United States and A.C. Woolner of the United Kingdom. There was no library association to push for international cooperation and development in the field of librarianship until 1926.

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) The IFLA is the oldest and largest association in the world devoted exclusively to the advancement of library and information activities. It is an independent, non-governmental organization based in The Hague, Netherlands, and holds consultative status in its area of expertise with UNESCO. It has regional offices in Pretoria, South Africa for African libraries and librarians, Singapore for Asia and Oceania, and Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico for Latin America and the Caribbean. Its members include library associations, corporations, libraries, and interested individuals. The three pillars of IFLA activity adopted in 2004 are societal involvement, professional advancement, and membership benefits (www.ifla.org).

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The IFLA’s societal involvement includes its Freedom of Access to Information and Freedom of Expression (FAIFE) program, Copyright and Legal Matters (CLM) Program and its advocacy work within the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). Its professional advancement activities include Action For Development Through Libraries (ALP) program and its Preservation and Conservation (PAC) program for deteriorating library materials. Since 1994 the IFLA has involved its members directly and electronically in its conferences, workshops, and publications programs. These are the primary membership benefits, many of which are available to non-members as well. The IFLA was formed in Edinburgh, United Kingdom on September 30, 1927, by a few European and American librarians led by Gabriel Henriot of France.1 Thus a world union of library associations was formed for the first time in the history of librarianship. It had a small membership but bright future. Its first annual conference was held in Rome, Florence, and Venice in Italy in 1929. By 1939, only 41 countries including China, Egypt, India, Japan, Mexico, Palestine, and Philippines had joined IFLA.2 Earlier in 1936 both China and India wanted to host the annual conference of the world organization but due to lack of funds, the IFLA decided to stay in Europe rather than go to Asia.3 The IFLA was not able to function during World War II but restored its activities in 1947 at Oslo, Norway with the help of a contribution of $9,000 from the Rockefeller Foundation of the United States. This meeting was also attended by delegates from the International Federation for Documentation (FID) and the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). An historic agreement was signed at this conference between IFLA and UNESCO for cooperation and financial help from UNESCO to the IFLA on a regular basis including for the IFLA’s programs, meetings, and specific assignments.4 Both organizations agreed to “Further by all possible means the greatest freedom in the distribution and the exchange across national frontiers of publications, other materials of libraries [and] information about publications, etc.”5 The IFLA was still dominated by European and North American librarians and library associations and was not a world association in the true sense. It did have problems attracting membership from poor and developing nations. Therefore, Pierre Bourgeois, President of the IFLA from 1951–1958, turned to S.R. Ranganathan of India for help. He was a true world librarian and the leader of the profession during 1950s and 1960s. Ranganathan suggested

1 2 3 4 5

Campbell, Harry C.: “IFLA’s First Fifty Years: A Reprise.” IFLA Journal 28(3) (2002): 107–117. Ibid.: 109. Ibid.: 109. Ibid.: 111. “A Brief History of IFLA 1927–2002.” URL: www.ifla.org/III/75ifla/75index.htm. Accessed April 9, 2012.

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that librarians from third world countries be given more responsibilities within the association and be appointed on to major IFLA committees including the Executive Board.6 He emphasized that it is very important to have cooperation and contributions of librarians from all countries to have a truly solid international library association. His suggestions did have an impact on the IFLA, and a few much needed changes were introduced for the benefit of international librarianship. In 1976, libraries were allowed to enroll as institutional members of the association and its name was changed to the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).7 In 1976 for the first time even individuals were allowed to join the IFLA as personal affiliates but without voting rights. “Commercial sponsors from business and information industry (known as corporate partners from 1999) were also admitted as members.”8 There were certainly quantitative as well as qualitative changes in the IFLA during the last quarter of the twentieth century. It helped to attract more members from African and Asian nations including China, South Africa, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Else Granheim of Norway was elected as the first woman president of the IFLA in 1979 and served until 1985.9 The IFLA started holding its annual conferences outside Europe and North America under her leadership. Conferences were held in Manila, Philippines in 1980 and Nairobi, Kenya in 1984. Since then Delhi, India; Havana, Cuba; Istanbul, Turkey; Beijing, China; Bangkok, Thailand; Jerusalem, Israel; Buenos Aires, Argentina; San Juan, Puerto Rico in North Eastern Caribbean; Seoul, South Korea; and Durban, South Africa have hosted IFLA conferences. Singapore will host the conference in August 2013. It helped librarians from host countries of third world and neighboring countries to attend IFLA conferences and have a first-hand experience of true international librarianship. Christine Deschamps of France served as President of the IFLA from 1997–2003, followed by H. Kay Raseroka of Botswana. She was the first librarian from Africa to lead a true world library association from 2003– 2005. Ellen R. Tise of South Africa was President of the IFLA from 2009– 2011. The current president of the IFLA, Ingrid Parent of Canada, will serve from 2011–2013. She will be succeeded by Sinikka Sipila of Finland in 2013 and she will serve until 2015. The IFLA’s efforts to reach poor and developing countries were appreciated when it introduced a new program entitled “Advancement for Librarianship in

6 7 8 9

Ranganathan, S .R.: “IFLA-What it should be and do.” Libri 5 (1954): 182–189. Ibid.: 184. Campbell, Harry C.: “IFLA’s First Fifty Years: A Reprise.” IFLA Journal 28(3) (2002): 114. “75 years of IFLA.” URL: www.ifla.org/III/75ifla/75index.htm.

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the Third World” in 1986.10 It has helped to improve libraries, librarianship, and librarians in a few developing countries. Since the 1980s, the IFLA has paid attention to many other important aspects of international librarianship including copyright, freedom of access to information, preservation and conservation, international library lending, and standardization of bibliographic activities.11 In 1993, the IFLA introduced a new IFLA link called “IFLANET” to keep its members and others informed about the activities of the association. It has certainly become a very successful and major tool for the operation of the federation.12 English, French, Arabic, Chinese, German, Russian, and Spanish are the official languages of the IFLA. Members of the association “are entitled to express themselves in these languages at conferences, in meetings of professional and governing bodies and in correspondence to IFLA HQ. Within the limits of its resources, the IFLA provides official communications and form letters in these languages. The IFLA provides abstracts in these languages of articles published in the IFLA Journal. The IFLA attempts to provide interpretation of conference sessions in these languages, and to respond to correspondence addresses to IFLA HQ in these languages”.13 The IFLA has language centers in Alexandria, Egypt for Arabic; Beijing, China for Chinese; Dakar, Senegal for French in Africa; and Moscow, Russia for Russian. “IFLA is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the library and information profession.”14 At present, it has over 1500 members from 150 countries. It is an independent, international, non-governmental, not-forprofit organization with aims to promote high standards of provision and delivery of library and information services, encourage widespread understanding of the value of good library and information services, and represent the interests of IFLA members throughout the world.15 “The General Assembly of Members is the supreme governing body, consisting of delegates of voting Members. It normally meets every year during the annual conferences. It elects the President and members of the Governing Board. It also considers general and professional resolutions which, if approved, are usually passed to the Executive Committee and the Professional Committee for action as appropriate. The Governing Board is responsible for the managerial and professional direction of IFLA within guidelines approved by the Assembly. The Board consists of the President, the President-elect, 10 directly elected

10 11 12 13 14 15

Campbell, Harry C. “IFLA: Library Universality in a Divided World.” IFLA Journal 28(3) (2002): 118–135. Ibid.: 119. Ibid.: 119. “Language Policy/IFLA.” URL: http://www.ifla.org/language-policy. Accessed March 12, 2012. “More about IFLA.” URL: http://www.ifla.org/en/about/more. Accessed March 12, 2012. Ibid.

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Members […] and 6 indirectly elected members of the Professional Committee […], and the Chair of the Management of Library Associations Section.”16 The IFLA has certainly done a very good job of bringing librarians and libraries of world together to discuss various issues of international librarianship, and address needs of the profession. The American Library Association has been the IFLA’s major partner and supporter since its birth in 1927. It sends a large delegation to IFLA conferences every year. Many American Librarians serve on IFLA committees and present papers at IFLA conferences.

The American Library Association (ALA) The American Library Association is the largest and oldest library association in the world with over 62,000 members in 2012. It was founded in 1876 in Philadelphia by Justin Winsor, Charles Ammi Cutter, Melvil Dewey, and others. “The Association has worked throughout its history to define, extend, protect and advocate for equity of access to information.”17 The ALA advocated for equal library service for all and passed an amendment in 1961 making it clear that individuals should not be denied library use because of race, religion, national origin, or political views.18 The Freedom to Read Foundation was created by ALA’s Executive Board in 1969, and the Black Caucus of the ALA was started in 1970.19 “ALA membership is open to any person or organization, though most of its members are libraries or librarians. Most members live and work in the United States, with international members comprising 3.5% of total membership.”20 The ALA is governed by an elected council and an executive board. Policies and programs are administered by various committees and round tables. The official purpose of the association is “to promote service and librarianship”.21 American Libraries and Booklist are two magazines published by ALA. The association and its divisions hold the annual and midwinter meetings every year in different cities of the United States. “The ALA annual conference is notable for being one of the largest professional conferences in existence, typically drawing over 25,000 attendees.”22 A committee on international cooperation was appointed by ALA in 1900 and its International Relations Office (IRO) was opened in October 1942 in

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

Ibid. “American Library Association.” URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Library_ Association. Accessed March 13, 2012. Ibid.: 2. Ibid. Ibid.: 3. Ibid. Ibid.: 5.

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Washington, D.C with the help of a grant in the amount of $101,000 from the Rockefeller Foundation. Both the U.S. State Department and the Rockefeller Foundation made grants to the IRO between 1942 and 1947 to supply library science literature to libraries overseas under the Books for Foreign Libraries project, and invite foreign librarians to the United States for study and observation of American library methods. The International Relations Office also served as an Information Center on professional matters to libraries all over the World.23 The office was closed in 1947 and there was no further activity un the area of international librarianship until 1956. The American Library association received two major grants from Rockefeller Foundation and the Council on Library Resources in the amount of $491,350 and $117,574 in 1956 and 1961 respectively. It helped in the reestablishment of the International Relations Office in Chicago (ALA headquarters), as well as in Washington, D.C. Both offices functioned actively during 1956–1971. Since 1972, the office has functioned with limited staff to help the International Relations Office and its activities. The International Relations Committee (IRC) of ALA meets twice a year to discuss matters of interest to international librarianship. The Committee usually passes a few resolutions to support development or condemn human rights violations or wars, and honors a librarian every year for his/her contributions to librarianship. ALA also has an International Relations Round Table (IRRT). These active groups organize a few programs every year including a reception for foreign librarians attending the ALA annual conference. Many American libraries serve on various committees of the IFLA and present papers on many aspects of librarianship every year. Meetings and other activities of the IRRT are aimed at involving librarians in international work. Many foreign librarians attend ALA annual conferences and present papers on international librarianship. The IRC, on the other hand, advises the ALA on policy matters and often engages in discussion on issues and trends in international librarianship. The ACRL Slavic and Eastern European section is a specialist group focusing on library activities in that part of the world. The International Relations Committee of ACRL/ALA has also been very active in promoting international librarianship. It was instrumental in inviting four presidents of IFLA to speak at its meetings in recent years.

Global Forces At the end of World War II in 1945, the U.S. was the wealthiest and most powerful country in the world. Most areas of the world welcomed charitable educational and cultural assistance from this country. However, there are many 23

Correspondence from International Relations Office/ALA, March 7, 2007.

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more sources of charitable and educational assistance, during the twenty-first century available to librarians interested in international librarianship including from developing countries. Although most former colonies have become independent nations, trade and cultural ties still bind former French and British colonies to France and the U.K. Some years ago during a lecture at a Nigerian university a student asked Robert Wedgeworth “Are American universities as good as those in Britain?” Since the question was in the context of long-standing political and cultural ties between the U.K. and Nigeria, the response was, “it depends on the course of study, but a look at the home institutions of Nobel Prize winners may provide a clue!” In addition to trade and cultural ties, for the foreseeable future, economics and technology will be the dominant forces driving library development, especially in developing countries. Investments in basic technology infrastructure and training to accelerate the use of information and communications technologies to address health, education, and business needs are among the most frequently requested types of assistance. Libraries are increasingly recognized as important “early adopters” in the drive to spread the use of information and communications technologies. The advent of integrated library systems (ILS) and the development of public advocacy programs in the United States have greatly increased opportunities to engage in international library development in countries that wish to introduce or expand these programs. UNESCO, the World Bank, individual countries as well as private foundations like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation are prominent in funding all of these types of projects.

ALA and IFLA Robert Wedgeworth’s involvement with the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) came after he became ALA Executive Director in 1972. He attended the IFLA Conference in Grenoble, Switzerland in 1973 and observed that there were very few Americans participating in the conference. At that time IFLA was a small, mostly Western European association with a sprinkling of participants from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. He had considerable experience in international library activities, but it had been exclusively related to the acquisition and exchange of library materials, through international contacts with library exchange partners and international booksellers. During the 1970s, the booksellers used to be a principal interface between U.S. librarians and their international counterparts. However, at the Grenoble Conference, it was not difficult to recognize that if American librarians were to play a more prominent role in international library activities, IFLA was the arena for it. Aided by Bob Vosper, IFLA’s first Vice President and Director of the UCLA Libraries, and by Leo Weins, President of the H.W. Wilson Co. and a prominent sponsor of IFLA, Wedgeworth became

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acquainted with the influential leaders in IFLA. Upon return, it was recommended to the ALA leadership that American librarians should become more active in IFLA to reflect the influence ALA has on library activities worldwide. The growth of ALA’s influence and involvement in IFLA led to Wedgeworth’s election as President of IFLA in 1991 and re-election in 1995. It was only the second time in the 64 year history of the IFLA that an American was elected as President of the Association.

Challenges of International Librarianship We live in a world of over seven billion people, where almost a billion adults, mostly women, lack adequate literacy skills to function in a modern society; in a world in which there is a vast divide separating the “haves” from the “havenots;” in a world in which there are increasing restrictions on access to information even as the media saturates us with it; and in a world where the new frontier is the Internet where balancing the rights of copyright holders with the right to access to copyrighted works by users raises complex difficulties; despite all this, there is an enormous set of opportunities for librarians and information specialists. Adult and children’s library specialists are sorely needed to assist as developing countries expand access to libraries as a basic component to advancing literacy levels. Systems specialists are in high demand to assist in the acquisition and installation of local and national ILS programs. Training librarians to understand and support international guarantees for access to information and freedom of expression is a major challenge. Training in library advocacy at local regional and national levels is increasingly in demand. There are also many opportunities to observe how library and information services function in other countries.

Benefits of International Librarianship Involvement in international library activities certainly expands personal knowledge and skills. It broadens professional and social networks and exposes you to other languages and cultures. It strengthens the global network of libraries and individual professionals in addressing critical needs. But most of all, it can lead to a lifetime of fulfilling accomplishments. As we move increasingly into a multicultural, asynchronous, global library community it will require renewed efforts, new technical competencies and abilities to navigate uncharted waters. New and exciting adventures await those who are prepared to assess new opportunities, who focus more on the journey than on the destination, and who readily acknowledge that they have as much to learn as they have to teach.

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Conclusion In the information age of the twentyifirst century, it is easier for librarians to get involved in international librarianship. It is important to join IFLA to learn, work as a team with professionals from other countries through committees, attend annual conferences, present papers, and interact with IFLA members from 150 other countries. It will make all willing librarians better professionals and strengthen the profession of international librarianship. The Jay Jordan/ IFLA/OCLC Early Career Development Fellowship Program can help young librarians from developing countries to get involved in IFLA. It introduces fellows to many issues in information technology and many aspects of global cooperative librarianship. The program was started in 2001 and has been very successful. Sixty six fellows from the libraries of 33 developing nations have been trained under this program.24 “The destiny of librarians and libraries lies in the hands of library and information professionals and through regional and international cooperation. We will be able to shape it for the better. The greatest excitement of the future is that we can shape it.”25 Getting involved in IFLA will certainly help all librarians to achieve the goal of making IFLA a true international library association in the twenty-first century with membership from all countries of the world. Cooperation and joint efforts of library associations, library leaders, and librarians from all nations can help to achieve the goal in the near future.

24 25

“The Jay Jordan/IFLA/OCLC Early Career Development Fellowship Program.” URL: http:// www.oclc.org/community/careerdevelopment/fellows/default.htm. Accessed March 14, 2012. “International Librarianship and International Cooperation. A reality or erroneous Belief.” URL: http://www.kmafrica.com/blog.International.librarianship.and.International.Cooperation. A.reality.or.erroneous.belief%3F. Accessed March 13, 2012.

1.3 Technology Enabling Universal Access to World Heritage: Implications for Libraries1 Ching-chih Chen Introduction From 2002–2006, the NSF/International Digital Library Program (IDLP) supported a major global digital library of cultural, historical, and heritage image collections, called Global Memory Net (GMNet), directed by Dr. Ching-chih Chen. It was launched for universal access in late 2006 at http://memorynet. org. This gateway to world culture and heritage was and continues to be very well received and with very little marketing effort and banking on the power of the Internet, members of the general public and scholars from over 4,192 cities in 142 countries have used the site (see Figure 1 for the homepage of GMNet) in the past five years. The success of GMNet with its flexible and powerful Linus-PHP-MySQL i-M-C-S (integrated Multimedia Content-based System) prompted a partnership with UNESCO’s World Heritage Center (WHC). This partnership, under the leadership of Dr. Chen, with a multi-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), was signed between WHC and Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA in November 2006. This MoU is a fitting display of WHC’s interest and enthusiasm in the research and development activities of Dr. Chen. It has led to the development of World Heritage Memory Net (WHMNet) since 2007, which provides universal access to the World Heritage Sites in a way not possible before. “The World Heritage Center considers this an important project with great potential to enhance the humanities for universal access and enrichment through the use of emerging technologies,” commented Francesco Bandarin, Director of the WHC in 2007.

1

The World Heritage Memory Net is a mega-project in partnership with UNESCO’s World Heritage Center started in 2007. It has been a topic of numerous keynote and invited speeches given by the author in various parts of the world. This article covers much of the basic background information from these talks given by the author in the last two years. Several of the most recent ones are listed in footnote 4.

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Figure 1: Current homepage of GMNet

The WHMNet leverages the results of previous highly successful multi-year R&D projects supported by the US National Endowment of Humanities on the development of interactive videodiscs in presenting an incredible period of Chinese history (the period of the First Emperor of China) in the mid1980s to early 1990s and by the US National Science Foundation from 2002 in using innovative multimedia technology developed for Global Memory Net (GMNet). We expect that WHMNet will reach a much greater global audience with its much enhanced multimedia and multilingual capabilities, as well as its new approaches in engaging users. WHMNet hopes to enhance the humanities for universal access and enrichment through World Heritage Sites by using cutting-edge information technologies, and thus contribute to the promotion and awareness-raising of the UNESCO’s 1972 Convention. With intensive R&D efforts extending capabilities far beyond those of the GMNet, WHMNet was officially launched on April 29, 20112, which has greatly promoted a better knowledge of World Heritage properties and increased awareness of everyone’s duty to protect them. 2

For UNESCO World Heritage Center’s news on WHMNet, see http://whc.unesco.org/en/ news/740.

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This paper will provide an overview of what is now an invaluable webbased knowledge base on World Heritage with immeasurable potential, which hopes to motivate more dynamic and digital activities of a similar nature among libraries, archives, and museums. The conceptual ways of presenting multilingual and multimedia information will have considerable implications for libraries, which we hope to further elaborate.

How Does WHMNet Work? With limited amounts of time and space, it is difficult to provide an adequate overview of such a huge project. Thus, only the bird’s eye view can be provided in the following with the help of abundant graphics. “A picture is worth a thousand words,” thus the graphics will help us to decrease substantially the detailed narratives, and to enhance readers’ conceptual appreciation of the kind of information access this flexible system is able to provide and which is not possible elsewhere. Currently, initial multimedia and multilingual data of all 936 sites as of July 2011 have been processed and uploaded to our server. The current MySQL database already consists of over 15,000 records in about 103 languages and 41,550 images of these 936 sites. In addition, there are many videos, some sound tapes, and many unique document files. Figure 2 shows the current homepage of WHMNet. This graphic, together with that of Figure 1, can serve as good PowerPoint slides showing most of the multimedia and multilingual cultural and heritage resources that are available for instant access at a simple click of the mouse. Our web-based knowledge base aims at providing users with an incredible general experience first. As already stated, while we have enormously rich multimedia resources, we don’t want our users to access them only through a stiff and inflexible traditional database approach. Thus, for exploring our amazing world on this World Heritage Memory Net site, we want to engage our users from the very start, making them look first at what we have and what we can provide them. We want their first experience to be immersive and exciting, leading them to explore further, and gain more knowledge of this world on their own. This made interface design a very challenging task. To achieve this, the current homepage invites users to explore their world heritage by offering them an overview of the many features of the Site. They are able to see, explore, and discover the world through at least four different very visually oriented approaches, specifically highlighted in the center column of the homepage.

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Figure 2: Current homepage of WHMNet

1. Videos – we have created 27 introductory videos of various lengths, which offer sample images by region or country from our sites so that the users can instantly be visually attracted to whatever they choose to see and enjoy first. By viewing the videos, users also gain knowledge on names and keywords of various sites. For each site, we provide two to three images. 2. 360 degree panophotographies – we are able to provide users truly immersive and interactive experience of about 270 World Heritage Sites in collaboration with Tito Dupret of http://patrimonium-mundi.org. Users feel that they are physically there! 3. Maps – our users can pan over the entire world and visualize the density of World Heritage Sites in different parts of the world with indication of categories (cultural, natural, mixed, and sites in danger), as well as select any particular one for quick viewing. 4. Timeline – the 936 World Heritage Sites of the 153 countries are locatable by a timeline of their existence extending from the late centuries BC to the present, except for those natural sites which have existed for millions of years. Again, one can select any particular one for quick information. After these explorations and discoveries, one can then zero in for more specific information on any chosen World Heritage Site of interest. This is very much

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in line with what was expressed at a keynote speech of Ben Shneiderman delivered at a humanities+digital: visual interpretations conference, May 20–22, 2010 and organized by hyperstudio at MIT. Shneiderman said that the Visual Information Seeking mantra – overview first, zoom and filter, then details-ondemand – was a compact way of conveying the lessons from designing interactive exploration tools for statistical data. But this principle turns out to be broadly applicable to a range of information searching situations.3

Navigable Information Accessible on the Homepage One can see from the current homepage (Figure 2) that all 936 sites can be accessed collectively or by site/region/continent/country from both the top navigational bar as well as from a listing on the left navigational panel. The right panel provides news, a Site of the Day, forthcoming research activities such as visualization, and current searching activity by means of a tag cloud which is linked in real-time to the terms most frequently linked to the searches performed by the users at that time. In addition to providing background information about WHMNet, its development, history, staff and archival information, the left panel’s main focus is on providing quick access to the World Heritage Sites by region, country and sites by designated type. For example, when one chooses “The World” under the regions category on the left panel, the next screen shows the 153 countries with available World Heritage Sites alphabetically listed on the left column of screen, as shown in Figure 3, and all 936 sites which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value are arranged alphabetically on the center column of Figure 3. This page also includes a geographical map of the 936 sites, based on UNESCO/WHC’s classification, which are classified as: – Cultural – 725 sites (marked with yellow dots) – Natural – 183 sites (marked with green dots) – Mixed (both cultural and natural) – 28 sites (marked with half yellow and half green), and – Heritage In Danger – A few of the above combinations (marked in red dots are sites in danger). Thus, the World Heritage Sites are appropriately indicated with symbols of the types of sites on the map as shown in the right column of Figure 3. On the map, one can move the pane horizontally left and/or right to view all the sites in the 3

Shneiderman, Ben. “Visual Overviews for Cultural Heritage: Interactive Exploration for Scholars in the Humanities, Arts, and Beyond,” a keynote speech given at the humanities +digital: visual interpretations conference, May 20–22, 2010, organized byhyperstudio at MIT. p. 15 of the Meeting Program.

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world, or select any specific site for further exploration. One can also go to the map for the full-screen geographic view. It is worth mentioning that the World Heritage Committee meets each year in late June to decide on new sites to be inscribed. Thus, it is expected that in early July each year, there will be additional sites to be added, and we shall make every effort to include them as soon as possible.

Figure 3: World Heritage Sites of 153 countries are shown by country, name of site and geographical map

A Quick Glimpse of the World Heritage Sites If one has no idea what information he/she can expect to find on the 936 sites in the world, then the two buttons – “Image Gallery” and “Random Images” under the Map of Figure 3 can be of great help to the user. “Image Gallery” will bring out all the 41,550 images of these 936 sites currently available on the server in the order of image acquisition or organization, as shown in Figure 4. Browsing these many images from one page to the other with each page (or screen) displaying 20 images at a time can be a very tedious, time-consuming, and inefficient process. In this case, the “Random Images” feature will serve the users well! It will randomly provide images of these 41,550 images, so that one’s knowledge on the World Heritage Sites will increase dramatically from a few simple clicks of the button because each image will also be shown with the title of the site. Each site page additionally offers links to relevant textual resources where the user can further obtain additional needed books, articles, images, videos,

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and web-based materials relevant to a chosen site. This “one-stop” approach will enable a user to find literally anything, in print or online, which they are looking for. For example, the instant link to the OCLC WorldCat will provide users access to library resources from over 170 countries. One can also instantly search Internet resources such as Google Image, Google Scholar, Google Video, Internet Archives, etc.

Figure 4: Random images of the current 41,550-image collection are shown with titles of the sites; one is given the choice of finding similar images, enlarging the image icons, or getting the site information for any chosen image

Once an image of interest is spotted, one can find images of similar color and shape in all World Heritage Sites by choosing “Similar,” as shown in Figure 4. For example, if a Roman column in Italy was chosen, then similar columns in various parts of Europe, Africa can be shown quickly. One’s knowledge on this Roman column can then be expanded quickly. A click on “Larger” will enlarge the chosen image and the zooming can be performed easily but the ratio of enlargement depends largely on the resolution of that image. One other quick view of the World Heritage Sites randomly is the image wall (Figure 5), which can be accessed from the top navigational bar. When the cursor hovers over individual thumbnail images, the user is provided with country and site information, which will enhance their ability to search. When the thumbnail is selected, a larger image appears and the descriptive

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information provides the name of the site, a brief description, and the image rights information related to that image. A user can also search on the image wall by site name, country, keyword, and instantly only relevant information is highlighted and everything else is dimmed.

Figure 5: The image wall, accessible from the top navigational bar

Selecting a Specific Site and What Can One Find? To enhance the readers’ appreciation of the diversity and richness of the resources, instead of selecting one specific site and going through the entire process, we shall show three selected sites and describe the featured multimedia information which the user is able to obtain. These sites are: 1. China’s Great Wall 2. India’s Taj Mahal 3. Jordan’s Petra For these sites, the user selects Asia > China or Asia > India or Middle East > Jordan. As shown in Figure 6, the user can instantly see the 41 World Heritage Sites in China displayed with the map locations and types of sites indicated when China is selected. Similarly when India is chosen, the 28 World Heritage Sites in India are displayed instantly, and Jordan’s four sites are shown when Middle East > Jordan is clicked.

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Figure 6: Sites of China, India, and Jordan

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When China’s Great Wall or India’s Taj Mahal or Jordan’s Petro is Chosen As shown in Figure 7, when one clicks on the site name of “The Great Wall,” or “Taj Mahal,” or “Petra,” one is instantly offered the basic metadata and descriptive information in multiple languages. In addition, for each site, links are made also to available video, sound, documents (in PDF format), 360 degree panographical tour, and WHC’s official site for other additional information. “Image Gallery” can be linked to all the relevant images of the site.

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Figure 7: Instant showing of descriptive information on the chosen site in multiple languages as well as site links to videos and 360 degree panographical tour, as well as an image gallery

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Instant Multilingual Access For all sites, the six official languages of the UN – Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish – are available, as to other languages, the number differs from a few to the maximum of over 50 languages as in the case of “The Great Wall” as shown in the upper portion of Figures 7 and 8. One can instantly obtain the multilingual information by clicking on the language. Figure 8 shows the Chinese description for “The Great Wall,” Figure 9 the Tamil for “The Taj Mahal,” and Figure 10 the Arabic for “Petra.”

Figure 8: Switching metadata from English to Chinese for “The Great Wall”

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Figure 9: Switching metadata from English to Tamil for “Taj Mahal”

Figure 10: Switching metadata from English to Arabic for “Petra”

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Instant Multimedia Access Figures 7 and 8 also show that in addition to the multilingual descriptive information on “The Great Wall” site, for example, various associated multimedia information can also be instantly retrieved and displayed. – The site content screen includes a sliding image browser showing all images of the site, which can be quickly browsed and explored by flowing freely either left or right, and then a specific image can be selected for enlargement, as shown in Figure 11. – By clicking on “Image Gallery,” an image collection on the chosen site can be viewed either in the order of images pre-organized or randomly. A user can also select an interesting image and ask for similar images of the same color or shape by clicking “similar,” or enlarging the image by clicking “larger,” as shown in Figure 12 on the images of Petra. – Relevant video, sound clips, etc. can also be instantly retrieved when available and clearly indicated, as shown in Figure 8 for the video from The First Emperor of China produced by Ching-chih Chen on The Great Wall. – In collaboration with Tito Dupret of patrimonium-mundi.org, when the URL link is indicated, the user can take a 360 degree panographical tour of the site by clicking the URL as shown in Source 2 for all three sites on Figure 7. This provides the user an incredible experience as if he/she is standing on the top of The Great Wall, the fascinating man-made military structure, or standing in front of the magnificent Taj Mahal, the universally admired immense mausoleum of white marble, or touring the unforgettable Petra with its elaborate built and monumental rock-cut tombs and temples.

Geo- and Temporal-Retrieval Capabilities In addition to the whole array of features described above, more geo- and temporal-retrieval capabilities are available as already mentioned earlier in this paper. In fact, users are directed to look at and explore these features at the overview level at the homepage of WHMNet as shown in Figure 2. We shall elaborate only slightly more on these features in this section. Figure 13 shows how one can go to browse the world map and click on any site of interest for further information on the upper map search, or select the country of interest from the countries listed in the lower screen of the country search. The 936 sites from 153 countries are all there! When using the country search, it should be noted that countries in black are those countries with no World Heritage Sites inscribed by WHC. Only those in brown have. In addition to geographical access to the World Heritage Sites, temporal access is also available. This is an important feature because the 936 sites

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Figure 11: Image flows of The Great Wall, Taj Mahal, and Petra

range from those prehistoric ones that are millions of years old, to sites of the twentieth century, such as the Sydney Opera House in Australia, or even the twenty-first century. On WHMNet, one is able to horizontally browse through time, and select the sites of interest, and then obtain quick descriptive information instantly. Figure 14 shows that the “Historic Centre of Lima” site starts around 1700. Note that the basic UNESCO WHC’s descriptive information is paraphrased here. In general, we have placed emphasis on those

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Figure 12: Image gallery provides 208 images on Petra, each of which can be enlarged with dynamic watermark

sites no older than 300 BC. Thus, “natural” sites are not included for the obvious reason that they are much older than 300 BC and date back to millions of years ago. In addition to articles written by the author,4 readers are also refered to articles on both GMNet and WHMNet on Wikipedia for more information:

4

Chen, Ching-chih, World Cultural Heritage Is One Click Away: Lecture Series since March 2010: – “World Culture and Heritage is One-Click Away! Have We Fully Explored the Potentials of New Media and Technology?” Invited Plenary talk for “New Media, Culture and Technology,” on August 19, 2011 at The First Young Investigator Conference: “Leadership, Innovation, Growth” of the EITC (Emerging Information & Technology Conference) at Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. – “World Heritage Is Only Click Away: Enjoy Luxembourg and Sites Around It and Around the World!” was a Banquet Speech given on July 20th at the 9th International Plant Cold Hardiness Seminar (9IPCHS) in Luxembourg, July 17–22, 2011. – “From Global Memory Net to World Heritage Memory Net: A New Digital Model for Exploring Our Amazing World, History, and Culture” was an invited talk given at the National Central Library, Taipei, Taiwan, April 22, 2011. – “From Global Memory Net to World Heritage Memory Net: A New Digital Model for Exploring Our Amazing World, History, and Culture,” was an invited speech given at the National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan, April 21, 2011. – “World Heritage Memory Net and its System’s Potential for Taiwan’s Indigenous Cultural Heritage,” was an invited speech given at the San-di-men Cultural Park of the National Council of Indigenous Populations of Taiwan in Pingtong, Taiwan, April 16, 2011.

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Figure 13: Accessing World Heritage Sites geographically; Upper: World Heritage Sites are geographically marked with appropriate “type” symbols; lower: countries are alphabetically arranged;those in brown have World Heritage Sites

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– World Heritage Memory Net, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_ Heritage_Memory_Net – Global Memory Net, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Memory_Net

Usage and further development Use of WHMNet In the short seven months from the public launching of WHMNet in April 29, 2011 to the end of November 2011, Google Analytics shows that WHMNet has been used by citizens from 1,692 cities in 130 countries (See Figure 15). Google Analytics’ in-page data show that all elements of our homepage design are well-used for the intended purpose as shown in Figure 16. Specifically the four center squares highlight features of our sites, and all of them enjoy relatively high use: Tour the World 360 degree panophoto-graphies

12% 17%

Exploring World Heritage Sites Travel the time-lines Digging in

20% 2.7% 7.4%

– “World Cultural Heritage Is One Click Away: So Can World Agricultural Heritage,” Talk given at the National Agricultural Library, Silver Spring, MD, March 26, 2010. – “Technology Enabling and Universal Access to World Heritage: Challenges and Potentials: The Cases of Global Memory Net (全球記憶網) and World Heritage Memory Net (世界遺產記憶網)”. An invited speech given at National Tsinghua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, March 12, 2010. – “Culture and Technology Integration (文化與科技整合的新形象):The Cases of Global Memory Net(全球記憶網) and World Heritage Memory Net(世界遺產記憶網). An invited speech given at National Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan, March 11, 2010. – “A New Look of Culture and Technology Integration (文化與科技整合的新形象):The Cases of Global Memory Net (全球記憶網) and World Heritage Memory Net (世界遺產 記憶網). A special event speech given at National Center for Traditional Arts, Yilan, Taiwan, March 9, 2010. – Chen, Ching-chih. “Cultural Heritage and Digital Libraries: The World and Universal Access.” A keynote speech at the International Conference on Arts Venue Planning and Management, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, November 9, 2009. Chen, Ching-chih. “Broad-based Societal Implications of IT Development: A case-presentation on the convergence of IT and large-scale digital content on world culture and heritage.” A keynote speech at the EITC Conference, MIT, August 6, 2009. Chen, Ching-chih. “World Heritage Memory Net: Instant access to 145 countries’ 878 World Heritage sites with cutting-edge technologies,” an invited speech at Sichuan University, Chengdu, China, July 6, 2009. Chen, Ching-chih. “World Heritage Memory Net: Instant access to 145 countries’ 878 World Heritage sites with cutting-edge technologies,” a keynote speech as well as Opening Keynote at the 14th Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians, Hanoi, Vietnam, April 21–22, 2009.

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Figure 14: Timeline retrieval of the “Historic Centre of Lima” site

It has also revealed all kinds of other interesting data such as: Time on Page Bounce Rate5 Language Used Operating Systems used Browser Used Firefox

1:38 minutes 23.19% English (51.2%) Windows (64.0%) (43.4%)

It has been estimated that the number of webpages is at least 8.45 billion pages (Friday, 2 December, 2011), as shown in http://www.worldwidewebsize. com. Some other estimates went as high as 21 billion. While no one is sure of the exact number, yet it is reasonable to expect that over 10 billion are currently available and the number is increasing daily. 5

According to Wikipedia, bounce rate is an Internet marketing term used in web traffic analysis. It represents the percentage of visitors who enter the site and “bounce” (leave the site) rather than continue viewing other pages within the same site.

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Figure 15: How use of WHMNet has spread all over the world between April 29 and December 1, 2011

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Thus, we are encouraged to find that according to Alexa.com6, as of December 1, 2011, WHMNet’s Alexa traffic rank globally is 170,602, and U.S. rank is 130,757. Alexa also has the ability to compare usage between and among specific websites. According to Alexa’s site comparisons, WHMNet’s usage already exceeds that of many major world digital libraries. Alexa’s statistics also show statistics compatible to those of Google Analytics described above, such as: the daily page views per user on the WHMNet was six pages, estimated daily time on site for WHMNet was between 5 and 20 minutes, and the bounce rate was less than 25%, which is attractively low. Thus, our relatively high page views, long daily time, and low bounce rate show that once visitors arrive at WHMNet, they stay for significant periods of time, view multiple pages and do not leave the site after only short stay. These are all good indicators of the usability and value of WHMNet.

Figure 16: Google Analytics’s In-Page statistics of WHMNet

Further Development: Visualization Digital humanity has come of age. Visualization technology can be most effective in platforming humanistic inquiry. At the humanities+digital: visual

6

Alexa claims on its website that “Alexa is the leading provider of free, global web metrics. Search Alexa to discover the most successful sites on the web by keyword, category, or country. Use our analytics for competitive analysis, benchmarking, market research, or business development. Use Alexa’s Pro tools to optimize your company’s presence on the web.”

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interpretations conference, held at MIT on May 20–22, 2010, all keynote speakers like Johanna Drucker of UCLA, Ben Shneiderman of University of Maryland,7 Martin Wattenberg of Flowing Media, and Lev Manovich of UCSC, articulated in their own ways that despite the challenges, visual knowledge representation can immerse users in a seamless beautiful environment while exploring and experiencing the subject from many different angles.8 For WHMNet, though, we have been thinking about visualization for some time. While we already have all 936 World Heritage Sites well presented in a global map with type of sites properly identified and with very useful historical timelines, there are a lot more things we can do since we have not fully leveraged our enormously rich multimedia data and resources. It is time to explore some real uses of what Shneiderman calls a “visual information seeking mantra.” There are many definitions for the word “mantra,” but simply it is a “powerful tool” or “a tool for power.” For the former definition, how can we use visual methods to think, discover, and explore, as well as to bring our world heritage treasures and those connections hidden under the weblike structures to the surface? For the latter definition, how can we use visualization to empower our users? In Gudrais’ 2010 article,9 she narrows down any complex networks to two basic elements of nodes and links (also called ties). She writes: But as the numbers of nodes and links increase, the number of possible configurations grows exponentially. Likewise, there are innumerable possibilities for what a node and a link can represent … Structurally simple, yet analytically incredibly complex, networks hold the answers to so many questions.

A more succinct introduction to complex networks can be found in Newman’s 2010 book.10 Newman also defines a network, “in its simplest form, a collection of points joined together in pairs by lines.” The points are nodes and the lines are links or edges. He further said that “many objects of interest in the physical, biological, and social sciences can be thought of as networks” and his book shows that “thinking of them in this way can often lead to new and useful insights.” Thus, WHMNet is in the process of collaborating with expert(s) in this important area to look for these new and useful insights. While the results are very preliminary, we can already share with the readers our computergenerated global image of the 890 World Heritage Sites based on our 2009 data as shown in Figure 17 where the sites are displayed with their links or

7

Shneiderman, Ben. “Visual Overviews for Cultural Heritage: Interactive Exploration for Scholars in the Humanities, Arts, and Beyond.” 8 humanities+digital: visual interpretations conference, May 20–22, 2010, organized by hyperstudio at MIT. Meeting Program: 14–15. 9 Gudrais, Elizabeth. “Networked: Exploring the weblike structures that underlie everything from friendship to cellular behavior,” Harvard Magazine, May–June 2010: 44–50. 10 Newman, Mark E. J. Networks: An Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.

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connections or relations in a very complex network system with ability for us to zoom in any aspect of it. On this image, the brown nodes are the World Heritage Sites, and the blue nodes are keywords taken from the WHMNet’s image list. Links denote that a site has an image that is tagged with the connected keyword. The node size is dependent on degree: the more links, the larger the node. Link color depth depends on link frequency: the darker the keyword, the more images per site it. Thus, from Figure 16, we can see that the network is very dense, which means that the keywords used to describe the images are very broad ones (which we are aware of), or our World Heritage Sites are quite aggregated with a lot of data gathered together.

Figure 17: The global image of the 890 World Heritage Sites based on WHMNet’s sets of description data of 2009. Image courtesy of Maximilian Schich, www.schich.info

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Conclusions The bird’s eye view of WHMNet presented in this paper covers only the tip of the iceberg of the functionalities of this important mega-scale global digital project. It is clear that with the help of cutting-edge technologies, for the first time, multimedia and multilingual information on the world’s invaluable heritage sites is able to be accessed, explored, experienced, and learned instantly with a simple click of the mouse. This is truly bridging the cultures of the world, and thus in this post-9/11 era, it has tremendous effect on “enhancing understanding among people in this troubled time,” as an award was given by the Cultural Convention in 2006 recognizing Chen and her GMNet’s contribution in this aspect. As this chapter is in a book mainly prepared for librarians and archivists, this dynamic approach should have great potential for them and for museum professionals as well. They can contemplate using similar approaches for bringing their own institutional treasures to the surface for universal access and exploration beyond the traditional database approach, which is important, but it is just the beginning. They can also consider seriously in sharing their resources in a network environment. Users are increasingly relying on “born-digital” content, and traditional methods of collection, organization, and information searching are no longer able to effectively compete with the massive amounts of web-based information currently available to us. In order to remain relevant in this global digital environment, libraries must explore alternate and complementary modes of providing information in addition to the traditionally organized methods. In most cases, users are interested in certain subject topics, but do not have precise information about author, title, keywords, etc. Thus, the utility of a traditional database is generally limited to more sophisticated information seekers. It is essential to devise applications in which all users can search and explore, discover and dig deeper, and instantly bring their knowledge to the next level with the simple click of a mouse. A non-traditional model like that of the World Heritage Memory Net is just one example of how multimedia and multilingual content can be integrated seamlessly and made widely available through a flexible, nonlinear, userfriendly, digital knowledge base. This concept can be applied to any media on any subject for any purpose. For example, the systems developed for GMNet and WHMNet have been successfully modified and expanded for a popular multimedia and multilingual application called NTHU Memory Net (http://memorynet.nthu.edu.tw), which celebrates Taiwan’s National TsingHua University’s Centennial Anniversary, and which was developed jointly by NTHU and Ching-chih Chen’s non-profit organization, Global Connection and Collaboration (http://globalcc.org). With this system in place, this rich knowledge portal including selected images of important historical artifacts,

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objects, people, events, and buildings, all with multilingual descriptive information, was able to be created in a very short 5-month time period. In the current economic climate, libraries are seeking new ways to attract users and have reached out to other organizations in an effort to share resources. The World Heritage Memory Net model provides a vivid example of how international collaboration in content building and technological application can enhance and provide new opportunities for global content development, collection management, preservation, outreach, and education. This is a time of tremendous opportunity and change for libraries as they redefine and expand their role within an increasingly digital and global network. WHMNet should be viewed as a model on how digital technology and global network has been fully utilized to seize the opportunity for providing universal multimedia and multilingual information access in a way unattainable in traditional library environment. Acknowledgment: WHMNet gratefully acknowledges the essential support of the US National Science Foundation (NSF)’s International Digital Library Project under Grant No. CISE/IIS/0333036 (a part of Global Memory Net) and its several supplemental grants. Much of the data collection, creation, and organization work as well as the multilingual paraphrasing work are supported by US NSF’s Research for Excellence for Undergraduate (REU) grants in 2007–2008 and 2008–2010. Without these NSF supports, it would not be possible to contemplate a mega-project like WHMNet. The Emily Hollowell Fund for Research of the Graduate School of Library and Information Science of Simmons College was helpful in providing partial support for work-study assistants and a few graduate assistants. Since July 1, 2011, the project has been supported by funds from Global Connection and Collaboration, a non-profit 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization (http://globalcc.org).

1.4 Academic Libraries and Technology in Developing Countries in the Twenty-First Century R.N. Sharma Introduction The present recession and economic crisis have made a deep impact on all countries of the world but the developing nations have suffered more than developed nations. The recovery is very slow and libraries have not been able to serve the needs of their users due to budget and staff cuts and even services have been cut in many academic libraries. They have been struggling as usual to improve their services, introduce technology, and catch up with libraries of developed nations. There are 150 developing countries in the world (“List of Developing Countries. As Declared by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs” 2009), and a majority of developing countries are located in Africa, Latin America, Asia. They are often nations that were colonized by another nation in the past. The populations of “[developing] countries are generally very poor but with high birth rates. In general they are not as industrialized or technologically advanced as the first world. The majority of the countries in the world fit this classification” (Chaliand 2005). A few countries including Brazil, China, and India have made some progress. Libraries have been part of the academia since founding of the first university in the world known as Takshila University in Taxila, India in 700 BC (Sharma 2006). Academic libraries have played a very important part in supporting students and faculty in their curriculum and research needs and preparing the leaders of tomorrow. They have also been instrumental in storing and retrieving information for their scholars and other researchers all over the world from rich to poor nations. Many changes have been introduced in academic libraries since 700 BC to meet the growing and changing needs of students and faculty including the methods of obtaining information from them. During ancient times, information was written and stored on clay tablets and handwritten materials. This method was changed to printed materials during medieval times. Then microforms, CD-ROMs, and online storage methods were introduced in the twentieth century including databases on the World Wide Web (Sharma 2006). Introduction of technology is still very new to the profession of academic libraries and its users all over the world. With the introduction of punch card

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procedures during the 1930s the University of Texas in the United States became the first academic library in the world to use a mechanical system (Aguolu et al. 2006). Technology was introduced in libraries of western nations during the second half of the twentieth century, after the late S.R. Ranganathan a well known librarian and library educator of India predicted in 1950s that technology would play an important part in libraries in the near future. Many third world countries in Asia, Africa, Latin and South America, and the Middle East joined the technology wagon in the late twentieth century but are still behind western nations in its application and services. The recession in the world during the last four years has made things worse for them and the progress has slowed. Introduction of technology in academic and other libraries has opened a new chapter in the development of libraries in the twenty-first century. It has introduced access to information and various collections including e-books, online catalogs, and many full text databases of journal articles from all over the world in many languages. Academic and other libraries in the western world have taken full advantage of these much needed changes through technology. Many academic libraries in western nations have put their archives, special collections, Ph.D and Master’s theses, and even faculty publications online. They can be accessed by all interested researchers, scholars, students, faculty, and other library users for their research needs, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week from their homes, offices, and other locations anywhere in the world. On the other hand, academic libraries in many developing nations have been left behind for many reasons. In fact, they have not been able to catch up and are struggling to maintain their collections and services. According to a report published by the Progressive Policy Institute of the United States on April 29, 2009, literacy among the world population is on the rise. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Report 2011 shows that Georgia has literacy rate of 100% (“List of Countries by Literacy Rate” 2011). Forty four countries in the world have 99% or higher literacy rate including Cuba, Barbados, Ukraine, Armenia, Russia, Hungary, Poland, Australia, France, New Zealand, Germany, Japan, and South Korea (“List of Countries by Literacy Rate” 2011). Many other countries including Portugal, Singapore, Palestine, Sri Lanka, Chile, China, Jordan, Brazil, and Turkey have over 90% literacy rate (“List of Countries by Literacy Rate” 2011). On the other hand, a few African countries including Senegal, Gambia, Benin, and Sierra Leone have literacy rate of 40–49%. But Niger, Afghanistan, South Sudan, and Mali have Literacy rate between 26–28% only (“List of Countries by Literacy Rate” 2011). The population of the world reached seven billion in October 2011 and is increasing every day with China leading in the rise in population. It had a population of 1,349,250,000 on February 20, 2012 (“World Population” 2012) and India had 1,220,000,000 people on February 22, 2012 (“India’s population”

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2012). In 2012, 793 million people over the age of 15 in the world are still illiterate or 11.7% of men and 20.8% of women(CIA, The World Factbook). Therefore, schools, institutions of higher education, and academic libraries have a long way to go before they can win the battle of illiteracy (Leonard 2009). 47% of South Asians are illiterate. South and West Asia have the highest numbers of illiteracy (402,744) with 64% female illiteracy, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa with 134,978 and 71% female illiteracy. 74.04% of adult Indians were literate in 2011. Chinese literacy stands at 95.9% and in Brazil it is 90% (“Literacy” 2011). There is no place for illiterate people in academic and other libraries. In spite of the fact that progress to fight illiteracy is very slow, efforts are being made to open more academic and public libraries in many regions of Africa, Asia, Latin and South America, and the Middle East and introduce technology in them. The Asian continent has 52 countries and is the most populous continent in the world. Both China and India have over one billion people in each country. Technology was introduced in libraries of these countries on a limited basis in the 1980s. Progress has been made but still they are behind when compared to the academic libraries of other developed nations.

China China has over 25,000 libraries with over three billion volumes. Thousands of e-books and full text e-journals have been added to their collections. Many domestic databases have been developed in Chinese languages for the benefit of all users. In 1998, a library consortium. China Academic Libraries and Information Systems (CALIS), was formed to help users of academic libraries. At present, over 800 libraries are members of CALIS. China has certainly recognized the importance of libraries and rapid progress is being made with the help of technology (Sharma 2006). “From 1998 through 2007, CALIS subscribed or purchased as a Consortium, 283 databases in total, 10 times more than 10 years before … Including 80 full text databases … e-books including dissertations, 145,052 (1.2 million volumes). During the years from 1997 to 2008, a total of 1.91 million bibliographic records were uploaded in the CALIS Union Catalog” (Zhang and Tan 2012). “The four CALIS platforms include an online union cataloging facility for uploading and downloading bibliographic data, a journal navigation and TOC data creation tool, an OAI data harvesting system and a web based resource dispatch application. These platforms are essential tools for library material discovery, information retrieval, and resource sharing” (Zhang and Tan 2012). Large Chinese academic libraries in urban areas of the country are doing very well due to the introduction of technology in all departments including cataloging, circulation, acquisitions, inter-library loan, and reference services. Students and faculty have access to many full text articles through their

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databases on the Internet. Information technology has certainly brought many much needed changes to academic libraries during the last ten years (Liu and Song 2006). The author of this chapter visited China in 2005 and was impressed with the progress made by libraries in urban areas with the help of technology including 1,700 academic and 4,100 research libraries (Liu and Song 2006). Librarians have been able to provide enriched information resources in all formats and help students, faculty, and other users more efficiently and effectively (Liu and Song 2006). But they are still behind as compared to western academic libraries. Chinese academic and major public and special libraries have recently introduced mobile technology and it is hoped that it will further help library users to get the much needed information for their research and information needs quickly through their mobile phones. According to Wen Jiabao, the Chinese premier, when interviewed by Fareed Zakaria on CNN, GPS program on October 3, 2010, there were 400 million internet users and 800 million mobile phone subscribers in China in October 2010 (“Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Interview by CNN’s Faead Zakaria” 2010).

India Information technology has changed academic libraries in urban India as well. In 2012, India had 627 universities and institutes of national importance. In addition there are 18,600 colleges, with 3 million professors, and 7.8 million students (Moghaddam and Talawar 2009: 98). It is one of the largest systems of higher education in the world, but only ten% of those aged 18 years or older attend colleges and universities in India. The government of India is spending nine times the amount of previous Five Year Plans in the Current Five Year plan 2010–2015 on higher education. By 2025, the enrollment will increase from 12 million to 30 million students to become world’s largest education system (Sharma 2012). Therefore, more colleges and universities will be opened in India with libraries and access to library materials through technology. Founding of the Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) Centre in 1991 was a turning point in the history of Indian academic libraries. It is a “computer communication network for linking libraries and information centers in universities, deemed to be universities, colleges, UGC [University Grants Commission], Information centers, institutions of national importance and RD institutions, etc., avoiding duplication efforts … [It] develops and distributes software for university libraries (SOUL) which is integrated user friendly management software (Bhatt 2009). Another major activity of INFLIBNET is the preparation of the Indian Catalog of University Libraries in India (INDCAT), an online library catalogue of books, theses and journals available in major university libraries in India which provides bibliographic description, location of the

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material in all subjects available in more than 113 university libraries. INDCAT has over 10 million bibliographic records” (Bhatt, 2009). Murthy and Cholin are of the view that “all academic libraries [in India] now virtually depend on the IT systems for their basic operations such as acquisitions, cataloging, circulation, serials control, and other functions” (Murthy and Cholin 2006). But, it has been said that “most university libraries are ill-equipped to satisfy user needs within their resources. Scholars in remote areas feel mentally isolated” (Murthy and Cholin 2006). On the other hand, “Digital library projects in the country are on the rise”. The Indian Academy of Science, Bangalore, has demonstrated successfully, free on web delivery of their journals through their website (Jeevan 2004). UGC – INFONET Digital Library Consortium was established in 2003 and is doing an excellent job of subscribing to electronic resources for its members at discounted prices (Bhatt 2009). Another land mark to improving libraries and making India a knowledgeable society was achieved with the establishment of the National Knowledge Commission by the Government of India on June 13, 2005. The Commission submitted its report to Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India on May 23, 2009, with 300 recommendations on 27 focus areas including libraries. It will further help to improve and modernize and revitalize the libraries of India (National Knowledge Commission, 2008: 1). Mobile technology has also been introduced in urban areas of India and with its help library users, including users of academic libraries, have access to library materials including many databases through their smart mobile phones. At present there are over 100 million mobile phone subscribers in India (“India ex-minister A Raja denies telecom graft charges” 2011). Introduction of less expensive computers/readers by the Government of India will help students to buy them and get much needed information for their studies and research. Akash, the cheapest tablet computing device launched on October 5, 2011 and sold for $35.00. It had some problems which have been solved and the new upgraded computer was launched in April 2012. It will bridge the digital divide in the country. Kapil Sibal, Minister for Human Resource Development and Communication and Information Technology, recently said “Akash is a milestone in history. It will bring paradigm shift in education delivery, the device is not only for Indian students but for those of the world” (“Cheapest Tablet Computing Device Launched” 2011). “It supports web browsing and video conferencing … and will give digital access to students in small towns and villages across India. Aakash will end digital divide” (“India Launches Aakash Tablet Computer priced $35”, 2011).

Vietnam Vietnam is one of the poorest nations in Asia but joined the digital age with the help of Australian National University on April 14, 1994. It ranks 68 in the

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networking ready index out of 102 countries (Le 2006: 63). In December 1997, Vietnam provided access to the internet for the first time, which helped faculty, students, and others to get updated information for their research needs from all over the world. Since then, there has been improvement in academic library services in the major cities of Vietnam. Information literacy instruction has been introduced in many academic libraries with help of teaching faculty and this partnership has been effective. Even a credit course has been introduced in a few universities. It has helped students and faculty to do research with the help of technology (Diepand and Nahl 2011). A few free databases have also been introduced and academic institutions have also published a few periodicals online for the benefit of all researchers (Le, 2006: 71). The European community has helped Vietnam to introduce technology in libraries. But, many Asian countries with the exception of Japan, Singapore, and South Korea are still struggling.

Africa Africa is the largest continent in the world with 54 countries. Britz and Lor, two well known library scholars from South Africa, are of the view that “Africa which represents an eighth of the world’s population can surely be considered as the information-poorest continent when it comes to connectivity” (Britz and Lor 2006). In Africa, only 1.1% of the population have personal computers and 0.8% have access to the internet. Though the number of internet users increased by over 170% between 2000–2004, from 4,514,400 to 12,253,300, the actual increase is less than 2% of total internet users in the world (Britz and Lor 2006). Libraries are the key players in educating citizens of the country and introducing them to what is happening in the world through their materials including through technology. But, the development of all types of library including academic libraries in Africa in the twenty-first century has been very slow because “in Africa … libraries are not a priority” (Eneya 2008). There are many reasons for the slow development which are discussed towards the end of this chapter. As a December 31, 2011 there were 139,875,242 internet users in Africa. It is only 13.5% of an African population of 1,037,524,058 and it is only 6.2% of the world population (“Internet Usage Statistics for Africa” 2012). Nigeria tops the list with 45 million, followed by Egypt 21.7 million, Morocco 15.7 million, and Kenya 10.5 million internet users (“Internet Usage Statistics for Africa” 2012).

Benin Benin is French speaking country in West Africa and still underdeveloped in many ways when it comes to technology and academic libraries. The online

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catalog was introduced at the National University of Benin (NUB) in 2002 with the help of a grant which the author received during his directorship of the University Library of West Virginia State University, from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in 1999. Thirty French language computers with printers were bought for the University Library with the help of the grant money. Proper training was given to all librarians and staff to run their own show. One could see smiles on faces of many students, faculty, and administrators when technology finally became a part of the library and its functions. This project certainly “contributed to boosting the NUB Library’s technological capacity” (Natsis 2006). In 2010, there were only 15,000 Internet users in the country but in 2011, the numbers rose to 744,195. But that is only 3.0% of the population of Benin (“Internet Usage Statistics for Africa” 2012).

Nigeria Technology was introduced in the academic libraries of Nigeria in 1975 led by the University of Ibadan, Ahmadu Bello University, and Obafemi Awolowo University. But progress has been very slow and many colleges and universities are still behind in providing service to their patrons through technology. “Most academic and research libraries in Nigeria have not computerized any of their functions. The public card catalog and the visible index are still finding tools for books and journals. In most libraries, likewise, indexes and abstracts are compiled manually. Library and information services in Nigeria have yet to transcend the traditional functions” (Aguolu et al. 2006). As compared to other African countries Nigeria has done a better job of introducing technology in the country and the institutions of higher education including libraries. In December 2000, there were 200,000 internet users in the country and on December 31, 2011, there were 45,039,711 internet users which is 29% of the total population of Nigeria of 155,215,573 (“Internet Usage Statistics for Africa” 2012). “There is a clear need for collaboration among libraries … It is even more critical there is an obvious need for development of the electrical and broadband infrastructure of Nigeria … It will be necessary to have funding made available for the purchase of hardware, appropriate software, and training” (Speirs 2012).

Sub-Saharan Africa Education in Sub-Saharan Africa, like many other African countries, is predominantly funded by the government. Though the needs of students, and faculty, have increased since the introduction of technology in libraries since 1980, governments of all countries in the region have failed to support them fully.

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Sub-Saharan African academic libraries introduced personal computers in the 1980’s to join the world in the information age. “Library staffs were challenged to develop means of facilitating access within limited resources” (Raseroka 2006). The demand for access to technology increased. Universities of Botswana, Nairobi, and Zimbabwe took the lead during the early 1990s. The UNESCO introduced its free CDs/ISIs software for the benefit of African academic libraries. But, for other subscription based databases and even to buy PCs and subscribe to databases, academic libraries had to depend on funding from various donors for both software as well as hardware (Raseroka 2006). The World Bank has been one of the major donors to African academic libraries. Under difficult circumstances, academic libraries had no choice but to form partnerships to share information resources. This move resulted in the birth of fee based consortiums including the Ghana Interlibrary Lending and Document Delivery Network (GILLAD NET) and the South African Bibliographic Network (SABINET) (Raseroka 2006). There are at least 11 countries in the region where interstate consortiums are being formed. The University of Dakar in Senegal, and the University of Conakry in the Republic of Guinea have received financial help from the World Bank for their libraries. South Africa has received help from the European Union, Carnegie Corporation, Ford Foundation, and Mellon Foundation of the United States to rebuild their academic libraries during the post apartheid era (Raseroka 2006). It can be said that the academic libraries in Africa have not done very well in the information age and are behind in introducing technology. Indeed, Juma and Moyer are of the opinion that “Sub-saharan Africa is the most digitally isolated region in the world” (Juma and Moyer 2008).

The African Digital Library With the help of UNESCO, the World Bank, the Humanities Library Project, and the Net Library, a few educational, government, non-governmental, and research institutions have been able to establish their own digital collections in their libraries. The most noteworthy and visible among them is the African Digital Library (ADL). It can be accessed through www.africa-education. org/adl. It is a joint venture project of Technikon SA, South Africa; the Association of African Universities and Net Library, a private US based corporation. The mission of ADL “is to provide digitized full text resources to learners in Africa via the revitalization of education and lifelong learning on the continent and alleviation of the digital divide between first and third world countries” (Binh P. Le 2006, AAMES Newsletter: 1, 3). The ADL collection contains “full text” e-books, mostly English language text books, and is available

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to the people and institutions in the African continent, free of charge. The ADL opened on November 1, 1999 and has over 8,000 titles in over 50 subjects including agriculture, business, computer science, education, engineering, medicine, religion, and technology. ADL “should serve as a model for resource sharing for many underdeveloped regions of the world” (Le 2006, AAMES Newsletter: 1, 3). Individuals can access the library from any PC that is connected to the Internet in Africa.

The Middle East and North Africa West Asia, also known as the Middle East since the end of the Second World War, has 29 countries. It includes a few countries from Northern Africa also. Introduction of technology in academic libraries in this region has been very slow “due to a number of socio-economic, political, and technological factors” (Aman 2006). Academic libraries in the Middle East are very different to the libraries in the western world. There are no “reserve collections, e-reserves, or even reference services or desks” (Aman 2006). About 50% of the population in the region is illiterate and for them academic libraries have no place in their life. It does not make any difference to them whether there are any books or journals in the library or not. It does not make any difference to them if technology is part of the library or not. It does not make any difference to them whether there are any computers with access to the Internet or not in academic libraries. Recent uprisings in Egypt, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Yeman in 2011 and 2012 have further delayed the progress of libraries and the introduction of technology in the institutions of higher education.

Egypt Technology was introduced in libraries in Egypt in 1985 and a good information technology infrastructure is in place in major cities of the country. The Internet was introduced in libraries in October 1993 “through a gateway established by the Egyptian University Network (EUN) of the Supreme Council of Egyptian Universities” (Shaheen 2006). The academic libraries of Egypt are progressing very well as compared to the libraries of other Arab nations but the Gulf countries are catching up with the opening of many new universities which are much more technology oriented and have given full support to their libraries to introduce technology for the benefit of their students and faculty. But with the fall of president Hosni Mubarak in 2011, due to the people’s uprising the progress has slowed down.

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Central, Latin, and South America There are 33 countries and 13 dependencies with over 955 million people in this region (“Central and South America” 2009). All major academic libraries have introduced technology in their libraries. In Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico, universities have supported their libraries very well but smaller libraries are still behind. In Honduras private and public university libraries are doing better as compared to other libraries. A majority of academic libraries have introduced technology with online catalogs and many libraries have subscriptions to online databases also (Adkins 2008). Other nations in this region of the world have a long way to go to catch up with the western world.

Information Technology We are aware of the fact that the fully integrated online system has helped to improve the quality of operation of all departments in academic libraries including acquisitions, cataloging, circulation, interlibrary loan, reference, periodicals, and even bibliographic instruction, also known as information literacy. Through technology, academic libraries have succeeded in giving much needed information to all faculty, students, and other users twenty four hours a day, 365 days a year from homes, offices, student dorms, libraries and other places. The access to many full text electronic databases, the online catalog and other documents has certainly helped all users to do their research in a timely manner. As mentioned earlier, introduction of mobile technology in many developing nations including India and China has also helped to access information including many databases through the smart phones. Wireless technology has further helped users to find information from the place of their choice within or outside the library even from their mobiles. “The emerging digital library is making this information process much easier for all users. Introduction of e-mail and fax has also brought new life to all types of libraries” (Sharma 2006). Therefore, it will not be out of place to say that information technology has helped to enlarge the role, capabilities, and importance of all libraries especially academic libraries in the twentyfirst century. It is due to the introduction of technology that academic, research, and other types of library have become more global in nature because of the Internet and the access they provide to research materials for their users (Chen 2004). It must be added that western nations have done more for their academic libraries through technology as compared to developing nations. In my view, there are many barriers and problems to introducing technology in developing nations. The combination of both problems and barriers has blocked the much needed progress of academic libraries in many developing nations of the world.

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Barriers and Technology Funding One of the major problems for academic libraries in poor and developing countries is the shortage of money for technology. Even many developed nations of the west were not ready for technology because no proper planning was done to introduce technology in libraries of higher educational institutions. Library administrators had to divert money from other line items of the budget to introduce technology. They had a very difficult time managing finance for their libraries. Even now there are problems because of the bad economy, rising costs of databases, paper journals, and other aspects of technology. As dean of an academic library in the United States, the author had to cut his book budget in order to meet the technological needs of users in the University. Even deans of many large academic and research libraries are in the same boat in the United States. The present financial crisis in the world has further created problems even for academic libraries of developed nations and there is no solution in sight in the immediate future to solve the budget crises for academic libraries. Hardware and software are still very expensive for libraries in the developing nations of Asia, Africa, Central, Latin and South America, and the Middle East. They need to fight poverty and hunger first and send their children to schools and colleges to get education and learn how to use libraries first, rather than worrying about technology in their libraries. The present recession has added more misery to the growing problems of all academic libraries because budgets have been cut further. Many academic libraries of poor nations do not have enough money to buy even basic books for their collections, have proper library buildings, hire well-trained systems librarians, fill vacant positions, or subscribe to paper journals to support the research needs of their students and faculty. “Although universities in the Sub-Saharan Africa have been advised on the 5 per cent of the total university expenditure [for libraries], very few universities have been able to provide this minimum [amount] consistently. In the West African country of Ghana, for example, it is estimated that the library budget may be as low as two per cent” (Raseroka 2006). How can they even think of buying expensive technology? How can they train their staff in the use of technology? Many countries of the developing nations do not have enough academic libraries and/or have poor libraries to serve their students and faculty. They do not have enough books or journals on their shelves. For a long time, the libraries have been unable to acquire new books due to poor funding. “Most of the books in the libraries are outdated” (Eneya 2008). In a few developing countries, technology has been introduced in academic libraries with the help of donations and grants from other countries, and some help from their own country, but the progress is very slow

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and these countries will never be able to catch up with libraries of developed nations. How long will they depend on donations to build their academic libraries, develop collections, train their librarians and staff, and introduce technology? When there are wars being fought in countries of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, how can governments and people of those countries including Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Somalia, and Sudan, think of technology in their academic libraries or even open new libraries? Wars must be stopped and their libraries be rebuilt because many libraries have been destroyed and/or damaged in the wars. They have to develop their collections, train their librarians and staff to serve the needs of their students and faculty. Citizens of these countries have been deprived access to information through their academic libraries. The information poverty has made them helpless. Recent uprisings against dictators in Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen, and other countries have slowed or stopped the progress of libraries in those countries.

Illiteracy One of the major barriers to the introduction of technology in the academic libraries of many developing nations of the world is the rate of illiteracy. “Literacy remains a low priority for national governments” (UNESCO Dhaka 2012). As of April 2009, according to UNESCO, “91 per cent of boys and 87 per cent of girls are literate” in the world (Leonard 2009). “The largest gap remains in Africa, South Asia, and the Arab World … Some 774 million people in the world are illiterate” (Leonard 2009). During the last four years (2008–2012) the gap has widened at present 793 million people in the world are illiterate. The world population rose to seven billion in 2011 and the majority of the population increase has been in developing nations where the illiteracy rates are high (“World Population” 2012). According to the Population Reference Bureau’s 2009 World Population Data sheet “a staggering 97 per cent of global growth over the next 40 years will happen in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean” (“World Population Projected to Reach 7 Billion in 2011” 2009). “By 2050, India is projected to be the world’s most populous nation of 1.7 billion people; overtaking the current leader, China” (“World Population Projected to Reach 7 Billion in 2011”, 2009). Therefore, governments in developing nations have to meet the challenge of educating their rising populations, opening more schools, colleges and universities with libraries in them, and introducing technology because the space in those countries is shrinking. At present, how can leaders of these countries think of introducing technology in their libraries when they have to fight poverty and illiteracy?

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India has the largest illiterate population. Among them there are 161 million Muslims (17%) while 50% of Muslim women are still illiterate (“Islam in India” 2010). They cannot read and write: “as many as a quarter of Muslim children in the age group 6–14 have either never attended school or dropped out” (Biswas 2007). Literacy in Pakistan stands at 58.2% (“Demographics of Pakistan” 2012). Eighty three million adults out of 187 million population of 15 years or older are illiterate (“Demographics of Pakistan” 2012), and 65% of all females adults are illiterate (Dalrymple 2007 and “Demographics of Pakistan” 2012). In Bangladesh, the female illiteracy rate is 78% (Moleke 2007). In the twenty-first century, known as the age of information and technology, “women still make up two thirds of the world’s adult illiterates … In Africa, 49.2% of women are still illiterate. In South and West Asia, 56.4% and in Arab states and North Africa, 52.2% of women are still illiterate (UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), 2003: 2). In Afghanistan, 95% of the women cannot read or write” (“Photo Journal: Afghan Women’s Voices” 2003). People and leaders of developing nations should remember that when you educate a woman, you educate the whole family. Therefore, they should pay attention to this major problem of illiteracy and solve it by educating females of all ages in their countries. The United Nations Development Programme Report 2011 indicates that the literacy rate in many countries is alarming including Bangladesh at 55.9%, Nepal at 68.2%, Senegal at 49.7%, Mozambique at 55.1%, Benin at 41.7%, Guinea at 39.5%, Afghanistan at 28%, Chad at 33.6%, Mali at 26.2%, and Burkina Faso with only 28.7% literate people (“List of Countries by Literacy Rate” 2011). According to CBS News of the United States aired on May 22, 2007, 50% of children in both Pakistan and Nigeria are not in schools at all (“Literacy and Children” 2007). According to UNICEF, “there are over 100 million children out of school in India” (Leonard 2009). One sincerely hopes that the recent law about free education for children between the ages of 6–14, passed by the Indian Parliament on August 4, 2009, will help to solve this problem of illiteracy in India (Sager 2009). There is a shortage of schools, libraries, and other educational facilities in all developing nations, and according to a report by the Commission on Africa, a British government research organization published in 2005, “African Universities were in a state of crisis and were failing to produce the professionals desperately needed to develop the poorest continent” (Polgreen 2007). According to the world illiteracy map, Africa has the largest number of countries with 60% of illiterate people (“World Illiteracy Map” 2012).

Software for Computers Another major barrier in introducing technology in the academic libraries of developing nations is that software used for computers is not available in

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the local languages. English is the major language for a majority of software followed by French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, and Chinese. As of July 31, 2009, there are 195 countries and 186 languages spoken worldwide (Rosenberg, 2009: 1.). According to the most recent study, the English language leads the world with over two billion web pages (214,250,996), followed by Japanese (18,335,739), German (18,069,774), Chinese (12,113,803), French (9,262,663), Spanish (7,573,064), and Russian (5,900,956). Almost seven in ten (68.39%) of web pages are in English. 5.85% in Japanese, 5.77% in German, 3.87% in Chinese, 2.96% in French, and 2.42% in Spanish language (“Percentage of Different Languages Used on the Web” 2003). For every 1.5 English speaking people, there is one web page in the world. But, there is only one webpage for 3.7 Swedish people, one web page for every 43.8 Spanish speaking people, and one web page for 1,583.5 Arabic people (Sharma 2006). In South Africa, only 7% of the population has access to the Internet, in Namibia only 2.5%, and in Kenya only 1.6% of the population has access to the Internet. In Asia, South Korea is the leader because 54% of the population has access to the Internet as compared to China with only 3.6%. In Latin America, Chile leads with 20% and Brazil with 8%. On the other hand, 68% of the populations in Sweden, 63% of the population in Denmark, 54% of Australians, 59% of Americans, and 49% of Canadians have access to the Internet (Britz and Lor 2006). In India, there were only 13.5 million subscribers to the Internet in 2007 representing 1.15 per 100 habitants. But, 81 million have access to the Internet, 6.93 users per 100 inhabitants (Mishra 2008). Looking at these figures, it can be said that there is a wide gap between the developing and developed nations for their citizens who have access to the Internet in the first decade of the twenty-first century. In 2011 English was used by 565,004,126 million people in the world to access the Internet, followed by Chinese (509,965,013 million), Spanish (164,968,742) Japanese (99,182,000), Portuguese (82,586,600), German (75,422,674), Arabic (65,365,400), French (59,779,525), Russian (59,700,000), and Korean (39,40,000). On June 30, 2010, there were 1,966,514 Internet users in the world (“Internet World Users by Language” 2012). In 2011, there were 2,099,926,965 Internet users. The number of top ten language users in 2011 was 1,615,957,333 but the number of all other world language users to access Internet was only 350,557,483 (Internet world users by Languages 2012). It is clearly shows that there are still many languages that are not represented on the Internet and people who do not read and speak English and other major languages such as French, German, Spanish, Russian, or languages of the developing nations are far behind in the progress in implementing technology in their academic libraries. They have very little or no information about technology. These nations neither have the money nor the expertise to introduce technology in their academic libraries.

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According to Alex Byrne, former President of IFLA, technology in developing nations at present “is limited to those who are literate and have a command of the major languages of commerce and scholarship [English in Particular]” (Byrne 2003). There is another problem with technology that we cannot ignore and that is “If I put a book [or a paper journal] in a room and close the door [and] open the door in 500 years, the information contained in the book will still be available. If I do that with any electronic storage device, we now know the same will not be true, not even perhaps in ten years. The information may still be in electronic form but we are unlikely to be able to read it with our newer technology” (Graham 1998). Online full text journal databases are very attractive but they are still very expensive for libraries of the developing nations. Secondly, one has to buy full packages rather than individual titles from vendors. This discourages many academic libraries from subscribing to them because of lack of funds as well as materials which do not support their curriculum and research needs. Finally, libraries lose access to databases if they cancel their subscriptions even to the old journal issues, unless libraries pay huge access fees for older issues to the vendors, whereas, if libraries cancel subscriptions to paper journals, all older issues remain with the library. Other major problems include lack of proper library buildings, expensive and unreliable electricity, very expensive or no telephone lines. “The servers in many institutions are not very reliable. This makes the update of local databases very difficult. [Students, faculty, and other users have] no access to current books. There is no money to renew licenses which are usually for five years” (Eneya 2008). In addition, “Libraries in Africa [and in other developing nations] are poorly funded. This has made replacement of equipment virtually impossible and maintenance very difficult. Lack of local dealers in library software is another big challenge. Reliance on overseas libraries is expensive and makes system maintenance a nightmare” (Eneya 2008).

Meeting the Challenges Librarians, library educators, academic leaders and administrators have an important role to play in combating information poverty in the developing nations (Britz and Lor 2006). As mentioned earlier, software for computers is not available in many languages. At present, only “some library systems and software do provide interface in a variety of languages” (Byrne 2003). Because of the fact that technology is very expensive even in 2011, the majority of academic libraries in developing nations cannot consider introducing it. The author has visited libraries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East and can say that it is not a top priority of their governments to upgrade their libraries with technology. For developing nations, it is more important

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to fight hunger, illiteracy, and poverty rather than information poverty and the lack of technology in their academic and other libraries. Governments of poor countries will certainly devote time and energy to their libraries only after solving major problems of clothing, food, shelter, and illiteracy. The Internet is the gateway to information and scholarly research for all educated people of the world and it is dominated by the English language, and is used by more English speaking people than by non-English speaking people. But, as mentioned earlier, the population of Africa, Asia, Middle East, Central, South and Latin America and other poor nations, has limited access to the Internet as compared to the population of the western world. Therefore, they are far behind. In author’s view, it is very important to train people in information literacy and information technology through libraries. It will help to reduce information poverty. We need more leaders like Kiran Martin, founder of “ASHA” in India who helped 135 young people living in the slums of Delhi, India, including 18 year old Shashi Arya and 19 year old Mahesh Sharma to go to University of Delhi for higher education. “Coming from poor families, none of them ever imagined they would go to college, But it has happened with the (financial) help of a local non-government organization” [ASHA] (Ray 2009). There is a need for more leaders like Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab, India who announced on March 8, 2012 that all girls in the state of Punjab will get free education up to Master’s degrees in the state. Earlier, the free education in the state was only up to B.A. degree. He also announced the extension of a free bicycle scheme for girl students of 9th and 10th class (“Free Education for Girl Students up to MA: Badal” 2012). These measures will help to increase literacy and the use of libraries in Punjab, India. We need more people like John Wood of the United States who has built libraries, schools, and computer labs in developing countries to educate people and reduce illiteracy in the world. His organization has opened nearly 5,000 school libraries and about 400 schools, donated more than 1.4 million English language books, published 146 local language titles, and touched the lives of 1.5 million students in developing countries (Bernard 2012). There is a need for more Bill Gates of Microsoft who has given millions of dollars to introduce technology in libraries in developing countries. It is very important and urgent to develop software in national languages of all 195 countries of the world especially in developing nations. Only then will nations be able to achieve the maximum benefit for all citizens and libraries. “It is a task that must be seriously considered in order to safeguard against intrusive foreign culture, particularly when they affect the young mind, and more so, national cultural identity” (Panyarachun 1999). The literacy rate in developing countries must improve. Only then will the introduction of technology in academic libraries be successful. Federal governments of all poor nations must invest more money in education and technology at all levels, even if they have to form a good partnership with the private

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sector. This must become their top priority along with fighting poverty and hunger. According to a report published on the BBC website on August 21, 2009, released by a committee appointed by the Government of India and chaired by an eminent Indian economist, S.D. Tendulkar, “At least 38% of Indians live in extreme poverty … the number of poor in India is approximately 297 million” (“More Indians in ‘Extreme Poverty’” 2009). The future of these developing countries will be much brighter with more educated people in the country. Therefore, present leaders should look forward and lead from the front by setting good examples. It is necessary and important to open more quality schools, colleges, and universities with excellent libraries. India has taken the lead in helping college students by providing free access to e-resources including 2,100 e-journals and 51,000 e-books from all over the world. This has been made possible by the Ministry of HRD, under the project “Information and Communication Technology (ICT)” initiative of the Indian Government. “For the colleges getting financial aid from the University Grants Commission (UGC), the expenditure will be met by the HRD Ministry” (“College Students to Get Free Access to E-Books” 2010). Other developing nations should follow the example of India and spend more money on academic libraries to keep their students up-to-date with the information through technology in the twenty-first century. It will help them to prepare students for the present challenges they face in the world and prepare their leaders for tomorrow (“College Students to Get Free Access to E-Books” 2010). Budgets of all institutions of higher learning should be improved. All academic libraries need adequate budgets to introduce technology at all levels to meet the curriculum and research needs of all students and faculty and keep it up to date with all upgrades on a regular basis. Otherwise, the mission of introducing technology will not be successful. It is equally important to allocate enough money for the training in technology for all librarians as well as support staff. Similarly, funds for continuing education for both librarians and staff must be made available on a regular basis in the budgets of all libraries. Rich nations of the world under the able leadership of the United Nations should take responsibility for helping poor and developing nations to improve their academic libraries and educational standards with the introduction of technology at all levels. This investment will be much better and will yield better results than wasting money on wars. More grants and loans should be given to developing nations to upgrade their academic and other types of libraries. It will help poor nations to join the high speed super highway of technology. It should be kept in mind that “computer literacy and language are the most important tools needed for information technology” (Panyarachun 1999). Individual institutions of higher learning in western nations can also help academic libraries of poor nations in introducing and upgrading technology by offering training in modern librarianship. To bring uniformity in the world it is very

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important, necessary, and urgent to develop “information literacy standards … [because information illiteracy is] a significant obstacle throughout the world” (Byrne 2003). The combination of computer and information literacy in national languages and higher education with high standards in all developing nations will help to achieve the goal of introducing information technologies successfully in academic libraries of all developing nations and break down a few major barriers en route to complete success. Communication charges in developing nations are still very high. It would help to make much needed progress if the prices were brought down and more telephone lines were laid to speed up connections and access to the Internet. Similarly, prices of software and hardware should be controlled to make them affordable to libraries of all developing nations. Finally, electricity is still not available 24 hours a day in many developing nations. Many villages have no electricity. In cities it is available only for a few hours a day and it is very expensive. It creates many problems for libraries and their users in their services and research. Therefore, it is urged that all major industrial powers of the developed world must help developing nations to generate more electricity, connect libraries, and make sure that libraries and homes are never without electricity. Introduction of much needed technology in academic libraries will help students, faculty, scholars, and others to have access to the available information for their research needs and improve the quality of research. It will also help poor nations to join the information super highway of the world rather than be stuck in the local traffic on the side roads and remain behind in achieving the goal of information literacy. It will also help them to join their counterparts in developed nations, where technology has become an integral and very important part of all academic and other types of library. According to a report published by the Sydney, Australia based Institute for Economics and Peace and the Economic Intelligence Unit in June 2010, “the world has become less peaceful, with intensification of conflicts and instability linked to the downturn since 2008, with several countries seeing sharp increases in homicides, violence and fear of crime” (“India Slips to 129th in Global Peace Index” 2010). In addition, wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Palestine, Pakistan, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, and other countries have added financial burdens and it has affected many and other countries. It is very important to stop these wars, violence and crime all over the world. Even a 25% reduction in global violence would free up $1.8 trillion annually (“India Slips to 129th in Global Peace Index” 2010). This money can be used to educate people and develop academic libraries with the help of technology in developing nations. It will further help to narrow the gap in the progress of libraries between developed and developing nations.

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Conclusion If all barriers of illiteracy, budget, software, training, availability of cheaper telephone line, electricity, and others obstacles were removed, academic libraries and librarians would be able to meet the challenges of technology in the information age. Present conditions in developing countries are hurting the progress of librarians and libraries. In this modern age of library and information “If we don’t try to create an infrastructure which is technically and electronically available to everyone, we will have missed an important opportunity to change our society” (“British Law to Preserve Electronic Publications” 2003). It has been rightly said that “information poverty is closely allied to economic poverty: the poorest nations have the least access to information” (Lum 2007). There are 195 countries in the world and a majority of them fall in the category of developing nations. Palaniappan Chidambaram, former Finance Minister and present Home Minister of India, recently said that developing nations “… have the right to grow, just as much as the U.S. and Europe had the right to grow in the 19th century” (Williams 2007). Therefore, the world should make a commitment to work together in the new global environment of cooperation, development, and resource sharing to help academic and other libraries of developing nations succeed and invest wisely. They should help to bring the much needed change of introducing technology in all academic libraries of developing nations. Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro, India and the richest Muslim entrepreneur in the world has donated billions of dollars to educate poor people of India. Other rich Indians like Rattan Tata, Mukesh and Anil Ambani Brothers and others should also donate more money to education and libraries. Rich people of other developing countries should follow the example of Azim Premji to fight illiteracy and support the development of education and libraries in their own countries (“Richest Muslim Entrepreneur in the World is Indian” 2012). It is the hope of this concerned academic library dean that the dream of change and giving equal access to information to all students and faculty in poor countries will turn into reality soon. We all have to work very hard to achieve our goal of equal access to information in all countries. The next fifteen years will be very challenging to fight illiteracy, poverty, and wars. It will help to open more libraries, introduce technology and improve access to libraries through technology.

References Adkins, Denice. 2008. “A Fulbright Scholars Experience in Honduras”. In: The International Leads, 22(2): 5–6. Aguolu, C.C., Haruna, I. and Aguolu, I.E. 2006. “The Impact of Technology on Library Collections and Services in Nigeria”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African,

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and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham, Maryland. The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 143–156. Aman, Mohammed M. 2006. “The Impact of Technology on Libraries and Collections in the Arab Countries of the Middle East and North Africa”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R. N. Sharma, Lanham Maryland. The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 183–194. Bernard, Sara. “Room to Read: Building Libraries, Schools, and Computer Labs in Developing Countries”. URL: http://www.edutopia.org/global-education-libraries-developingcountries. Accessed January 6, 2012. Bhatt, R. K. 2009. “Academic Libraries in India: A Historical Study”. Paper presented at the International Conference on Academic Libraries in Delhi, India, October 5–8, 2009. Biswas, Soutik. 2007. “Why Do Indian Muslims Lag Behind?” URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/ 2/hi/south_asia/6938090.stm. Accessed August 10, 2007. “British Law to Preserve Electronic Publications.” 2003). LJ Academic News Wire, 5: 3–4. Britz, J.J., and P.J. Lor. 2006. “The Role of Libraries in Combating Information Poverty in Africa”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections: Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham, Maryland. The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 103–126. Byrne, Alex. 2003. “Digital Libraries: Barriers or Gateways to Scholarly Information?” Paper presented at the International Association of Technological University Libraries Conference, Ankara, Turkey. “Central and South America.” 2009. URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_America. Accessed August 17, 2009. Chaliand, Gerard. 2012. “Third World: Definitions and Description”. In: Third World Traveler. URL: http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/General/ThirdWorld_def.html. Accessed January 4, 2012. “Cheapest Tablet Computing Device Launched.” 2011. India Review, 7(11), 20. Chen, C.C. 2004. “Global Memory Network offers Users the World Instantly”. Library Times International 21(1): 1–4. “Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao Interview by CNN’s Faread Zakaria.” 2010. URL: http:// forum.globaltimes.cn/forum/showthread.php?t=22359. Accessed March 5, 2012. CIA. The World Factbook. URL: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-worldfactbook/geos/countrytemplate_xx.html. Accessed April 10, 2012. “College Students to Get Free Access to E-Books.” 2010. URL: www.zeenews.com/ news632637.html. Accessed June 9, 2010. Dalrymple, William. 2007. “The ‘Poor’ Neighbour”. Guardian, August 14, 23(33): 19. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/aug/14/pakistan.india1. Accessed March 14, 2012. “Demographics of Pakistan.” URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Pakistan. Accessed February 24, 2012. Diepand, Kim Chi and Nahl, Diane.2011. “Information Literacy Instruction in Four Vietnamese University Libraries”. In: Asia-Pacific Conference on Library and Information Education and Practice, 2011. (A-LIEP 2011): Issues, Challenges and Opportunities, 22–24 June, Pullman Putrajaya Lakeside, Malaysia. URL: http://eprints.ptar.uitm.edu. my/3958/1/SP_ILI11_36.pdf: 337–347. Eneya, Dorothy Doreen. 2008. “A Long Walk to Automation: Experiences and Challenges of the University of Malawi Libraries”: In: Managing Technologies and Automated Library Systems in Developing Countries: Open Source vs. Commercial Options. Proceedings of the IFLA Pre-Conference Satellite Meeting, Dakar, Senegal, August 15–16, 2007. Ed. Bernard Dione and Rajean Savard. Mu¨nchen: K.G. Saur: 73–84. “Free Education for Girl Students up to MA: Badal.” 2012. URL: http://zeenews.india.com/ news/punjab/free-education-for-girl-students-up-to-ma-badal_762797.html. Accessed March 8, 2012.

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Graham, Peter S. 1998. “Long Term Intellectual Preservation”. In: Going Digital: Strategies for Access, Preservation, and Conversion of Collections to a Digital Format: Ed. Donald L. Dewitt. New York: Haworth Press: 81–98. “India ex-minister A Raja denies telecoms graft charges.” 2011. URL: http://www.bbc.co. uk/news/world-south-asia-14271681. Accessed July 26, 2011. “India Launches Aakash Tablet Computer priced $35.” 2011. URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ news/world-south-asia-15180831. Accessed March 5, 2012. “India’s Population 2012.” URL: http://Indiaonlinepages.com/population. Accessed February 21, 2012. “India Slips to 129th in Global Peace Index.” 2010. URL: http://zeenews.india.com/news/ nation/india-slips-to-129th-in-global-peace-index_632449.html. Accessed June 8, 2010. “Internet Usage Statistics for Africa.” 2012. URL: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats1. htm. Accessed February 24, 2012. “Internet World Users by Language: Top 10 Languages.” URL: http://www.internet worldstats.com/stats7.htm. Accessed February 24, 2012. “Islam in India.” 2010. URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslims_in_India. Accessed June 3, 2010. Jeevan, V.K. J. 2004. “Digital Library Development Identifying Sources of Content for Developing Countries with Special Reference to India.” The International Information and Library Review 36(3): 185–197. Juma, C. and Moyer E. 2008. “Broadhood Internet in Africa.” Science 320 (5881): 1261. Cited in: Stilwell, Christine. 2012. “Take the Vision to People: The Development and Transformation of Libraries and Information Services in South Africa”. In: Libraries in The Early 21st Century: An International Perspective, Vol. 1. Ed. Ravindra N. Sharma. Berlin: De Gruyter Saur: 293–322. Le, Binh P. 2006. “The Digital Age and Information Poor Societies”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 62–75. Le, Binh P. 2006. “Bridging the Digital Divide: The African Digital Library”. AAMES Newsletter 3 (2): 1, 3. Leonard, Andrew 2009. “Good News for Bloggers: Global Literacy is Rising”. URL: http:// www.salon.com/tech/htww/2009/04/29/world_literacy/. Accessed August 8, 2009. “List of Countries by Literacy Rate.” 2011. URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ countries_by_literacy_rate. Accessed August 18, 2009. “List of Developing Countries. As Declared by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.” 2009. URL: http://www.ausaid.gov.au/ngos/devel_list.cfm. Accessed January 6, 2012. “Literacy.” 2011. URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literacy. Accessed August 13, 2009. “Literacy and Children.” 2007. URL: www.cbsnews.com. Accessed May 22, 2007. Liu, Jing and Song, Yiliang. 2006. “The Impact of Technology on Chinese Library Collections and Services”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 76–90. Lum, Raymond. 2007. “Book Review of The Impact of Technology on Asian, African and Middle Eastern Collections”. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. In: College and Research Libraries 68(3): 285–286. Mishra, Gaurav. 2008. “IGF: 81 Million Internet Users in India”. URL: http://www. gauravonomics.com/blog/igf-81-million-internet-users-in-india/1-8. Accessed August 18, 2009. Moghaddam, Golnessa Galyni and Talawar, V.G. 2009). “Library Consortia in Developing Countries: An Overview”, Program. 43(1): 94–104.

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Moleke, Karabo. 2007. “Female Business in Africa: A Harsh Reality”. Sawubona, August 2007; 132. “More Indians in ‘Extreme Poverty’.” 2009. URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/ 8214061.stm. Accessed September 1, 2009. Murthy, T.A.V. and Cholin, V.S. 2006. “The Impact of Information Technology on University Libraries in India”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 48–61. National Knowledge Commission. Government of India. 2008. “Towards A Knowledge Society”. URL: http://www.knowledgecommission.gov.in/downloads/documents/towards_ knowledgesociety.pdf. Accessed August 18, 2009. National Knowledge Commission. Government of India. 2009. “Report to the Nation 2006–2009”. URL: http://www.knowledgecommission.gov.in/downloads/report2009/ eng/report09.pdf. Accessed August 18, 2009 Natsis, James J. 2006. “Bridging the Technological, Language, and Cultural Gap: Partnering with an Academic Library in Francophone Africa”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections, Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 157–168. Panyarachun, Anand. 1999. “Reaching the Information Gateways: An Unfinished Task.” Paper presented at the 65 International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Conference in Bangkok, Thailand. “Percentage of Different Languages Used on the Web.” 2003. URL: http://cyberatlas. internet.com/big_picture/demographics/article/0,5901_408540,00.html. Accessed November 6, 2003. “Photo Journal: Afghan Women’s Voices.” 2003. URL: http://news.bbc.co.UK/2/shared/ spl/hi/south_asia/03/jamila/html/7.stm. Accessed November 12, 2003. Polgreen, Lydia. 2007. “Africa’s Storied Colleges, Jammed and Crumbling”. The New York Times May 20, 2007, CLVII, A1, A11. Raseroka, H. Kay. 2006. “The Impact of Information Communication Technology on Academic Libraries in Sub-Saharan Africa, with Specific Reference to Botswana”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 127–142. Ray, Tinku. 2009. “University for Delhi Slum Kids”. URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/ south_asia/8198981.stm. Accessed August 13, 2009. “Richest Muslim Entrepreneur in the World is Indian.” 2010. URL: http://halalmedia.my// richest-muslim-entrepreneur-in-the-world-is-Indian. Accessed March 5, 2012. Rosenberg, Matt. 2009. “The Number of Countries in the World”. URL: http://geography. about.com/cs/countries/a/numbercountries.htm. Accessed August 13, 2009. Sager, Naresh. 2009. “Parliament Pass Right of Education Bill”. URL: http://www. br-inside.com/Parliament-pass-right of education–bill0-21422563.htm, 1–3. Accessed August 13, 2009. Shaheen, Sherif Kamel. 2006. “Information Technology Applications in Information Work in Egypt: A puzzle Missing Some Pieces”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 195–208. Sharma, R.N. 2006. “Evolution of Academic Libraries”. @your library 2: 2–3. Sharma, R.N. 2006. “Barriers in Introducing Information Technology in Libraries”. In: The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Library Collections. Ed. R.N. Sharma, Lanham. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: 233–247. Sharma,Yogana. 2011. “India: The Next University Super Power”. URL: http://www.bbc. co.uk/news/business-12597815. Accessed February 19, 2011.

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Speirs, Martha A. 2012. “The Development of Information and Communication Technologies in Nigerian Libraries”. In: Libraries In The Early 21st Century: An International Perspective, Vol.1. Ed. Ravindra N.Sharma. Berlin: De Gruyter Saur: 253–267. UNESCO Dhaka. 2012. “Literacy”. URL: http://www.unescodhaka.org/education/literacy/. UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). 2003. “Illiteracy Rate and Illiterate Population, 15 Years and Older”. URL: http://www.uis.unesco.org/ev.php?ID=50352oldID2= DO_TOPIC. Accessed November 8, 2003. Williams, Mike. 2007. “Indian Finance Minister: Full Text [Interview].” URL: http://news. bbc.co.UK/2/hi/business/6330691.stm. Accessed February 5, 2007. “World Hunger ‘Hits One Billion’.” 2009. URL: http://news.bbc.Co.UK/2/hi/europe/8109 698.stm. Accessed June 19, 2009. “2012 World Hunger and Poverty Facts and Statistics.” 2012. URL: http://www.world hunger.org/articles/Learn/world%20hunger%20facts%202002.htm. Accessed February 24, 2012. “World Illiteracy Map.” 2012. URL: http://www.mapsofworld.com/thematic-maps/worldilliteracy-map.htm. Accessed March 6, 2012. “World Population Projected to Reach 7 Billion in 2011.” 2009. URL: http://articles.cnn. com/2009-08-12/tech/world.population_1_fertility-rates-world-population-data-sheetpopulation-reference-bureau?_s=PM:TECH. Accessed August 12, 2009. “World Population.” 2012. URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_population. Accessed February 20, 2012. Zhang, Ying and Tan Xiangjin. 2012. “Technologies and Chinese Librarianship”. In: Libraries in the Early 21st Century: An International Perspective, Vol. 1. Ed. Ravindra N. Sharma. Berlin: De Gruyter Saur: 105–138.

1.5 Use of Technology in Libraries in the European Union Towards 2020 Selma Alpay Aslan A day will come when we shall see … The United States of America and The United States of Europe face to face, Reaching out for each other across the seas. Victor Hugo, 1849 The idea of a United Europe goes back even before the date of the quotation above, to the days when William Penn wrote of a “European dyet, or parliament” in 1693. The idea was brought up by several politicians and thinkers like Immanuel Kant, Napoleon, John Stuart Mill, and Winston Churchill throughout centuries.1 The first step was taken with the foundation of the Council of Europe in 1949. With its 47 members covering the complete continent, the Council aims to create a common democratic and legal area throughout the continent.2 A few years later, Jean Monnet’s idea of pooling iron and steel resources was brought forward by Robert Schuman, and the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was established in 1951 with its six members leading to today’s European Union with 27 members, five candidate and four potential candidate countries. Activities contributing to the use of technology in libraries which take place in Europe at Union level have mostly been carried out under research and information society programmes. This chapter covers an overview of the initiation of framework programmes (FP), the place of library research within each FP with examples of projects conducted to give an idea about the nature of work carried out, other initiatives and programmes which aim to enable cultural institutions to adapt to the requirements of knowledgebased digital economy and society aspired to be built; and the way forward to 2020.

1 2

Pre-1945 ideas on European unity. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-1945_ideas_on_ European_unity (03.04.2010). Council of Europe in brief. http://www.coe.int/aboutCoe/index.asp?page=nosObjectifs&l= en (03.04.2010).

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The Initiation of the Libraries Programme The European Parliament approved a resolution which aimed to draw political attention to the importance of libraries to the Community. It is known as the Schwencke Resolution after the name of the speaker who proposed it in 1984. The Resolution recommended the creation of a “European Library” and invited the Commission to take action. What was proposed was to have an automated union catalog of materials on topics relevant to the Community and provision of reference and document supply services Community wide. This Resolution was less ambitious than Leonardi’s 1982 proposal of having a European Library of depository nature. These two Resolutions led to intensified discussions on greater cooperation among European libraries. The legal basis for such a cooperation was provided by the Resolution titled ‘Collaboration between libraries in the field of data processing’ which was adopted by The Council of Ministers with responsibility for cultural affairs in 1985. With this Resolution the importance of libraries was acknowledged both as a major force in the information market and as intermediaries to knowledge and culture.3 Prior to this Resolution some background studies were conducted. They revealed that there were some 75,000 libraries run by public authorities throughout the Community and they held 1.2 billion books.4 The number of people working in the sector was 250,000. The cost of these libraries was five billion Ecus per annum, and when libraries run by the private sector were added, this amount was doubled. Twenty three per cent of the total Community population were regular library users. More than 50% of medium to large library automation systems installed were from non-European suppliers. All these figures demonstrated that the sector was a considerable market for new technology.5 The consequent ‘Plan of Action for Libraries in the EC’ of 1989 was an “information-technology oriented programme relying on state-of-the-art technology, adopting common bibliographical standards and stressing library cooperation, so as to secure a firm position for European

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Mary M. Huston, Maureen Pastine, eds., In the spirit of 1992: access to Western European libraries and literature. Binghampton, NY, Haworth Pr., 1992: 18. http://books.google.com. tr/books?id=LaQ1B2iiZWEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=In+the+spirit+of+1992&source=bl &ots=xpVfJhEu12&sig=-FoiOKIRZmX4UFkozRxCx_1hN9w&hl=tr&ei=20u4S4vZCqOCmw Oatf2gDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CAkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage& q=&f=false (03.04.2010). Commission of the European Communities. Communication from the Commission on a review of the implementation and performance of the RTD Programme “Telematic Systems in Areas of General Interest” (1991–1994) (In conformance with art. 4.1 of the Council Decision 91/353/EEC of 7th June 91). C0M (94) 185 final. Brussels: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 26.05.1994. Catalogue number: CB-CO-94–217EN-C ISBN 92-77-69160-3: 11. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri= COM:1994:0185:FIN:EN:PDF (14.01.2012). Huston, In the spirit of 1992: 20.

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libraries in the information society and, consequently, to offer users optimum information services as a prerequisite for economic, social and cultural progress.”6 This draft plan laid the foundations for the Libraries Programme which was developed under the Third Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development.

Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development Culture, education and science are areas member states set their own national policies and the Union supports national governments’ policies in these areas, promotes cooperation and stimulates research and scientific development. In early 80s, Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development, a medium-term research programme with a budget covering several years, was initiated to organise increasing numbers of research activities in a single ‘framework’, and thus fund and promote research activities at the EU level. The project proposals were to be transnational with a consortia of partners from different countries. International participation covering other countries outside the programme was possible at varying funding levels beyond the member states and countries associated to the programme by paying a share to the overall budget. The associated countries are Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein, Turkey, Crotia, Israel and Switzerland. Participation from industrialised high-income countries is also possible on a self-financing basis, with EU funding granted only in exceptional cases.7 The first FP started in 1984 as a three year programme. The Libraries Programme was launched with FP3 (1991–94) and “aimed to start a process of change by stimulating the creation of IT-based services and products; [and] encouraging strategic moves towards improving availability of the bibliographic resources at European level and towards development of tools needed for interconnecting library services”.8 The main specific objectives were listed by Merola as follows:9 6

7 8 9

Book review: In the Spirit of 1992: Access to Western European Libraries and Literature. Eds. Mary M. Huston and Maureen Pastine. New York: Haworth Press, c1992. Has also been published as the Reference Librarian, number 35, 1992. WESSWEB, Vol. 16, No. 2 (Spring 1993). http://www.library.yale.edu/wess/nl/spring93/bkrevsSP93.html. FP7 in Brief: How to get involved in the EU 7th Framework Programme for Research: 6 http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/pdf/fp7-inbrief_en.pdf (10.04.2010). “The Libraries Programme,” The CORDIS Archive. 8 May 1998. http://cordis.europa.eu/ libraries/en/library.html (07.04.2010). Giovanna Merola, “Overview of the Telematics for Libraries Programme: key issues and achievements,” (paper presented at Consolidating the European Library Space, DG Information Society Cultural Heritage Applications Unit, Luxembourg, 17th–19th November 1999). http://cordis.europa.eu/libraries/events/fp4ce/speech/merola.html (04.04.2010).

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– “availability and accessibility of modern library services throughout the EU, taking into account existing geographic discrepancies in library provision; – a more rapid penetration of I&CT; in libraries in a cost-effective way; – standardisation necessary for resource sharing among libraries; – harmonisation and convergence of national policies for libraries”. There were four action lines in the work programme covering (a) creation, enhancement and harmonisation of machine-readable bibliographies and catalogues; (b) making progress in open system interconnection (OSI) and new telecommunication services; (c) development of cost-effective library services using new technologies and (d) stimulation of the European market by encouragement of the private sector to produce viable tools, products and services for libraries. Fifty-one shared-cost projects, accompanying measures and studies were conducted with a budget of 25 million Euros within FP3 Libraries Programme.10 The projects were on the application of information and communication technologies, including those of the emerging Internet. Over 200 organisations across Europe were involved in them, some taking part in more than one project. According to CORDIS Archive,11 national programmes and policies were developed in many EU member states, moving more or less in the same direction. FP4 (1994–1998), which was seen as a period of consolidation and integration, was mainly built upon the results and ongoing activities of FP3, but also moved into some significant new areas. Libraries were highlighted as key participants in the move towards an electronic information infrastructure, and the goal of the programme was set as “Creation of a European Library Space”. The main approach adopted towards the achievement of this goal was to “create an internal environment which allows libraries to offer network-based services to end-users; to stimulate library cooperation, resource sharing and networking; and to develop telematics systems for the extension of library services” and the following three action lines were defined.12 1. Network-oriented internal library systems; 2. Telematics applications for interconnected library services; 3. Library services for access to networked information resources.

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Impact of the Telematics for Libraries Programme under the Fourth Framework Programme. European Commission DG Information Society, [n.d.]: 3. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/ist/ docs/digicult/impact.pdf (04.04.2010). “Creating a European Library Space Telematics for Libraries Programmes 1990–1998” CORDIS Telematics for Libraries Archive. http://cordis.europa.eu/libraries/en/intro.html (10.04.2012). “The Libraries Programme,” The CORDIS Archive.

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Forty-nine projects concerning libraries were supported under this programme, receiving 29 million Euros in total.13 Rosalind Johnson,14 the National Focal Point (NFP) for the UK, comments on participation in the projects saying “though it takes time and effort to put forward a successful proposal; libraries who have achieved the status of having a proposal accepted have found the experience worthwhile.” A few examples of the projects run under FP4 are TESTLAB which provided catalogues and digital documents for blind and visually handicapped readers; CHILIAS, which developed multimedia for children’s libraries, and TOLIMAC which involved digital encryption. PricewaterhouseCoopers was invited to do an impact study towards the end of the programme. The report concluded that the Libraries Programme was widely acknowledged as having contributed to its goal, which was ‘The creation of a European Library space’, contributing to the technological developments and standards area in the library field, by improving co-operation amongst libraries in Europe and library services to European citizens. In the area of standardisation European organisations have moved from being a follower to a leader with projects like Z39.50, Dublin Core and EDIFACT.15 FP5 (1998–2002) was introduced with the motto of “Putting research at the service of the citizen”, and rather differently from its predecessors, was “conceived to help solve problems and to respond to the major socio-economic challenges facing Europe. To maximise its impact, a limited number of research areas were identified to focus on combining technological, industrial, economic, social and cultural aspects.”16 The objective of the programme was to realise the benefits of the information society for Europe by accelerating its emergence also by ensuring that the needs of individuals and industry are met. The research objectives focused both the technology developments of the information society and enabled the close articulation between research and policy needed for a coherent and inclusive information society.17 There was not a programme particularly for libraries in FP5. However, there were project opportunities under the “Creating a User-Friendly Information Society” (IST) programme. One of the key goals of IST was to develop widely accessible services based on multimedia content. Libraries, with other cultural institutions such as museums, galleries and archives, were expected to have “a new role to play, namely that of strengthening the emerging

13 14 15 16 17

Impact of the Telematics: 1. Rosalind Johnson, European Libraries Programme, Ariadne: 5. http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/ issue5/european-libraries/ (04.04.2010). Impact of the Telematics: 28. The European Commission Community Research. “The Fifth Framework Programme 1998–2002: Overview,” Cordis. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp5/src/over.htm (10.04.2010). The European Commission Community Research. “The Fifth Framework Programme 1998–2002.” Fifth (EC) Framework Programme – Creating a user-friendly information society (IST) Programme Fact Sheet. 28.12.2001. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp5/src/t-2.htm (10.04.2010).

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knowledge and culture economy by providing mediated access to these rapidly evolving resources.”18 This work was to be carried out under the Digital Heritage and Cultural Content (DigiCult) placed under Key Action 3: Multimedia Content and Tools within IST Programme. The aim of DigiCult was “to improve access to cultural patrimony, facilitate its valorisation and stimulate cultural development by expanding the key contribution of libraries, museums and archives to the emerging culture economy, including economic, scientific and technological development.” Actions [were] particularly [to] address new digital processes and covered business and economic models, especially those which stimulated new partnerships through networking and new services for the citizen.19 Research topics addressed by DigiCult projects under the FP5 are described at the archived DigiCult web page20 as follows. – Supporting digital libraries across Europe by networking and integrating cultural and scientific collections of digitised resources to create new services and infrastructures; by exploiting and preserving physical and digital assets ranging from manuscripts to film and broadcast archives; by developing new business models for accessing and using scientific and cultural resources. – Improving access to cultural and scientific assets in museums, libraries and archives through innovative technologies, such as mobiles, digitisation techniques and Internet support by the wider public. – Developing new ways of representing, experiencing and preserving the past through the use of leading edge technologies (virtual reality, 3D visualisation). Applications include virtual reconstructions, interactive educational games based on rebuilt historical environments etc. – Empowering individuals and small groups in local communities to share and document common interests, memories, views of their local heritage, thus building a living image of regional heritage across Europe. Relevant projects include CHIMER, CIPHER, COINE. In the course of FP5, 110 DigiCult projects, carried out with the aim of fostering the development of innovative technological tools and systems for the exploitation of both traditional and digital cultural heritage resources, were granted 89.7 million Euros in total. These projects brought 688 partners from 35 countries, representing 506 different organisations and institutions

18 19

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Creating a European Library Space Telematics for Libraries Programmes 1990–1998. Flavio Tariffi, rapporteur, Peter Holm Christensen, and Herve´ Le Guyader. Third SocioEconomic evaluation of Cultural Heritage projects under the IST 2001 Work Programme: Report of the Evaluation Panel. Commissioned by DG INFSO D2. September 2001: 7. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/ist/docs/digicult/socio-economic-eval-3.pdf (11.04.2010). DigiCult. CORDIS Information Society Technologies. http://cordis.europa.eu/ist/ka3/ digicult/ (10.04.2010).

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together. The breakdown was 40% cultural actors, 30% industry and 30% research.21 Although most of the projects were in core technology areas, the programme also enabled projects such as PULMAN (Public Libraries Mobilising Advanced Networks)22 which was a network set up to stimulate and promote sharing of policies and practices for the digital era, in public libraries and cultural organisations which operated at local and regional level. The guidelines produced were translated into 30 languages. In terms of effectiveness, FP5 was regarded a success in general. Although the European Council’s goal of the EU becoming a leading knowledge based society by 2010 was set at Lisbon in 2000 after the onset of FP5, the programme strengthened the European Research Area and contributed to the Lisbon goal.23 FP6 (2002–2006) aimed at reinforcing the technological basis of industry by contributing to the formation of the European Research Area (ERA). Technical content focused on specific themes that were strategically relevant to Europe’s future. One of the seven thematic priorities were Information Society Technologies (IST) and its main objective was “direct contribution to European policies for the knowledge society and the e-Europe Action Plan; medium and long term R&D on the future generation of technologies integrating computers and networks into the everyday environment; placing the individual at the centre.”24 The DigiCult Programme continued within FP6 again under IST. Information society issues such as management and protection of digital assets, inclusive access to the information society, the protection of cultural heritage and associated conservation strategies were covered. One of the areas of research into information management tools and interfaces, for the purpose of enabling easier interaction everywhere and at all times with knowledge-based services and applications, to address was “knowledge representation and management systems based on context and semantics, including cognitive systems, as well as tools for creating, organising, navigating, retrieving, sharing, preserving and disseminating digital content.”25

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ISTweb: Digital heritage and cultural content. CORDIS Archive. http://cordis.europa.eu/ist/ ka3/digicult/ (11.04.2010). PULMANweb. http://www.pulmanweb.org/ (04.04.2010). European Commission. Assessment of the Impact of the Actions completed under the 5th Community Research Framework Programme – Survey. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2005, 42 pp. ISBN 92-79-00389-6 ftp://ftp. cordis.europa.eu/pub/fp5/docs/fp5_impact_of_actions_completed_2005.pdf p.iv (10.04. 2010). FP6 Step by Step. CORDIS. http://cordis.lu/fp6/stepbystep/ira.htm (10.04.2010). Decision No 1513/2002/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 concerning the sixth framework programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities, contributing to the creation of the European Research Area and to innovation (2002 to 2006). Official Journal L 232 , 29/ 08/2002 P. 0001–0033 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX: 32002D1513:EN:HTML (10.04.2010).

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Twenty-five projects were run concerning access to and preservation of cultural heritage under FP6.26 Similar to FP5, the majority of projects like DELOS (A Network of Excellence on Digital Libraries),27 dealt with technological aspects and aimed at integrating and coordinating European research in the field of digital libraries – from the point of architecture, information access and personalisation, audio/visual and nontraditional objects, user interfaces and visualisation, knowledge extraction and semantic interoperability, preservation and evaluation. Others, like CALIMERA (Cultural Applications: Local Institutions Mediating Electronic Resource Access)28, could coordinate and support actions. CALIMERA, working with a network of support groups, practitioners, national authorities and suppliers in 42 countries, produced a vast array of resources such as guidelines for local cultural institutions on social, management and technical issues underlying digital service delivery, a research roadmap, and made them available through its website.29 Technology-enhanced Learning (TeLearn) is also a programme run under ‘Digital Libraries and Content’ like DigiCult, and some TeLearn Projects were also relevant to libraries. One example of this is TENCompetence (Building the European Network for Lifelong Competence Development) which aimed at supporting individuals, groups and organisations in lifelong competence development, through the development and integration of models and tools for the creation, storage and exchange of knowledge resources, learning activities and units of learning.30 FP6 projects were few in number particularly because they were aimed to be “large-scale projects with the potential of having an integrating effect on Europe’s research landscape, resulting in a common endeavour and leveraging a critical mass of research efforts, scientific excellence, knowledge, financial resources and infrastructure”.31 In the final report, under the WING Framework Contract for Impact Analysis of the IST R&D Programme, it has been stated that the “programme has had substantial impacts across its Strategic

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European Commission Information Society Technologies. Access to and preservation of cultural heritage: 25 European research projects. June 2007. 6–30. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa. eu/pub/ist/docs/digicult/25-factsheets-revised_en.pdf (10.04.2010). DELOS Network of Excellence on Digital Libraries. http://www.delos.info/ (11.04.2010). CALIMERA. CORDIS ISTweb. http://cordis.europa.eu/ist/digicult/calimera.htm (11.04. 2010). CALIMERA: Co-ordinating IST for Europe’s local cultural institutions. http://www. calimera.org/default.aspx (04.04.2010) Projects funded under the 6th Framework Programme. CORDIS Information Communication Technologies Programme: Challenge4:Telearn-Digicult. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ ict/telearn-digicult/telearn-projects-fp6_en.html. Access to and preservation of cultural heritage: 25 European reserach projects. [Brussels]: European Commission Information Society and Media Information Society Technologies, May 2008: 4. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/ist/docs/digicult/digicult-fp6-projects_en.pdf (15.01.2012).

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Objective themes producing knowledge capital, human capital and social capital that have supported the competitiveness of the European ICT sector and helped integrate the industrial and research sector R&D communities that underpin it,” and systemic character of the programme has been identified as the key to it success.32 FP7 (2006–2013) has a total budget of over 50 billion Euros trebling the budget of FP6. However, the duration of the programme is seven years this time. In 2003, the budget for R&D represented 1.93% of GDP in the EU against 2.59% in the United States of America and 3.15% in Japan. The Union took some measures in 2002 to back its greatest assets – innovation and cutting-edge technology – and to increase investment in R&D activities to 3% of GDP by 2010.33 FP7 has a new, more integrated structure, based on four main programmes: ‘Cooperation’, ‘People’, ‘Ideas’ and ‘Capacities’. Cooperation is the largest one comprising 64% of the total budget, and with 9.1 billion Euros funding and ICT is the largest research theme within this programme.34 Under ICT, there are several action lines called “Challenge” and while Challenge 4 covers “Digital libraries and content”, Challenge 8 covers “ICT for Learning and Access to Cultural Resources”. According to the “Updated Work Programme 2011 and Work Programme 2012”,35 ICT Challenge 4: Digital Libraries and Content, aims to make knowledge available to European citizens and enterprises in a format responsive to technological changes for long term access, and focuses on the following: – easing and speeding up the creation of added value by lowering skill and cost barriers, particularly aiming to enable SMEs in this respect, – removing the barriers, allowing people to access and use online content and services in their preferred language, – ensuring complete reliability of retrieval and use of digital resources across applications and platforms over time, and design long enduring digital content, – scaling up data analysis to cope with extremely large data volumes.

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WING Watching IST Innovation and Knowledge. FP6 IST Impact Analysis Study: Final Report. European Commission Information Society and Media, 2009: 64. http://cordis. europa.eu/fp7/ict/impact/documents/wing-pilot-fp6-final-report-18-12-09.pdf (15.01.2012). A New Framework for European Research. RTD Info Special. June 2007: 6. http://ec. europa.eu/research/rtdinfo/pdf/rtdspecial_fp7_en.pdf (04.04.2010). ICT – Information and Communication Technologies. CORDIS. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ ict/ (10.04.2010). European Commission. Updated Work Programme 2011and Work Programme 2012: Cooperation Theme 3 ICT – Information And Communications Technologies. (European Commission C(2011)5068 Of 19 July 2011) ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/fp7/ict/docs/ict-wp2011-12_en.pdf (15.01.2012).

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The objectives of the challenge are “SME initiative on Digital Content and Languages”, “Language Technologies”, “Digital Preservation”, and “Intelligent Information Management”. Challenge 8: ICT for Learning and Access to Cultural Resources aims to exploit Europe’s rich cultural resources and learning traditions as a source of innovation and creativity, for businesses, institutions and individuals, responding to their societal and economic needs. Research is to lead to progress both in applications used in schools, workplaces, and cultural institutions including libraries as well as in personal spheres like social networking technology and mobile computing. The objectives of this Challenge are “Technology-enhanced learning”, and “ICT for access to cultural resources”.36 The target outcomes, expected impact, funding schemes and budgets for all of the objectives under Challenges 4 and 8 are detailed in the “Updated Work Programme 2011 and Work Programme 2012”.37 Some of the projects build upon earlier projects in Framework Programmes. DL.org (Digital Library Interoperability, Best Practices and Modelling Foundations), which aimed to create a framework where representatives from digital library initiatives and projects collaborated, shared experiences and expertise, was an example of this type of projects.38 Other earlier projects as mentioned by Snyders39 within the context of research baseline for digital libraries programme included BRICKS and DILIGENT for digital library architectures and PRESTOSPACE concerning developing EU-wide competence for audio visual content. Some projects which addressed issues such as multilingual information access, preservation, dynamic mining, and subject based virtual libraries were also carried out during the early years of FP7.40 Fifteen projects, selected through ICT Call 6 between December 2010 and April 2011 in which 194 participating organisations have been supported with an EU contribution of 69 million Euros, are still running and they cover a wide array of issues, from robust digital preservation, management and dissemination facilities for weblogs with BlogForever, to enhancement of the state of the art of digital preservation with SCAPE – (Scalable Preservation Environments).41

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Updated Work Programme 2011and Work Programme 2012: 96. Updated Work Programme 2011and Work Programme 2012: 100. DL.org: Digital Library Interoperability, Best Practices and Modelling Foundations. http:// www.dlorg.eu (10.04.2010). Marius Snyders. “Digital Libraries and Content in the FP7 ICT programme.” Presented at ECDL2007 – Budapest, September 17–19, 2007 Panel 1: On the move towards the European Digital Library. http://www.ecdl2007.org/panel1_SNYDERS.pdf (15.04.2010). European Commission. ICT Research in FP7. TeLearn – DigiCult. FP7 projects in cultural heritage, digital libraries and preservation. 31.08.2011. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ict/ telearn-digicult/digicult-projects-fp7_en.html (15.01.2012). European Commission. ICT Research in FP7. TeLearn – DigiCult. FP7 projects in cultural heritage, digital libraries and preservation. 31.08.2011. (15.01.2012) http://cordis.europa.eu/ fp7/ict/telearn-digicult/digicult-projects-fp7_en.html (10.04.2010).

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In support of open access to scientific information, the Commission has launched an open access pilot in 2008 under FP7. Within this pilot, grant recipients in seven areas, including parts of information and communication technologies, are required to deposit peer reviewed research articles or final manuscripts resulting from their FP7 projects into an online repository. Researchers are expected to make their best efforts to ensure open access to these articles within either six or twelve months after publication depending on the subject area. The pilot, which will run until the end of FP7, covers approximately 20% of the Commission’s FP7 research programme budget. “A key objective of the open access pilot is to experiment with open access as a means to ensure fast and reliable access to EU-funded research results, specifically peer reviewed research articles, in order to drive innovation, advance scientific discovery, and support the development of a strong knowledge-based economy.”42 Conclusions drawn from the survey conducted in 2011 read as follows:” The dissemination of research results in FP7, including self-archiving and costs related to open access, is often an under-estimated aspect. However, it requires some measures and sustained investment. Despite its recognised benefits, the implementation of open access remains a challenge. Open access also raises technical questions and legal issues, linked in particular to how researchers exercise their copyright. Further difficulties are the lack of awareness of researchers and of concrete support for them to practice open access.43 Several funding schemes have been implemented as appropriate for the Framework Programme Projects using the shared-cost funding schemes available, namely Collaborative Projects and Networks of Excellence.44 In the DL. org Project Liaison Group which will evaluate the outcome of the Working Groups, there are members from the US, Japan, Australia besides European countries. European Research Area has increasingly become attractive to researchers worldwide. The number of participating countries from across the world grew to 140 during FP5 while it was only 30 in FP2.45 International

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Science in Society: Open access pilot in FP7. European Commission Research. http://ec. europa.eu/research/science-society/index.cfm?fuseaction=public.topic&id=1680 (10.04.2010). European Commission. Survey on open access in FP7. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2012. ISBN 978-92-79-21595-7. doi:10.2777/81083. http://ec.europa. eu/research/science-society/document_library/pdf_06/survey-on-open-access-in-fp7_en.pdf (27.01.2012). European Commission. Information Society and Media Directorate-General. Digital Content & Cognitive Systems. Cultural Heritage &Technology Enhanced Learning. Workshop on Centres of Competence for Digitisation and Digital Preservation, Luxembourg 14 november 2006: Report. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/ist/docs/digicult/competencecentres_en.pdf (10.04.2010). Building Europe Knowledge: Towards the Seventh Framework Programme 2007–2013, European Commission, Research DG, April 2005. Slide 16: 55. http://www.eurosfaire. prd.fr/bibliotheque/pdf/FP7_Complete_presentation_April_2005.pdf (04.04.2010).

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collaboration is important for Europe and strategies are developed to take it further. FP7 is the last Framework Programme and will be completed in 2013 and work on its successor, Horizon 2020, under Research and Innovation Programme – that is the former Research and Development Programme – has started. The EU aims to bring the benefits of progress in ICT to European citizens and businesses with Horizon 2020. The ICT sector represents 4.8% of the EU economy, generates 25% of total business expenditure on research, and investments in ICT account for 50% of all European productivity growth. Horizon 2020 brings together all existing Union research and innovation funding, including the innovation related activities of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) in addition to the Framework Programme for Research, with a budget increased by 46% compared to FP7.46 Among areas which will be supported by Horizon 2020 “content technologies and information management, including ICT for digital content and creativity” is of particular interest to librarians. In the future, the EU Research and Innovation programmes will focus on Europe 2020 objectives and particularly the Innovation Union. The Innovation Union, “a flagship initiative under the Europe 2020 strategy, is an integrated innovation strategy built around 34 commitments, and it is based on a broad concept of innovation, encompassing the private, public and third sectors. It aims at ensuring that innovative ideas are translated into new goods and services that create growth and jobs. ”47

Other Related Programmes and Initiatives The European Commission launched the eEurope initiative in December 1999 to facilitate the transition into the Information Society in Europe.48 The eEurope 2002 Action Plan targeted three areas: 1) cheaper, faster and more secure Internet, 2) investing in people and skills, and 3) stimulating the use of the Internet. While the 2002 Action Plan focused on increasing connectivity to

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European Commission. Directorate-General Research & Innovation. Directorate-General Information Society. Report on a consultation workshop on the possible content of “Horizon 2020” – Common Strategic Framework for Research and Innovation (2014–2020) Held on Monday, 4th of July 2011. July 2011. http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/ict/e-infrastructure/docs/ report_csf.pdf (21.01.2012). European Commission. Report from The Commission to the European Parliament, The Council, The European Economic And Social Commitee and the Committee of the Regions: State of the Innovation Union 2011. Brussels, 2.12.2011 COM(2011) 849 final. http://ec. europa.eu/research/innovation-union/pdf/state-of-the-union/2011/state_of_the_innovation_ union_2011_en.pdf (28.01.2012). Before i2010: eEurope initiative. European Commission Information Society. http://ec. europa.eu/information_society/eeurope/2002/index_en.htm (04.04.2010).

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exploit the advantages offered by the Internet, the second phase, eEurope 2005 Action Plan, focused on exploiting broadband technologies to deliver online services in both the public and private sectors. Libraries had a share from the country budgets allocated to hit the targets of the Plan. For example, many public libraries were connected to the Internet, and a large proportion of Public Internet Access Points (PIAPs) was set up in public libraries in member and associated countries. eEurope was not a public expenditure programme and did not make new funds available. It rather provided a policy framework within which existing expenditure, such as FP6, the eTEN or the Structural Funds, could be better focused. eTEN was a European Community programme providing funds to help make e-services available throughout the European Union. Although completion date of the project was 2006, a few projects were to run until 2010. Thirtynine projects were conducted under the theme of Learning and Culture, and 13 of these were particularly in the sub-area of culture/cultural heritage. MICHAEL (Multilingual Inventory of Cultural Heritage in Europe) is a good example to give an idea about the nature of these projects. Its goal was to set-up, validate and launch an online pan-European service to enable European cultural heritage to be promoted to a worldwide audience. MICHAEL49 contributed to the objectives of the eTen programme and the eEurope 2005 Action Plan by implementing a common inventory of digital cultural heritage in France, Italy and UK. MICHAELPlus extended the number of countries involved in the project.50 eContent (2001–2004)51 supported the production and dissemination of European digital content, building on INFO2000 and MLIS (Multilingual Information Society) programmes which terminated in 1999. Its continuation was eContentplus until 2008 to make digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable. The programme aimed at addressing specific market areas where development has been slow such as geographic, educational, cultural, scientific and scholarly content. EU-wide co-ordination of collections in libraries, museums and archives and the preservation of digital collections were supported so as to ensure availability of cultural, scholarly and scientific heritage for future use. The programme also aimed at facilitating access to digital content, its use and exploitation, enhancing the quality of content with well-defined metadata, and reinforcing cooperation between digital

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MICHAEL Multilingual Inventory of Cultural Heritage in Europe . http://www.michaelculture.eu/ (01.04.2010). eTEN Programme. European Commission Information Society. http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/activities/eten/index_en.htm (16.04.2010). eContent and Languages Programme. http://www.euractiv.com/en/culture/econtentlanguages-programme/article-117469 (04.04.2010).

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content stakeholders.52 Subject specific digital library developments such as EuDML: The European Digital Mathematics Library or BHL-Europe: Biodiversity Heritage Library for Europe, TELplus: The European Library Plus with a wider coverage are few examples of projects funded under this programme.53 Funding for Digital Libraries has been available through Information and Communications Technologies Policy Support Programme (ICT PSP) after the completion of eContentPlus Programme. ICT PSP is one of the three operational programmes of The Competitiveness and Innovation framework Programme (CIP) which is to run until 2013. ICT PSP aims at stimulating better use of innovative ICT based services and digital content.54 Mainly Europeana and eLearning projects are supported.55

From i2010 Digital Libraries Initiative to Digital Agenda for Europe 2010–2020 All the programmes mentioned so far have complemented each other and worked towards the ultimate goal of more jobs and growth in a digital economy. During the first decade of the twenty-first century, the Union’s flagship project concerning libraries was i2010 Digital Libraries Initiative,56 which was a part of i2010 strategy: A European Information Society for growth and employment. All the research activities mentioned above, which were closely aligned with the work of cultural and memory organisations, have largely contributed to this Initiative. It has undertaken to make Europe’s cultural resources and scientific records held in European libraries, archives and museums – books, journals, films, maps, photographs, music, etc. – accessible to everybody online for work, study or leisure, and preserve it for future generations. The second dimension of the initiative was ‘scientific information’ for making

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The eContentplus programme. The European Commission Information Society Thematic Portal.http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/econtentplus/programme/index_en. htm (11.04.2010). EcontentPlus funded Projects. The European Commission Information Society Thematic Portal. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/econtentplus/projects/funded_projects/ index_en.htm (12.04.2010). European Commission. Competititon and Innovativeness Framework Programme. Information and Communication Technologies Policy Support Programme (ICT-PSP). http://ec. europa.eu/cip/ict-psp/index_en.htm (21.01.2012). European Commission. Information Society. CIP ICT-PSP – Digital Content. http://ec. europa.eu/information_society/activities/econtentplus/index_en.htm (21.01.2012). i2010 Digital Libraries Initiative. The European Commission Information Society Thematic Portal. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/digital_libraries/index_en.htm (11.04.2010).

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research findings more widely available online and keeping them available over time. Digital Agenda for Europe 2010–2020 which has followed i2010 strategy supports Europe 2020 Strategy57 with research and innovation at its centre to promote smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The strategy includes the headline objective of increasing spending on R&D to 3% of GDP by 2020. The Innovation Union flagship initiative provides a comprehensive set of actions for stepping up research and innovation performance.58 Europe 2020 Strategy was launched in March 2010 to move away from the economic crisis, and prepare the EU economy for the next decade while i2010 strategy was coming close to its end. The Strategy sets out a vision for Europe’s social market economy over the next decade and has three priority areas: (a) smart growth, developing an economy based on knowledge and innovation; (b) sustainable growth, promoting a low-carbon, resource-efficient and competitive economy; and (c) inclusive growth, fostering a high-employment economy delivering social and territorial cohesion.59 The Agenda’s aim of supporting the 2020 Strategy is to be pursued under Pillar: Digital Single Market through the following actions and two other initiatives.60 – Action 1: Simplifying pan-European licensing for online works: simplification of copyright clearance, management and cross-border licensing by enhancing the governance, transparency and pan European licensing for (online) rights management by proposing a framework Directive on collective rights management, and legislation, although originally planned for 2010, is to be proposed in Spring 2012.61 – Action 2: Preserving orphan works and out of print works: the original plan was creation of a legal framework to facilitate the digitisation and

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European Commission. Communication From The Commission Europe 2020: A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Brussels, 3.3.2010 COM(2010) 2020 final. http:// eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2010:2020:FIN:EN:PDF (27.01.2012). European Commission.Communication from The Commission to the European Parliament, The Council, The European Economic and Social Committee and The Committee of The Regions: Horizon 2020 – The Framework Programme For Research And Innovation. (Text With EEA Relevance) {Sec(2011) 1427 Final} {Sec(2011) 1428 Final} Brussels, 30.11.2011 Com(2011) 808 Final. http://ec.europa.eu/research/horizon2020/pdf/proposals/ com%282011%29_808_final.pdf (25.01.2012). Europe 2020: Commission proposes new economic strategy in Europe (IP/10/225). 03.03.2010. http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/10/225&format= HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en (04.04.2010). European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Opening up Europe’s cultural treasures to the online world. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/ newsroom/cf/item-detail-dae.cfm?item_id=7615&language=default (22.01.2012). European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Pillar: Digital Single Market. Action 1: Simplifying pan-European licensing for online works. http://ec. europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/fiche-dae.cfm?action_id=160 (22.01.2012).

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dissemination of cultural works in Europe by proposing a Directive on orphan works by 2010, to conduct a dialogue with stakeholders with a view to further measures on out-of-print works, complemented by rights information databases. An impact assessment has been done and ARROW (Accessible Registries of Rights Information and Orphan Works towards Europeana) Project which aims at providing interested stakeholders with the information required to minimise orphan and out-of-print works clarifying the rights status of them was started in 2010 and a proposal for a Directive on orphan works has been prepared in 2011.62 Once digitised, orphan and out of print works are intended to be brought into Europeana. – Action 3: Open up public data resources for re-use: it has been planned to review the Directive on re-Use of Public Sector Information (PSI), notably its scope and principles on charging for access and use by 2012. Estimated market value of PSI is €32 billion; and when reused, this public data is expected to generate new businesses and jobs and give consumers more choice and more value for money. Directive adopted in 2003 was revised in 2011 and includes libraries, museums and archives for the first time.63 – Action 4: Wide stakeholder debate on further measures to stimulate a European online content market: after an extensive stakeholder dialogue, the plan has been to report by 2012 on the need for additional measures beyond collective rights management allowing EU citizens, online content services providers and right-holders to benefit from the full potential of the digital internal market, including measures to promote cross-border and pan-European licenses, without excluding or favouring at this stage any possible legal option. Digital single market is expected to help Europe’s economic recovery, one of the key aims of the EU 2020 strategy. The Commission is to assess whether further measures like legislative proposals are needed.64 – Action 5: Simplifying the distribution of creative content: a Green Paper addressing the opportunities and challenges of online

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European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Pillar: Digital Single Market. 2: Preserving orphan works and out of print works. http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/newsroom/cf/fiche-dae.cfm?action_id=161 (22.01.2012). European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Pillar: Digital Single Market. Action 3: Open up public data resources for re-use. http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/newsroom/cf/fiche-dae.cfm?action_id=162 (22.01.2012). European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Pillar: Digital Single Market. Pillar: Digital Single Market. Action 4: Wide stakeholder debate on further measures to stimulate a European online content market. http://ec.europa.eu/information_ society/newsroom/cf/fiche-dae.cfm?action_id=163 (22.01.2012).

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distribution of audiovisual works and other creative content was issued in July 2011 and a report is to be prepared in 2012.65 – Digital Libraries Initiative is a part of Digital Agenda and is continuation of work carried out under i2010 Digital Libraries Initiative focussinging on (a) the http://www.europeana.eu cultural heritage through creation of electronic versions of the materials in libraries, archives and museums, to make them available online, for work, study or leisure, and to preserve them for future generations and (b) the scientific information, making research findings more widely available online and keeping them available over time. A third key goal is to develop Europeana further.66 – Digital Content supports eLearning also Europeana and is continuation of eContent Plus.

Europeana Europeana has been developed to offer a single access point for consulting digital copies of the materials held by libraries, museums and archives, within a thematic network project funded by the European Commission under the eContentplus programme, as part of the i2010 policy. It is a showcase of the European cultural heritage, and it is considered to have economic potential stimulating creativity and new products and services in areas such as tourism and learning.67 By 2012, the number of objects has reached 20 million from more than 1,500 institutions in 32 countries.68 Comite´ de Sages was established to provide a set of recommendations for digitisation, online accessibility and preservation of Europe’s cultural heritage. The Report, titled “The New Renaissance”, which was submitted in January 2011, contains several recommendations made by the Committee, such as digitising and bringing public

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European Commission. Information Society. Digital Agenda for Europe. Pillar: Digital Single Market. Action 5: Simplifying the distribution of creative content. http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/newsroom/cf/fiche-dae.cfm?action_id=164 (22.01.2012). Europe’s Information Society Thematic Portal. Digital Agenda for Europe: Digital Libraries Initiative. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/digital_libraries/index_en.htm (22.01.2012). European Commission. Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions – Europeana: next steps {SEC(2009)1124}/* COM/2009/0440 final. http://eur-lex. europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:52009DC0440:EN:NOT (09.04.2010). Europeana Professional. Facts and figures. http://pro.europeana.eu/web/guest/about/factsfigures (21.01.2012).

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domain masterpieces into Europeana by 2016 and the development of a sustainable funding model for Europeana.69 The Commission Recommendation on the Digitisation and Online Accessibility of Cultural Material and Digital Preservation70 has drawn a great deal from the Report of the Comite´ des Sages which was mentioned above. The recommendations, which entail encouragement of public and private partnerships for digitisation, urges governments to issue legislation which will also enable cross border online access to orphan works; and sets targets such as the number of materials to be brought into Europeana by each member state within a time period. Resources not only in print but in other formats are also expected, aiming two million audio visual material to be added by 2015 and to reach 30 million objects in total through national aggregators. The report envisages Europe’s entire cultural heritage to be digitised by 2025 and asks member states to report every two years. According to Europeana Strategic Plan 2011–15 continued partial funding from the Commission has been secured until 201571.

Digitisation of Out-of-Commerce Materials and IPR EU stimulates cultural works being digitised and made available to people in enduring formats and be used and re-used for study, work or leisure. However, digitisation of analogue materials depends on permission of the right holders. Viviane Reding,72 former Commissioner for Information Society and Media had stressed the need to create a modern set of European rules that encourage the digitisation of books and suggested creation of a Europe-wide public registry for such works to stimulate private investment in digitisation, while ensuring that authors get fair remuneration also in the digital world; reminding us that “more than 90% of books in Europe’s national libraries are no longer commercially available, because they are either out of print or orphan works.” This issue was, in fact, on the agenda in Europe since the start of the i2010 Programme. i2010 Digital Libraries Initiative High Level Expert Group on

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The New Renaissance: The Report of the ‘Comite des Sages’. http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/activities/digital_libraries/doc/refgroup/final_report_cds.pdf (21.01.2012). European Commission. Commission Recommendation of 27.10.2011 on the digitisation and online accessibility of cultural material and digital preservation. C(2011) 7579 (final. 09.01.2010) http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/digital_libraries/doc/ recommendation/recom28nov_all_versions/en.pdf (10.04.2012). Europeana Strategic Plan 2011–2015. http://pro.europeana.eu/c/document_library/get_file? uuid=ffba031f-b320-4119-b9bc-8412890fd5a5&groupId=10602 (09.01.2010). Viviane Reding, “Digital Europe:Europe’s Fast Track to Economic Recovery The Ludwig Erhard Lecture 2009”. Lisbon Council, Brussels, 9 July 2009. http://europa.eu/rapid/ pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/09/336&format=HTML&aged=0&language= EN&guiLanguage=en (09.01.2010).

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Digital Libraries (2006–09) prepared the ‘Memorandum of Understanding on Diligent Search Guidelines for Orphan Works’ to which 27 stakeholders’ organisations representing European right holders and cultural institutions have subscribed. The Group made some recommendations on mechanisms at Member State level and developed a ‘Model Agreement’ for the digitisation and access to copyright out of-print books for online access, or for authorised users in closed networks and some other work as described in the Final Report of the Group.73 LIBER and the European Commission signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on “Key Principles on the Digitisation and Making Available of Out-of-Commerce Works” in September 2011. The aim of the MoU is to facilitate the digitisation and making available by European libraries and similar institutions of materials in their collections which are out-of-commerce. The MoU is to serve as a blueprint for collective licensing agreements negotiated amongst right holders, libraries and collecting societies.74

Conclusions and Comments This review of library research supported by the EU from mid 80s to date reveals that the aim has always been to develop technology further and utilise the results to create jobs and growth. The continuity of the programmes implies that the impacts of the results achieved have been fulfilling. Michel Andre75 comments that “between the national programmes and the Framework Programme there is a ‘two-way mirror’ effect. To a certain degree, the research priorities of the Framework Programme reflect the priorities of the Member States. But the reverse is also true: often, it is in terms of the priorities defined at European level that the Member States determine their own.” The research programmes support policies and strategies adopted by the Commission or recommended to member states. For instance, eContect and eContentPlus programmes have been instrumental in the implementation of Lund Principles, which entails co-operation for digitisation. Ross76 states

73

74 75 76

i2010 Digital Libraries Initative High Level Expert Group on Digital Libraries. “Digital Libraries: Recommendations and Challenges for the Future: Final Report”, December 2009. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/activities/digital_libraries/doc/hleg/reports/hlg_ final_report09.pdf (10.04.2012). LIBER signs MoU on Out of Commerce Works on behalf of European Research Libraries. http://www.libereurope.eu/news/liber-signs-mou-on-out-of-commerce-works-on-behalf-ofeuropean-research-libraries (22.01.2012). Michel Andre. “The Seventh Framework Programme in the history of European research.” RTD info: Magazine on European Research. Special edition June 2007: 11 http://ec.europa. eu/research/rtdinfo/pdf/rtdspecial_fp7_en.pdf (10.04.2010). Seamus Ross, ‘Progress from National Initiatives towards European Strategies for Digitisation’ in Towards a Continuum of Digital Heritage: Strategies for a European Area of Digital Cultural Resources, European Conference, (Den Haag: Dutch Ministry of Education,

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that “moves to develop and encourage the adoption of the Lund Principles arose from a realisation among Member States that, as increased availability of high quality eContent would unlock the wealth of cultural and scientific heritage held in Europe’s memory institutions it would thereby make possible new kinds of business opportunities, create resources for research, and provide materials for learning and teaching.” The work conducted under FPs has generally constituted part of a continuous stream of research as a contribution to the mainstream agenda. Many projects have been built upon what had been accomplished in a previous project, usually with the same partners thus enabling research conducted, or technological developments achieved to be taken a step further. In a paper on the exploitation of projects, looking at the experiences of the French National Library from 1988 to 1999, Freyre77 gives examples of projects which were re-used by other European projects or which built blocks for real applications, besides some others which became operational directly. TEL-ME-MOR (2005–2007), EDLproject (2006–2008), TELplus (2007–2009) and FUMAGABA (2008– 2009) Projects, which enabled several countries to join European Library, form an exemplary group of projects complementing each other. European Library went live in March 2005 as an online free service that offers access to the resources of the 48 national libraries of Europe. The European Library has also been the organisational ground for the Europeana.78 In her paper titled Overview of the Telematics for Libraries Programme, Merola has stated that 67% of partners have continued to co-operate after the completion of project work and has quite rightly regarded this as an indication of success. Rynnanen,79 who thinks that the programmes have clearly had an impact on the European library co-operation and development, points out that most of the libraries active in the projects are national libraries or big research and university libraries, and that the smaller libraries benefit indirectly. The number of institutions finding an opportunity to participate has always been quite limited, but deliverables produced such as guidelines, road maps, toolboxes, training videos and similar materials are usually publicly available, and anyone interested can utilise them. Web sites of most projects are kept open with such useful resources even if not updated after the

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Culture and Science, 2004): 89. http://eprints.erpanet.org/103/01/sross_denhaag_dutch_ paper.pdf (01.04.2010). Elisabeth Freyre. “Exploiting the results: the experience of the Bibliothe`que nationale de France,” paper presented at Consolidating the Eropean Library Space, Luxembourg, 17–19 November 1999. http://cordis.europa.eu/libraries/events/fp4ce/speech/freyre.html (02.04.2010). The European Library background and future. http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org/portal/ organisation/about_us/aboutus_en.html#where_does_tel_originate_from (02.04.2010). Mirja Ryyna¨nen, “The role of libraries in modern society,” (presented at 7 th Catalan Congress on Documentation, 5 th November 1999). http://www.cobdc.org/jornades/7JCD/ ryynanen.pdf (02.04.2010).

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completion of the projects. Among them, DPE (DigitalPreservationEurope)80 and CASPAR (Cultural, Artistic and Scientific Knowledge for Preservation, Access and Retrieval)81 also maintain Facebook pages. The success of the projects, however, may not necessarily imply an ultimate high impact on the level of uptake of technology for the improvement of services in libraries of each member state. According to Vitiello,82 library development was intolerably uneven in the different European regions as reported in an article published in 2000. His comparison of raw data concerning expenditure for libraries in 29 countries showed that against an estimated average of 35 Euros per head of population, while the estimate was 86 Euros per inhabitant in Denmark, it could be as low as 9 Euros in Bulgaria. Iljon83, who found the scene for libraries in Europe complex and fragmented, has given similar striking examples. However, these data are ten years old. Chapters from European countries in this book may help to form a better idea about the impact of these projects and activities carried out at European level on the library services in each country. The Communication84 published by the Commission about Innovation Union in 2010 explains why innovation was considered as the way out of crisis with these words: “At a time of public budget constraints, major demographic changes and increasing global competition, Europe’s competitiveness, our capacity to create millions of new jobs to replace those lost in the crisis and, overall, our future standard of living depends on our ability to drive innovation in products, services, business and social processes and models. This is why innovation has been placed at the heart of the Europe 2020 strategy.” It is expected that through achieving the target of spending 3% of EU GDP on research and innovation by 2020, it could be possible to create 3.7 million jobs and increase GDP. 2011 evaluation of Innovation Union has revealed that there was a decline in research and innovation performance as a new phase had been reached in economic and financial crisis. The Commission urges member states to commit themselves to Innovation Union Commitments arguing that innovation is the “best means to help put the European economy 80 81 82 83 84

DPE, DigitalPreservationEurope. http://www.digitalpreservationeurope.eu/; http://www. facebook.com/pages/DigitalPreservationEurope-DPE/38843690994 (24.04.2010). CASPAR, Cultural, Artistic and Scientific knowledge for Preservation, Access and Retrieval. http://www.casparpreserves.eu/; http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=156672624598 (23.04.2010). Giuseppe Vitiello. “Library Policy and Legislation: a European Perspective,” The International Information and Library Review 32(1) (March 2000): 3. Ariane Iljon., “The International Perspective-The European Union Experience in Library Co-operation,” Journal of Academic Librarianship 24(2) (March 1998): 151. European Commission. Communication from The Commission to The European Parliament, The Council, The European Economic And Social Committee and The Committee of The Regions: Europe 2020 Flagship Initiative: Innovation Union. SEC(2010) 1161 Brussels, 6.10.2010 COM(2010) 546 final. http://ec.europa.eu/research/innovation-union/pdf/ innovation-union-communication_en.pdf (28.01.2012).

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back on track and tackle societal challenges in the global economy; achieving the Innovation Union objectives.” Jean Monnet once said, if “Europe were to be reconstructed, I would begin with culture rather than the economy.”85 Europe actually seems to bring culture and economy together. The crisis may delay the achievement of the targets set. However, the commitment to enhance digital content through Europeana, the decisiveness in supporting the development of preservation techniques for digital resources through research projects, the determination shown in support of open access to scientific information; all reflect the value given to the cultural heritage and scientific information as an asset which will boost productivity and prosperity. This is remarkable and gives ground to keep hopes high for the future.

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The New Renaissance.

Part 2 Countries A–Z

2.1 Bangladesh Libraries and Librarianship in Bangladesh Muhammad Hossam Haider Chowdhury and M. Shamsul Islam Khan Introduction Bangladesh is located in south Asia and borders with India, Myanmar (Burma), and the Bay of Bengal to the south. It is a young parliamentary democracy and became a free nation on December 16, 1971 after the war of independence with Pakistan. Its present population is 161,083,804 and is the ninth most populous country in the world. Bengali is the national language of the country (Wikipedia 2012). Like several other countries, libraries are part of higher education, research, and community life in Bangladesh. It is mandatory for higher educational academies and research organizations to maintain and develop libraries to support their mission and central activities. Universities, colleges, research organizations, and various national and international organizations in the country have their own libraries. Many university libraries and research libraries are moving gradually from print-based resources to electronic resources. The progress in access to information resources suggests that these libraries are intending to flourish as hybrid libraries, although an electronic arena of libraries is gaining new momentum. The collection of printed materials, especially those of foreign origin, and access to priced information resources and databases has been very difficult in most libraries in Bangladesh, mainly due to the scarcity of adequate funds. Internet access helps libraries overcome the immediate need of information access for users. Subscriptions to electronic resources are getting the attention of library professionals and management. Before the introduction of technology, only international organizations, public universities, and a few research organizations in the country were capable of maintaining well-equipped and resourceful libraries for their users. Recent developments in private universities in the country have visibly influenced the development of good libraries, especially in the use of information technology and with the development of information resources. Interestingly, private university libraries are ahead in introducing electronic resources to their students, faculty, and researchers compared to public university libraries.

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Origin of Libraries in Bangladesh The history of library development in Bangladesh goes back to the third century BC. At that time, the Buddhist religious centers were places of educational practice, scholarship, and study of wisdom among the disciples. Many ideas have been carried on by word of mouth and from century to century. In architectural and cultural contexts, some evidence and heritage references could be explored after digging or excavating in several places throughout Bangladesh (Ahmed 1984). Fa-hien and Hiuen Tsang, Chinese travelers, visited important Buddhist centers of Bengal, India in the fifth and seventh centuries AD respectively (Ray 1994). Their memoirs help us understand the life and culture of historical Bangladesh. It can be assumed that there was a type of library in these religious communities.

Academic Libraries Academic libraries generally represent the self-learning section of a formal academy or learning institution where people go for education and receive formal degrees upon the completion of education under the national system. Bangladesh was part of India until 1947 and the country was under the British rule for about 200 years and inherited the British education system along with many academic libraries. Academic libraries of Bangladesh include libraries of universities, colleges, various types of technical institutes, schools of different levels (such as high schools, junior schools, primary schools, and kindergartens) and madrassa (religious educational institutions) of different types (Alia, Ebtedia, etc.). Many educational institutions are fully supported by the Government, some are partially supported, and others are run with donations and their own income. The English medium schools in the country are mostly dependent on students’ tuition fees. Ebtedia madrassas are run with the assistance of the general public Some madrassas also receive people’s support in kind, especially during Ramadan and the two Eid festivals. However, only a few madrassas have libraries to support their curriculums. Some colleges mainly offer courses for higher secondary education. As per the rule, a college must have a library to support its study program but a school is not mandated to maintain a library. There are some schools, particularly English medium schools, which maintain libraries. They are mostly famous for their quality of education. The Bangladesh Bureau of Education, Information and Statistics (BANBEIS) regularly publishes statistical reports on education in the country. Of all the madrassas in Bangladesh, Dhaka Alia Madrassa has the biggest library. It was originally located in Calcutta (now Kolkata), West Bengal,

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India, established in 1780, and it was once the main formal educational institute for Muslims of Bengal. All other madrassas spend very little money for buying books on general education. University of Dhaka is the oldest research university in Bangladesh, and has the biggest library in the country. It was established on July 21,1921 under the Government of India Act of 1920. It is the largest public university in Bangladesh with an enrollment of over 30,000 students (Wikipedia 2012). At the time of its initial development, the library received a good number of books from the Dhaka College. The University Library has been gradually growing to meet the thrust of knowledge seekers and has also been playing an important role in meeting the needs of many researchers across the country. Before the establishment of the University of Dhaka, there were some colleges with libraries from the beginning including Dhaka College (1841), Rajshahi College (1873), Jagannath College (1884), Barisal Brojomohun College (1889), and Sylhet M.C. College (1925). The Kudrat-e-Khuda Education Commission of 1974 made the most favorable recommendations for establishing and running libraries in Bangladesh to improve educational quality in the country, and to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge by the public. The Commission recommended libraries for all schools. Unfortunately, the administrative reform commission known as the “Enam Commission” in 1982 cut the position of school librarians. However, as time progressed, the M. Moniruzzaman Miah National Education Commission of 2003 (Munshi 2005) and Kabir Chowdhury National Education Commission, 2009 again emphasized the importance of libraries at all levels of academia. The Prothom Alo, a leading daily of the country, published a report which claimed that the Government would make maintaining a library in every school mandatory in the near future (Ali 2010).

University Libraries The University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh has listed three types of universities in Bangladesh: public (31), private (51), and international (2), on their website (http://www.ugc.gov.bd). The chairman of UGC claimed in an interview that there are 33 public and 54 private universities in the country (Kaler Kantha 2010). As per the law, every university must possess and maintain at least one library. Some public universities, such as the University of Dhaka, Jahangirnagar University, Rajshahi University, Chittagong University, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology (BUET), Shah Jalal Science and Technology University, and Khulna University have independent large buildings for their central library. Many departments of these universities also maintain separate libraries

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for their respective departmental students, known as seminar libraries. Many public universities are comparatively new and are developing their libraries. The 35th Annual Report of the University Grants Commission (UGC) of Bangladesh (2008) mentioned minimum book collections of 1,094 in a public university established in 2006. Table 1: Library collection and collection development expenditure in 31 public universities Year of Establishment 1921

Volume of Books 621058

No of Journal Titles 260

No of A/V Items 5?

1953

297369

40160 ?

–

7.327

1961

192426

37511 ?

1750

3.4

1962

126468

17849 ?

–

9.7

1966

211860

29441 ?

941

3.5

1970

104686

12840 ?

–

2.6

Islamic University Shahjalal Science and Technology University

1980

78796

16000 ?

464

0.046

1986

56055

6881 ?

–

1.075

University of Khulna National University

1990

30484

4882 ?

216

0.409

1992

35240

176

–

1.188

Bangladesh Open University Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Medical University Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University

1992

33308

309

5

1.267

1998

23883

5222

266

0.475

1998

18725

258

–

0.125

Universities University of Dhaka University of Rajshahi Bangladesh Agricultural University Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology University of Chittagong Jahangirnagar University

Expenditure in Taka (million) 10

(Continued)

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Table 1: Library collection and collection development expenditure in 31 public universities (Cont.)

Universities Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University

Year of Establishment

Volume of Books

No of Journal Titles

No of A/V Items

Expenditure in Taka (million)

2001

17329

70

–

–

Maulana Bhasani Science and Technology University Patuakhali Science and Technology University Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology Rajshai University of Engineering and Technology Khulna University of Engineering and Technology Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology Noakhali Science and Technology University

2001

4054

80

–

0.432

2002

17507

21000

–

0.292

2001

35958

11310

100

0.048

2003

45651

871

340

0.16

2003

27060

–

2

–

2003

41230

2500

48

1.18

2003

32796

801

80

0.312

2004

3541

56

–

–

Jagannath University Comilla University Jatiya Kobi Kazi Nazrul Islam University Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University

2005

18499

–

–

0.156

2006 2006

1094 23926

20 –

40 –

0.53 0.215

2006

3000

4000

–

0.013

(Continued)

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Table 1: Library collection and collection development expenditure in 31 public universities (Cont.)

Universities Sylhet Agricultural University Jessore Science and Technology University Bangladesh University of Professionals Begum Rokeya University Pabna Science and Technology University

Year of Establishment 2006

Volume of Books 3986

No of Journal Titles 438

No of A/V Items

Expenditure in Taka (million) 1.91 (total)

2008

–

–

–

–

2008

–

–

–

–

2008

–

–

–

–

2008

–

–

–

–

A majority of private university libraries in Bangladesh do not have large separate buildings like public universities, but they are housed in separate buildings. Most private university libraries try to provide the flavor of modern services through their libraries. These include use of computers in daily activities, opening cyber cafe´s or kiosks acquiring current information resources, exploring Internet-based acquisitions, and subscribing electronic resources, etc. The Islamic International University of Chittagong has the highest number of books (112,683) among private university libraries. Next is the Asian University of Bangladesh (96,000) followed by Northern University of Bangladesh (89,528). The other private university libraryies book collections do not exceed 40,000. The UGC report also shows that the highest amount, Tk 89,, 300,000, was spent by the Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) for procuring learning resources (print and electronic) for its libraries. The next highest amount (Tk 49,006,000) was spent by the Minaret International University, followed by North South University (Tk 22,585,000). Development, collection, and services of some rich university libraries are provided below as examples of modern libraries and their information services.

Dhaka University Library Dhaka University was established in 1921 and its central library was established with some materials received from the Dhaka College and Aliah Madrasah. At present, this library is the biggest in size with rich holdings. The three-story

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building of the main library is surrounded by open green space. This contributed to the library premises being an attractive place for students, teachers, and other visitors. The university has also a science library with a rich collection located in a separate building. As mentioned at the Dhaka University Library website (www.library.du.ac.bd), the library has a collection of over 550,000 books and bound journals. It also has a good collection of rare books and old manuscripts. Internet connections were established in 1998 (Islam and Islam 2007). The Dhaka University Library started to develop its database using the GLAS (Graphical Library Automation System) but the software lost its functionality in 2000 as the library did not update/renew the software. It is now considering the development of new software locally with the assistance of the Department of Computer Science of the University of Dhaka. The Central Library, all of the departments, and residential halls, have their own libraries, although they are not well organized enough to provide the necessary services. The five institute libraries of the University of Dhaka: Institute of Business Administration, Institute of Education and Research, Institute of Food and Nutrition Science, Institute of Statistical Research and Training, and, Institute of Social Welfare, are in good shape.

Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology Library Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) has been ranked as the number one university in Bangladesh by webometrics.info and varsity.com. The Central Library of BUET has its own separate building, with a space of approximately 20,000 sq ft. It holds over 132,000 volumes and subscribes to 218 periodicals. A good number of CDROMs of books, journals, encyclopedias, etc. are also a part of its collection. It is growing at the rate of 1,500 volumes per year. The Library has facilities for Internet browsing as well. A unique service at the BUET Library is the Rental Library Service. Multiple copies of textbooks are kept in the Rental Library. These books are loaned out only to the undergraduate students for a term at a nominal fee of 10% of the total cost of the books. (Source: http://www.buet.ac.bd/?page_id=9).

North South University Library North South University (NSU) Library, established in 1992, is the only university library in Bangladesh where the Library of Congress Classification Scheme is in use. The library has over 60,000 sq ft. and it can accommodate over 1200 students at a time. It has 19 staff members, and 11 of them have an MA in Library and Information Science or higher degrees. The library has over 31,796 books, 5,700 volume of periodicals, 1,277 CD-ROM databases and books, 103 videos, 159 audio-cassettes, and 62 DVDs. It subscribes to 15 local journals, 18 foreign journals, and 12 local magazines. The library also ensures

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easy access to the Internet for its users to browse, download, and print full-text articles from over 10,000 journals from Blackwell, IEEE, JSTOR, HINARI (Health Inter Network Access to Research Initiative), OARE (Online Access to Research in the Environment), AGORA (Access to Global Online Research in Agriculture), Oxford University Press, Wiley Inter Science, Springer Online databases, etc. The library is a member of the local consortium as well. The NSU library has 44 PCs and the library’s cyber center is equipped with 35 computers with broadband Internet connections. It also offers a 14-week course titled ‘Certificate Course in Digital and Online Librarianship’. This library uses an information and library system software developed locally (source: http://library. northsouth.edu/ataglance.php). Table 2: Books in private university libraries Ranges for books 89000

04 03 03 01 03

24999 29999 34999 39999

Source: UGC 35th annual report 2008

Independent University, Bangladesh Library Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB), established in 1993, is another private university and has a satellite campus in Chittagong. The Dhaka Campus Library possesses over 20,000 books, subscribes to over 70 periodicals, and also JSTOR, Emerald Full text, ABI Global from ProQuest, etc. and is a registered user of HINARI, AGORA, OARE, Oxford University Press Journals (Chowdhury 2010). It has not yet developed an integrated library management system. It processes all received materials using software WINISIS and circulation work is done using locally developed software. For acquisition MS Access is utilized. The software GENEISIS is in use for making library catalog available through the Internet. There is a training program called Attachment Program that is designed for librarians from outside IUB to provide practical ideas on the use of computers in libraries using WINISIS and MS Access through work in the IUB Library. The library has 45 computers across two campuses, and 42 of those are connected to the Internet. The IUB Library

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System is run by 13 professionally qualified personnel, all of whom have a minimum of a master’s degree in Library and Information Science.

Evolution of Public Libraries by Private Initiatives Initially in Bangladesh public libraries were established on the initiative of the local land lords, known as Zamidar. It is claimed that the Jessore Institute Public Library was the first public library established in the country in 1851. Three more public libraries – Woodbond Public Library at Bogra, Barishal Public Library, and Rangpur Public Library – were established in or around 1854. The Barisal Public Library was established by the district judge Mr. Camp, (Prothom Alo 2006 Sep 13). Zamidar of Kakina Mahima Ranjan Roy established the Rangpur Public Library on two acres of land (Ittefaq, 2006 Jul 26). Rajshahi General (Public) Library was founded in 1884 in its present building. In 1876, historian William Hunter mentioned the name of King Ananada Nath Roy, as the founder of the Rajshahi Public Library in the book titled ‘Statistical account’. This library has rare books, some of which are over 200 years old (Jugantar, 2006 Dec 06). Three public libraries were established in 1882. These were Nothbrook Hall Library in Dhaka, Banaripur Public Library in Barishal, and Shirajgonj Public Library. Additional established libraries included: Comilla Public Library in 1885; two libraries – Birchandra Public Library and Ananda Gobinda Public Library in 1890 in Pabna; Kurigram Public Library in 1895; three libraries – Umesh Chandra Public Library in Khulna, Noakhali Public Library, and Sylhet Public Library in 1897. Many other libraries were started during the early twentieth century including the Victoria Public Library in Natore in 1901, Municipality Public Library in Chittagong in 1904, Ramnarayan Public Library in Narail in 1905, Cox’s Bazar Public Library in 1906, two libraries Gaibandha Public Library and Ram Mohan Public Library in Dhaka in 1907, Harendra Lal Public Library in Munsiganj in 1908, Alimdad Public Library in Kishoreganj in 1909, and in 1910 two libraries – Kustia Public Library and Pyari Mohan Public Library in Naogoan. These are century-old public libraries of this region (Mannan and Begum 2002, Mazed 2004, Sarker 2005, Rahman 2006). All of these libraries were established by the enlightened people of each respective area and received public support as well as occasional government grants to run their activities. These libraries did not, however, receive continuous support from any agency or from local patrons. In some places, public libraries played an important role in mobilizing society. Kabi Nazrul Islam Public Library at Panchagarh (the most northerly district of the country) was established in 1947. Since then, it has contributed immensely in upgrading this area into the level of district. Mannan and Begum

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(2002) reported that between 1947 and 1971 about 80 public libraries were established in this part of then Pakistan, today Bangladesh. The National Book Centre of Bangladesh is networked with over 500 small libraries of public nature. A survey made by the Centre revealed that there are as many as 883 non-government small public libraries in the country. N.C. Sarker (2005) mentioned in his PhD thesis that there were 1,400 nongovernment public libraries in Bangladesh. He also gave a picture on the government’s nurturing of the non-government public libraries through grants from 2001 to 2005. Table 3: Government budget for assisting non-government public libraries Financial year

Total grant in Taka (million)

Number of libraries received financial aid

Average of grants in Taka (thousand)

2000–2001 2001–2002 2002–2003 2003–2004 2004–2005

10 10 10 10 15

720 872 803 817 941

13.89 11.47 12.45 12.24 15.94

Source: Sarker 2005

Some religious places, like mosques, temples, etc, have libraries. The Islamic Foundation has a special program for mosque libraries. It donates its publications to mosques to further develop their libraries. The Islamic Foundation’s Central Library has a collection of over 100,000 books and receives journals and magazines regularly. Ach district and division headquarter possesses a model (as they claimed) library. The Foundation established 18,900 libraries throughout the country up to 2001 (Amran and Ali 2003). A very recent and unique addition in the field of libraries of the country is the boat library. Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha (SSS), a non-governmental organization in Bangladesh, initiated this in 2002 in order to reach remote peoples with information and education. SSS uses indigenous boats to provide free public access to computers and the Internet to residents in impoverished remote communities (Mahmud 2006). This innovative project received the 2005 Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Access to Learning Award.

The Government Public Library System The Government of Bangladesh has a public library network up to the district level. The Department of Public Libraries – an organ of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs – maintains 64 public libraries in 64 districts and four substation libraries. These were established after 1950.

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Table 4: Establishment of government public libraries Decades Before 1960 1960–1969 1970–1979 1980–1989 1990–1999 2000 and onward

Number of libraries 1 3 0 57 5 2

Source: Sarker 2005.

The Department has a big library, popularly known as Bangladesh Central Public Library, and was established in 1953 in Dhaka. Libraries located in other divisional headquarters are known as divisional public libraries. Of the four substation libraries, two are located in Dhaka city. In 1982, there was a sharp increase in the establishment of government public libraries. At this time, the then Bangladesh Parishad (Council), which had district-level offices was merged with the Department of Public Libraries, and all district-level offices of the Bangladesh Parishad were transformed into District Government Public Libraries. The Bangladesh Central Public Library was recently renamed as Begum Sufia Kamal National Public Library. However, the government public libraries do not provide any circulation service. These libraries mostly provide reading room services through their collection. The department had 447 staff members to run the 68 libraries’ countrywide library system. On average 300 visitors visit these libraries per day but the central public library alone has on average 5,263 readers per day. Computers are not yet set in any government public library for public use although 15 libraries have computers. These libraries are outdated in regards to developing and accessing databases for their catalog. The central public library has a good children’s section in its premises. The Department maintains a website found at http://www.publiclibrary.org.bd/bangladesh_profiles.htm.

City Corporation Library Program City corporation charters bear the responsibility of establishing libraries under its jurisdiction. Usually, the city corporations are divided into wards with the intention of establishing at least one library per ward. The Dhaka City Corporation maintains 23 libraries in 23 of its 75 wards (Dhaka City Corporation website). Chittagong City Corporation has also established some libraries.

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Special Libraries A survey of special libraries by BANBEIS in 1990 showed that there are as many as 665 special libraries in Bangladesh (Mannan and Begum 2002). Some of these libraries have good collections and provide modern information services. International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases Research, Bangladesh (ICDDRB) library has an immense influence in the country for its up-todate resources on medicine, health, nutrition demography, and modern services. The ICDDRB library, in fact, led the library profession of the country in implementing the computerization of libraries in Bangladesh. It started its computerization program with In Magic in 1987 and continued until 1989 when the Computerized Documentation Service/Integrated Set of Information Services (CDS/ISIS) software was introduced in the country. It organized a two-week training program with the support of UNESCO for developing manpower in the use of the software. This library has migrated from CDS/ISIS to Alice for Windows as the maintenance support for this software is provided from New Delhi, India. Routine, short-term training programs were organized for library users on access, searching, and use of Internet resources. The library successfully uses the WHO provision on free use of online health information for developing countries. This library also arranged an orientation program on the use of Medline/PubMed, HINARI, AGORA, and other free online databases for other libraries. The library is open to the general public, but members must become registered. Among other important modern special libraries include: libraries of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, Bangladesh Public Administration Training Center, Center of Integrated Rural Development in Asia and Pacific (CIRDAP), Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council, Bangladesh Institute of Research Rehabilitation of Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders (BIRDEM), Bangladesh Bank, Agricultural Information Centre, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, Bangladesh Academy of Rural Development (BARD), Bangladesh Institute of International Strategic Studies (BIISS), Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR), Bangla Academy, etc. These libraries are resourceful and modern in terms of services with the use of modern equipment and qualified, skilled personnel.

Agricultural Libraries The Bangladesh population is heavily dependent on agriculture. Most inhabitants of the country are engaged in agricultural activities and contributions of agriculture to our GDP are very high. It would be of significance if attention was provided to the libraries which are directly involved with research and study of this sector. Md.Hanif Uddin (2005) surveyed 18 such libraries (Table 5).

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Table 5: Status of agricultural libraries of Bangladesh Name of organizations and their location

Number of back volumes of periodicals

Year of establishment of library

Area of library in sq ft

Number of books

Bangladesh Agricultural Institute, Dhaka (Shere-Bangla Agricultural University) Bangladesh Jute Research Institute, Dhaka

1938

4500

30000*

5000

Current periodical titles received 18*

1951

2000

6000

2000

–

Bangladesh Forest Research Institute, Chittagong Bangladesh Tea Research Institute, Srimongal, Sylhet Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh Soil Research and Development Institute, Dhaka Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation, Dhaka Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, Gazipur Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture, Mymensingh

1955

1900

20000

1000

–

1957

2000

4040

200

–

1961

44000

165000

35000

1962

600

3000

500

–

1963

3000

22000

700

–

1970

2500

13620

4000

400

1973

2000

5000

2000

–

151*

(Continued)

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Table 5: Status of agricultural libraries of Bangladesh (Cont.) Name of organizations and their location

Year of establishment of library

Area of library in sq ft

Agricultural Information Centre, Dhaka Bangladesh Sugarcane Research Institute, Ishurdi, Kustia Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, Gazipur

1973

–

1974

–

Putuakhali Agriculture College (now Putuakhali Science and Technology University) Department of Agriculture Extension, Dhaka Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute, Savar, Dhaka Fisheries Research Institute, Mymensingh Hajee Mohammad

1979

Number of books 15000

Number of back volumes of periodicals 2500

Current periodical titles received 250

1000

–

22100

7000

–

13590

1200

–

3200

1976

2000

1983

6500

6500

100

–

1983

14500

11000

2000

–

1986

1700

3100

2000

–

1987

3000

13000

600

–

1989

3 storied building

10000

600

– (Continued)

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Table 5: Status of agricultural libraries of Bangladesh (Cont.) Name of organizations and their location

Year of establishment of library

Area of library in sq ft

Number of books

Number of back volumes of periodicals

Current periodical titles received

Danesh Agricultural College, Dinajpur (now Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University) *Updated form the respective websites Source: Uddin 2005

National Libraries and Archives The National Library of Bangladesh started its operation in 1972 after the country became independent on March 26,1971. Bangladesh was a part of Pakistan from 1947 to 1971 and was known as East Pakistan and she was a part of India before the partition in 1947. There was a Central Library that was established in 1967 in Dhaka, which was basically a provincial book deposit branch of the Pakistan National Library and became the National Library of Bangladesh immediately after independence. (Information Science Today 2009 Dec 6). Under the copyright law, this library receives two copies of each publication of the country. It distributes ISBNs to the publishers of the country and publishes the National Bibliography of Bangladesh. Currently, the library is in the process of creating its own database. It has a collection of 500,000 books and bound volumes. It provides many services, including references, photocopy and microfilm services. It is the country’s professional national institution for IFLA, Asia Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO (ACCU) and Conference of Directors of National Libraries in Asia and Oceania (CDNLAO) (Wikipedia 2012). The National Library of Bangladesh and the National Archives of Bangladesh are run under the administrative control and management of the Directorate of Archives and Libraries, Ministry of Cultural Affairs (http://www.nanl.gov.bd/index.php?option=com_contentview= articleid=58Itemid=184). There are other organizations which serve the nation as well. Bangladesh National Scientific and Technical Documentation Centre (BANSDOC), established in 1972, maintains a good collection of science and technology books and journals. It provides various services, including procurement of journal

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articles from foreign countries for the researchers and users from all over the country. The National Health Library and Documentation Centre (NHLDC), was established in 1974. In addition to providing information services to users, it contributes to the development of health library personnel of the country by organizing routine training programs and workshops regularly.

NGO Libraries Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are also playing an important role in the development of the country and have a considerable influence on empowering women in particular. Some of these NGOs also maintain libraries that essentially work to support their development workers. One example is the Community Development Library (CDL), established in 1980, for serving development workers and organizations of Bangladesh. It is an independent NGO participating in the development process of the country through this library system. CDL runs 24 Rural Information Resource Centers throughout the country, primarily in the coastal areas. Since its establishment, it has been “striving towards building a society where the gap between the informationrich and information-poor minimizes continually so that unprivileged people have their fair share of all the resources necessary to live a decent life” (http://www.cdlbd.org/index.php). The most innovative community library program is maintained by Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) – the biggest NGO in the country. It assists the rural population with their economic development and maintains a primary education program, which is recognized as the best education system at the elementary level by the UNESCO. BRAC runs around 2,000 rural libraries throughout the country, and its recent effort to develop rural libraries is certainly very positive. The NGO helps the local community develop libraries for its own use. If the local population can arrange a fund of Tk 25,000 (less than US$400) and a room over 400 sq. ft, BRAC matches that amount, provides 1,000 books, and additional materials in order to establish a library in a specific area or a locality. There are over 1,856 rural public centers and libraries, and nearly 800,000 people receive services from these rural reading centers. Many centers have mobile services and have been serving rural people using bicycle, rickshaw (tricycle), and other types of van. Over 50% of users of these libraries are female and the mobile libraries primarily serve female clients. Librarians of these centers also play an important role in the development of workers. Not only do they circulate books and supervising reading centers, they also arrange for debates, competitions, cultural events, and computer training opportunities, etc. Librarians guide the general public to develop their skills on their respective trades and occupations (Chowdhury 2009).

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Privately-Initiated Libraries Bishwa Sahitya Kendra, established by famous writer, television presenter, organizer, and activist Abdullah Abu Sayeed in 1978 [New Age, 2008 Sep 28] in Dhaka, is the pioneer in promoting reading habits amongst the Dhaka population. The Center maintains a fleet of mobile libraries that visit different places within Dhaka as well as surrounding areas. For secondary and junior school levels, the center operates a nationwide reading program and provides books for the students (Wikipedia 2009). There are 1,000 branches of Bishwa Sahitya Kendra all over the country (New Age, 2008 Feb 16). Furthermore, the library has a Bangla slogan ‘Alokito Manush Chai’, meaning ‘we want enlightened men’. The Beraid Public Library was launched in 2007. The Awami League lawmaker and freedom fighter A.K.M. Rahmatullah established this library in his village, called Beraid, near Dhaka city. Lion Muzzamel Haque established 11 libraries in Rupganj under the Narayanganj district. In 1998, he established a library first under the banner of Maruf-Sharmeen Shmrity Snaghstha. M Shamsul Islam Khan, former President of the Library Association of Bangladesh, has established a library – Mabia, Kanak and Daisy Grameen Library – in his village Bangalla under Tangail district in 2008. This village library has been established with a special emphasis on using knowledge and information services by women and children in particular.

Community Libraries In the greater Mirpur area of Dhaka city, approximately 20 community libraries were established and have been functioning solely with the support of the organizers and individual subscriptions. These community libraries were established purely under private initiatives. They have formed a Greater Mirpur Granthagar Parishad (Greater Mirpur Library Council) to promote library use within the community. The organizers and staff members of these libraries meet each year to discuss how to develop reading habits within the community.

Foreign Mission Libraries in Bangladesh The British Council Library, Archer K Blood American Center Library, Indian Information Center Library, and the Goethe Institute Bangladesh Library have great influence on the students and civil society of the country. The British Council Library has access to UK based electronic full text databases, facilities. The American Center Library subscribes to many databases including ProQuest Newspaper, ProQuest Research Library, Ebscohost and Lexis-Nexis.

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Use and Application of Information Technology in Libraries The ICDDRB library has played a vital role, in introducing computers, and CD-ROM technology in libraries of Bangladesh. ICDDRB first introduced CD-ROM subscriptions, such as MEDLINE and POPLINE. Following ICDDRB, the BIRDEM Library also started CD-ROM-based MEDLINE and POPLINE subscriptions. Gradually, additional medical libraries also introduced this technology. In the meantime, agricultural libraries began to accommodate information technology. Agriculture Information Centre introduced AgriIndex in CD-ROM to its collection. ICDDRB organized a training course with the assistance of UNESCO for librarians of Bangladesh in 1989. This training had an immense influence in introducing computers in libraries of the country. Dr. Wahid, a UNESCO expert from New Delhi, India, trained 18 people on the use of mini/microCDS/ISIS. These trainees not only applied their knowledge in their respective workplaces but also assisted many other libraries to introduce this freelyavailable software for developing databases mostly dedicated for library catalogs. Some of them subsequently became trainers of the software. After ICDDRB, some other organizations, such as BANSDOC, and CIRDAP also organized training programs on this software. Many libraries are using the Windows version of CDS/ISIS which is currently known as WINISIS. Before the introduction of CDS/ISIS, computers were mostly used for word processing in libraries across the country. CDS/ISIS helped librarians formulate ideas on library databases according to specific work segments and eventually contributed in the development of librarian skill sets. They introduced computer operations as much as possible as their skills allowed to run the libraries. CDS/ISIS or WINISIS (Windows version of CDS/ISIS) users tried to set a standard in developing databases. Common communication format (CCF) serves as their baseline. Most ISIS databases are CCF-compatible. MARC did not receive the attention of librarians that much. The BRAC University has just introduced the KOHA software for their library system and is trying to convince its librarians to introduce MARC 21 for developing information systems in the libraries of Bangladesh. They arranged several workshops where they demonstrated their database developed using KOHA software to convince people working in other libraries and hope to form a KOHA users group in Bangladesh. In 1996, Bangladesh was connected with the information highway, i.e. the Internet. Libraries of international organizations and private universities are the pioneers for introducing the Internet in their libraries and exploring this new avenue. Immediately after establishing an Internet connection in 1996, some leading private university libraries had the opportunity to introduce at least a browsing facility with a computer from the library premises. Gradually,

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the number of computers increased. Some areas of the library were dedicated for browsing and named as Cyber Cafe´ or Cyber Corner. These university libraries also explored procuring books from amazon.com and from other sources. The Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) procured the first book from amazon.com using the Internet in 1997. The IUB library established communication with the JSTOR in 1997 but JSTOR informed their inability to give access as that was their first phase, and they were unable to make their resources available to countries outside the USA. The BRAC University was the first university library to subscribe to JSTOR. In the meantime, libraries throughout the country had exploited the opportunity available through the HINARI, AGORA, and OAER aggregators. HINARI became very popular in medical libraries of the country. The ICDDRB library was again the pioneer for making the HINARI database popular in Bangladesh. They organized a national workshop on the use of resources in the HINARI and AGORA databases. Oxford Journals are also available free of charge for developing countries. Many libraries, but primarily two leading private university libraries, introduced the Oxford Journals to the library system and this is the first bundle of journals in digital form introduced in the country. Soon after BRAC University, the IUB, North South University, ICDDRB, East West University, and many other organizations started to subscribe to JSTOR. The IUB library has also been subscribing to Emerald Full text, and ABI Global of ProQuest. A consortium was formed under the leadership of the Bangladesh Academy of Science (BAS). The BAS concluded an agreement with the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP), UK, for subscribing to periodicals from 27 publishers. The prominent publishers that joined this consortium include: EBSCOhost, Springer Link, Wiley Inter Science, American Chemical Society, IEEE, ICDDRB, IUB, and over 30 other organizations. Although some libraries have made remarkable progress to cope with the new trends in the library profession, there are still many libraries which cannot adopt information communication technology due to lack of adequate funds and skilled personnel. Md. Hanif Uddin (2005) found only eight agricultural libraries withcomputers in the country in his survey. Anwarul Islam conducted a survey on special libraries during 2006–07 for his PhD program. He found that only 67 special libraries were using computers, 34 of them had Internet connectivity, 6 libraries maintained Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) and four libraries’ circulation were operated using computers (Islam and Panda 2009). It is estimated that approximately 100 libraries in the country possess computers.

Education on Library Management The first training course on library administration or management was held in 1952. Fazle Elahi, a librarian of Dhaka University Library, organized a

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three-month training program for the staff members of libraries in the University of Dhaka (Sarker 2005, Mannan and Begum 2002). The authorities of the University of Dhaka sent Muhammad Siddique Khan – popularly known as M.S. Khan – the pioneer of the library movement in Bangladesh, to the UK to pursue education on library science (Rashid, Khan 1987). After his return to the country in 1956, he made immense changes in the field of librarianship in Bangladesh. He organized the central library of the University of Dhaka according to the modern system. At the same time, he initiated steps for educating staff members working in different libraries of the country at that time. A certificate course in library science was offered under the banner of Dhaka University Library from the 1955–56 sessions. Several foreigners who were serving in foreign mission libraries came forward to assist him. Students of the initial certificate courses received personal attention and guidance from the foreign and local faculties. The then East Pakistan Library Association, now Library Association of Bangladesh (LAB), introduced a six-month certificate course in library science in 1958 (Foote and Mannan 1996). Under the initiative and leadership of M.S. Khan, the University of Dhaka introduced a one-year Diploma Course in Library Science in 1959. Furthermore, a one-year master’s degree course in library science was introduced in 1962. MPhil and PhD courses were launched in Dhaka University in 1976 and 1979 respectively. In 1987, a three-year honors course in library and information science was introduced. This program was elevated to a four-year honors program in 1994. The Department of Library Science was renamed as the Department of Library and Information Science and subsequently in 2001 as the Department of Information Science and Library Management. The University of Rajshahi has been offering both honors (since 1993) and master’s degree (since 1997) programs in information science and library management. The Rajshahi University launched the department with a postgraduate diploma course in 1992 (Foote and Mannan 1996). In addition, the Darul Ihasan University, and under the National University, the Institute of Library and Information Science in Dhaka, and several other institutes have been offering the diploma program in library and information science since 2005. The Asian University of Bangladesh has been offering a master’s degree program in information science and library management since 2009. The Darul Ihsan University introduced the master’s degree program in library and information science in 2007. The Library Association of Bangladesh (LAB) runs a formal six-month certificate course in library and information science through its Institute of Library and Information Science in six divisional headquarters. There are some colleges, affiliated with the National University, who run this subject as an optional or elective course in undergraduate programs within the Bachelor of Arts degree. The Lalmatia College in Dhaka, under the National University, runs a fully-fledged department for library education. It started with an elective course of Bachelor of Arts in 1997. It has been offering

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a master’s degree program in library science since 2002, and a four-year honors course was introduced in 2006. In total, 13 institutes/institutions have been offering courses on library and information science at various levels in Bangladesh.

Training on Information Technology Use For the first time in Bangladesh, ICDDRB organized a 2-week training program for librarians of this country on the use of mini/micro-CDS/ISIS in 1989 with the assistance of UNESCO. The National Health Library and Documentation Center has also been organizing workshops regularly on accessing and utilizing electronic-based information resources with the assistance of the World Health Organization. The Department of Library Science and Information Management of the University of Dhaka occasionally arranges training on CDS/ISIS for their students.

Consortium Development Efforts in Bangladesh University Grants Commission of Bangladesh (UGC) first initiated the development of a consortium in 2004 to receive maximum benefit in the use of electronic resources by the research and higher-education organizations and institutions in Bangladesh. A four member committee submitted a concept paper on the role of UGC to run such a consortium (Uddin and Chowdhury 2006); however the UGC is still in the process of forming a consortium. In the meantime, the Bangladesh Academy of Science started to administer a consortium with the assistance of The Program for the Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) of INASP. The consortium is known as the Bangladesh-INASP-PERI-Consortium and it is currently subscribed to over 25 electronic databases through the INASP. Dr. Abdul Mazed, Director of the Bangladesh Academy of Science, coordinates this consortium with the help of Dr. Abdulah Bin Tariq, a physicist of the University of Rajshahi. Since the initial launch in 2006, this consortium has been working successfully. The consortium has made it possible for approximately 30 libraries of Bangladesh to access full texts of many databases including: American Chemical Society, Wiley Inter science, EBSCOHOST, Blackwell Synergy, Springer Link, Astronomical Journal, Cochrane Library, American Physical Society, Institute of Physics Publishing, American Society of Civil Engineers, Mary An Liebert, Inc., Publishers Annual Reviews, MinAbs Online, Beech Tree Publishing, Multilingual Matters, Cambridge University Press, Nature Publishing Group, Oxford Scholars, and World Bank Publications.

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Library Associations M.S. Khan initiated the formation of an association with local working professionals. In 1956, the East Pakistan Library Association now the Library Association of Bangladesh (LAB) was established. This association is open to those who work in a library and have a professional certificate, diploma, or degree. At present, it has over 2,000 members and has been publishing the Eastern Librarian journal since 1966. It also publishes a Bangla newsletter – Upatta. The Institute of Library and Information Science (earlier known as the Library Training Institute) has been run by this association since 1976. The Institute was established to conduct a sixmonth certificate course on library science to educate people in library management and library services. Later on, in 1989, this course transformed into a modern course for obtaining trained support personnel in the libraries. In 1989 the Association renamed the institute as the Institute of Library and Information Science to run a postgraduate diploma course in library and information science. In 1986, a few young librarians formed a new forum for professionally qualified people (Chowdhury and Rahman 2009, Mannan and Begum 2002); it was originally named the Bangladesh Association of Young Librarians, Information Scientists and Documentalists (BAYLID), but is currently known as Bangladesh Association of Librarians, Information Scientists and Documentalists (BALID). The Association offers membership only to individuals having a master’s degree or higher in library science. Emphasis is given to recruiting members who have a professional degree rather than only being involved in or affiliated with a library. Over 500 professionals are members of this association. It publishes a biannual newsletter titled Informatics in Bangla, twice a year. Seminars, workshops, and training programs are organized by both associations on a regular basis. These associations play a key role in motivating the Government in the development of librarians, libraries, and information services in Bangladesh.

Problems of Libraries and Information Services in Bangladesh Some libraries in Bangladesh are in good condition; however, in most cases, libraries suffer from scarcity of funds, space, and highly-skilled manpower with a background in software management. Due to insufficient budgets, only a few libraries can afford to add new collections on a regular basis. Although all academies need to have their own libraries as per the rules of the Ministry of Education, no mechanism exists to keep the institutes and academies under watch and inspection in order to ensure libraries are on the proper track. The government college libraries have a shortage of librarians and most public university libraries do not have head librarians. These universities are mostly run by Deputy or Assistant Librarians or by non-professionals.

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The process of procurement is very slow due to the national procurement rules. It is extremely difficult to update the book collection in public-supported libraries. Research in the field of library services still does not receive much attention; therefore, a scarcity of adequate information for decision-making is prominent. It is challenging to get financial support for conducting research. The libraries of the country also suffer due to a lack of opportunities for library professionals to become oriented with modern information management systems in developed countries. They also have minimal opportunity to attend regional and international training programs, workshops, and conferences. There are several efforts in process to implement policies for the development of libraries. Library professionals have been advocating for public library legislation for a long time. There were some initiatives on the part of the government, such as in 1988 when the Government formed a national committee for drafting National Science and Technology Policy (NASTIP). This policy put emphasis on the library legislation (Sarker 2005). In 2001, the Government accepted the National Library Policy but it has still not been implemented or enacted upon. This policy stressed the importance of library legislation for the country.

Prospects for Libraries The literacy rate in Bangladesh at present is 55.9% (Wikipedia 2012) and it is increasing year by year. Educational institutions are also increasing with both public and private initiatives. Although slow, the number of research organizations is also increasing. The per-capita income of the country is expanding. The present government expects that Bangladesh will be a middle income country by 2021. ICT is getting priority in all spheres. The Government mandated that at least one computer should be available for every school within the next 2–3 years. If we consider the population, including students, interested in educational activity we would obtain a significant amount of prospective users. Table 6: Educational institutions receiving government grants Type of institution Secondary Schools Higher Secondary School and Colleges Degree Colleges Degree (Honours) Colleges

Institutions 18770 1904 1266 95

Teachers 211649 32122 44354 4584

Students 6840541 384462 781204 241660

Masters Colleges Madrasahs Technical Education Total

90 9376 3590 35091

6066 128005 21664 448444

541082 1984626 451871 11225446

Source: Primary report of National Education Survey (Post Primary) 2008

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The recent education policy puts a strong emphasis on libraries including primary schools, although not mandatory. The 2008 survey of BANBEIS for post primary level institutions found 35,091 educational institutions that received government financial support. The survey did not include universities, privately-run schools, colleges, and institutions. There are many schools run by the NGOs; however, these NGO-run schools were also excluded from the survey. The survey did not include any question on library affairs, but it can be generalized that most madrasah, secondary and higher secondary-level institutions do not have libraries. Libraries in other institutions are not up to the mark in both physical condition and in respect of services. The report mentioned a large number of direct beneficiaries of libraries. As the Government is giving priority for education and the highest budget allocation is provided for educational purposes, the country now can hope to get appropriate attention for the development of its libraries. The UGC received World Bank funds on loan of over Tk 6 billion (Tk 681.4 crore) under the higher education enhancement project (New Age 2010 Apr 22). The UGC is planning to establish a Research and Education Network (REN) to establish a strong backbone for higher education and research using these funds. There are possibilities to have sizable amounts of funds for the purpose of library development and a major part of this library allocation may go to library automation acquisition, and preservation of electronic resources. The local government’s charter has a provision for nurturing education. With this, it can establish libraries at least at the union level (the second lowest tier of the government’s administrative unit). The country has 4,498 unions (Statistical Yearbook of Bangladesh 2008), and there are opportunities for each union to have at least one public library. The government is also planning to extend the services of the public library up to union level (Ali 2010). Librarians may also find good prospects in the near future in the health sector also. The Directorate General Health Services (DGHS) claims on its website that it has made significant progress in providing 24-hour broadband Internet connections to important health points up to upazila (lower next to district administrative unit) level. Librarians will eventually emerge as dependable information navigators for assisting health professionals throughout the country. The present government maintains a slogan, Digital Bangladesh. To achieve this motto, the government is trying to deliver one computer to each school in order to enable all schools to access the Internet. The government’s ICT Policy 2009 announced that the government has targeted establishing a model information access center in at least one school of each union. Although slow, information literacy is also receiving attention by professionals. In 2009, an international workshop was organized at IUB under a project of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) to implement the idea of information literacy in the country. Following this, some libraries

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introduced information literacy programs in their own libraries. Recently, the Center for Information Studies (CIS) was launched and it has already arranged three programs on information literacy at three rural schools with the cooperation of the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC). Finally, the Education Commission 2009, led by Professor Kabir Chowdhury, indicated the importance of libraries in all tiers of education. It is hoped that very soon a library will be mandatory for every school, including at primary level.

Conclusion The developments highlighted in this paper show that Bangladesh invested its efforts primarily to support urban-based libraries, although about 80% of the people live in the rural areas of the country. Despite the efforts made by the library associations and library professionals, the scenario of library development in Bangladesh is not satisfactory. A large number of libraries located even in the major cities are still run with traditional systems. The progress in using computers to create databases and accessing web-based resources is still limited to a only few libraries. A vast number of people, particularly in rural areas, still need to become aware of knowledge-sharing, knowledge-transferring, and the informationreceiving networking system through establishing resourceful libraries and information resource centers at the school, college, community and village levels with complete ICT support. ICT has to become the expert driver of knowledge-sharing, knowledge-transferring, and information-receiving networking system in both urban and rural areas. Trained and skilled professionals have to be educated in order to lead the networking system in the country. Also, the government and other concerned bodies need to develop the rural infrastructure to ensure an efficient rural library system that will support the rural people for their socioeconomic and educational development. The development of an electronic library system is somewhat stagnant in the country because of limited resources to buy books and journals. The use of the electronic access to web-based resources can greatly enhance the use of knowledge and information for the betterment of the people and their socioeconomic progress regardless of whether they are located in cities or villages. It is therefore strongly recommended that both major public and private universities and colleges consider introducing a master’s degree program exclusively for the digital library system that will ultimately secure professionals with knowledge and skills in digital librarianship. The next fifteen years will be very challenging with the hope that libraries will improve and join the fast lanes of the super information highway of the twenty-first century.

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Acknowledgements: M. Shamsul Islam Khan is grateful to ICDDR,B for carrying out the study. The study was funded by the ICDDR,B and its donors which provide unrestricted support to the Centre for its operations and research. Current donors providing unrestricted support include: Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN), Swedish International Development Cooperative Agency (Sida), and Department for International Development, UK (DFID). He gratefully acknowledges these donors for their support and commitment to the Centre’s research efforts.Muhammad Hossam Haider Chowdhury is also grateful to IUB for giving him opportunity to do this research.

References Abdul Latif, S.M. 2003. Rajshahi College. In: Banglapedia, eds. S. Islam and S. Miah, 8: 333–334. Dhaka: Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Ahmed, N. 1984. Discovery the monuments of Bangladesh. Dhaka: University Press Limited. Ali, M. 2010. [Libraries will be mandatory in primary schools]. Prothom Alo May 13. Ali, S.A. and S.M.S Amran. In: Banglapedia, eds. S. Islam and S. Miah, 6:330–332. Dhaka: Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Ana, A.H. 2006. [Early great general library]. Jugantar, December 6, 2006. Bangladesh. Wikipedia. 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/bangladesh (accessed March 27, 2012). Bangladesh. Ministry of Education. Primary report of National Education Survey (Post Primary) 2008. Dhaka: BANBEIS, 2009. Bangladesh. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Directorate General Health Services. 2009. Program of Ministry of Health Family Welfare in Digital Health. (accessed on 25 March 2010). Bangladesh. Ministry of Planning. Planning Division. Statistical Yearbook of Bangladesh 2008. Dhaka: Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, 2009. Bangladesh. Ministry of Science and Information and Communication Technology. National ICT Policy 2009. Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology Library [web site]. 2007. http:// www.buet.ac.bd/?page_id=9 (accessed on 7 March 2010). Begum, T. 1984. Directory of major libraries in Dhaka city. Master’s thesis, University of Dhaka. Bishwa Sahitya Kendra Wikipedia. 2009. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bishwa_Sahitya_ Kendra (accessed on 7 March 2010). Choudhury, F, S. Banik, S. Rahman. 2009. BRAC: unnayaner ekti upakkhan [BRAC: a story of development]. Dhaka: University Press Limited. Chowdhury, M.H.H. 2010. Electronic resources in private university libraries [letter]. New Age May 8. Chowdhury, M.H.H. and M.Z. Rahman. 2009. Evolution of Libraries in Bangladesh. In Sharanika. Dhaka: Department of Information Science and Library Management, University of Dhaka. Chowdhury, S.R. 1964. Research on college libraries in the Dhaka city. Master’s thesis. Dhaka: Department of Library Science, University of Dhaka.

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Dhaka City Corporation. Public library. http://www.dhakacity.org/Page/Department/Link_ 1/1/List_id_1/15/Subid_1/105/Library (accessed on 29 March 2010). Foote, J.B. and S.M. Mannan. 1996. Librarian training and professional opportunities in Bangladesh. Third World Libraries, Spring, 6(2): 10–18. Information Science Today. 2009. The National Library of Bangladesh: at a glance. December 6. http://infosciencetoday.org/type/articles/the-national-library-of-bangladesh-at-aglance.html (accessed on 9 May 2010). Islam, A., K.C. Panda. 2009. IT in special libraries in Bangladesh: a case study. The Electronic Library 27(1): 149–161. Islam, M.M.R. 1996. Health science information needs and services in Bangladesh: present status and suggestions for future development. PhD diss. Jadavpur University. Islam, M.S. and M.N. Islam. (2007). Use of ICT in Libraries: An Empirical Study of Selected Libraries in Bangladesh. Library Philosophy and Practice August. http:// www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mbolin/shariful.htm (accessed on 14 March 2010). Kaler Kantha. 2010. [Need to ensure quality of education: interview of UGC Chairman Professor Nazrul Islam]. May 10. Khan, M H. 1987. Muhammad Siddiq Khan: Life and Struggle for a Librarianship. Granthagar Parikrama II(2). Khan, M.S.I. 2002. Status of scientific and technical information services in Bangladesh. Paper presented at a seminar on National Scientific Information and Documentation Day, Dhaka, June 13, 2002. Mahmud, A. 2006. Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha: bringing information technology to rural Bangladesh by boat. Washinton, D.C.: Council on Library and Information Resources. http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub136/pub136.pdf (accessed on 24 March 2010). Mannan, S.M. and Suraiya Begum. 2002. Development of Libraries in Bangladesh:A Study of the Historical Route. Nibandhamala (Collection of research articles), vol. XI. Dhaka: Centre for Advance Research in Humanities. Also available at http://infosciencetoday. org/library-history/development-of-libraries-in-bangladesh-a-study-of-the-historical-route. html (accessed on 24 March 2010). Mazed, K.A. (2004) [Picture of public libraries in Bangladesh]. In: Grnathagarbashaya Sharakgrantha ed. M. S. Ali. Dhaka: Suchipatra. Mehdi, U. and S.K. Das. 2007. No modern opportunity, no up-to-date books. Prothom Alo Dec 5. Munshi, M. Nasiruddin. 2005. Status of School Library Development in Bangladesh. In: Sri Lanka Journal of Librarianship Information Management 1(1): 1–6. National Library of Bangladesh [web site]. 2009. http://www.nanl.gov.bd/index.php?option= com_contentview=articleid=58Itemid=184 (accessed on 7 March 2010). New Age. 2008. Biswa Sahitya Kendra gets UNESCO award. September 28. New Age. 2008. Habit of book reading stressed. February 16. New Age. 2010. UGC, WB take project to better higher education environment. April 22. New Nation. 2007. Libraries to be set up at villages of language, war veterans. March 5. North South University Library [web site]. 2010. http://library.northsouth.edu/ataglance.php (accessed on 7 March 2010). Pal, Pratapaditya and E. Haq, eds. Bengal sites and sights. Mumbai: Marg Publications, 2003. Rahman, M.Z. 2006. Shatabarshi gonogranthagar (Hundred years old public libraries). In: Sharanika. Dhaka: Department of Public Library. Rana, A. H. 2006. [Ananda Gobinda Public Library: place for knowledge seekers]. Jai Jai Din 2006 Jul 18. Rangpur (south) reporter. 2006. [Renovation of 150 years Rangpur Public Library]. Ittefaq 2006 Jul 26. Rashid, M.H. 2010. M S Khan’s birth centenary. The Independent Mar 21.

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Rashid, M.H. M Siddique Khan: his life and philosophy. [BALID website] http://www. balid.org/ (accessed on 24 March 2010). Ray, N. 1994. History of the Bengali people. Hyderabad: Orient Longman. Sarker, N.C. 2005. Development of an integrated public library system for Bangladesh with reference to a model public library bill. PhD diss., Jadavpur University. Tithi, D. 2006. [Save the library]. Prothom Alo 2006 Sep 13. Uddin, M. H. 2005. Agricultural libraries and information systems in Bangladesh. Dhaka: Shaheen Redhwana. Uddin, M.N. and M.H.H. Chowdhury. 2006. Developing a digital resources consortium for university libraries in Bangladesh: proposed role of UGC. In Digital libraries: achievements, challenges and opportunities, ed. S. Sugimoto, Jane Hunter, Andreas Rauber and Atsuyuki Morishima: 490–493. New York: Springer. University Grants Commission of Bangladesh. 35th annual report 2008. Dhaka: UGC, 2009. University Grants Commission of Bangladesh [web site]. http://www.ugc.gov.bd/ (accessed on 11 February 2009).

2.2 Botswana Retracing the Impact of Information Communications Technology on Academic Libraries in Sub-Saharan Africa: Case Study of the University of Botswana Library H. Kay Raseroka and S.M. Mutula Introduction Early attempts by libraries to employ some semblance of technology to transact business are recorded in the 1930s (Harter 1997). But it is from the 1960s that major development of information technology applications in libraries started to be undertaken. These included online interactive processing and telecommunications, production of the keyword in context or KWIC index for articles appearing in the Chemical Abstracts. The MARC standard made it possible for libraries to exchange and share bibliographic data as well as undertake migration of data between systems (Australian Advisory Council on Bibliographical Services 1967). This was followed by major strides in 1970s in the use of information technologies in libraries that saw librarians working closely with Information Technology (IT) units and using programming skills of IT departments to develop library based applications. The 1980s became a period of gradual transition from in-house built systems to integrated library management systems created by third party vendors (CAVAL Limited 1987). These developments were followed in the 1990s by the growth of the Internet and the evolution of digital libraries (Nelson 2001). Since 2000 content providers emerged and began to publish content on their own domains. Academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa did not partake effectively in the early library automation initiatives compared to their counterparts in Europe, North America, and Asia. The laggard position of sub-Sarahan African academic libraries may in part be explained by the lack of funding to purchase costly commercial software, inadequate or complete lack of information technology policies and limited IT skills on the part of library staff to spearhead and manage library automation projects. Largely, the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by academic libraries seems to have been at the behest of donor funding. Thus most of those academic libraries that have automated their library collections have been assisted to a large extent by donor agencies providing both hardware and software.

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The first phase of library automation initiatives in academic libraries in Africa started using parent organisation’s mainframe computers to maintain limited bibliographic records of libraries during the 1970s and most of the 1980s. This main frame era did not bear much fruit for the African academic libraries because of inadequate understanding of the criticality of library operations by computer scientists. Besides, most universities installed computer hardware and software to support administrative activities and functions, but excluded relevant software that facilitates integrated library automation (Mutula 2004) because library managers lacked knowledge to provide convincing arguments to IT departments about the need for different approaches to library automation projects (Rosenberg 2006). As a result, not much was achieved in terms of automation of academic libraries in Africa during this period. More meaningful automation was seen when UNESCO commenced donation of Computerised Documentation Services/Integrated Set of Information Systems (CDS/ISIS) software to libraries in Africa and other parts of the developing world on the basis of public good. However, the use of CDS/ISIS was limited to setting up and maintaining small scale automation projects like the development of partial databases such as serial lists and reserve collections.

Academic Libraries in University Environments in Sub-Sarahan Africa Academic libraries are at the heart of research and teaching activities of universities all over the world. In sub-Sarahan Africa academic libraries operate within the context provided by their respective Universities. Consequently, whenever universities have faced resource challenges, libraries have equally been affected. Sub-Sarahan Africa since the 1970s experienced a decline in national capacities to finance tertiary education, which is predominantly government funded (Blair 1991). Thus annual subventions from governments to public universities reduced, whilst annual student intake exponentially increased. Reduction of public expenditure per tertiary student dropped from US$3,084 in 1980 to US$1,971 in 1990, whilst enrollment rose from 419,000 in 1980 to 1,220,000 in 1990 (Rosenberg 2006). With rising enrollments, academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa have experienced increased demand for space and learning support facilities, including books, journals, and technology. This situation was exacerbated by the shift in focus for financial support from higher to basic education by the World Bank and the IMF during the 1980s and part of the 1990s (Kigotho 2008). The impact of these developments on universities was clear – the once vibrant scientific journals in Africa, many of them supported by university departments, disappeared and those that were coming out were so poorly edited that they lost their appeal to scholars. Kenya, Nigeria, Morocco, and Tunisia are reported to have

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experienced the most turbulent fortunes in science in Africa in the last two decades because of budgetary shortfalls (Kigotho 2008).

Academic Libraries and ICT Use in Sub-Sarahan Africa The constraints facing universities in sub-Sarahan Africa have meant that early automation of academic library services was largely unsuccessful and less impact was achieved. Where ICTs were implemented, there has been reported under-utilization of the technologies because of lack of digital skills as well as restrictions imposed on services such as internet access in some universities in Kenya and Zambia (Mutula 2004). Without the provision of facts on benefits derived from investment in ICT, librarians have been hard pressed to convince authorities to allocate needed funds on the basis of “public good” arguments. Librarians’ inadequate skills for marshaling convincing financial and advocacy arguments for justifying investment in ICTs for information delivery in libraries, is perceived to be one of the major causes for the poor technological investment in academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa. CDS/ISIS software, as already pointed out, was the pioneer library automation package in academic libraries in Africa in universities in Kenya, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Malawi during the early part of 1990s. The software was used largely to compile a union list of periodicals held in all libraries in Kenya; a regional union list of periodicals in Zimbabwe and periodicals databases (such as gender databases) in Botswana and Malawi respectively (Raseroka 1992). Though the use of CDS/ISIS was extensive in academic libraries during the 1990s, the software is still in use in a number of African countries because of the limited resources available to acquire commercially and more sophisticated integrated library software. For example, academic libraries in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) do not have significant penetration of ICTs on account of the protracted civil war (Lonji 2002). The pioneering role of CDS/ISIS in library automation was boosted and complemented by the use of CD-ROM databases that were affordable and also obtained through donor funding to several academic libraries. Fifteen academic libraries from Southern and Eastern African regions relied heavily on CD-ROM technology as a tool for delivery of the latest information to support library users. Most of them, as already observed, depended on donor funding for the purchase of their PCs and subscriptions to databases which were generally accessible through stand-alone personal computers rather than through networked stations (Patrikios and Levey 1994). In Southern Africa, at least six university libraries were pilot sites for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) CD-ROM project and benefited in a program that trained participants (librarians, students, and faculty) in the evaluation and selection of subject based CD-ROM databases, which met the

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academic needs of specific programs. The most cited CD-ROM titles used by sub-Sarahan Africa academic libraries at this point in time for access to the most current research were, among others: Education Resources Information Centre (ERIC), MEDLINE, Science Citation Index, International Information System for the Agricultural Sciences and Technology (AGRIS), Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International (CABI) Abstracts, Tropical Agriculture and Rural development (TROPAG RURAL), and Biological and Agriculture Index. Most sub-Sarahan African academic libraries are therefore beneficiaries of donor funded library automation projects. In East and Southern Africa early beneficiaries from donor funding for the purchase of integrated library systems were Moi University in Kenya and the University of Zambia. In West Africa, the University of Dakar Library in Senegal was one of the first sites which benefited in 1996 through the provision of appropriate hardware and software under the World Bank project on Higher Education in African countries. The total budget for the project was US$17.4 million. It included the rehabilitation, extensio,n and equipping of the central library; acquisitions of books and periodicals and the installation of an integrated library system. Within the West African region, the University of Conakry, in the Republic of Guinea, signed a contract with the World Bank in 2002 for the strengthening of library services which included the installation of an integrated library system (Sene 2004). In South Africa, university libraries have benefited from the post apartheid reconstruction program which was supported by donors as a joint initiative between the European Union and the National Department of Education, the Ford Foundation, Carnegie Cooperation, and Mellon Foundation. There is therefore huge investment in integrated library automated systems in South Africa the benefits of which are maximised through consortia such as Gauteng Environs Library Consortium (GAELIC) (GAELIC 2008). Besides, the South African Site Licensing Initiative (SASLI) was successfully established as part of a collaborative framework and integration of access to resource and provision of services. Due to the high cost of commercial library automation software, academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa have resorted to forming partnerships in order to share information resources using information and communication technology. In Southern Africa for example, the Southern African Bibliographic Network (SABINET), which commenced operations in 1985 as a self financing resource sharing database, is a case in point. In West Africa, attempts at resource sharing efforts were initiated in 1993 with the help of donor funding. The most successful of these is the Ghana Inter Library Lending and Document Delivery Network (GILLIDDNET).

Internet Access in Academic Libraries in Sub-Sarahan Africa The revolution in Internet technology has not been leveraged sufficiently by academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa. In 1994 Internet connectivity in

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Africa was limited to four countries namely; South Africa, Zambia, Egypt, and Algeria (Afullo 2000). By 2009 World Internet Stats (2009) showed that Africa’s internet penetration was 6.7% while the world average was 24.7%. Similarly, the number of users of the Internet in Africa averaged 3.9% of the total population of close to one billion people. As a result of low bandwidth, connectivity to use of the Internet was limited and therefore affected the quality of access to information. For example, university libraries in Malawi have reported that “in spite of the wide variety of electronic resources that are available through the Programme for the Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) project and the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Information (HINARI), the quality of the Internet connectivity remained a great hindrance” (Mwiyeriwa and Ngwira 2003). Most universities in sub-Sarahan Africa experience bandwidth problems to leverage Internet technology (Gerhan and Mutula 2005) because the region did not until recently have fibre optic cable systems. Consequently, the region relied exclusively on satellite links for voice and data transmission at about ten times the cost and at transmission speeds of less than a quarter those of fibre optic links (Morris 2007). This situation is expected to change with the recent development of a fibre optic ring around the whole of the African continent. Despite the fact that access to the Internet has improved for many academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa, the high costs of access remain the major stumbling block. Higher Education in Sub-Sarahan Africa (2007) decried the high cost factor in Internet access in Africa saying “African consumer (or university) pays 50–500 times more than an American for an equivalent connection (e.g. $3,000/month instead of $30/month for a 1 Mbps connection).” Some initiatives have been developed to try and overcome bandwidth constraints in sub-Sarahan Africa. For example, the eGranary Digital Library is aimed at making available free of charge academic materials on local servers in African universities so that they can be accessed through a local connection. Countries in Eastern and Southern Africa have formed National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) seeking high-speed and affordable connections for universities. Such NRENs include the UbuntuNet Alliance. Participating nations in the Alliance are Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, and South Africa. The Alliance aims to achieve university connections equivalent to those of the developed world. Furthermore, the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa (including the Ford, MacArthur, and Rockefeller Foundations) has helped a consortium of 13 African universities to achieve lower connectivity costs. The partnership has donated over $5 millionto make satellite bandwidth available to the consortium at $2,330 per Mbps/month instead of $7,300 (Higher Education in Sub-Sarahan Africa 2007). Academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa are also benefiting from the Electronic Information for Libraries (eIFL) project, a project of the Open Society Initiative that has contributed to the formation of consortia in Africa. It advocates for academic and national librarians on the benefits of consortia agreements with

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database aggregators for participating libraries within a country. Through a sharing of experiences of successful consortia such as the South Eastern Library Network (SOLINET), African Consortia has developed an appreciation of requirements and planning for successful partnership within a consortium. By 2009, there were eleven countries in sub-Sarahan Africa that actively utilized library consortia including Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (eIFL 2009). The Programme for the Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) seeks to alleviate problems that arise out of limited access to and lack of skilled use of the Internet in sub-Sarahan Africa. This program provides access to full text electronic journals at preferential subscription rates for the benefit of developing countries. Further, it strengthens publishing of African content and its accessibility to African libraries through the African Journals Online (AJOL) project. Through the efforts of PERI, abstracts are accessible free of charge to members in sub-Sarahan Africa countries. PERI is also involved in capacity building for librarians in effective exploitation of the Internet as well as developing a pool of sub-regional in-service trainers, for sustainable local capacity building skills.

Capacity Building in ICTs Use and Management in Academic Libraries Generally, the impact of ICTs in academic libraries in sub-Sarahan libraries has seen a change of focus from technical services to dynamic programs that facilitate continuous capacity building and empowerment of library staff to use ICTs and adoption of reflective and continuous professional selfdevelopment by LIS personnel. The most notable impact of ICTs in academic libraries is thus the demand for a paradigm shift from static professional skills to dynamic reskilling, continuous up-skilling and ongoing performance measurement in relation to service to users. However, sub-Sarahan academic libraries have yet to commit budgets to sustained training programs to match donor or project linked funds or grants for human resource development that address the management of change. “The Internet Travelling Workshop” established with the support of International Network for the availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) provides an excellent framework for capacity building for sustainable locally managed training programs. Another capacity building project that uses team approach to training of trainers is “Use and Application of ICT Education in Africa” (UAICT-Africa). This is a joint venture by ten university libraries, one library science teaching department in Southern Africa and the Research and Development department of Lund University Libraries in Sweden (Eriksson 2003). The main objective of the project is to set up an International Research Catalogue (IRC) on ICTs in

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education as well as nurture a culture of collaboration across the Internet and demonstrate its capacity as a facilitator for access to national and global resource links and sharing of costs. The lack of financial capacity in universities, to provide required investments in capacity building has encouraged academic librarians to actively search for opportunities for sharing of and learning from experiences in library systems that are better developed than their own. These experiences are availed through international workshops and development of empathetic professional networks which share expertise and encourage exploration of empowering professional activities by librarians from African countries. In partnership with librarians from developed countries, they have helped improve competence of library staff in handling technology and used the expertise to provide user training programs which empower users to exploit the information resources installed in libraries. Examples of such activities abound in sub-Sarahan Africa include the Universities of Zambia, Dar es Salaam, and Ghana, among others (Patrikios and Levey 1994). The significance of these activities is that library staff developed positive attitudes towards the challenges posed by the inadequate financial support and thus sustained staff morale as they embarked upon capacity building activities.

University of Botswana Library: Case Study The University of Botswana was founded in 1972 in Gaborone, as part of the University of Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. It was officially inaugurated in 1982 as the only university in a country with a current population of less than two million. The growth rate of the student population is rapid. In 1999/2000 there were 8, 000 students and by 2008 the population was 14,299. In 2010 the number of undergraduate and postgraduate students was estimated at just over 16,000 (University of Botswana 2010). In recognition of the relatively fast growth of the student population, the University has committed to computerization of all facilities, including academic information services, as a strategic management tool. The University has established an information technology strategy that seeks “to enable the innovative and effective use of ICT to achieve the goals of the University” (University of Botswana 2007). These goals are underpinned by a vision that seeks to produce graduates who are independent, confident, self-directed critical thinkers in a technologically advanced learning environment (University of Botswana 2009). The University Library and the Computer and Information Technology Department are partners that are responsible for the major information systems within the University. They share the provision of infrastructure and support services for three clusters namely: teaching and learning; research and scholarship; and management and administration. The library is responsible for facilitating information services access to the first two clusters. This partnership has facilitated a holistic

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approach to policy making, budgetary provision and procurement strategies for both hardware and software. The efforts to automate the library collections at the University of Botswana began in 1986 and TINLIB, an integrated library software, was successfully installed in 1989 (Mbaakanyi 1994). TINLIB is developed by Informatics Management and Engineering, Inc. and uses the TINMAN database management system. By 1996 the TINLIB software was fully operational with the following modules in use: the OPAC, the acquisitions, serials and circulation. In addition, 25 networked CD-ROM titles as well as limited email facilities were on offer to users (Ojedokun 2003). In 1998 the university became concerned, as did the rest of the World, about the guarantees that all software in use would be year 2000 compliant. The difficulties in obtaining required assurances resulted in decisions for immediate migration to software that provided the Y2K assurance. This crisis provided a “burning platform” factor that raised stakeholders’ awareness on the importance of technological infrastructure for academic information service support. Importantly, it galvanized political engagement and assured financial commitment for the purchase of the best technologically supported library automation system in the region. Thus, a well planned search for a new integrated library system, based on terms of reference that took into account identified system needs and priorities that were agreed upon by the joint committee of the library and computer department was initiated. The Innovative Integrated Library System (INNOPAC) was successfully installed by the end of 1999. By 2003, ICT penetration in the University library consisted of 160 computers and 16 OPAC terminals for use by students in addition to 869 computers available for their use in the various faculty laboratories (Ojedokun 2003). By 2009, the University of Botswana supported about 3,400 desktop computers which were connected to the Internet. In addition, there was a dramatic increase of client owned personal computers and laptops. Hence library resources are accessible on desktop computers and laptops to faculty and students as well through wireless hotspots that enable connectivity to the Internet in and around the Library. This development has had a major impact on the adequacy of bandwidth and resulted in slowdown of download activities. The demand for 24/7 access to e-resources from remote locations has resulted in the establishment of a pilot project to test both security issues and selective controls of access to social sites during peak use hours in order to facilitate reasonable downloads speeds in support of research and other academic activities.

Resource Sharing The purchase of the Innovative Library System (INNOPAC) in 1999 enabled the library to negotiate for membership of the Consortium of South African

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Libraries that jointly purchased the INNOPAC and formed the Gauteng and Environs Consortium (GAELIC). The GAELIC consortium consists of nine South African tertiary institutions and three members located in Botswana, Lesotho, and Namibia who also use the INNOPAC though they each purchased the system separately (GAELIC 2008). Benefits to members are primarily capacity building activities articulated through collaboration activities such as: – development and improvement of skills and expertise of library staff – utilization and sharing of staff expertise to ensure optimal service delivery. Out of shared values an annual workshop of the Innovative User Group of Southern Africa (IUGSA) has been formed. It focuses on sharing of practical experience, and capacity building. Thus the varied experiences in the exploitation of the INNOPAC modules for information management contribute to incremental technological skills development and competency among staff members of twelve libraries across borders. The impact of in-service training as part of resource sharing is not only on the overall human resource development and building of networks but also on the development of a sustainable culture of change management in the various institutions and on enhancement of library efficiency in fulfilment of its mission. The sharing of information resources among all members of the consortium through joint licensing and purchase of electronic databases and e-books has proved quite useful. However, the three members outside South Africa have yet to derive these benefits from their membership of the consortium. Recognition of legitimacy of cross border consortium membership by publishers has met with a lukewarm reception and barriers based on short sighted business models. It is in the long term interests of publishers to nurture the use of e-resources and published peer reviewed research by tertiary institution students who are the knowledge society of the future. Academic librarians in turn need to develop convincing win-win advocacy models.

Information Literacy Skills Development by the University Library The University of Botswana has committed resources over the years to the development of communication and study skills for all first year students. In recognition of the need to encourage and develop resource based learning systems at the University of Botswana, the University implemented compulsory general education courses (GECs) for credit for all students in their first year of study in the 2001/02 academic year. Among the general education courses on offer is Computing and Information Skills. Librarians contribute in teaching information literacy skills, offered under the auspices of the

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Computer Science Department. The objectives of the computer and information skills (CIS) course are, among others to: – promote and encourage computer and information literacy for all students – provide a basic-to-advanced computing and information competency which will allow students, regardless of their background, to be productive part of the Information Society (Ojo 2003). The Computing and Information Skills component focuses on the understanding of computers and their use for accessing information resources, from grey print literature to OPAC and CD-ROM databases held by the library and other electronic databases accessible virtually. In general, the experience of the University of Botswana Library in the incorporation of ICTs to support academic information services has been incremental, library led, rather than system-wide, policy led approaches. From the 2006/07 academic year the library instituted annual baseline studies to provide an informed picture of entry students’ experiences and their levels of exposure to research skills and computer literacy. The studies would also inform the review of the content of GEC information literacy skills course so that it is more relevant to student needs. The findings of the 2006/07 baseline study generally confirmed that entry level students are not well equipped with information skills, they rely on reading text books and class handouts; they use the library mostly as a place to study and that a large percentage of the entry students have limited computer skills. Subsequent studies indicated some improvement in computer literacy. Further, it was recommended that a longitudinal study be instituted. It should assess student attitudes and impact of GEC courses on skills development. In the 2009/10 academic year, the University of Botswana adopted and implemented a strategic plan entitled “A Strategy for Excellence” (University of Botswana 2009). It commits the university, not only to expanding access and participation in tertiary education to students, but also to enhancing the student experience in learning and intensification of research. The library is charged with playing a central support role through enhancing access to digital information. In collaboration with academic support units, the library is mandated to facilitate effective exploitation of electronic resources in teaching, learning, and research. The tactical actions selected as a method for implementing this role is through a collaborative approach to the teaching of information literacy skills (ILS). Hence in 2010 the leadership in academic affairs of University mandated a comprehensive institutional, cross-sectional baseline research study on attitudes and needs for ILS. The library and center for academic development teams are responsible for conducting the research as partners. The exploratory study interrogates the experiences of students, academic staff, and librarians gained from the ILS embedded in the general education courses discussed above. It seeks to discover the underlying institutional culture that underpins

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learning and teaching practice. The engagement of all stakeholders is a significant step towards integrative planning processes in support of the competent use of information in learning, teaching, and research. Significantly, the ILS study is a project of the academic core partners and demonstrates the University’s commitment to enhancing students’ learning and experiences of information literacy (University of Botswana, 2010). The study will enable the University to develop a holistic and coherent program that addresses the attitudes, perceptions, and skills needed by all stakeholders in its quest for graduates that use information competently.

Learning Commons In an effort to ease students’ experience in integration of print and electronic uses, development of enhanced information literacy skills applicable to their learning and competent exploitation of technology in support of their learning, the University has adopted the learning commons concept and model. It aims to create informal spaces to encourage ease of student collaboration, networking on all aspects of their learning experiences. The learning commons is being developed as a “one stop shop” where students may access support on information technology use and exploitation, counseling, assignment research and writing projects. The learning commons was being piloted at the beginning of 2010/11 academic year. The preparatory activities for the establishment of the learning commons have exposed challenges which relate to the changing roles that librarians need to embrace, the most predominant being the teaching role. Most librarians have limited pedagogic training or experience in spite of involvement in the traditional bibliographic instruction activities. Close interaction with students demands the skills for adapting theoretical skills into students’ need based on support process. Further, traditional liaison activities that librarians pursue in support of academic staff (selection of materials, support on research sources) are based on standard librarians’ professional expertise. For the learning commons support to be meaningful, librarians must develop close collaborative relationships with faculty around the curriculum and understand the core needs of their teaching missions. Consultative activities on these issues in which librarians are novices may cause resistance to change since some librarians reject teaching as part of their roles. (Donnelly 2000). Sustained technology skills development by librarians appears to be a challenge that requires attention. The most predominant preparatory activity that has emerged is the insecurity caused by the speed of change that librarians need to keep up with and the leadership needed to develop change management skills to facilitate continuous adaptation to emerging application of technology to the information services profession.

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Current Trends in Electronic Information Exploitation Globally, libraries are transforming their print collections into electronic formats through digitization or subscription to e-journals with or without print alternatives as a strategy to make them more accessible and to enhance resource sharing (Youngman 2007). Scholars and publishers are now required to make their publications available through open access so that they can be easily and widely accessed (Association of Research Libraries 2006). These tools are needed to ensure that researchers know what their counterparts are doing elsewhere thus enhancing collaboration, sharing of knowledge, and best practices. With regard to broadening the catalog of resources, libraries are now required to support research and education in digital form (Association of College and Research Libraries 2007). The global meltdown experienced in 2009 has affected budgetary provision in the overall support for library services. However, sustained support for enhancement of digital resources is seen as a priority. There is a commitment to maximally exploiting available technology and developing digitization programs to enable access to unique cultural heritage and content. Further, a program for digital access to local peer reviewed research publications is being developed as part of the strategy for intensifying research, providing accessibility, and visibility of the University’s research through its web presence. The University of Botswana library digitization program was initiated through a pilot project which focused on demand driven digitization of locally produced unpublished works dealing with natural resource management to support researchers in the University’s Harry Oppenheimer Okavango Research Centre (HOORC) located in the north of Botswana in Maun. Priority was also given to archival materials that were in need of urgent conservation and preservation. Hence the unique Peter Smith Collection consisting of field notes, extensively annotated maps on botanical, ecological and geographical observations after field trips, and transects made in northern Botswana in the 1970s, and the Heinz Collection which is on the San peoples, have been digitized (University of Botswana 2007). The development of institutional repositories is another development within academic libraries that has been made possible by ICTs. Institutional repositories refer to a set of services, organization, access, distribution, and long-term preservation of digital resources. Such institutional repositories may contain one or more of the following: web pages, books, conference papers, datasets, maps, technical reports, etc. Institutional repositories engender several advantages such as centralized archive of research, increased visibility, immediate access to full text, long term archiving and preservation, convenient and easy access to materials. Institutional repositories are gaining popularity especially in universities and offer alternative ways of providing information from those resources that have often not found their way easily into libraries.

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Libraries are often being called upon to set up such repositories with the help of research coordinating units and IT departments for infrastructure support. At the University Botswana an institutional repository has been set up in partnership with the research services and information technology systems of University. The University of Botswana’s repository uses DSpace software. Subject librarians are responsible for populating the institutional repository with peer reviewed research articles produced by academic staff. Academic staff are being trained and encouraged to undertake self-archiving of their research outputs. Electronic journals and online databases are other ICT-driven resources that academic libraries are benefiting from. Users have access to full text electronic journals from various providers including EBSCOHOST, Emerald, ERIC, Web of science, CINAHL, and LISA. Thus, like other libraries with the relevant infrastructure and financial support, the University of Botswana’s library provides users with access to a wide range of such resources in support of the academic programs. Besides electronic journals, digital libraries are enabling academic librarians to select, structure, offer intellectual access to, interpret, distribute, preserve the integrity of, and ensure the persistence over time of collections of digital works (Digital Library Federation 2004). Through ICTs, scientists in sub-Sarahan Africa now, more than before, freely access hundreds of scientific and professional journals, papers, documents, encyclopedias, reports, presentations, and lectures from such services as African Journals Online (AJOL). This represents a considerable progress in comparison with the situation that prevailed only a few years ago. Several bibliographic networks or digital libraries such as SABINET (Southern Africa), Ain Shams University Network (ASUNET) in Egypt, African Digital Library and African Online Digital Library have made possible access to such resources as digitized theses, dissertations, e-books, and databases. Moreover, several universities in Africa, like their counterparts in the rest of the world, are increasingly using their web-based online public access catalogs (OPACs) as gateways not only to information outside their libraries but also to their own locally digitized content. For example, at the University of Botswana library, the OPAC is used to provide access to, among other resources, digitized full-text past examination papers. Overall, digital scholarly content is being generated by the University and incorporated into e-resources as part of the strategy for facilitating ease of access to learning and teaching materials and also as a tactic to address the high increase of student population without commensurate academic staff increase. However, the University of Botswana has yet to develop policy institutional repository materials.

Conclusion The quality of a university is perceived in terms of its excellence of library facilities, quality of ICT infrastructure, level of research funding, integration,

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and use of ICT in the provision of digitized local content. This chapter has traced the integration of ICT in academic libraries in sub-Sarahan Africa and its impact on the provision of library and information services. The University of Botswana has been used as a case study to show how a well resourced library can effectively leverage ICT to enhance the management and provision of information services to support teaching and research. In the past provision of effective information services was hampered by inadequate access to ICT because of funding constraints, ineffective lobbying skills by librarians. However, donor funding, consortia and the ‘decreasing cost of access’ have combined to significantly help sub-Sarahan African academic libraries start benefiting from ICT despite the fact that they still lag behind their counterparts in the developed world.

References Afullo, T. 2000. “The telecommunication infrastructure for cyberspace”, Library Management, 21(4): 209. Association of Research Libraries. 2006. “Digital scholarship”, available at http://www. createchange.org/digitalscholarship.html (accessed 28 September 2007). Australian Advisory Council on Bibliographical Services. 1967. “Current projects in library automation: an Australian directory”, AACOBS, Canberra. Blair, R.D.D. 1991. “An assessment of progress and the potential for financial diversification and income generation at selected African Universities”, A report to the World Bank, Blair Management Services and SPECISS College, Harare. CAVAL Limited. 1987. “The COOL-CAT Trial report”, CAVAL, Melbourne. Digital Library Federation. 2004. “A working definition of digital library”, available at http://www.diglib.org/about/dldefinition.htm (accessed 22 July 2007). Donnelly, K. 2000. “Reflections on what happens when librarians become teachers”, Computers in Libraries, 20(3): 45–50. Eifl. 2004. “eIFL”, available at: http:soros.epnet.com/eifl.description.asp (accessed 5 February 2004). Eriksson, J. 2003. ‘Continuing education: Libraries and the Internet, October 2001 2003”, available at http://netlab.lub.lu.se/sida/celi/freport.html (accessed 12 October 2011). Gerhan, D. and Mutula, S.M. 2005. “Bandwidth bottlenecks at the University of Botswana: complications for library, campus, and national development”, Library Hi Tech 23(1): 102–117. GAELIC. 2008. “Annual Report 2008”, available at: http://www.gaelic.ac.za/reports/2008_ activity_report (accessed 11 October 2011). Harter, S. 1997. “Scholarly communication and the digital library: Problems and issues”, Journal of Digital Information, 1(1), available at http://journals.tdl.org/jodi/article/ viewArticle (accessed 10 October 2007). Higher Education in Sub Saharan Africa. 2007. “Computers in African Universities”, available at http://www.arp.harvard.edu/AfricaHigherEducation/online.html (accessed 19 March 2010). Kigotho, W. 2008. “Death of research in Africa”, The Standard, available at http://www. eastandard.net/insidePage.php?id=1143996018&cid=4& (accessed 3 November 2008). Lonji, C. 2002. “Access to health information for medical students in Kinshasa”, INASP Newsletter, February 2002: 8–9.

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Mbaakanyi, D. M. 1994. “Library automation at the University of Botswana”, in Patrikios, Helga A and Levey, Lisbeth A, Survival Strategies in African University Libraries: New Technologies in the Service of Information Proceedings, AAAS, Washington D.C. Morris, A. 2007. “SatCom Africa celebrates 10 years of business excellence”, available at: http://www.satcomafrica.com/ (accessed 9 April 2007). Mutula, S.M. 2004. “Review of “IT diffusion in Sub-Saharan Africa: implications for developing and managing digital libraries”, keynote address presented at the IFLA-Africa section workshop on ‘developing and managing digital libraries’ held on 23–27 February, 2004, University of Botswana, Gaborone. Mwiyeriwa, S. S and Ngwira M. E. 2003. “A Malawi Library Consortium: Learning as we go”, INASP Newsletter No. 24, November, 9, 12pp, available at http://www.dfid.gov. uk/r4d/Search ResearchDatabase.asp? OutputId=183259 (accessed 10 October 2011). Nelson, M.R. 2001. “Technologies and policies for bridging the digital divide”, paper presented at an IBM seminar, 6 April 2001, Grand Palm Hotel Botswana. Ojedokun, A.A. 2003. Internet access and usage by students of the University of Botswana, African Journal of Library, Archives and Information Science, 11(2): 97–107. Ojo, S O. 2003. “Computing and information skills fundamentals 1”, Department of Computer Science 2003, University of Botswana. Patrikios, H.A. and. Levey, L.A. 1994. “Survival strategies in African University libraries: new technologies in the service of information”, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Sub-Saharan Africa Program, Washington, DC: 153. Raseroka, K. 1992. “Microcomputer applications for managers”, paper presented at the First IFLA Africa Section Workshop Series, 7–16 December 1991, Gaborone, Botswana. Rosenberg, D. 2006. “Towards the digital library in Africa”, The Electronic Library, 24(3): 289–293. Sene, H. 2004. “Donor funded library automation projects in West Africa”, Email communication from Sene to Raseroka, 23 April 2004. University of Botswana. 2007. “University of Botswana information technology strategy”, Department of Public Affairs, UB, Gaborone. University of Botswana. 2009. “A strategy for excellence”. Department of Public Affairs, UB, Gaborone. University of Botswana. 2010. “Literacy study: research report”, University of Botswana Library, UB, Gaborone. Youngman, F. 2007. “Digital scholarship in the digital era: a key note address” paper, presented at the Digital Scholarship Conference, 12–13 December 2007, University of Botswana.

2.3 Brazil Library Development in Brazil Timothy A. Thompson and Cavan McCarthy Along with India, Russia and China (the other so-called BRIC countries), Brazil has entered the second decade of the new millennium as a major player on the world stage; in 2014 and 2016 it will step into the global media spotlight as it hosts the World Cup and the Summer Olympics. Like its BRIC peers, Brazil is a country of superlatives – Latin America’s largest country and economy, the world’s fourth largest democracy and home to the lion’s share of the world’s largest tropical rain forest. Throughout its history Brazil has also been marked by extreme social inequality: until 2003 the poorest 50% of its population earned less than the wealthiest 1%.1 Significant ethnic and geographic disparities continue to affect Afro-Brazilians, rural areas and the North and Northeast of the country. Over the last decade, however, millions in Brazil have emerged from poverty, and income distribution has gradually become more equitable.2 Brazil’s recent economic surge has been accompanied by a renewed focus on the importance of libraries as institutions that can promote human development, active citizenship and social justice. In 2006 the Brazilian government launched a new effort to coordinate public policy on ‘books, reading, literature and libraries’.3 The PNLL (Plano Nacional do Livro e Leitura / National Plan for Books and Reading) is a joint initiative of the Ministries of Culture and Education and serves as an umbrella for a diverse range of projects, programs,

1

2

3

We would like to thank Dulce Maria Baptista and Murilo Bastos da Cunha (University of Brası´lia) and Thais Fernandes de Morais and Fabiana Andrade Pereira (Sa˜o Paulo Research Foundation – Fapesp) for their valuable contributions to this chapter. Responsibility for its content, of course, lies with us. Estanislao Gacitu´a Mario´ and Michael Woolcock, eds., Social Exclusion and Mobility in Brazil (Washington, D.C.: World Bank, 2008); Instituto de Pesquisa Econoˆmica Aplicada, Radar social 2006: condic¸o˜es de vida no Brasil (Brası´lia: IPEA, 2006). http://www.ipea.gov.br/sites/000/2/livros/radar2006/02_renda.pdf. IBGE, ‘I´ndice de Gini da distribuic¸a˜o do rendimento mensal’, table 7.1.7 in Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicı´lios (Rio de Janeiro: IBGE, 2009). http://www.ibge.gov.br/ home/estatistica/populacao/trabalhoerendimento/pnad2009/tabelas_pdf/sintese_ind_7_1_7. pdf. Brazil’s Gini coefficient score, a measure of wealth concentration, declined from 0.559 in 2004 to 0.524 in 2009. Plano Nacional do Livro e Leitura, ‘O que e´ o PNLL?’, accessed December 28, 2011. http:// 189.14.105.211/conteudo/c00013/O_que_e_o_PNLL.aspx. All translations from sources in Portuguese are by the authors.

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activities and events on all levels of government and society.4 In late 2010 a comprehensive National Culture Plan was signed into law, incorporating the PNLL into a broader course of action.5 In September 2011 the PNLL became official policy by executive order, gaining an institutional structure to support planning and oversight.6 The PNLL consists of four strategic pillars: to democratize access, to promote reading and the training of mediators, to institutionalize reading and increase its symbolic value and to develop the publishing industry. Each pillar of the PNLL contains specific lines of action. Libraries have been assigned to the first pillar, which stresses the importance of integrating and automating library systems while providing access to digital content.7 For many public, school and community libraries in Brazil, automation has been an unachievable goal, but that reality may now be changing. On December 19, 2011, a milestone was reached with the announcement that the public library system of Sa˜o Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, had been fully automated.8 Although Sa˜o Paulo is the first Brazilian city to achieve systemwide library integration and mount an online union catalogue, automation efforts are also gaining ground in other major cities, including Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre.9 This chapter begins with a contextual overview of library development in Brazil. It then turns to the relationship between libraries and technology, examining the Brazilian experience with automation, information systems and digital content. The history of library automation is divided by decade; the pivotal decade was the 1990s, which receives more attention than others. Individual information systems are detailed in the context of the different areas they were developed to serve (including librarianship, medicine, agriculture and nuclear power). Two phases of digital library development are identified, and four representative initiatives are profiled. The chapter concludes with a brief reflection on the prospects for Brazilian libraries in the coming decades.

4 5 6 7 8 9

Ibid. Capitalization of acronyms follows Brazilian custom: acronyms of one to four letters are written in capital letters, whereas only the first letter is capitalized for pronounceable acronyms of five letters or more. Lei nº 12.343, de 2 de dezembro de 2010. http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato20072010/2010/lei/l12343.htm. Decreto nº 7.559, de 1º de setembro de 2011. http://www.planalto.gov.br/CCIVIL_03/_ Ato2011-2014/2011/Decreto/D7559.htm. Plano Nacional do Livro e Leitura, ‘Eixos de ac¸a˜o’, accessed December 28, 2011. http:// 189.14.105.211/conteudo/c00009/Eixos_de_acao.aspx. Secretaria Municipal de Cultura, ‘Secretaria de Cultura anuncia conclusa˜o da informatizac¸a˜o do acervo das bibliotecas pu´blicas’, December 19, 2011. http://www.prefeitura.sp.gov. br/cidade/secretarias/cultura/noticias/?p=9856. Felipe Lindoso, ‘Sa˜o Paulo – a Babel comec¸a a fazer sentido’, O X da Questa˜o (blog), December 20, 2011. http://www.publishnews.com.br/telas/colunas/detalhes.aspx?id=66482.

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Contextual Overview Historical Background In both population size (over 190 million) and total area, Brazil ranks fifth in the world; in 2011 it surpassed the United Kingdom to become the world’s sixth largest economy. For three centuries Brazil was a colony of Portugal, a fact that shaped its cultural and linguistic heritage. The Portuguese approach to colonization focused on resource extraction and intensive slave labour; literacy was the domain of a tiny elite, and printing was prohibited.10 The earliest Brazilian libraries belonged to religious orders, which dominated the intellectual life of the colony until a period of secularizing reforms in the eighteenth century.11 The colony’s fortunes changed in late 1807, when the Portuguese royal family and court were forced to flee to Brazil to escape the encroaching army of Napoleon. Brazil gained formal independence from Portugal in 1822, but the process was marked by continuity more than change. Independence was declared by the king’s son, Dom Pedro I, who was crowned emperor of Brazil. The monarchy crumbled in 1889, a year after the abolition of slavery, and Brazil became a republic. The twentieth century proved politically tumultuous, marked near its midpoint by a brief democratic interlude between two long periods of dictatorship. The military ruled the country from 1964 to 1985, followed by a transition back to full democracy. Until the 1940s the literacy rate in Brazil for those over 15 years of age was below 50%.12 Although Brazil continues to have a high rate of functional illiteracy at 28% of the population, this number has been steadily decreasing over the years (from 39% in 2001).13 In 1937, during the dictatorship of Getu´lio Vargas, a central body was created to promote literacy and oversee policy on books and reading; its mission included ‘organizing and maintaining public libraries throughout the national territory’.14 The INL (Instituto Nacional do Livro / National Book Institute) was subordinate to various branches of government until 1990, when it was finally folded into the National Library by the administration of Fernando Collor de Mello, the first president to be elected by direct popular vote after the end of the military regime. 10 11 12 13 14

Rubens Borba de Moraes, Livros e bibliotecas no Brasil colonial, 2nd edn. (Brası´lia: Briquet de Lemos Livros, 2006). Ibid. Timothy D. Ireland, ‘Literacy in Brazil: From Rights to Reality’, International Review of Education 54 (2008): 718–719. Ac¸a˜o Educativa, Instituto Paulo Montenegro and Ibope Inteligeˆncia, INAF Brasil – 2009: indicador de analfabetismo funcional, principais resultados (Sa˜o Paulo: Ac¸a˜o Educativa/ Instituto Paulo Montenegro, 2009): 9. Decreto-Lei nº 93, de 21 de dezembro de 1937. http://www2.camara.gov.br/legin/fed/declei/ 1930-1939/decreto-lei-93-21-dezembro-1937-350842-publicacaooriginal-1-pe.html.

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National Libraries Brazil’s National Library contains over nine million items, making it Latin America’s largest.15 It originated from the Portuguese Royal Library, brought to Brazil with the royal family in 1808; officially established in 1810, it was opened to the public four years later.16 Its collection is irreplaceable for those ‘researching the construction of Brazil and the ambitions of Europe in the New World’.17 Since its inception, however, the National Library has been troubled by space constraints. A permanent building was inaugurated in 1910 and has become an architectural landmark in downtown Rio de Janeiro; yet the building was originally planned to hold only 400,000 volumes, and the library soon outgrew its new quarters. By the 1970s the collection had increased to 2.5 million volumes, leading to ‘chronic overcrowding’18 and exacerbating the growth of a large parallel collection of books that had not been processed or catalogued.19 The need for offsite storage was addressed in 1987 with the acquisition of a warehouse in Rio’s waterfront district (this structure, which dates from 1946, is currently being renovated).20 In 1990 the institution underwent a major administrative reform (in which it absorbed the functions of the INL) and was reorganized as the FBN (Fundac¸a˜o Biblioteca Nacional/ National Library Foundation), a semiautonomous agency of the Ministry of Culture. In addition to traditional responsibilities involving legal deposit and the national bibliography, the National Library has recently taken a more active role in coordinating the Ministry of Culture’s reading and literacy programs. The FBN’s current president, Galeno Amorim, who was also the first director of the PNLL, sees the institution as incubating a future agency modelled after the former INL, one which would provide centralized oversight for the PNLL and its initiatives.21 In 1960 Brazil’s capital was moved from Rio de Janeiro to the planned city of Brası´lia. The construction of a second national library was included in the original city plan, and in 1962 an executive order called for the formation of a committee to ‘study the measures needed for creating, organizing and establishing the National Library of Brası´lia’.22 This effort was derailed by the

15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

Ce´lia Maria Portella, ‘Releitura da Biblioteca Nacional’, Estudos Avanc¸ados 24(69) (2010): 249. Ibid.: 247. Ibid.: 249. Cavan McCarthy, Developing Libraries in Brazil (Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow, 1975): 123. Portella, ‘Releitura’: 250. Raquel Cozer, ‘Em debate, o peso do acu´mulo de pape´is’, Estado de Sa˜o Paulo, June 18, 2011. http://www.estadao.com.br/noticias/arteelazer,em-debate-o-peso-do-acumulo-de-papeis, 733834,0.htm. Ibid. Decreto nº 927-A, de 27 de abril de 1962. http://www6.senado.gov.br/legislacao/Lista TextoIntegral.action?id=87719; Antonio Miranda, ‘Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia do

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military coup that occurred two years later, and it was only revisited in the late 1980s, after Brası´lia became a Unesco World Heritage Site. The political will to complete the project did not coalesce until 2004, and the BNB (Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia / National Library of Brası´lia) was finally inaugurated in 2006.23 From the beginning, however, there have been significant obstacles, including flaws in the building’s construction, and it remained closed until the end of 2008.24 Due to subsequent budgetary problems and a delay in the competitive bidding process needed to purchase security devices, the library’s holdings are still unavailable to the public, although this is expected to change in 2012.25 The BNB’s designation as a national library is largely symbolic; it is primarily a high-profile public library designed to offer hybrid spaces where print and digital literacy can interact.26

Academic Libraries In 2010 there were 2,377 degree-granting institutions in Brazil, with 1.6 million undergraduate students enrolled in public institutions and 4.7 million enrolled in private institutions.27 The major players in Brazilian higher education are government universities (federal, state and municipal), private nonprofit universities (most notably the Catholic university system) and private for-profit colleges.28 Since 1963 academic institutions have been required to provide library services to receive accreditation from the Ministry of Education.29 The 2007 IFLA/FAIFE country report on Brazil estimated that there were 1,444 university libraries in the country; this number likely referred only to libraries at public research universities.30 Brazil’s 2010 Census of Higher

Pesadelo ao Sonho’, in Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia: pesquisa e inovac¸a˜o, ed. Aurora Cuevas and Elmira Simea˜o (Brası´lia: Thesaurus, 2011): 23. 23 Miranda, ‘Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia’: 24. 24 Ibid., 25. 25 Anı´bal Perea, ‘Nota de esclarecimento a` imprensa’, March 24, 2011. http://www.bnb.df.gov. br/index.php/component/k2/item/501-nota-de-esclarecimento-%C3%A0-imprensa. 26 Antonio Miranda, Cecı´lia Leite and Emir Suaiden, ‘A biblioteca hı´brida na estrate´gia da inclusa˜o digital na Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia’, in Biblioteca Nacional de Brası´lia, ed. Cuevas and Simea˜o: 29–44. 27 MEC/INEP, Censo da Educac¸a˜o Superior 2010 (Brası´lia: INEP, 2010). http://download. inep.gov.br/educacao_superior/censo_superior/documentos/2010/divulgacao_censo_2010.pdf. 28 Waldomiro C. S. Vergueiro, ‘Perspectives for Information Services in Developing Countries: The Case of Brazil’, New Library World 96(1118) (1995): 23–29. 29 Ca´ssia Costa Rocha Daniel de Deus, ‘Evoluc¸a˜o das bibliotecas universita´rias e suas relac¸o˜es com as polı´ticas educacionais no Brasil’, (XXIV Congresso Brasileiro de Biblioteconomia, Documentac¸a˜o e Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o, Maceio´, 2011). http://www.febab.org.br/congressos/ index.php/cbbd/xxiv/paper/view/418/537. 30 Febab, ‘Brazil’, in Access to Libraries and Information: Towards a Fairer World, IFLA/ FAIFE World Report 2007, ed. Theo J. D. Bothma (The Hague: IFLA/FAIFE, 2007). http://archive.ifla.org/faife/report/31%20IFLA-FAIFE%202007%20CR%20-%20Brazil.pdf.

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Education reported a total of 7,720 academic libraries in the country (see Table 1).31 Table 1: Number of libraries at academic institutions by category Institutional Category Federal

Total 956

State Municipal Nonprofit Private For-Profit Private Total

584 98 2,802 3,280 7,720

Source: MEC/INEP/DEED.

Most Brazilian universities fall somewhere along the continuum between decentralization and centralization, employing a hybrid model in which departmental libraries are coordinated by a large central library.32 Two of the largest academic library systems, USP (University of Sa˜o Paulo) and UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), have distributed systems with a central planning and processing unit. On the opposite end of the spectrum, reflecting complete centralization, is UnB (University of Brası´lia), which maintains a single central library.

School Libraries Whereas universities are required to provide library services to receive accreditation, there was until recently no comparable requirement for primary and secondary schools.33 In 2010 Brazil’s annual School Census showed that libraries were present in 30.4% of elementary schools, 58.7% of middle schools and 74% of high schools (see Table 2).34 The Brazilian school system is divided among municipal (64.7%), private (18.6%), state (16.5%) and

31 32 33 34

MEC/INEP/DEED, ‘Nu´mero de bibliotecas das instituic¸o˜es de educac¸a˜o superior (IES) por categoria administrativa – Brasil – 2010’, in Censo da Educac¸a˜o Superior 2010 (compiled for the authors from raw data by INEP/DEED). Isabel Cristina Louzada Carvalho, A socializac¸a˜o do conhecimento no espac¸o das bibliotecas universita´rias (Niteroi/Rio de Janeiro: Intertexto/Intercieˆncia, 2004): 88. Mary Giraldo Rengifo, ‘School Libraries’, in Global Library and Information Science: A Textbook for Students and Educators, ed. Ismail Abdullahi (Berlin: K. G. Saur, 2009): 395–404. MEC/INEP, Resumo te´cnico – Censo Escolar 2010 (Brası´lia: MEC/INEP, 2011). http:// download.inep.gov.br/download/censo/2010/nota_tecnica_indicadores_rendimento_2010. pdf. These figures include both public and private schools.

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federal schools (0.2%).35 On average, libraries in private schools are better equipped than their public counterparts.36 Table 2: Percentage of schools and students with library service, 2010 Includes both public and private schools. Library Service Type of School Elementary School (Ages 6–10) Middle School (Ages 9–14) High School (Ages 15–17)

Schools 30.4% (42,029) 58.7% (36,417) 74.0% (19,175)

Students 50.0% (8,385,213) 64.6% (9,198,575) 73.2% (6,121,164)

Source: MEC/INEP, Resumo te´cnico.

In May 2010, after successful mobilization efforts by librarians, a law was passed mandating that all public and private schools in Brazil have a functioning library by 2020.38 It stipulates a minimum collection of one book per student and makes schools responsible for management and collection development. It also recommends the employment of professional librarians;39 currently, only about 2% of schools employ librarians, and responsibility for school libraries or reading rooms is usually assigned to a teacher.40 Brazil has nearly 200,000 schools, so the new mandate will create both challenges and opportunities for the library profession, especially because coursework in school librarianship is not yet an integrated part of the library and information science (LIS) curriculum.41

MEC/INEP, ‘Nu´mero de Estabelecimentos de Educac¸a˜o Ba´sica por Localizac¸a˜o e Dependeˆncia Administrativa, segundo a Regia˜o Geogra´fica e a Unidade da Federac¸a˜o – 2010’, table 3.1 in Sinopse Estatı´stica da Educac¸a˜o Ba´sica (Brası´lia: MEC/INEP, 2010). http:// download.inep.gov.br/educacao_basica/censo_escolar/resumos_tecnicos/divulgacao_censo 2010_revisao_04022011.pdf. 36 Nata´lia Sa´tyro and Sergei Soares, A infra-estrutura das escolas brasileiras de ensino fundamental: um estudo com base nos Censos Escolares de 1997 a 2005, Texto para Discussa˜o no 1267 (Brası´lia: IPEA, 2007). http://www.ipea.gov.br/sites/000/2/publicacoes/tds/td_ 1267.pdf. 38 Lei nº 12.244 de 24 de maio de 2010. http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_Ato2007-2010/ 2010/Lei/L12244.htm. Bernadete Santos Campello et al., ‘Paraˆmetros para bibliotecas escolares brasileiras: fundamentos de sua elaborac¸a˜o’, Informac¸a˜o e Sociedade: Estudos 21(2) (2011): 105–120. 39 Campello et al., ‘Paraˆmetros para bibliotecas’: 107. 40 Fundac¸a˜o Bunge, ‘Todos para a biblioteca’, Cidadania, novembro/dezembro de 2011: 6. http://www.fundacaobunge.org.br/uploads/jornal_cidadania/jc_63.pdf. 41 Ibid. 35

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Public Libraries Although most public libraries in Brazil are municipal, capital cities maintain larger libraries that are administratively subordinate to the state government’s secretariat of culture. Many of these state libraries were created in the nineteenth century and have gone through periods of revival and decline.42 Beginning in the late 1970s, steps were taken to organize statewide networks around these libraries as part of a national public library system. Efforts were overseen by the INL, and progress was made in 13 states.43 In 1992 the initiative was reorganized under the auspices of the FBN as the SNBP (Sistema Nacional de Bibliotecas Pu´blicas / National Public Library System).44 Prior to 1990 the INL had also been responsible for keeping detailed library statistics, the last of which were collected in 1988. Since then the resources available to support empirical analysis of Brazilian libraries have been widely scattered.45 Responsibility for maintaining a current registry of libraries was passed to the SNBP, but it has taken action on this front only recently, as part of the National Culture Plan’s new data collection program, Sniic (Sistema Nacional de Informac¸o˜es e Indicadores Culturais / National System of Cultural Information and Indicators). Designed to function as a democratic platform based on the open data model, Sniic is still in the early stages of implementation.46 In September 2011 the SNBP published a call inviting all libraries and reading rooms (public, school, academic, community etc.) to join the new National Registry of Libraries.47 Only public libraries are expressly required to register, however, and failure to do so makes them ineligible to receive government funding.48 As of November 2011 over 3,400

42 43

McCarthy, Developing Libraries: 66–67. Emir Suaiden, Biblioteca pu´blica e informac¸a˜o a` comunidade (Sa˜o Paulo: Global, 1995): 37–42. 44 Decreto no 520, de 13 de maio de 1992, http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/decreto/19901994/D0520.htm. 45 As an example of the kind of analysis possible in the early 1980s, see Cavan McCarthy, ‘Achievements and Objectives in Brazilian Librarianship’, International Library Review 15 (1983): 131–145. The INL surveys have been archived on the IBGE website, available at http://www.ibge.gov.br/seculoxx/arquivos_xls/palavra_chave/cultura/biblioteca.shtm. Current statistical surveys that collect data on libraries or librarians include the IBGE’s PNAD (Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicı´lios / National Household Sample Survey), the Ministry of Labour’s RAIS (Relac¸a˜o Anual de Informac¸o˜es Sociais / Annual Report of Social Information) and the Ministry of Education’s Censo Escolar (School Census) and Censo da Educac¸a˜o Superior (Census of Higher Education). 46 Renato Couto, ‘Sniic: uma plataforma para o se´culo 21’, Sistema Nacional de Informac¸o˜es e Indicadores Culturais, October 3, 2011. http://culturadigital.br/sniic/2011/10/03/sniic-umaplataforma-para-o-seculo-21/. 47 FBN, ‘Edital convocac¸a˜o 29 de setembro de 2011’. http://www.bn.br/portal/arquivos/pdf/ Edital-Cadastro-Nacional-de-Bibliotecas.pdf. 48 Ibid.

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libraries of all types (including 1,501 municipal public libraries) had submitted data.49 Brazil now stands on the verge of erasing its long-standing public library deficit and establishing at least one library in every municipality. In 2009 a census of municipal public libraries was commissioned by the Ministry of Culture and carried out by FGV (Fundac¸a˜o Getu´lio Vargas / Getu´lio Vargas Foundation), a nonprofit business school and economic think tank in Rio de Janeiro. It reported a total of 4,763 public libraries in 4,413 of Brazil’s 5,565 municipalities (79%). An additional 732 municipalities (13%) were in the process of opening or reopening a library, and 420 (8%) remained without a library.50 As of August 2011 the National Library was poised to deliver its last 36 library kits.51 This represents the culmination of repeated efforts throughout the twentieth century and especially since 1995, when the Ministry of Culture created the Library in Every City program, which was reorganized in 2004 after a twoyear hiatus and placed under the purview of the FBN’s Open Book program.52 Under this program, library kits are distributed to local governments, who are responsible for establishing and maintaining library services.

Special Libraries Special libraries and information centres are among Brazil’s best-funded libraries and have been a focal point of government investment, especially in the areas of science, technology and health.53 They are common in government agencies and corporations such as Petrobras, Brazil’s semipublic petroleum company. The Ministry of Agriculture’s Binagri (Biblioteca Nacional de Agricultura / National Agriculture Library), for example, has a diverse collection of 400,000 items, including books, journals, videos, CD-ROMs and legislation (for details about Binagri’s role in information systems, see Information Systems below).54 It retains legal deposit rights for all agricultural documentation produced in Brazil.

49 50 51 52 53 54

Elisa Machado, personal email, December 2, 2011. FGV, Censo Nacional das Bibliotecas Pu´blicas Municipais: estudo quantitativo, principais resultados (Rio de Janeiro: FGV, 2009). http://www.cultura.gov.br/site/wp-content/uploads/ 2010/05/microsoft-powerpoint-fgv-ap-minc-completa79.pdf. Ramiro Ribeiro, ‘Leitor, aquele que leˆ’, Gazeta de Alagoas, August 14, 2011. http://www. bn.br/portal/arquivos/pdf/Gazeta%20de%20Alagoas_14agosto2011.pdf. Josiane Aparecida Mozer, ‘Gesta˜o pu´blica em livro e leitura: revisitando o projeto Uma Biblioteca em Cada Municı´pio’ (Master’s thesis, Fundac¸a˜o Getu´lio Vargas, 2006). http:// bibliotecadigital.fgv.br/dspace/bitstream/handle/10438/2381/155049.pdf?sequence=2. Vergueiro, ‘Perspectives for Information Services’: 26. Ministe´rio da Agricultura, ‘Biblioteca’, accessed January 3, 2012. http://www.agricultura. gov.br/portal/page/portal/Internet-MAPA/pagina-inicial/biblioteca.

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The Brazilian Congress has two libraries (Senate and Chamber of Deputies), each with collections of around 200,000 volumes. Both congressional libraries are now open access (the Chamber of Deputies library had been closed access until completion of a renovation project in 2011). Along with academic libraries, special libraries have been at the forefront of automation, information systems and digital library and institutional repository development. In 2007 the Senate created a digital library using the open source repository software DSpace (http://www2.senado.gov.br/bdsf/) and continues to digitize its collection of rare books; the Chamber of Deputies launched its digital library in 2009, also using DSpace (http://bd.camara.gov.br/bd/).

The Profession Librarianship gained official status as a profession in 1962. The legislation regulating it established an oversight system consisting of the CFB (Conselho Federal de Biblioteconomia / Federal Library Council) and a series of 15 CRBs (Conselhos Regionais de Biblioteconomia / Regional Library Councils). All practicing librarians are required to maintain good standing as members of a CRB. In addition to this formal legal framework, many states also maintain professional associations or unions. The major national organization is Febab (Federac¸a˜o Brasileira de Associac¸o˜es de Biblioteca´rios, Cientistas da Informac¸a˜o e Instituic¸o˜es / Brazilian Federation of Library Associations, Information Scientists and Institutions). Founded in 1959 Febab is a member of IFLA and is responsible for organizing Brazil’s major professional event, the CBBD (Congresso Brasileiro de Biblioteconomia, Documentac¸a˜o e Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o / Brazilian Conference of Library Science, Documentation and Information Science).55 This is held in alternate years; it alternates with the SNBU (Semina´rio Nacional de Bibliotecas Universita´rias / National Seminar for University Libraries). In Brazil, as elsewhere in Latin America, library science degrees are awarded at the undergraduate level. By law, only those with a bachelor’s degree in the field may work as librarians.56 The 2009 PNAD (Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicı´lios / National Household Sample Survey), carried out by the IBGE (Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatı´stica / Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics), which is also responsible for the national census, estimated that there were 32,358 active ‘information professionals’ in Brazil (11.8% male and 88.2%

55 56

Febab, ‘Eventos Febab’, accessed January 10, 2012. http://www.febab.org.br/eventos_ febab.htm. Lei nº 4.084, de 30 de junho de 1962. http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/Leis/1950-1969/ L4084.htm.

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female).57 According to the survey, 55.7% of them were located in the South and Southeast of the country, and 98.2% lived in urban areas. Library science programs are now present in all but four of Brazil’s 27 states/federal districts, but they are concentrated in the South and Southeast, where nearly 60% of them are located.58 Forty-one undergraduate programs are currently offered, nine of which are located in the Southeast state of Sa˜o Paulo alone.59 Most states have one or two programs, usually located in a major city.60 In 2009 plans were made to create Brazil’s first distance learning course in library science. Although still in the approval phase, this is seen as an important step towards expanding the profession and addressing the uneven distribution of library services.61 During the 1970s and 1980s several graduate-level programs in library science were created, but by the 1990s these had been transformed into information science programs.62 There are now 11 accredited graduate programs in information science, several of which grant both master’s and doctoral degrees.63

Bringing Libraries Online Since the early days of the Internet, Brazilian academic and special libraries have benefited from access to computer networks. Beginning in the late

57

IBGE, Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicı´lios (Rio de Janeiro: IBGE, 2009). www. ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/populacao/trabalhoerendimento/pnad2009/microdados.shtm. This estimated tally has a wide margin of error, approximately 15%. In the official occupational classification code, librarians are grouped with documentalists and information analysts as ‘information professionals’; all three areas require a degree in library science: see Josma´ria Lima Ribeiro de Oliveira and Helena Maria Tarchi Crivellari, ‘Emprego, estabilidade e carreira do biblioteca´rio brasileiro: ana´lise de dados da RAIS e RAIS MIGRA nos anos de 1985 a 2009’, in Anais do XII Encontro Nacional de Pesquisa em Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o, ed. Elmira Simea˜o, Jorge Henrique Cabral Fernandes and Isa Maria Freire (Brası´lia: Thesaurus Editora, 2011), CD-ROM: 1965–1983. 58 Marlene de Oliveira et al., Cieˆncia da informac¸a˜o e biblioteconomia: novos conteu´dos e espac¸os de atuac¸a˜o (Belo Horizonte: Editora UFMG, 2008). 59 Ibid. 60 McCarthy, Developing Libraries: 51–52. 61 Sistema CFB/CRB, ‘Graduac¸a˜o em biblioteconomia na modalidade a` distaˆncia’, Boletim Eletroˆnico Sistema CFB/CRB 4(48) (2011). http://repositorio.cfb.org.br/bitstream/123456 789/447/1/Boletim%20N.%2048%20de%2011%20de%20fevereiro%20de%202011%20-%20 Gradua%C3%A7%C3%A3o%20em%20Biblioteconiomia.pdf. 62 Jonathas Luiz Carvalho Silva, ‘A identidade da cieˆncia da informac¸a˜o brasileira no contexto das perspectivas histo´ricas da po´s-graduac¸a˜o: ana´lise dos conteu´dos programa´ticos dos PPGCIs’ (Master’s thesis, Universidade Federal da Paraı´ba, 2011). http://dci2.ccsa.ufpb. br:8080/jspui/bitstream/123456789/670/1/DISSERTA%c3%87%c3%83O%20IDENTIDADE %20DA %20CI%20NO%20BRASIL.pdf. 63 Joana Coeli Ribeiro Garcia, Maria das Grac¸as Targino, eds., Associac¸a˜o Nacional de Pesquisa e Po´s-Graduac¸a˜o em Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o – Ancib: reflexa˜o e proposta para dinamizac¸a˜o ( Joa˜o Pessoa: Ideia, 2011): 66.

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1980s, cooperative efforts involving government agencies and the academic community led to the creation of Brazil’s basic Internet infrastructure. In 1989 the Ministry of Science and Technology launched the RNP (Rede Nacional de Pesquisa / National Research Network), an initiative designed to facilitate academic collaboration; in 1992 the RNP implemented the country’s first data highway or ‘backbone.’64 The original RNP backbone linked 11 cities at speeds ranging from 9.6 to 64 Kbps. Its latest incarnation is a nationwide fibre-optic network that, in 2010, registered a total capacity of 233.2 Gbps.65 Online public access catalogues have become universal among research libraries and information centres, which were also able to draw upon a strong tradition of automated systems, as detailed in Automation in Brazil below.66 Many public and school libraries, however, do not yet have access to basic network infrastructure. Although automated systems are becoming more common, public and school libraries often lack the resources to make their catalogues available online. Results from an annual survey of information and communication technology use in Brazil indicated that 23% of Internet users – and 41% of college-educated users – had gone online to access a library catalogue (see Table 3).67 Table 3: Activities carried out online – training and education68 Looking up the availability of a book or article in the library Total Level of Education Illiterate/Preschool Elementary High school University

23% 13% 15% 19% 41%

Source: CGI.br, TIC Domicı´lios e Empresas 2010.

Until recently Internet access continued to be a service that most public and school libraries were unable to provide; FGV’s 2009 survey of municipal public libraries, for example, indicated that only 29% were able to offer Web 64

Rede Nacional de Pesquisa, ‘Histo´rico’, archived February 12, 2003. http://web.archive.org/ web/20030212072847/http://www.rnp.br/rnp/rnp-historico.html. 65 Rede Nacional de Pesquisa, ‘Mapa do backbone RNP’, 2011. http://www.rnp.br/backbone/ index.php. 66 Cavan McCarthy and Murilo Bastos da Cunha, ‘Digital Library Development in Brazil’, OCLC Systems and Services 19(3) (2003): 115. 67 CGI.br, TIC Domicı´lios e Empresas 2010: pesquisa sobre o uso das tecnologias de informac¸a˜o e comunicac¸a˜o no Brasil (Sa˜o Paulo: CGI.br, 2010). http://www.cetic.br/tic/2010/index. htm. 68 Based on the total number of Internet users.

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access to their patrons.69 For Brazilians with limited access to the Internet, cybercafe´s (usually referred to in Brazil as ‘LAN houses’) are often more convenient and readily available than libraries or other free public access centres (see Table 4).70 There are indications that this situation has begun to change, however. As part of the government’s broad-based ‘Digital Inclusion’ program, Brazil’s Ministries of Culture and Communications have made significant investments in bringing libraries online, with the goal of installing a full-service computer lab in every public library. As of August 2010 over 1,200 libraries had registered to receive training and equipment.71 Table 4: Location of individual access to the internet72 Location Home Work School Someone else’s house Free public access center74 Paid public access center75 Anywhere else via mobile phone Somewhere else Total

Any Access73 56% 22% 14%

Most Frequent 50% 11% 4%

27%

10%

4% 35% 3% 0% 161%

1% 24% 0% 0% 100%

Source: CGI.br, TIC Domicı´lios e Empresas 2010.

69 70

71 72 73 74 75

FGV, Censo Nacional. CGI.br, TIC Domicı´lios e Empresas. Currently, about 70% of Brazilian households lack home Internet access, although this is changing. In 2005, 12.93% of Brazilian households had an Internet connection, whereas by 2010 the number had risen to 27%: see IBGE and Nu´cleo de Informac¸a˜o e Coordenac¸a˜o do Ponto BR (NIC.br), Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicı´lios: acesso a` internet e posse de telefone mo´vel celular para uso pessoal (Rio de Janeiro: IBGE, 2007). http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/populacao/ acessoainternet/internet.pdf; IBGE, ‘Domicı´lios particulares permanentes, total e com bens dura´veis, segundo as Grandes Regio˜es e as Unidades da Federac¸a˜o – 2010’, table 8.6 in Censo Demogra´fico 2010 – resultados preliminares da amostra (Rio de Janeiro: IBGE, 2010). http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/populacao/censo2010/ resultados_preliminares_amostra/default_resultados_preliminares_amostra.shtm. Ministe´rio das Comunicac¸o˜es, ‘Inscric¸a˜o de bibliotecas municipais no Programa Telecentros vai ate´ dia 31’, August 30, 2010. http://www.mc.gov.br/noticias-do-site/22788inscricao-de-bibliotecas-municipais-no-programa-telecentros-vai-ate-31-de-agosto. Based on the total number of Internet users. Total exceeds 100% because multiple answers were accepted. Library, telecenter, community organization, post office etc. Internet cafe´, LAN house or similar.

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Automation in Brazil 1963–1979 The roots of library automation in Brazil can be traced back to 1963, only a few years after Brası´lia became a capital city, when automated typewriters (Flexowriters) were adopted by the library of the Federal Chamber of Deputies. They later used Hollerith cards to print out their catalogue. These were mechanized systems; Brazilians were quick to see the potential value of true library automation systems, which use computers to control and circulate physical items, such as books and periodicals. The earliest computerized system in a Brazilian library was installed on the Sa˜o Carlos campus of USP. A simple computerized system, covering cataloguing, circulation and indexing, was created in 1969, for the library of the computer centre, using Fortran to program an IBM 1130 machine fed by Hollerith cards. Sa˜o Carlos is a rich agricultural city in the interior of Sa˜o Paulo, Brazil’s most developed state; it had a library school, which was also notable for being the first in Brazil to offer a library automation course.76 Other early adopters include Coppe (Coordinated Post-Graduate Programs in Engineering), part of UFRJ, where an automated system was installed in 1970–1971, as part of a student’s thesis project. The first Brazilian institution to import a computer was PUC-Rio (Pontifı´cia Universidade Cato´lica do Rio de Janeiro / Pontifical Catholic University of RJ), which in 1959 purchased a valve-operated Burroughs B205. They later created the ‘Rio Datacentre’ with IBM S/370 equipment; in 1971 they implanted a cataloguing system.77 The first scalable online system was that serving the library of the Federal Senate, initiated in 1972 by the Senate’s own data processing unit, Prodasen. This used an IBM S/370 running Stairs.78 The Federal Senate, a legislative body, did not consider itself bound by the controls on importation of computer equipment decreed by the executive branch of the government. It rapidly gained a reputation for sophisticated systems running on up-to-date equipment.

1980s A survey at the beginning of the 1980s found automated systems in about 40 locations in Brazil, including both libraries and information systems; they were

76 77 78

Cavan McCarthy, ‘The Automation of Libraries and Bibliographic Information Systems in Brazil’ (PhD thesis, Loughborough University of Technology, 1982), University Microfilms 8309241. Ibid. Maria Eliza Nogueira Loddo, Maria Lu´cia Vilar de Lemos and Masami Ishie, ‘Automac¸a˜o da Biblioteca do Senado Federal’, Revista de Biblioteconomia de Brası´lia 5(1) (1977). http://www.brapci.ufpr.br/download.php?dd0=16718.

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usually simple systems, developed and operating in isolation. An in-depth survey of 22 automated library systems revealed 17 automated catalogues, nine circulation systems and five acquisition systems; in all cases the number of transactions was low by Anglo-American standards. Seven internal indexing systems were also noted; public indexing systems were not always appropriate for the needs of specific institutions.79 The end of the 1970s and beginning of the 1980s saw the rise of cooperative cataloguing in Brazil. Brazil had its SIC (Servic¸o de Intercaˆmbio de Catalogac¸a˜o / Service for the Interchange of Cataloguing) working as far back as 1942, modelled on the Library of Congress’s procedures for printing sets of catalogue cards. The SIC became part of Ibict (Instituto Brasileiro de Informac¸a˜o em Cieˆncia e Tecnologia / Brazilian Institute for Information in Science and Technology) and was mechanized using automatic typewriters (Flexowriters). By the beginning of the 1970s it had become clear that this technology was no longer viable; the Flexowriters were abandoned, and preparations were made for conversion to a truly automated system. This would require a bibliographic format, which the director of the SIC, Alice Prı´ncipe Barbosa, prepared as a master’s thesis. This led to the publication of the first manual of the system, called Calco (CAtalogac¸a˜o Legı´vel por COmputador / Machinereadable cataloguing).80 This contained features which were specifically relevant to Brazil, but was based on MARC. Brazilians rapidly discovered that it was easier to write a format than to implement one. There was a confused period of what today would be called ‘format wars’. Various versions of Calco were produced; some versions were difficult to obtain or were marked for internal use; some used only capital letters or omitted punctuation. The National Library and Ibict launched formats simultaneously in 1978.81 The situation was not helped by the untimely death of Alice Prı´ncipe Barbosa in 1975. Few institutions were able to make meaningful implementations of Calco. The most successful was FGV. It started work with Calco in 1976; the Bibliodata/Calco project was formally created in 1977 and began to generate bibliographic records in 1979.82 Activities were gradually increased between 1980 and 1985: the first institution to subscribe to the service was the Joaquim Nabuco Foundation in Recife, Northeast Brazil, which signed on in 1981.83 It was

79

Cavan McCarthy, ‘Library Automation in Brazil: The State of the Art’, Program (London) 17(4) (1983): 233–240. 80 Alice Prı´ncipe Barbosa. Projeto Calco: catalogac¸a˜o cooperativa automatizada (Rio de Janeiro: Instituto Brasileira de Bibliografia e Documentac¸a˜o, 1973), OCLC #2026246. 81 Fundac¸a˜o Getu´lio Vargas, ‘Histo´rico [da Rede Bibliodata]’, [2001]. http://www8.fgv.br/ bibliodata/indexmodelo.asp?modelo=quemsomos.htm. 82 Fundac¸a˜o Getu´lio Vargas, Lista por autor/tı´tulo das obras cadastradas no Bibliodata/ Calco: periodo 10/09/79 a 05/09/86 (Rio de Janeiro: Fundac¸a˜o Getu´lio Vargas, 1986), 87 microfiches, OCLC #18669016. 83 Lu´cia Gaspar, Biblioteca Central Blanche Knopf: um resgate histo´rico (Recife: Fundac¸a˜o Joaquim Nabuco, 2009). http://www.fundaj.gov.br/geral/didoc/bcbk-urh.pdf.

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closely followed by three libraries in Rio de Janeiro: the National Library, the libraries of the IBGE and the PUC-Rio library. Progress was hastened by SESU/MEC (Secretaria de Educac¸a˜o Superior, Ministe´rio da Educac¸a˜o / Secretariat for Higher Education of the Ministry of Education), which in 1986 launched the PNBU (Programa Nacional de Bibliotecas Universita´rias / National Program for University Libraries), which strongly encouraged ‘“the creation of a cooperative network to exchange bibliographic and related data, with a large central database which would permit cooperative cataloguing, circulation and exchange”’.84 This prompted additional university libraries to subscribe to the network. Initially data entry to Bibliodata/Calco was by paper forms; later, diskettes were adopted. Output was originally in the form of printed catalogue cards and book labels; COM (Computer Output Microfilm microfiche) came into use by 1979.85 A further reason to adopt Bibliodata/Calco was the creation of the SAB (Sistema de Administrac¸a˜o de Bibliotecas / Library Administration System) software, created by a partnership between FGV, IBM and FURG (Fundac¸a˜o Universidade Federal do Rio Grande / Federal University of Rio Grande) This offered a circulation module to Bibliodata/Calco subscribers.86 A 1986 survey of library automation in Brazil identified 41 automated library systems; the largest group was made up of special libraries, followed by universities. Only two public libraries had attempted automation. The most widely automated function was cataloguing, followed by indexing and periodical receipts; circulation came in fourth place. Libraries were beginning to implement commercially produced software, such as IBM Stairs, and Peripuc, a periodicals receipt software developed at PUC-Rio. Networks were beginning to have an impact; about 90 libraries participated in networks.87 1990s A 1991/1992 survey of automated libraries found that their number had more than doubled since the 1986 study;88 this was despite the fact that this period had been marked in Brazil by economic and political instability. A total of 86 automated libraries were identified, including 24 in Rio de Janeiro and 17 in

84 85 86 87 88

Rosaly Fa´vero Krzyzanowski, ‘Cooperac¸a˜o em bibliotecas no Brasil: um panorama da de´cada de 50 ate´ nossos dias’, Revista Brasileira de Biblioteconomia e Documentac¸a˜o (Nova Se´rie) 3(1) (2007): 7. www.febab.org.br/rbbd/index.php/rbbd/article/download/27/32. FGV, Lista por autor/tı´tulo. FGV, ‘Histo´rico [da Rede Bibliodata]’. Cavan McCarthy and Fernanda Ivo Neves, ‘Levantamento geral da automac¸a˜o de bibliotecas no Brasil’, Revista de Biblioteconomia de Brası´lia 18(2) (1990): 51–57. Cavan McCarthy and Susana Schmidt, ‘Inovac¸a˜o e mudanc¸a tecnolo´gica nas bibliotecas brasileiras: a de´cada de noventa’ (Congresso Latino-Americano de Biblioteconomia e Documentac¸a˜o, 2, e Congresso Brasileiro de Biblioteconomia e Documentac¸a˜o, 17, Belo Horizonte, 1994).

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Sa˜o Paulo; the only other state to reach double digits was Parana´, with 10 automated installations. It was clear that automated libraries were concentrated in the culturally and economically rich regions of Brazil. Automation was most likely to be found in university libraries, cited 42 times, closely followed by special libraries and documentation centres, with 39 installations. Only three public libraries had attempted automation. Again, cataloguing continued as the most popular function to be automated, cited by 90% of the institutions. Cataloguing software was mostly created in house; the only source mentioned more than once, and the only foreign software supplier, was IBM, with two implementations of Dobis/Libis and one of Stairs. The area of cataloguing networks showed a major advance, being used by 22 institutions, of which 15 were paying subscriptions to receive bibliographic data from Bibliodata/ Calco. Input via paper forms was no longer in use and uploading of local data was evenly divided between diskettes and online; about half of the subscribers received data in the form of printed catalogue cards. Periodical processing was the next system in importance, automated in 41 institutions, almost half of the total. Internally produced systems were the most popular, used in 13 cases. Other choices for control of periodicals included two Brazilian programs running on microcomputers: Perest, installed in seven institutions, and Peripuc, six locations. Databases were considered the next most popular automated application, available in more than 80% of the libraries; 58% had an internal database, 36% searched external databases and 23% were working with CD-ROMs. Computer utilization was typical of a rapidly changing field: 65 institutions used microcomputers, 32 used mainframes while seven preferred minicomputers.89 The Plano Real fixed the value of Brazilian currency against the US Dollar in 1994, inaugurating a period of economic stability which favoured contacts with overseas companies.90 The years 1994–1996 were significant for major changes in Bibliodata/Calco. FGV decided to replace its mainframe with a network running Risc/Unix. Calco was considered out of date and quality software was readily available overseas. It was abandoned in favour of US MARC, which greatly improved prospects for international collaboration. In 1996 FGV entered into a partnership with VTLS (Virginia Tech Library System), whereby the foundation would promote the system’s software in Brazil. VTLS was notable amongst US integrated library software systems for its willingness to operate outside North America. Migration of bibliographic data, authority files etc. was, however, surprisingly difficult. It was not possible to upload new data for a period of six months, and only in July 1997 did the

89 90

Ibid. Claudia Negra˜o Balby, ‘Estudos de uso de cata´logos on-line (OPACs): revisa˜o metodolo´gica e aplicac¸a˜o da te´cnica de ana´lise de log de transac¸o˜es a um OPAC de biblioteca’ (PhD diss., Universidade de Sa˜o Paulo, Escola de Comunicac¸o˜es e Artes, 2002).

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system function fully.91 ‘Calco’ was removed from the name of the network, which came to be called simply the ‘Bibliodata Network’ (Rede Bibliodata). The network gained several new subscribers, including major university libraries, probably peaking at that time, with a bibliographic file of approximately a million titles, about 100,000 name authority records and 35,000 subject headings.92 The 60 subscribing libraries were inputting an average of 10,000 titles monthly.93 The partnership with VTLS lasted only until the end of 1998; the financial return which FGV received from the installation of VTLS systems in Brazilian libraries was lower than had been hoped. It also took longer than expected to create the CD-ROM version of Bibliodata, which finally came out in January 1999.94 The CD-ROM of the combined collections of USP, Unesp (University of the State of Sa˜o Paulo) and Unicamp (University of Campinas), known as the UNIBIBLI file, had been launched in 1993, and had its fourth edition by 1997.95 SIBi/USP (Sistema de Bibliotecas da USP / USP Library System), has long been the largest university library system in Brazil. This combination of 44 separate departmental libraries initiated automation in 1985 with a software called Dedalus. This was programmed locally using Burroughs equipment; the catalogue file quickly reached 700,000 entries. It was online by 1991, when it moved to Unisys hardware, and offered data via Telnet in 1993.96 Its main impact on the story of library automation in Brazil was in 1994, when it put out a ‘Request for Proposal’, a pioneering action in Brazil. An Israeli company, Ex-Libris, was contracted to install its Aleph system, which runs on networks of microcomputers. This was based on software developed at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which routinely deals with materials in three scripts: Hebrew, Latin and Arabic. The system was first offered commercially in 1985. This was shortly before the fall of Communism, and Ex-Libris had little difficulty in implementing Cyrillic script and gaining contracts from major libraries in Eastern Europe. This international experience placed the company in an excellent position to expand to Latin America.

91 92 93 94 95 96

FGV, ‘Histo´rico [da Rede Bibliodata]’. Paulo de Avellar de Go´es e Vasconcellos, ‘Bibliodata/Calco: informac¸a˜o bibliogra´fica para o desenvolvimento’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 25(3) (1996). http://revista.ibict.br/index.php/ ciinf/article/view/472/431. Fernando Modesto, ‘Panorama da catalogac¸a˜o no Brasil: da de´cada de 1930 aos primeiros anos do Se´culo XXI’, 2007. http://cdij.pgr.mpf.gov.br/noticias/palestra_cbbd/RE_A1.pdf. FGV, ‘Histo´rico [da Rede Bibliodata]’. Luiz Atilio Vicentini, ‘O cata´logo eletroˆnico das Bibliotecas da Unicamp na Internet: uma avaliac¸a˜o do uso’ (Campinas: Unicamp, 2007). http://cutter.unicamp.br/document/?down= 1120. Rosaly Fa´vero Krzyzanowski et al., Subsı´dios para ana´lise, selec¸a˜o e aquisic¸a˜o de software para gerenciamento de bibliotecas: experieˆncia do Sistema Integrado de Bibliotecas da USP (SIBi/USP) (Sa˜o Paulo: SIBi/USP, 1996).

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Even so, it took until 1997 to train staff, migrate data to the new system and finally make the Aleph system available to the public.97 A team of government librarians and systems analysts from the Office of the President of Brazil evaluated available integrated library systems.98 They were able to obtain detailed information on six systems which identified users; four of these were purely Brazilian: OrtoDocs from Potiron Informa´tica was used in the National Library in Rio de Janeiro, the Federal University of Bahia and other universities and government agencies. Thesaurus, from Via ´ pia Informa´tica, was used in a variety of government and ministry libraries. A Informa Biblioteca Eletroˆnica was widely used in smaller special libraries. ArcheS Lib concentrated on smaller libraries, down to the school library level. In other words, by the end of the millennium, Brazilian software companies were offering products for the entire range of libraries, while emphasizing government and university markets. The Brazil/US joint venture involving FGV and VTLS had installed VTLS 500 at UFMG (Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais / Federal University of MG), Puccamp (Pontifı´cia Universidade Cato´lica de Campinas / Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas) and other locations. The only completely foreign library system was Aleph, Ex-Libris, used by USP, Unesp and Unicamp; in other words, Aleph was being used in the major library systems of Brazil’s richest and most industrialized state. It also served a couple of other university libraries and was in the process of implantation at the Federal Senate. The evaluators considered that OrtoDocs, Aleph and Thesaurus all met their requirements. Other relevant events in the 1990s included the launch by FURG of the second generation of its SAB software, known as SAB II, in 1991.99 This was used in about a dozen locations, mainly university libraries.100 OrtoDocs from Potiron Informa´tica, launched in 1993, was the first graphical software developed in Brazil to be fully compatible with MARC. It employed 25 librarians in Sa˜o Paulo and Campinas.101 The year 1993 also marked the launch of SophiA software, created by Prima Informa´tica, located in Sa˜o Jose´ dos

97 Rosaly Fa´vero Krzyzanowski et al., ‘Implementac¸a˜o do Banco de Dados Dedalus, do Sistema Integrado de Bibliotecas da Universidade de Sa˜o Paulo’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 26(2) (1997): 168–176. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0100-19651997000200010. 98 Adelaide Ramos e Coˆrte et al., ‘Automac¸a˜o de bibliotecas e centros de documentac¸a˜o: o processo de avaliac¸a˜o e selec¸a˜o de softwares’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 28(3) (1999): 241– 256. http://www.scielo.br/pdf/ci/v28n3/v28n3a2.pdf. Adelaide Ramos e Coˆrte and Ieˆda Muniz de Almeida, Avaliac¸au˜o de softwares para bibliotecas e arquivos (Sau˜o Paulo: Polis, 2000); Coˆrte and Almeida, Avaliac¸au˜o de softwares para bibliotecas e arquivos: uma visau˜o do cenae´rio nacional, 2nd edn. (Sau˜o Paulo: Polis, 2002). 99 Claudio O. I. Nunes et al. Automac¸a˜o dos servic¸os de informac¸a˜o na Universidade do Rio Grande e o desenvolvimento do Sistema de Administrac¸a˜o de Bibliotecas II – SAB II (Rio Grande, URG, 1991). 100 Nu´cleo de Tecnologia da Informac¸a˜o, ‘Histo´ria’, FURG, [2005?]. http://www.nti.furg.br/ index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1&Itemid=36. 101 Potiron Informa´tica, ‘OrtoDocs’, 2002. http://www.potiron.com.br/v2_ortodocs.htm.

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Campos, a city strategically placed on the main road between Rio de Janeiro and Sa˜o Paulo. Prima’s range of SophiA software offers an unusual but effective combination of solutions for school management, together with software for school and other libraries, including digital libraries.102 PUC-PR (Pontifı´cia Universidade Cato´lica do Parana´ / Pontifical Catholic University of PR), in the city of Curitiba, decided to develop its library software in house. It developed the Pergamum system, covering all typical library activities.103 From 1997 it was available commercially and was first adopted in various smaller, mostly university, libraries.104 The very last year of the century was marked by the fear of turmoil in the computer field because of the Year 2K bug, but fortunately the attention given to it by the media encouraged computer staff to solve the problem before the beginning of the New Year. Many decided that it would be simpler to upgrade old systems; Aleph gained two major new customers from this: Prodasen and UFRGS (Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul / Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul).105

2000–2011 The major thrust in library automation in Brazil took place in the 1990s; by the 2000s the focus of development had changed from library automation to digital libraries and from databases to the Internet. Notably, networking has continued to increase in the new millennium. The decision of Prodasen, the computer centre of the Federal Senate, to adopt Aleph also gave impetus to a group of government libraries already cooperating with Prodasen. This led in 2000 to the formal establishment of RVBI (Rede Virtual de Bibliotecas – Congresso Nacional / Virtual Library Network of the National Congress). This unites 14 government libraries in Brası´lia.106 The Bibliodata Network entered the twenty-first century with 50 participants; most were university libraries, and many of these had several departmental libraries, so the actual number of service points was considerably larger. The Bibliodata catalogue file had more than 1.4 million entries; in many areas it was believed to cover 80% of all existing Brazilian titles.

102 Prima Software, ‘Portal SophiA’, 2011. http://www.portalsophia.com.br. 103 Taˆnia Mara Dias, ‘Pergamum – Sistema informatizado da biblioteca da PUC/PR’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 27(3) (1998): 319–328. http://www.scielo.br/pdf/ci/v27n3/27n3a10.pdf. 104 Pergamum, ‘Portal Pergamum’, 2011. http://www.pergamum.pucpr.br/redepergamum/ index.php. 105 Balby, ‘Estudos de uso’. 106 Senado Federal, ‘RBVI: Rede Virtual de Bibliotecas – Congresso Nacional’, 2011. http:// www.senado.gov.br/biblioteca/rvbi/rvbi.asp.

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About 60% of the titles were in Portuguese, 20% in English.107 A source from a few years later, however, speaks of only 32 subscribers.108 From 1996 major Brazilian libraries had been joining OCLC;109 it was difficult for a national system, even in a country as large as Brazil, to compete with the wealth of information in WorldCat. Bibliodata updated its CD-ROM production methods in 2005 and the 36th edition of its CD-ROM came out in October 2011, when the file had reached 1.8 million titles; the disk also included authority lists and subject headings.110 In December 2011, as this text was being finalized, the transfer of Bibliodata to Ibict was discussed at a high-level meeting in Brası´lia; this would be a return to its origins, as Bibliodata/Calco had grown from the SIC, Ibict’s former centralized cataloguing system.111 There was considerable change in the library system of the megacity of Sa˜o Paulo in 2003. A network of CEUs (Centros Educacionais Unificados / Unified Educational Centres), each containing a public library, was established. In 2005 the SMB (Sistema Municipal de Bibliotecas / Municipal Library System) was launched, uniting 107 libraries, that is: 54 city libraries, 45 CEUs, four libraries in the Sa˜o Paulo Cultural Centre and various other libraries, with a total collection of around 5 million items. The city was still using the Dobis/Libis system, programmed in PL/1 to run on IBM mainframes, which had been installed in far-off 1982. A local software company, V&M Informa´tica, interested in partnerships between public and private institutions, created and donated a complete library automation system in 2003 to Sa˜o Paulo city libraries. This was called Alexandria On Line; the donation did not run entirely smoothly; there were problems in migrating records from Dobis/Libis to the new system, and significant amounts of data were lost. Migration was terminated in 2004, as the mainframe had to be deactivated. Other problems included lack of computers and/or Internet access in libraries and lack of (trained) staff. The loan collections of four major libraries, including the imposing downtown library, were updated to the new system in 2005– 2007, but this was considered too slow. This problem was only solved when the city outsourced processing for the automated collection to a private company, which hired library science students and librarians, paying them per unit

107 Fernanda Passini Moreno, ‘Requisitos Funcionais para Registros Bibliogra´ficos – FRBR: um estudo no cata´logo da Rede Bibliodata’ (Master’s thesis, Universidade de Brası´lia, 2006). http://www.enancib.ppgci.ufba.br/premio/UnB_Moreno.pdf. 108 Marcos Luiz Pereira Lopea, ‘Catalogac¸a˜o cooperativa em redes de informac¸a˜o: estudo de caso da Rede Bibliodata’ (Undergraduate thesis, Universidade de Brası´lia, 2010). http:// bdm.bce.unb.br/bitstream/10483/959/1/2010_MarcosLuizLopes.pdf. 109 Modesto, ‘Panorama da catalogac¸a˜o’. 110 FGV, ‘Notı´cias’, October 2011.http://www8.fgv.br/bibliodata/indexmodelo.asp?modelo= noticias.htm. 111 Murilo Bastos da Cunha, ‘O Bibliodata vai para o Ibict?’ Biblioteca do Biblioteca´rio (blog), December 21, 2011. http://bibliotecadobibliotecario.blogspot.com/2011/12/o-bibliodatavai-para-o-ibict-em-7-de.html.

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processed.112 Automation of Sa˜o Paulo’s SMB was concluded in December 2011, again as this text was being finalized.113 Pergamum, from PUC-PR, grew into the Rede Pergamum (Pergamum Network); in 2011 it claimed 99 institutions and a central bibliographic file of 3.5 million titles.114 It had also attracted major universities, such as UFMG, with 50,000 students, served by 26 departmental libraries, and UFSC (Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina / Federal University of SC). By 2011 Pergamum had become one of the top-level ILS software products, challenging Aleph in the university library market. A recent study concluded that users were satisfied with Pergamum, but did not use all the features of the system.115 At least one library had migrated from Aleph to Pergamum.116 FURG continues to use an in-house system; it is now called Sistema de Administrac¸a˜o de Bibliotecas Argo.117 This should not be confused with the Argonauta database and digital library system, available from Datacoop, a cooperative of information specialists and consultants founded in 2006 in Rio de Janeiro.118 Open source software began to attract serious attention in Brazilian libraries in the twenty-first century. One of the earliest systems was PHL, or Personal Home Library, created in 2001 by Elysio Mira Soares de Oliveira, who had worked intensively with MicroISIS and WinISIS. He adopted CDS/ISIS formats to a sparse and simplified automation system, which was distributed free of charge and was mostly used by small libraries, such as colleges and schools.119 Version 8.2 for Windows and Linux was launched in September 2011. MicroISIS, a relatively simple DOS system, had been replaced by a Windows-compatible version in 1995, which became Web-compatible as

112 Cle´o da Silva Lima, ‘Automac¸a˜o de bibliotecas pu´blicas municipais da cidade de Sa˜o Paulo’ (Undergraduate thesis, Universidade de Mogi das Cruzes, Sa˜o Paulo, 2011). http://www. rabci.org/rabci/node/154?page=14. 113 Secretaria Municipal de Cultura, ‘Secretaria de Cultura anuncia conclusa˜o da informatizac¸a˜o do acervo das bibliotecas pu´blicas’, December 19, 2011. http://www.prefeitura.sp.gov. br/cidade/secretarias/cultura/noticias/?p=9856. 114 Pergamum, ‘Portal Pergamum’. 115 Carla Cristina Vieira de Oliveira, ‘A interac¸a˜o dos usua´rios da UFMG com o cata´logo online do Pergamum’ (Master’s thesis, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, 2008). http://www.scielo.br/pdf/pci/v13n2/a17v13n2.pdf. 116 Fabiano Couto, ‘Uso de softwares para o gerenciamento de bibliotecas: um estudo de caso da migrac¸a˜o do sistema Aleph para o sistema Pergamum na Universidade de Santa Cruz do Sul’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 34(2) (2005): 105–111. http://www.scielo.br/pdf/ci/v34n2/ 28560.pdf. 117 Sistema de Bibliotecas, ‘Cata´logo on-line’, FURG, accessed December 19, 2011, http:// www.biblioteca.furg.br/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12&Itemid=46. 118 Datacoop, ‘Famı´lia Biblioteca Argonauta’, accessed December 19, 2011. http://www. datacoop.com.br/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15&Itemid=29. 119 ‘Personal Home Library’, 2011. http://www.elysio.com.br.

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WWWISIS in 1997; seven versions of WWWISIS have been issued.120 But it was still a database system, not a library system. That capacity was only added with the introduction of ABCD (Automac¸a˜o de Bibliotecas e Centros de Documentac¸a˜o / Automation of Libraries and Documentation Centres) in 2009.121 The latest information is that the manual of ABCD is being translated into Portuguese; despite the lack of a manual, some institutions in Southeast and South Brazil have adopted the system.122 Biblivre, (shortened from Biblioteca Livre or Free Library), was the result of a partnership between Sabin (Sociedade de Amigos da Biblioteca Nacional / Society of Friends of the National Library), Coppe and Itau´, a major Brazilian bank.123 It is an open source program, licensed under GPLv3, available for download free of charge.124 Preliminary work was undertaken in 2005 and the official launch was in 2006. Version 2 was available in 2007 and version 3 in 2010. It runs on Windows, Linux or Unix, in Portuguese, English or Spanish. A professionally produced 203-page manual in these three languages can also be downloaded.125 It claims to be used in more than 2,000 Brazilian libraries; there are a few overseas installations, mostly in Portuguese-speaking countries; school and small public libraries are predominant. The Biblivre site also links to about a hundred online catalogues. Despite financial and other restraints, there has been a steady increase in the number of automated libraries in Brazil; staff are now better trained and improved software is available. The growth of open source software should accelerate this process. It is difficult to draw other conclusions from this mixed history. Brazilians attempted a wide range of approaches to library automation and ended up with a variety of solutions. There may have been some duplication, but the final result was positive; developing countries may advance more quickly if they avoid dogmatism and attempt various approaches. University libraries seem to have played a predominant role in the process. Another significant conclusion might be that the main problem in library automation in developing countries is that of bibliographic data. Clean, correctly formatted data is essential for successful library automation, 120 ‘ISIS Family: WWWISIS’, Bireme, 2010. http://bvsmodelo.bvs.br/php/level.php?lang= en&component=31&item=2. 121 Virtual Health Library, ‘Launching of the system ABCD version 1.0’, Bireme, 2009. http:// www.eventos.bvsalud.org/agendas/abcd/?lang=en. 122 Alisson de Castro and Tatiana Lu´cia Barboza, ‘Famı´lia ISIS: do Microisis ao ABCD’ (XXIV Congresso Brasileiro de Biblioteconomia, Documentac¸a˜o e Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o, Maceio´, 2011). http://www.febab.org.br/congressos/index.php/cbbd/xxiv/paper/view/510/ 720. 123 Biblivre, ‘What is Biblivre?’, 2010. http://www.biblivre.org.br/joomla/index.php?lang=en. 124 Eliane Serra˜o Alves Mey and Naira Christofoletti Silveira, Catalogac¸a˜o no plural (Brası´lia: Briquet de Lemos Livros, 2009): 84–85. 125 Biblivre, Biblivre versau˜o 3.0: sistema de automac¸a˜o de bibliotecas [manual] (Rio de Janeiro: Sabin, 2010). http://biblivre.org.br/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view= article&id=39%3Amanuais-a-tutoriais&catid=27%3Ahelp&Itemid=60&lang=pt#.

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but librarians and systems analysts in developing countries may initially be unable to generate and process data at this level, which may condemn them to a painful path of constantly updated systems and data migration.

Information Systems This section deals with systems which organize and disseminate bibliographical information nationally or internationally, as well as database systems used for informational purposes at a local level. They developed in parallel with library automation systems (which control physical items, such as books and periodicals, at a library level), but should be examined separately. The CCN (Cata´logo Coletivo Nacional / National Cooperative Catalogue), the national database of Brazilian periodical holdings, is a vitally important, although relatively simple system which bridges the gap between traditional and automated systems, also between information and library systems (http://ccn.ibict.br/busca.jsf ). It has been in active daily use since 1954, when it was initiated using catalogue cards; it began automation in 1968 as part of the IBBD (Instituto Brasileiro de Bibliografia e Documentac¸a˜o / Brazilian Institute of Bibliography and Documentation).126 In the 1970s there were major changes; in 1973 data processing was transferred to INPE (Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais / National Institute for Space Research), in Sa˜o Jose´ dos Campos. In 1975 the IBBD was transformed into Ibict, which maintained the system. A further major step forward came in 1978, when COM fiche output was initiated; previously, the complete file had only been available at Ibict. By the end of the decade a network of 13 regional centres was feeding 6,000 items per year to a file of 71,000 entries; most centres submitted input on 80-column cards, although magnetic tape had been adopted by some.127 The 1980s saw the birth of Comut (Programa de Comutac¸a˜o Bibliogra´fica / Bibliographic Exchange Program), which permitted the interchange of documents, such as copies of journal articles, theses or chapters of books, amongst participating Brazilian libraries. This naturally led to increased demand for information; in 1983 Finep (Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos / Research and Projects Financing), part of Brazil’s Ministry of Science and Technology, donated 250 microfilm readers to libraries.128 Also in 1983 the CCN was

126 Ibict, ‘Cata´logo Coletivo Nacional: Histo´rico’, 2005. http://www.ibict.br/secao.php?cat= CCN/Hist%F3rico. 127 McCarthy, ‘Automation of Libraries’. 128 Ricardo Rodrigues, ‘Programa de Comutac¸a˜o Bibliogra´fica Comut: 25 anos de funcionamento’ (XXI Congresso Brasileiro de Biblioteconomia, Documentac¸a˜o e Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o, Curitiba, 2005). http://www.antoniomiranda.com.br/ciencia_informacao/comut_ricardo. html.

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upgraded when it adopted a format compatible with ISDS, International Serials Data System; by 1986 it was possible to access the file using the Brazilian government’s packet-switching network, Renpac (Rede Nacional de Computadores / National Computer Network).129 The decade of the 1990s was a busy one for the CCN: in 1993 the catalogue first appeared in CD-ROM; in the following year the file became searchable online via Telnet. Oracle software was adopted in 1997; the next year brought WWW access and in 1999 the CCN was totally integrated with Comut.130 In the medical field, computerized systems arrived early: Medlars, the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System, launched by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) in Maryland in 1964, was the first large-scale database available to the public. Its online version, Medline, was available from 1971; by the next year it was being searched via satellite from a terminal at Bireme (Biblioteca Regional de Medicina / Regional Medical Library) in Sa˜o Paulo.131 This was not viewed as a permanent solution; from 1974 the system was implemented at Bireme, permitting searching without the need for a satellite link. In its initial stages tapes were sent down monthly from the National Library of Medicine in Maryland and processed on an IBM 370/ 155 at IPEN (Instituto de Pesquisas Energe´ticas e Nucleares / Institute for Nuclear Energy Research; formerly known as the IEA – Instituto de Energia Atoˆmica), about 10 miles from Bireme. It is interesting to look back at the procedures which were standard at that time: queries were sent in on paper forms, and specially trained librarians developed search algorithms and submitted them to the computer. Results were printed out at IPEN then mailed from Bireme. Access improved in 1975 when terminals to search Medline at Bireme were installed in major Brazilian cities. It is important to note that Bireme was not just receiving information, but also submitting data on Latin American medical journals to the NLM. The end of the decade saw another important step forward with the 1979 launch of IMLA (Index Medicus Latino-Americano), indexing about 150 journals; at that time Medline only covered 44 Latin American and Caribbean journals.132 Bireme upgraded its name from the Regional Medical Library to the Latin American and Caribbean Centre on Health Sciences in 1982, while maintaining the acronym Bireme. IMLA developed into a database, Lilacs (Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe de Informac¸a˜o em Cieˆncias da Sau´de / Latin American and Caribbean Literature in the Health Sciences); the new title

129 Ibict, ‘Cata´logo Coletivo Nacional’. 130 Ibid. 131 Bireme is part of the PAHO, the Pan-American Health Organization, which in turn is subordinate to the World Health Organization, a United Nations agency. 132 Ma´rcia Regina Barros da Silva, Luis Ferla and Dante Marcello Claramonte Gallian, ‘Uma ‘biblioteca sem paredes’: histo´ria da criac¸a˜o da Bireme’, Histo´ria, Cieˆncias, Sau´de– Manguinhos 13(1) 1 (2006). http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0104-59702006000100006.

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reflected the institution’s increased interest in public health. In 1988 Lilacs was made available on CD-ROM, one of the first CD-ROMs to carry scientific information.133 To read them, Bireme imported external CD-ROM readers made by Toshiba, which were about the size of a shoe box; output from these pioneering devices was of course plain text, green letters on a black background. At that time the Brazilian government strictly controlled the importation of computers and peripheral equipment, but an exception was made for Bireme, as medical information was considered strategically important. Many Brazilians, especially those with medical or university connections, were introduced to CD-ROMs by Lilacs. Bireme was able to replace the clumsy external CD-ROM drives needed to read Lilacs with much smaller internal drives around 1992. CD-ROMs became very popular with Brazilian libraries, as they could be sought as gifts or purchased like books, avoiding the bureaucratic problems of paying a variable monthly sum for searching foreign databases via telecommunications links. Bireme continued to innovate throughout the decade and beyond. The SciELO system for control, production and dissemination of medical journals was initiated in 1997; it was an integral part of the BVS (Biblioteca Virtual em Sau´de / Virtual Health Library), launched in 1998.134 SciELO is discussed in detail in the next section of this chapter. Major databases in other fields also began to be accessed in Brazil in the 1970s. Notably, two parallel agricultural information systems became available, one for agricultural research, the other for agricultural extension services. Embrapa (Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecua´ria / Brazilian Agency for Agricultural Research), headquartered in Brası´lia but with research stations throughout Brazil, was created in 1973. It was generally considered the largest information system in Brazil. Central to its activities were Agricola (Agricultural Online Access) from the National Agricultural Library of the United States, but it also processed CAB (Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau), FSTA (Food Science Technology Abstracts) and Biosis (Biological Information System). Its first product, launched in 1977, was an SDI service which attracted 3,200 users with 6,000 profiles by the end of the decade. At that time results were printed and mailed to researchers; each package included an evaluation form; feedback from the forms was processed on Embrapa’s computers. Retrospective searches were available by the end of the decade, running on an IBM 370/145, searching a file of 4.5 million entries. The other organization was in a slightly different but parallel area; this was Embrater (Empresa Brasileira de Assisteˆncia Te´cnica e Extensa˜o Rural / Brazilian Agency for Agricultural Extension and Assistance), created in 1974 in Brası´lia on the basis of previous agricultural extension agencies. They

133 Bireme, ‘Histo´ria’, [2009]. http://regional.bvsalud.org/local/Site/bireme/P/historia.htm. 134 Ibid.

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searched Agris (International Information System for the Agricultural Sciences and Technology) tapes, generated by the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization, a United Nations agency) (http://agris.fao.org/). Their SDI service was set up in 1975; by the end of the decade it had 3,400 users, with 4,200 profiles. Retrospective searching was available from 1982.135 Embrater was responsible for Snida (Sistema Nacional de Informac¸a˜o Agrı´cola / National System for Agricultural Information) from 1975 to 1978, when that was transformed into Binagri. Binagri had its own building and staff, and became semiautonomous in relation to Embrater.136 In 1982 Binagri became Cenagri (Centro Nacional de Informac¸a˜o Documental Agrı´cola / National Centre for Agricultural Information and Documentation).137 Embrater was folded into Embrapa in 1990, as part of President Collor’s attempts to reduce central government.138 Cenagri, however, continued its work under the umbrella of the Ministry of Agriculture. Embrapa also maintained its own research-oriented information system. In 2005 Cenagri reverted to its previous name, Binagri; its major database is Agrobase, with 250,000 references in Brazilian agriculture.139 Embrapa offers links to numerous external databases140 as well as maintaining its internal files,141 including documentation of its research activities, with over 160,000 entries.142 Another area strategically important for Brazil was nuclear power; the relevant government agency was CNEN (Comissa˜o Nacional de Energia Nuclear / National Commission for Nuclear Energy), Rio de Janeiro, which maintained CIN (Centro de Informac¸o˜es Nucleares / Centre for Nuclear Information). This was responsible for access to INIS, the International Nuclear Information System, headquartered at the International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna.143 INIS tapes were originally sent to Brazil twice a month; CIN also indexed Brazilian papers in the atomic energy field and submitted the data to Vienna. CIN created its SDI service in 1969–1970, as soon as INIS data became available. Output was originally in concertinas of cards; by the end of the decade 1,600

135 McCarthy, ‘Automation of Libraries’. 136 Binagri, ‘Acesso a`s informac¸o˜es’, [2007?]. http://www.agricultura.gov.br/biblioteca/acessoas-informacoes. 137 Ibid. 138 ‘Deputado mineiro propo˜e ressuscitar a Embrater’, G1 Economia: Agronego´cios, October 27, 2011. http://g1.globo.com/economia/agronegocios/noticia/2011/10/deputado-mineiropropoe-ressuscitar-a-embrater.html. 139 Ibid. 140 Embrapa, ‘Bases de dados’, 2006. http://www.prodemb.cnptia.embrapa.br/index.jsp?url= mostraBases.jsp&outraBase=O&baseDados=null. 141 Embrapa, ‘BDPA: Bases de Dados da Pesquisa Agropecua´ria’, 2006. http://www.bdpa. cnptia.embrapa.br/. 142 Embrapa, ‘Produc¸a˜o Cientı´fica Embrapa’, 2006. http://www.prodemb.cnptia.embrapa.br/. 143 Luı´s Fernando Saya˜o and Anna Christina T. Monteiro de Barros, ‘Centro de informac¸o˜es nucleares: 25 anos de apoio da CNEN a` a´rea de C&T’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 24(2) (1995). http://revista.ibict.br/ciinf/index.php/ciinf/article/view/558/507.

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users had submitted 1,900 profiles, processed on an IBM System/3 minicomputer located at CIN. Retrospective searching became available in 1975, using the IBM 370/165 at PUC-RJ.144 CIN/CNEN realized in the 1980s that it was impossible to attend to their users’ needs by offering access to a single database; they therefore internalized access to several other files relevant to atomic energy. By the middle of the decade Telex-based services began to come into use at CIN; they enabled researchers to economize approximately 85% of the cost of a database search via an international satellite link.145 CIN/CNEN advanced further in the 1990s, offering Internet, packet switching or dial-in access to more than 10 databases, with a total of 10 million entries with abstracts. According to CIN’s calculations, it would have cost Brazil an additional US$625,000 to purchase this information overseas.146 In the year 2000 CNEN made the INIS database available via Internet to anybody who followed a simple registration system.147 Towards the end of 2006 CIN/ CNEN launched the Portal do Conhecimento Nuclear (Gateway to Nuclear Knowledge), a unified gateway to CIN and related information services.148 In the following year a digital library was created to preserve the memory of CNEN: Biblioteca Digital Memo´ria da CNEN.149 In 2009 CNEN made the 3 million items in the INIS database fully and freely available via Internet to any user, without registration.150 These were the major information systems in Brazil at that time. Ibict was central to accessing other databases from Brazil because it was, for several years, responsible for searching any overseas file which could not be economically imported. This system was established in 1978, and searches were conducted via the Systems Development Corporation, California, which at that time offered access to 15 million references. In 1979 a total of 343 searches were conducted for 98 requests from 45 organizations. For a substantial fee the requester received up to 100 references, selected in up to 30 minutes of online searching. This system lasted until 1982, when Brazilian organizations were permitted to search foreign databases directly, such as Dialog and the French CNRS or the German STN. In 1985 software was developed which would enable smaller organizations to produce databases of local relevance. This was MicroISIS, the

144 McCarthy, ‘Automation of Libraries’. 145 Luı´s Fernando Saya˜o, ‘Suprir: informac¸o˜es bibliogra´ficas via Telex’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 15(1) (1986): 63–69. http://revista.ibict.br/ciinf/index.php/ciinf/article/view/1417/1040. 146 Saya˜o and Barros, ‘Centro de informac¸o˜es’. 147 CNEN/CIN, ‘Acesso livre a` base de dados INIS na WEB’, Fatos & Dados, 2009. http://cin. cnen.gov.br/fatosedados2009/. 148 CNEN/CIN, ‘Pre´-lanc¸amento do Portal do Conhecimento Nuclear’, Fatos & Dados, 2006. http://cin.cnen.gov.br/fatosedados2006/. 149 CIN/CNEN, ‘Biblioteca Digital Memo´ria da CNEN’, Fatos & Dados, 2007. http://cin.cnen. gov.br/fatosedados2007/. 150 CNEN/CIN, ‘Acesso livre a` base’.

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microcomputer version of CDS/ISIS (Computerized Documentation System / Integrated Set for Information Systems). MicroISIS was based on mainframe and minicomputer software developed by Unesco and the ILO (International Labour Organization). It was sponsored by Unesco, which promoted it on an almost worldwide basis; it became widely used in East European and developing countries (the software was almost unknown in the US, which was not a member of Unesco between 1984 and 2003).151 A major advantage of MicroISIS was that it was available free of charge for noncommercial use; organizations in Unesco member countries were simply asked to register for a free license with the local distributor (Ibict in the case of Brazil). It also offered a field structure appropriate to bibliographical data: variable fields, repeated fields and subfields (in this it is similar to MARC). To create a database, users defined a series of fields, using the elements numeric tag; field name; type (alphanumeric/alphabetic/numeric); repeatable/not repeatable; subfield indicators (if subfields are used). The indexing and retrieval modules were especially powerful: it was possible to set up a Boolean search for any string in any field, identify fields without data etc. Users were able to set up their own input screens and define their printout. Importing, exporting, record locking and database locking were all available. As would be expected from a Unesco system, it was multilingual.152

Digital Libraries In 1995, when the Internet became commercially available in Brazil, the federal government formed a new steering committee, now known as CGI.br (Comiteˆ Gestor da Internet no Brasil / Brazilian Internet Steering Committee), to oversee its development.153 In the early days CGI.br created a series of working groups to carry out strategic planning in areas ranging from health services to distance learning.154 Under the coordination of Ibict, members of the LIS community came together to form the GT/BV (Grupo de Trabalho de Bibliotecas Virtuais / Virtual Library Working Group). This early initiative, which remained active for about a year, helped set the stage for subsequent digital library development in Brazil.

151 Unesco, ‘CDS/ISIS database software’, 2008. http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/ev.php-URL_ ID=2071&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html. 152 Andrew Buxton and Alan Hopkinson, The CDS/ISIS for Windows Handbook (Paris: Unesco, 2001). http://www.unesco.org/isis/files/winisis/windows/doc/english/en_handbook.zip. 153 Tomi Adachi, ‘Comiteˆ Gestor da Internet no Brasil (CGI.br): uma evoluc¸a˜o do sistema de informac¸a˜o nacional moldado socialmente’ (PhD diss., Universidade de Sa˜o Paulo, 2011). http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/12/12139/tde-10102011-165732/fr.php. 154 Comiteˆ Gestor Internet/Brasil, ‘Grupos de Trabalho do Comiteˆ Gestor’, archived January 2, 1997. http://web.archive.org/web/19970102153022/http://www.cg.org.br/gt.html.

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In 1997, the GT/BV organized a special issue of the journal Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o, Brazil’s leading LIS periodical. Among its contents was a basic survey gauging the online footprint of Brazilian libraries.155 All categories of libraries were included, and a total of 190 websites were identified. Of these, 142 were found to contain only institutional information. Twenty-one libraries offered access to an online catalogue via Telnet or a simple search form, and incipient digitization projects were present in seven institutions, including the National Library in Rio de Janeiro. The special issue also contained a forward-looking statement of strategic guidelines that emphasized the importance of creating and organizing local digital content while training information professionals in the use of Web technology. The statement stressed the need for cooperation to achieve these goals, particularly in updating curricular standards and creating opportunities for professional development. Although significant progress has been made since then, the GT/BV’s recommendations continue to be relevant today. In Brazil, as elsewhere, digital libraries and information services have a crucial role to play in expanding access to knowledge and bridging the gap between libraries and local communities. A wide range of digital library content is now available to Brazilian Internet users, and much of its educational potential has yet to be fully explored.156 As more public and school libraries come online, every Brazilian digital library will have a better chance of finding its user.

Creating Local Digital Content The first broad overview of digital library development in Brazil was published in 2003.157 It provides a panorama of the ‘first wave’158 of Brazilian digital libraries and profiles a series of initiatives, dividing them into four broad categories: science and research, education, literature and the humanities and history and politics. In 2005 an updated version of the text, in Portuguese, was included as a chapter in the book Bibliotecas digitais: saberes e pra´ticas (Digital Libraries: Know-How and Practices), one of the first Brazilian titles in the

´ ngel Ma´rdero and Silvana Claudio, ‘Acompan155 Luiz Antoˆnio Gonc¸alves da Silva, Miguel A hamento das bibliotecas brasileiras na Internet’, Cieˆncia da Informac¸a˜o 26(2) (1997). http:// revista.ibict.br/index.php/ciinf/article/view/408/367. 156 Izabel Franc¸a de Lima and Mirian de Albuquerque Aquino, ‘A Biblioteca Digital Paulo Freire como dispositivo de inclusa˜o em escola pu´blica de Joa˜o Pessoa/PB’, in Paulo Freire: dia´logos e redes digitais, ed. Edna Gusma˜o de Go´es Brennand and Maria Elizabeth Baltar Carneiro de Albuquerque ( Joa˜o Pessoa: Editora Universita´ria da UFPB, 2011): 181–206. 157 McCarthy and Cunha, ‘Digital Library Development’. 158 Marija Dalbello, ‘Institutional Shaping of Cultural Memory: Digital Library as Environment for Textual Transmission’, The Library Quarterly 74(2) (2008): 267.

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digital library field.159 In the span of two years, several new projects had arisen or been consolidated. Of the major projects that were profiled, only one has since gone completely offline: USP’s Biblioteca Virtual do Estudante de Lı´ngua Portuguesa (Virtual Library of the Portuguese-Speaking Student), which ceased operation in 2009. In a field marked by rapid change, the attrition rate of Brazilian digital libraries has been relatively low. Since 2005 the creation and expansion of Brazilian digital library initiatives has only continued to accelerate. The first wave of digital library development in Brazil emphasized scholarly communication, open access and the circulation of educational resources; with the exception of the National Library (http://bndigital.bn.br/), there were relatively few digitization projects involving special collections or archival material. This trend differed from the dominant pattern in North America and Europe, where digitization of cultural heritage collections was the focus from early on.160 Now the inverse seems to be happening in Brazil: what might be called a second wave of Brazilian digital library development represents a turn towards digital humanities, archives, special collections and digitization for both access and preservation. Brazilian librarians, archivists, museum curators and historians have recently begun to collaborate in new ways, challenging traditional disciplinary divisions. First-Wave Digital Libraries: SciELO and Ibict The 1997 strategic guidelines of the GT/BV argued for the need to counterbalance the developed world’s online dominance and give voice to the history, culture and scientific research of the developing world. This early push for online independence in Brazil is typified by SciELO (Scientific Electronic Library Online), a full-text, multilingual publishing platform for peer-reviewed academic journals (http://www.scielo.org/). Officially launched in 1998, SciELO is a project of Bireme and is also supported with funding from Fapesp (Fundac¸a˜o de Amparo a` Pesquisa do Estado de Sa˜o Paulo / Sa˜o Paulo Research Foundation); since 2002 it has received additional support from Brazil’s national research council, the CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientı´fico e Tecnolo´gico / National Council for Scientific and Technological Development).161 From early on, SciELO has been an international initiative; after forming a partnership with Chile’s Conicyt (Comisio´n Nacional de Investigacio´n Cientı´fica y Tecnolo´gica / National Commission for Scientific and 159 Murilo Bastos da Cunha and Cavan McCarthy, ‘Estado atual das bibliotecas digitais no Brasil’, in Bibliotecas digitais: saberes e pra´ticas, ed. Carlos H. Marcondes, He´lio Kuramoto, Lı´dia Branda˜o Toutain and Luı´s Saya˜o, 2nd ed. (Salvador/Brası´lia: UFBA/Ibict, 2006): 25–51. 160 Dalbello, ‘Institutional Shaping’. 161 SciELO Network, ‘SciELO Model’, accessed December 28, 2011. http://www.scielo.org/ php/level.php?lang=en&component=42&item=1.

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Technological Research), it adopted a decentralized model, setting up publication centres throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as in Spain and Portugal. Currently, five new members are being added to the network, including its first member, South Africa, from outside Ibero-America. With its sustainable, scalable approach to open access publishing, SciELO has succeeded in increasing the impact, visibility and credibility of Latin American and Caribbean scholarship. SciELO Brasil (http://scielo.br) currently contains 239 periodicals, representing all fields of inquiry.162 It registers several million site visits and PDF downloads per month, and its journals have been included in major indexes such as Web of Science, Scopus and PubMed. The main SciELO portal, trilingual in Portuguese, Spanish and English, provides a federated search form and centralized access to national collections, also trilingual with their own search and browse features. Each article published in SciELO is assigned a DOI and provides an abstract in English; full text is available in HTML, PDF or XML. SciELO also provides bibliometric indicators and citation management tools: users can create an account to receive alerts when an article is cited, for example. Finally, it publishes two curated thematic collections, SciELO Public Health and SciELO Social Sciences English Edition, the latter in partnership with the Edelstein Center for Social Research (http://www.centroedelstein.org); these collections provide English translations of selected articles. In 2012 SciELO plans to extend its content model by launching a new platform for books published by Latin American and Caribbean university presses. Along with SciELO, Ibict has also played a pioneering role in bringing open access publishing to Brazil; both institutions have helped build local capacity through cooperative endeavours. One of Brazil’s earliest digital library initiatives was Prossiga (Programa Informac¸a˜o para a Pesquisa / Information for Research Program), which was launched in 1995 (http://prossiga. ibict.br/).163 It provided a series of ‘thematic virtual libraries’ which were created in collaboration with universities and government agencies. Originally developed by the CNPq, Prossiga was transferred to Ibict in 2001.164 It continued to grow until 2003, when Ibict’s development efforts shifted to other digital library initiatives. By 2003 Prossiga contained 20 virtual libraries and covered a broad range of research areas, including cultural studies, reproductive health and astronomy.165 It also featured a parallel series of information portals in science

162 The SciELO network as a whole currently publishes 935 journals. 163 Yone Chastinet, Histo´rico das Bibliotecas Virtuais do Prossiga (Rio de Janeiro: MCT/ CNPq/Prossiga, 1999). http://prossiga.ibict.br/documentos/BibliotecasVirtuais/Historico BibliotecasVirtuais.pdf. 164 Cunha and McCarthy, ‘Estado atual’, 28. 165 Prossiga, ‘Bibliotecas Virtuais Tema´ticas’, archived April 2, 2003. http://web.archive.org/ web/20030402211511/http://www.prossiga.br/bvtematicas/.

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and technology and a group of biographical websites devoted to renowned Brazilian scientists and researchers. Prossiga’s thematic virtual libraries represented an early effort to give structure to the informational chaos of the Web: they did not emphasize original content, but provided organized access to other websites related to their thematic focus. The biographical websites on scientists and researchers were more robust in terms of original content, featuring interviews, photo galleries and occasional full text. The Prossiga portal still provides access to a core group of nine thematic virtual libraries, but these are no longer being updated. Most of the biographical websites have been relocated to Ibict’s Canal Cieˆncia (Science Channel), a current portal for promoting and publicizing Brazilian research in science and technology (http://www. canalciencia.ibict.br). In 2002 Ibict began laying the groundwork for the BDTD (Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertac¸o˜es / Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations), its major digital library project to date (http://bdtd.ibict.br/).166 Coordinated in partnership with public and private universities and research institutes, the BDTD consortium uses OAI-PMH (Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting) for open data exchange. It is integrated with the NDLTD (Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations), an international initiative hosted by Virginia Tech, and is also part of a broader conceptual project, the BDB (Biblioteca Digital Brasileira / Brazilian Digital Library), which will provide federated access to Brazil’s major digital repositories.167 To advance national adoption of electronic theses and dissertations, Ibict provides technical support and server hardware for institutions which need assistance. It has developed its own publishing platform, TEDE (Sistema de Publicac¸a˜o Eletroˆnica de Teses e Dissertac¸o˜es / Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Publishing System),168 and its own metadata standard, MTD-BR (Padra˜o Brasileiro de Metadados de Teses e Dissertac¸o˜es / Brazilian Metadata Standard for Theses and Dissertations).169 Although these have been important for fostering local participation, future editions of the BDTD will likely emphasize international standards and software. The consortium currently includes 98 institutional repositories and provides a federated search interface for accessing their content. Ibict has also contributed to open access publishing in Brazil through its dissemination of the Public Knowledge Project’s Open Journal Systems,170 which it has translated into Portuguese and rebaptized as SEER (Sistema

166 Ibict, ‘O que e´ a BDTD’, accessed January 10, 2012., http://bdtd.ibict.br/en/a-bdtd.html. 167 Ibict, ‘Biblioteca Digital Brasileira’, 2009. http://www.ibict.br/secao.php?cat=Biblioteca% 20Digital%20Brasileira. 168 Ibict, ‘Site TEDE’, accessed January 10, 2012. http://tedesite.ibict.br/tde_manuais/tde_ manual.php. 169 Mey and Silveira, Catalogac¸a˜o no plural: 137–144. 170 PKP, ‘Open Journal Systems’, accessed January 10, 2012. http://pkp.sfu.ca/?q=ojs.

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Eletroˆnico de Editorac¸a˜o de Revistas / Electronic Journal Editing System). There are currently 848 periodicals listed in Ibict’s SEER journal registry.171 Second-Wave Digital Libraries: Brasiliana USP and DAMI If the first wave of Brazilian digital library development prioritized scholarly communication, the second wave, led by the Brasiliana USP digital library (http://www.brasiliana.usp.br), privileges the dissemination and preservation of Brazilian literature, history and culture. The Brasiliana USP project, launched in 2009, is digitizing the rare books, manuscripts, prints and maps donated to the university in 2006 by Brazilian businessman and bibliophile Jose´ Mindlin, whose collection is considered to be the most important of its kind amassed by a private collector.172 Development of Brasiliana USP has accompanied construction of the Guita and Jose´ Mindlin Braziliana Library, a state-of-the-art multipurpose facility that will house the 40,000-volume physical collection and provide space for digitization and conservation laboratories. Digitization (currently from a temporary workstation set up at the Mindlin family home) has been performed using a Kirtas APT 2400 robotic book scanner nicknamed ‘Maria Bonita’, and over 3,000 items have been digitized to date. Brasiliana USP has benefited from dedicated technical support and an interdisciplinary team whose work will serve as a model for future initiatives. The project relies largely on open source solutions: its primary application is DSpace, complemented by the Drupal content management system, which has been used to create a dynamic homepage. Brasiliana USP’s customized DSpace theme, called the Corisco Platform, is available for free download (https://github.com/brasiliana/corisco) and has been designed to support the ‘creation of other projects in a national network of digital collections’.173 Another innovative digitization initiative, one that embodies the new trend towards interdisciplinary cooperation, is the Imperial Museum’s Project DAMI (Digitalizac¸a˜o do Acervo do Museu Imperial / Digitization of the Collection of the Imperial Museum) (http://187.16.250.90:358/). Located in Petro´polis, a popular vacation destination in the hills above Rio de Janeiro, the museum is housed in the former summer palace of Dom Pedro II, Brazil’s second (and last) emperor. Its diverse collection of artefacts related to the imperial family is complemented by a 55,000-volume library and a sizable archive of

171 Ibict, ‘Revistas no Seer’, accessed January 10, 2012. http://seer.ibict.br/index.php?option= com_mtree&Itemid=109. Brazil is second to the United States in the Directory of Open Access Journals, with 664 journals listed: see DOAJ, ‘DOAJ by Country’, 2012. http:// www.doaj.org/doaj?func=byCountry&uiLanguage=en. 172 Brasiliana USP, ‘Biblioteca Brasiliana Guita e Jose´ Mindlin’, accessed December 28, 2011. http://www.brasiliana.usp.br/node/504. 173 Brasiliana USP, ‘Brasiliana Digital’, accessed December 28, 2011. http://www.brasiliana. usp.br/node/505.

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about 250,000 documents.174 During its early stages, DAMI received funding from IBM, but has since relied entirely on resources from the Friends of the Imperial Museum Association.175 DAMI has also adopted the DSpace platform, hiring a third-party software developer to provide technical support and user interface customization.176 Project DAMI is unique in that its digitization workflow cuts across all three sectors – museum, archive and library. Although Brazilian universities usually group these disciplines together in the same academic division, they represent separate undergraduate career tracks. The distinction between archival studies and library science, in particular, is more pronounced in Brazil than in North American contexts, for example. As a single unified effort, DAMI has challenged library, archive and museum staff, who were accustomed to working within their own disciplinary paradigms, to create transversal thematic collections and reach consensus about metadata and controlled vocabulary.177

Cooperation, Capacity Building and Education Coordinated efforts to forge a broad-based public policy framework for digitization have recently gained momentum in Brazil. Since 2010 a series of conferences on digitization and digital culture have advanced the national conversation about the relationship between technology and cultural memory. In September 2011 the Conference on Technology, Culture and Memory, held in Recife, culminated in a statement of principles and the creation of the Memorial Network, composed of ‘institutions committed to digitization policies for cultural memory collections in Brazil’ (http://redememorial.org.br/).178 This statement, called the Recife Letter, spells out six principles for best practice in digitization: commitment to open access (free and public), commitment to sharing information and technology, commitment to accessibility, standards for image capture and processing, standards for metadata and information architecture for institutional repositories and standards and norms for digital preservation. The Recife Letter also stresses the need for ongoing dialogue with the Ministry of Culture regarding the National Culture Plan, which

174 Museu Imperial, Arquivo Histo´rico (Petro´polis, RJ: Museu Imperial, [2011]); Museu Imperial, Biblioteca (Petro´polis, RJ: Museu Imperial, [2011]). 175 DAMI, ‘Apresentac¸a˜o’, 2011. http://187.16.250.90:358/apresentacao.jsp. 176 Tiago Ferreira and Marcelo Carius, ‘A customizac¸a˜o do DSpace para o Museu Imperial’ (Semina´rio Nacional de Digitalizac¸a˜o, Preservac¸a˜o e Difusa˜o de Acervos Patrimoniais, Petro´polis, Rio de Janeiro, October 19 to 21, 2011). 177 Neibe Cristina Machado da Costa, Cla´udia Maria Souza Costa and Ana Luı´sa Alonso de Camargo, ‘As colec¸o˜es digitalizadas’ (Semina´rio Nacional de Digitalizac¸a˜o, Preservac¸a˜o e Difusa˜o de Acervos Patrimoniais, Petro´polis, Rio de Janeiro, October 19 to 21, 2011). 178 Rede Memorial, ‘Carta do Recife [EN]’, 2011. http://redememorial.org.br/Carta_do_ Recife_%5BEN%5D.html.

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specifically calls for the creation of a national policy to support the digitization and integration of ‘cultural collections held by museums, libraries and archives’.179 Of the letter’s original 31 signatories, the vast majority were archives and cultural institutes; only three libraries were represented, although the Brasiliana USP project did play a leading role in drafting the statement and promulgating its principles. The archival turn that characterizes the second wave of digital library development in Brazil underscores the need to invest in training for current personnel and update the curricular structure of Brazil’s three undergraduate information science fields (library science, archival studies and museum studies): currently, digital library courses are offered almost exclusively by graduate-level information science programs. Brazilian universities have yet to develop full-scale digital library programs, although the Federal University of Pernambuco’s Information Technology Laboratory, Liber (http://www.liber.ufpe.br), provides a promising model for combining LIS research with digital content creation. In the end, ‘The success of digital libraries in Brazil will depend to a large extent on the existence of human resources, both in quantity and quality’.180

Conclusion: The Future of Brazilian Libraries To say that Brazil is experiencing a library renaissance might be to overstate the case, but there are many reasons to be hopeful about the future. Brazilian libraries still face major obstacles, and their adaptation to technological change has been uneven. Since the country’s return to democracy in the mid-1980s, however, libraries have come a long way. To illustrate this point, it is worth quoting from a study of library automation in Sa˜o Paulo that was published in 1983: There is no standard policy or politics of information in this framework, since there is little value attached to “information” per se in Brazil. For this reason the political system does not wish to spend much money with it. It is much more profitable to invest in production of consumables[,] which gives a quick return, as opposed to expenditures in intangibles such as information.181

Nearly 30 years later, it is safe to say that a framework is now in place to keep library development on the long-term policy agenda. In December 2011 the 179 Lei nº 12.343, de 2 de dezembro de 2010. http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato20072010/2010/lei/l12343.htm. ´ ngel Ma´rdero and Murilo Bastos da Cunha, ‘Metodologias para o ensino de bib180 Miguel A liotecas digitais’ (Semina´rio Internacional de Bibliotecas Digitais, 2, Unicamp, Campinas, Sa˜o Paulo, 2004). http://repositorio.bce.unb.br/handle/10482/1033. 181 D. D. McLean, ‘Automation in the Libraries of the City of Sa˜o Paulo’, International Library Review 15 (1983): 147–153.

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Ministry of Culture published a series of 53 goals to be achieved under the National Culture Plan over the next 10 years.182 Five of these goals were devoted to libraries: to establish at least one public library in every municipality, to modernize 50% of all public libraries, to ensure that 100% of public libraries are accessible and include persons with disabilities in their programming, to digitize 100% of eligible works by Brazilian authors in the collection of the National Library and to register 100% of public libraries with the SNBP. Brazil has also entered a new period of public investment in libraries and literacy. According to data from the government’s online Transparency Portal, since 2004 the FBN’s Open Book program has invested over R$121 million (about US$66 million at current exchange rates) in establishing or modernizing public libraries.183 Further investment is still needed, however, particularly in human resources and LIS education; in this regard, the impact of Brazil’s new school libraries law is especially difficult to foresee. The current workforce of approximately 30,000 librarians will have to expand dramatically to meet the demand that will be created if the law is successfully enforced. Recent years have also seen a trend towards innovative service and management models in public libraries, which have traditionally had little administrative independence. Oversight by boards or committees is still rare in Brazil; in most cases libraries are directly subordinate to the state or municipal secretariat of culture and bound by bureaucratic regulations.184 The new Library of Sa˜o Paulo (http://bibliotecadesaopaulo.org.br/), however, represents a promising hybrid approach to library management. Inaugurated in early 2010, the library is managed by a nonprofit organization that has a contract with the Sa˜o Paulo State Secretariat of Culture. This arrangement allows the library to receive government funding while maintaining operational autonomy.185 With more flexibility in decision making, it has been able to plan innovative services and invest in community outreach, engaging users through technology, cultural programs and the creative use of space: for example, the library’s floor plan is blocked off into five activity areas divided by age group.186 Yet the Library of Sa˜o Paulo is hardly an isolated case. Grassroots

182 MinC, Metas do Plano Nacional de Cultura, December 2011. http://pnc.culturadigital.br/ wp-content/uploads/2011/12/METAS_DO_PNC.pdf. 183 Presideˆncia da Repu´blica/CGU, ‘Gastos diretos por programa’, Portal da Transpareˆncia do Governo Federal, accessed January 5, 2012. http://www.portaldatransparencia.gov.br/ PortalTransparenciaGDProgramaPesquisaAcao.asp?ano=2011&textoPesquisaPrograma= &codigoPrograma=0168&nomePrograma=Livro%20Aberto. 184 McCarthy, Developing Libraries: 41. 185 William Okubo, ‘Inovac¸o˜es na gesta˜o de bibliotecas pu´blicas: algumas experieˆncias’ (BiblioCamp, Biblioteca Parque de Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, 2011). http://www.slideshare. net/moreno/william-10552657. 186 Ageˆncia Fapesp, ‘Biblioteca de Sa˜o Paulo e´ inaugurada’, February 11, 2010. http://agencia. fapesp.br/11763.

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community libraries have been growing throughout Brazil;187 Sa˜o Paulo’s Ma´rio de Andrade Library (Brazil’s second largest) has recently been revitalized;188 a series of ‘park libraries’ designed to reach underserved communities is being established in Rio de Janeiro:189 these developments, taken together, point towards a brighter – and more user-centred – future for libraries in Brazil.

187 Elisa Campos Machado and Waldomiro Vergueiro, ‘A pra´tica da gesta˜o participativa em espac¸os de acesso a` informac¸a˜o: o caso das bibliotecas pu´blicas e das bibliotecas comunita´rias’, Revista Interamericana de Bibliotecologı´a 33(1) (2010): 241–255. http://redalyc. uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtPdfRed.jsp?iCve=179015628010. 188 MinC, ‘Sa˜o Paulo, 457 anos: ministra participa da reabertura da Biblioteca Municipal de Sa˜o Paulo – Ma´rio de Andrade’, January 25, 2011. http://www.cultura.gov.br/site/2011/ 01/25/sao-paulo-457-anos/. 189 cultura.rj, ‘Bibliotecas Parque: Apresentac¸a˜o’, Secretaria de Cultura, Governo do Rio de Janeiro, accessed January 11, 2012. http://www.cultura.rj.gov.br/apresentacao-projeto/ bibliotecas-parque.

2.4 Caribbean Technology and Caribbean Libraries and a Case Study of the University of the West Indies Jennifer M. Joseph Historical Background The wider Caribbean is generally known as the large group of islands of varying sizes bounded on the north by the southern coast of North America, on the east by the Gulf of Mexico, and on the south, by the northern coast of South America. The islands of the region are divided into three main groups – the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the Lesser Antilles. The Bahamas is a group of 700 islands north of the Caribbean Sea; the Greater Antilles include Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic); while the remaining islands, stretching from Puerto Rico to the coast of South America are known as the Lesser Antilles. These islands, tropical in climate, were first colonized by the Spanish in the late fifteenth century and then later by the French, Dutch, and the British. Discussion in this chapter will focus on the English-speaking islands.

Figure 1: Map of Caribbean1 1

Wikipedia 2012.

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The British West Indies is the term applied to the English-speaking islands in the Caribbean and the mainland nations of Belize (formerly British Honduras) and Guyana (formerly British Guiana). Other countries are Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the Windward Islands (Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada), Barbados, the Leeward Islands (Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla and Montserrat), and the northern islands – the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands. All of the islands/countries have shared a similar social, cultural, political, and economic history. The countries were, in the main, sugar-producing and were vitally important to the European powers as great wealth was generated from the production and sale of sugar. The native Caribbean peoples (Arawaks and Caribs) could not meet the enormous manpower requirements for the sugar plantations. The existing trade in African slaves was therefore increased thereby reshaping the region’s demographic, social, and cultural profile. Following the abolition of slavery in the mid-nineteenth century, the colonies turned to imported indentured labour from India, China, and the East Indies, further diversifying the region’s culture and society. Many of the Caribbean nations later gained political independence from the European powers in the nineteenth century and twentieth century, while some of the smaller states are still dependencies in the twenty first century. The Caribbean region today is therefore made up mainly of several mini-states which continue to make efforts at regional unity on several fronts, including education, sports, politics and economic matters.2

Libraries in the Caribbean This chapter focuses on the use and impact of technology in the development of libraries in the English-speaking Caribbean. Mention is made of the various types of libraries existing in the Caribbean as well as the regional tertiary level institution. However, information is not readily available for the individual islands, therefore, the emphasis in the chapter is on the larger island territories of Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica, which have fully embraced and are fairly advanced in the use of technology. There is also detailed discussion of the use and impact of technology at the regional tertiary education institution, the University of the West Indies which serves the entire English-speaking Caribbean and impacts all aspects of life in the region.

2

Mongabay.com, The Library of Congress. “Caribbean Islands History.” http://www. mongabay.com/reference/country_studies/caribbean-islands/HISTORY.html. 2009.

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Public Libraries Historical Background Library services have existed in the West Indies since in the late eighteenth century in the form of subscription libraries which served the few who could afford membership. The mid-nineteenth century saw the beginning of free public library service, inter alia, in Grenada in 1845, Trinidad in 1851, Antigua in 1854 and Montserrat in 1890. In the mid-twentieth century, the islands sought to cooperate when the Eastern Caribbean Regional Library was organized in 1941 to serve islands of the English-speaking Caribbean. This Central Library Scheme was initially funded using a grant from the Carnegie Corporation and later became the responsibility of the British Council. As a result of this Library Scheme, a pattern of library service emerged within the region which comprised, in most territories, a central public library with an advisory board, a system of deposit stations and the use of bookmobiles.3 This scheme worked well until the end of British Council support. The development of public libraries in the region then became the full responsibility of the individual island governments which, in general, did not have the resources to adequately sustain the services. As a result, development has been uneven and dependent on the will of the governments of the day. In spite of these drawbacks, these libraries have persevered and many have made significant strides towards facilitating the provision of library services within their individual countries. Significant advancements have been made in the more developed islands such as Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. Information Technology in the Public Libraries The public libraries within the English-speaking Caribbean have sought to remain relevant in light of the continually expanding technological advancements and the changing needs of users. The National Library and Information Service (NALIS) in Trinidad and Tobago has fully embraced the application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to improve and enhance service delivery. This mandate is explicitly stated in NALIS’s mission4: ‘To provide an international standard of service that delivers equitable access to information in all formats through highly capable and motivated staff, utilizing state-of-theart technologies and facilities to support the developmental and recreational needs of Trinidad and Tobago’.

3 4

Cheryl-Ann Peltier, Meeting the Challenge: Public Libraries as National Libraries: The Caribbean Experience. A Research Paper (Kingston, Jamaica: The University of the West Indies, 1995): 46. National Library of Trinidad and Tobago (NALIS). http://www2.nalis.gov.tt/. February 23, 2012.

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Consequently, the use of technology is carefully planned and implemented throughout the NALIS network of library services. A variety of technology is used to create, store, exchange, and use information in its various formats for the benefit of staff and patrons alike and to integrate various media via a computing platform for more efficient communication. The use of technology has contributed significantly to the transformation of the organization from the traditional library environment to a dynamic library and information service. It has allowed for the creation of digital content and for 24/7 information access and delivery. The automation of library services results in greater efficiency in the performance of core and augmented operations which add value to the information product. Technology initiatives at the National Library Building and throughout the public library system are managed by a highly trained and dedicated team within an Information Networks Division who are continuously engaged in research and development, recommendation and acquisition, implementation, management, training, and support. Among the ICT used at NALIS is the: Integrated Library Management System, Symphony provided by SirsiDynix which automates the registration, circulation, cataloguing, computer access and control, OPAC, and AMHS functions and is available at 21 NALIS libraries and the Heritage Library with all technical processes provided by a centralized Technical Services Departments. Other ICT services include: National Referral System; Web Development; Digitization; Network Development and Maintenance; Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity; Administration; Audio Visual Services; Help Desk where the Help Desk staff manages all ICT support for the NALIS WAN; Staff Intranet using SharePoint 2010 which is intended to assist in improving communication and collaboration by staff. Wireless technology is used throughout giving all NALIS patrons free access to Internet services through this medium as well as through the cabled alternative; and patrons have access to computer facilities at all branches. The National Library Building is supported by a highly sophisticated network which has been expanded to a Wide Area Network (WAN) that includes all branches of the public library system. The WAN facilitates the rollout of corporate IT services: Library Management System (Symphony and SAM); Internet; corporate email; antivirus software and intranet services. In addition, NALIS offers specialized IT services to the visually impaired. In 2004, the organization was awarded the Prime Minister’s “Excellence in Innovation” Award for its VIP services which included the provision and use of JAWS – screen reading software, Magic – screen magnification software and Braille translation, printing, and display. Also, through the NALIS website and online resources, patrons have access to information in digital format including a wealth of local and international information resources. This is provided through online subscription databases; subject guides; calendar of activities; staff webmail and the Digital Library which has over 40,000 items of

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historical and cultural significance. NALIS has also embraced social networking tools as an integral library service, meeting the needs of its expanding patron base. The Adult and Young Adult Libraries are on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. A NALIS Blog is also available to clients. The use of technology in the National Library System in Trinidad and Tobago has resulted in greater user independence since patrons can renew their loans online; place hold requests; request address and email changes as well as change their PIN. The ‘What’s New’ link provides patrons with information on new acquisitions for a two month period, thereby eliminating the need for them to seek out staff for that information. This ability to assist themselves promotes not only greater independence in users, but builds on lifelong learning skills. With more patrons being able to help themselves, there is more time for Library staff to provide individual attention to onsite patrons who require assistance, as well as to focus on outreach activities. The technology allows for the generation and manipulation of a plethora of information and statistics which can be easily applied in making management decisions. Like Trinidad and Tobago, the public libraries service in Jamaica is fairly advanced in its use of information technology in the delivery and management of information services. In the 2010–2011 period, the Jamaica Library Service expanded its use of technology, implementing the LAN and WAN infrastructure which will support a variety of software, including an Integrated Library Management System. Wireless access is also available at 19 parish libraries. There is also in place a Dynamic Multipoint Virtual Private Network for the 121 service points of the island libraries that has facilitated wireless access at a number of its libraries.5 The Jamaica Library Service also promotes the use of the EBSCO database as a supplement to printed material. Computers are available at public libraries across all parishes and there is a high level of Internet usage. Statistics for the 2010–2011 period record 801,118 sessions.6 The National Library of Jamaica also offers services to the visually impaired. This island has the “National Digital Library Services for the Blind” which is a portal created for blind persons and the sighted persons who assist them. This portal, Daisy 2.02 dramatically increases the accessibility of books. Users also have access to librophile, a website that offers access to over 80,000 downloadable audio books and “Project Gutenberg” which offers over 36,000 free electronic books to download to the PC or other portable devices such as Kindle, Android and iOS. It is to be noted that some of the other territories of the English-speaking Caribbean have also made some advances in the introduction and use of

5 6

Jamaica Library Service. Annual Report, 2010–2011. (Kingston, Jamaica: JLS, 2011): 151. Jamaica Library Service. Annual Report, 2010–2011. (Kingston, Jamaica: JLS, 2011): 17.

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technology, particularly through the creation of the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) and the provision of electronic resources. Antigua, Dominica, and Belize are among the territories that have introduced a variety of services.

School Libraries Historical Background The phenomenon of the school library was introduced in the English-speaking Caribbean in the late 1940s when the colonial governments established the public library system. Service to schools was in the form of deposit collections delivered periodically to schools and funded by supplementary grants to the public library for the purchase of books. At the time, there were no specific government policies with regard to the provision of staff, facilities, or resources for these school libraries and, in some instances, this continues to be the major constraint to the development of school libraries within the region. However, some governments have recognized the significance of the school library in the development of the youth. For instance, in the islands of Antigua, Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica, there exist specific policies for the development of school libraries. In 1978, Trinidad and Tobago established a School Libraries Division geared towards the provision of services to schools. Other policies included the establishment of standards, training of personnel, and a curriculum for information skills. In Jamaica, the School Library Service was established in 1952 for primary schools. In the 1960s the service was extended to include secondary schools and now serves more than 90% of school libraries within Jamaica.7 Antigua has centralized its school library service that is administered by a co-ordinator and the government provides limited funding on a consistent basis for the development of school libraries. Technology is used to support all core library services in the schools. In Trinidad and Tobago, Alexandria ILMS has been installed in 134 school library media centers and is operated by staff trained in its use. Support is provided dually by the Systems Administration department of the Educational Library Services division of NALIS and by the ICT division of the Ministry of Education. Thesecenters are also equipped with security gates, book checkouts, photocopying machines with Venda card modules, printers, and wireless and handheld barcode readers. They operate within a network which provides Internet access to patrons and is the platform for the OPAC service.

7

Arlene Ononaiwu, Caribbean Special Librarianship: Visions for the Future in Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the Threshold of the New Millennium. Margarette Pearce (ed.) (Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications, 2002), 101.

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Special Libraries A wide range of special libraries are located throughout the Caribbean catering to the needs of different types of governmental departments and private organizations in all sectors of the society. These libraries have been developed to support the mission of the sponsoring organization through the provision and management of information resources and complement the work of other libraries such as the public, national, and academic libraries. Some special libraries in the region had their genesis as early as the 1950s, others in the 1960s. The development of special libraries in the Caribbean was accelerated through the initiative of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America (UNECLAC) as that organization sought to develop the sub-regional information network, Caribbean Information System for Economic and Social Planning (CARISPLAN).8 Many libraries in the region were introduced to automation as they contributed to this database which was built on the CDS/ ISIS software that was designed specifically by UNESCO for the computerized management of catalogs and databases. UNECLAC, through a series of regional workshops, provided training in the use of information technology and in abstracting and indexing techniques. At the time of writing, data on the exact number of special libraries in existence throughout the Caribbean is not available. However, they have increased over the years from the Association of Caribbean University and Research Institute Libraries’ (ACURIL) 1990s estimate of at least 250 special libraries.9 Unlike the public and academic libraries which, given the nature of their use and the composition of their users are more likely to obtain government support, special libraries in the Caribbean must continuously justify their existence.10 As such, some of these libraries are lagging behind in technological advancement due to a lack of financial resources and the technical skills required to purchase and support the technology. In addition, some of the special libraries sometimes operate without the services of a professional librarian. With the development of paraprofessional training in recent years within countries like Trinidad and Tobago, special libraries have been manned by persons trained as support staff. In order to provide the necessary guidance and support, there has been the establishment of sectoral information networks which comprise groupings of

8 9 10

Cherrell Shelley-Robinson, “School Libraries in the Caribbean: A Jamaican Case Study” in Caribbean Libraries in the 21st Century: Changes, Challenges and Choices, ed. Cheryl Peltier-Davis and Shamin Renwick (New Jersey: Information Today Inc, 2007): 77. Elaine Wallace, “Information Policy and Special Librarians in Jamaica (Opening Address)” in Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the Threshold of the new millennium, ed. Margarette Pearce (Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications, 2002): 5. Margarette Pearce, Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the threshold of the New Millennium (Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications, 2002): xv.

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libraries in similar disciplines that work with each other on a voluntary basis to share resources, expertise in the organization of information resources, and to market services and resources. As part of this co-operation the National Library of Jamaica provides the Socioeconomic and Science and Technology Information Networks with the support needed to build their databases, thus facilitating the creation and online accessibility of a national database of Jamaican publications. In Trinidad and Tobago, special libraries have embraced the technology and there have been movements away from print to electronic resources such as EBSCO Host (providing online access to digitized articles in multiple disciplines); and the JSTOR online service which contains thousands of digitized articles from periodicals and other sources, historical and current. Of significance to the special libraries is access to the Virtual Health Library (which focuses on health issues and research) and Business Monitor International (an international service analyzing the financial and economic performance and risks of hundreds of countries on a global scale including the Caribbean countries).11

The University of the West Indies Historical Background The University of the West Indies (UWI) consists of four campuses – three physical campuses located in Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the Open Campus which offers distance education across the English-speaking Caribbean. The UWI was originally established in 1948 in Jamaica as an external College of the University of London and gained full status as an independent university in 1962. In April 1948, the first College Library was established to serve the needs of the thirty-three medical students registered. The St Augustine Campus, located in Trinidad, was the second campus to be established in 1960 on the site of the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture (ICTA) which had been established in 1922. The core of the St. Augustine Library was the collection of the ICTA library. The Cave Hill Campus located in Barbados was subsequently established in 1962. The Library for that campus was opened in October 1963. The Open Campus is the most recent, having been established in June 2008, incorporating the services offered at 42 sites in 16 countries in the English-speaking Caribbean. The information needs of the Open Campus, previously known as the ‘UWI 12’ had been served for many years through the three main campuses and from inadequately

11

National Library of Trinidad and Tobago (NALIS). http://www2.nalis.gov.tt/. February 23, 2012.

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stocked collections at the various sites. Currently, a modern, virtual library service is being streamlined to augment the existing arrangements. There are approximately 44,000 students registered at the four campuses.

Leadership The library services of each campus are managed by a Campus Librarian who is administratively responsible to its Campus Principal. The Campus Librarian is expected to provide effective leadership for a team of professionals and support staff; as well as to participate in decision making at the wider campus level. In keeping with the regional nature of the University, one of the four campus librarians is also designated as the University Librarian, who is responsible for the overall coordination of library, information, and documentation services throughout the University. The University Librarian is a member of cross-campus committees and, as a member of the University Strategy Committee participates, to some extent, in the decision-making and the overall administration of the UWI. The four Campus Librarians meet at least once per semester in an effort to ensure that the library systems and services are standardized and also to achieve economies of scale where possible. The University Librarian therefore leads any initiatives for collaboration.

Mission and Vision The strategic plan of the UWI for the period 2007–2012 indicates that its mission is “to propel the economic, social, political and cultural development of West Indian society through teaching, research, innovation, advisory and community services and intellectual leadership”.12 The libraries of the UWI are therefore committed to providing high quality service and resources in support of the learning, teaching, and research needs of the university community and the Caribbean society, as articulated in the vision. The libraries of the four campuses work together to fulfil their goal of being expert centers providing modern study facilities with access to a wide repository of information, as well as developing their unique Caribbean resources through the acquisition and dissemination of special materials. As such, with the advent of the new technology, the libraries of the UWI continuously revisit and re-engineer operations and services to ensure the delivery and provision of a modern teaching, learning and research environment with access to information resources in all available formats. 12

The University of the West Indies. Strategic Transformation for Relevance, Impact, Distinctiveness and Excellence (STRIDE): Strategic Plan [2007–2012]. St. Augustine, Trinidad: UWI, 2009.

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Information Technology Milestones at the University Libraries The advances in information and communications technology have changed the face of libraries. Over the last several years, technological changes have impacted on the delivery of library and information services at the University libraries and continue to revolutionize the services offered. A user no longer needs to move from resource to resource, conducting the same search and trying to manually consolidate the results. There is now a single interface to search subscribed resources and generate a single results list. A single click from the results list takes the user to a menu that facilitates connection to one or more locations to obtain full text articles, once available. The new technologies have given students and faculty the ease of accessing electronic resources on and off campus, regardless of location. At every stage of its development, the libraries of the UWI have embraced the available technology to provide service to users. In the 1970s, the Mona Campus Library (Jamaica) utilized the University’s IBM 370 mainframe with data entry being done via keypunch cards and using a KWOC (keyword out of context) program to create a list of journals currently subscribed to by the Mona Campus. The program was also modified to index the West Indian Medical Journal and this eventually led to the publication of the printed volume Medical Caribbeana in 1988 which, in turn, later formed the basis of the present online database, MedCarib. As stated earlier, in the mid 1980s, Caribbean libraries began to use the CDS ISIS software package, distributed at no charge by UNESCO, for the development of bibliographic databases. The UWI libraries also made use of this software as the St. Augustine Campus Library embarked on the development of the CARINDEX database which had been created to provide access to articles published in Caribbean journals in the social sciences as well as in science and agriculture. At that time, the Main Library at Mona also began the creation of a West Indian database while the Science Branch Library created a Caribbean environmental database (CAREN). The 1980s also saw the University libraries across the three campuses accessing OCLC to aid in the cataloging of library material and participating in the worldwide cooperative movement. It was also at this time that the Libraries first provided online database searching via DIALOG service, using a dial-up modem. Later, CD-ROM based information products were deployed, replacing the need for dial up access. By the late 1990s, access to online databases had expanded to include EBSCOhost, Academic Search Premier and Business Source Premier, Proquest, ABI/INFORM, and OCLC First Search. In addition to the general databases, individual campuses acquired databases specific to the disciplines taught there. Progress in the use of information technology at the UWI, however, has been most significant in the twenty-first century. Since 2000, computer laboratories have been established with a view to creating a learning commons

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environment with fast and reliable access to electronic resources. At the St. Augustine Campus, there are two laboratories at the Alma Jordan Library (formerly the Main Library) with a total of 61 computers available for searching, as well as 26 Online Public Access Catalogs (OPACs); the Medical Sciences Branch Library has 33 workstations available for searching and 4 OPACs. In Jamaica, the Mona Library increased the number of computer laboratories significantly, moving from two workstations in 1994 to over 260 computers (including laptops for loan within the Library). The establishment of a separate Postgraduate Commons at Mona within the last year has been a significant achievement, offering graduate students a state-of the art, comfortable space in which to conduct their research. The Cave Hill Campus Library in Barbados also has 30 workstations and 13 OPACs to serve its student body and is about to embark on an in-house laptop lending service with 14 units. All the computer laboratories in the UWI libraries use the Pharos system for reservation and printing. In addition to the development of computer laboratories in the last decade, electronic resources were made widely available to the University community via the libraries’ websites. A proxy server-based solution was also implemented to provide for remote authenticated access to electronic resources, anywhere in the world. Advances in technology have revolutionized access to information and increased the expectations and demands of library patrons for new products and services. New units and departments devoted to IT-related services were therefore created and related hardware and software acquired. For example, the Mona Library introduced other services such as virtual reference using the Question Point platform from OCLC and is utilizing social networking technologies such as YouTube and blogs to communicate with their patrons. New information literacy programs have also been developed throughout the system to ensure that library patrons can operate these new services. As a consequence, the Mona Information Literacy Unit (MILU) was established in January 2001 to meet the information literacy needs of that campus, while at St. Augustine and Cave Hill, similar efforts are being made in information literacy training, using face-to face and the online modes.

Development of an Integrated Library System (ILS) While there was the use of computers in various aspects of the library operations, the ultimate goal was the automation of library processes with an Integrated Library System across all the campuses. The St. Augustine Campus was the first campus to use an ILS with the purchase and deployment of the VTLS system through a series of terminals and minicomputers. In 1989, the VTLS platform was upgraded thereby introducing the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC). VTLS was installed at Mona in 1997 and at Cave Hill in 2000.

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In 2001, the University libraries made the decision to upgrade its library system to take advantage of the more sophisticated systems on the market which would facilitate access to digitized collections and a variety of resources. Following the submission of a proposal in January 2001, the University Grants Committee agreed to the provision of funds for the acquisition of a new, integrated library system. It was decided that the existing campuses – Mona in Jamaica, Cave Hill in Barbados, and St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, would negotiate as one entity and not as three separate units as previously obtained. Following the evaluation of proposals, short listing of vendors, product demonstrations from four vendors and lengthy contract negotiations, the University of the West Indies finally signed the contract to acquire the ALEPH 500 in November 2005 from ExLibris Inc., to replace the current VTLS system. In 2010, the UWI amended the contract to include the Open Campus. The implementation of ALEPH 500 made it possible to leverage information technology to streamline the management of library processes for the benefit of students and staff. The transition to this sophisticated ILS resulted in the streamlining of library policies and work flows, and the retooling of staff to work in a new environment. The management of this project was carried out by a committee comprising Systems Librarians from the three campuses as well as individual teams on each of the campuses. Together, they managed the change over from VTLS to ALEPH. The team members of the three campuses provided immeasurable support to each other through cross-campus conference calls and email communication as they sought to discuss and resolve any difficulties that came up during critical phases. To ensure that staff were ready after implementation to use and demonstrate the features on the new technology, multiple-focused training sessions were held. These were structured so that all staff were given an overview of the product and also given the specialized training for the module with which they would be working. Prior to the actual switch-to-production (STP) in January 2007, the staff of the various Systems Units also sought to expand their knowledge by attending the annual meetings of the Ex Libris Users of North America (ELUNA) which provided an additional avenue for technical training and networking. ALEPH is one of the more complex integrated systems, requiring a fair amount of focused work to set up the numerous configuration tables that would reflect the library policies and procedures. Therefore, despite the detailed training and close monitoring, there were some challenges with the implementation, some of which were experienced across the three campuses while others were specific to an individual campus. For example, critical onsite training by the vendor at the St. Augustine Campus was interrupted by an earthquake and the subsequent closure of the library building for a few days. At the Cave Hill Campus, the main challenge was a shortage of human resources to manage some aspects of the configuration. A decision was therefore taken at that campus to postpone the implementation of the Course Reserves module

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until after the STP. However, in spite of the challenges experienced at the implementation stage, all three campuses went live in January 2007 as planned. The close collaboration on this key information technology project has been to the benefit of all the libraries as it has allowed for the sharing of expertise and knowledge.

Electronic Resources The implementation of further technologies associated with ALEPH 500 has facilitated increased access across the four campuses of the University to approximately 43,000 scholarly journals and over 255 research databases in various disciplines. This was achieved with the implementation of SFX (an open URL link resolver) and MetaLib (a federated searching tool). The increased access and use of electronic resources is a major mandate of the libraries of the UWI in its effort to fulfil its goal of providing users with a dynamic and progressive library environment. The University libraries have therefore taken a collaborative approach in the acquisition of technologies such as ALEPH, SFX and MetaLib as well as in the provision of electronic resources. In so doing, there has been an increase in the number of shared database subscriptions over the last three years. This has made vendors more willing to treat the campuses as one university and generally offer packages which allow for the removal of duplicates and the expansion of access across the four campuses. The recent acquisition of PRIMO creates a new information system architecture that will allow for a single discovery and delivery platform across all resources and all campuses, thus providing a single university portal to information resources. The UWIlinC portal was officially launched in October 2011 and offers a single search and discovery tool that provides access to the information resources of all four campuses.

Digitization Digitization is one of the significant areas through which technology has revolutionized library services across the globe. It has played a positive role in the development of library services at the UWI and has facilitated greater accessibility of selected resources by patrons of the University libraries. Each campus has developed its own digitization program but there have been varying issues such as insufficient staffing and expertise and lack of funding for the required hardware. Each campus has sought to respond to these problems in a variety of ways. For instance, the Mona Library forged a partnership with a commercial entity on the Mona Campus – the Mona GeoInformatix Institute, (MonaGIS). Under this agreement the Library uses the Institute’s accommodation, shares equipment, and benefits from the expertise of their staff. In

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addition to learning from the local expertise, staff of the Mona Library have also benefited from visits and attachments to several universities including the Mississippi State University (MSU), and the Florida Libraries Digital Center where staff willingly shared their facilities and expertise. Funding for this visitor program is usually secured from the Library’s resources, as well as through special grants. Through the various initiatives, the Mona Campus Library has therefore successfully digitized several of its special collections which have been made available through CONTENTdm. In addition, examination papers and reserve items have been digitized. There are currently approximately 100 items in the Mona Institutional Repository which is being created in DSpace. At the St. Augustine Campus, the first digitization project in the library focused on the conversion of printed examination past papers in the year 2000. This was initiated also as the first foray into electronic reserves and considerably reduced the waiting time that students endured in order to access the few available print copies in the physical reserve collection. By 2002, another project to digitize selected portions of two special collections commenced through a grant by the Reed Foundation. The Digital Library Services Centre was launched in 2008 through the generous donation of a retired librarian. This center has responsibility for three main areas: the development of digital collections/libraries, furthering the web-based delivery of services and information products for the libraries and the provision of a platform for the capture and preservation of digital content via the institutional repository that has been built on the MIT/DSpace model. To date, over 12,000 digital objects have been created and stored in the DSpace repository, the local instance being referred to as UWISpace. Digital collections/libraries in the repository include material converted from the Alma Jordan Library’s Special Collections and items submitted by researchers and faculty. The next phase of this project will be the creation of several digital learning objects which can be integrated into the teaching and learning experience of the campus community. At the Main Library of the Cave Hill campus, digitization is in its early stages, commencing in 2008 with the scanning and subsequent creation of an online database of printed past examination papers. Two scanners have been purchased and there are plans to digitize some of its valuable resources and special collections as soon as the relevant staff are in place. However, at the Law Library on the same campus, a digitization project began in 2001 with the establishment of CARILAW (Caribbean Law Online), a database of Commonwealth Caribbean cases, statutes and treaties dating back to the 1950s. This project was funded by USAID for three years.

Staffing Technological developments have changed the staff structure of the University libraries. At the Mona Library, a Systems Development Unit was created and

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new posts of Systems Librarian, Information Technology Officer and Computer Technician added. With the expansion of the campus’s information technology department – the Mona Information Technology Services (MITS), a mutual decision was made that MITS would house and manage all servers with the library having full access and responsibility for the functionality of all library operations. This collaboration has worked well for the Mona Library and a good working relationship has developed between the two departments. At the St. Augustine Campus, the Library’s Systems Unit was re-designated as the Information Technology Services (ITS) to accommodate the burgeoning responsibilities arising from the increased use of technology. The ITS section is staffed by ten persons and comprises an Integrated Library Systems Unit, an Information Technology Support Unit and a Digital Library Services Centre. The role of the section continues to be one of overall responsibility for maintaining an efficient and effective computing environment for the campus libraries; planning and administering library technology systems to ensure accessibility, functionality, and reliability of resources. The section is directly responsible for overseeing the daily operations and services related to the ALEPH integrated library system and its associated components, SFX, MetaLib, and Primo, providing technical and helpdesk support for users on the Library’s Local Area Network (LAN), web services development, digitization and management of the UWISpace institutional repository. At the Cave Hill Campus, the staff compliment devoted to the management of IT services was increased to two librarians in late 2009. However, the Main Library receives support from the campus Computer Center. The Open Campus is in the process of creating a staff structure that will take forward the plans for the expansion of its services.

Problems and Challenges One of the main challenges in the implementation of information technology for Caribbean libraries has been the slow development of the telecommunications infrastructure across the region. There are varying rates of development across the different territories, limiting access by users in the less developed islands. A major cause of this is limited bandwidth which reduces the efficiency and throughput of the online services, especially in the smaller territories served by the Open Campus of the University of the West Indies.

Financing the Technology Funding for the development of technology at the libraries of the UWI comes from the contribution made by the relevant member governments to the University as a whole. Under this system, the government of each country in

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which the campus is located provides the core support for its operations. As a result, development at each campus and its libraries has been uneven and dependent on the availability of the government’s resources. However, the libraries have also benefited from funds provided by donor agencies. For example, at the Mona Campus, despite the visit of consultants in the early 1970s and their recommendation for the implementation of an ILS, the recommendation could not be implemented due to financial constraints. Eventually, money was identified through an Inter-American Development (IDB) grant for the acquisition of the VTLS integrated library system. The financing for the University libraries has been reduced over time. This has had a negative impact on the proper maintenance and expansion of the core collections and the acquisition of expensive hardware, software and increasingly expensive electronic resources. Despite the financial constraints, library managers have had to find creative ways of responding to the requests for new products and services. The libraries of the UWI have therefore been collaborating in an effort to share costs for the provision of an improved service to users. Wherever possible and feasible, the Campus Libraries have sought to collaborate in a number of ways including the sharing of information and resources and the sharing of expertise in the organization of information resources. The acquisition and implementation of the new ILS Aleph 500, the link resolver SFX, the federated search engine, MetaLib as well as the joint acquisition of PRIMO by the four campuses in 2010 resulted in considerable savings and other benefits. Over the last few years, the joint acquisition of online databases and e-resources has also offered students access to a wider variety of resources that serve to enrich the learning experience. At present, the three physical campuses share subscriptions to 27 databases and it is anticipated that in the near future, the recently established Open Campus will contribute to the purchase of electronic resources as funds are made available, thereby further reducing the cost to each campus. Public, special, and school libraries in the Caribbean also face serious financial challenges, especially in view of the recent decline in the global economy. Governments are faced with the challenge of allocating resources from a significantly smaller pie that must maintain developments in key sectors of a nation’s development such as health and education. While governments generally understand the importance of libraries in national development, libraries tend to be the first victims of downsizing when budget cuts have to be made.

2012 and Beyond: Future Technological Developments and Prospects Changes and developments in technology are rapid and frequent, making it difficult to predict in the short term what the face of technology will be for library services in the Caribbean. However, there is the clear understanding that if

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libraries are to remain relevant in the world of information, access to information must be driven by technology which will certainly continue to influence and affect the services, space and format of collections and information resources. It is envisaged that all types of libraries in the Caribbean will be collaborating and using the technology to ensure equal access for all. Public and school libraries throughout the Caribbean wil be providing users with the available technology to complement the traditional print resources. In view of the need to provide an efficient information service to the clientele of the University of the West Indies across and within the 16 English-speaking countries, it is essential that efforts be made for the further development of a single, virtual space through which all users can seamlessly locate all information required, anywhere, anytime. In this virtual space, it is envisaged that the UWI will continue to create and make available digital collections of our unique Caribbean resources and heritage, thereby achieving the UWI libraries’ goal and mission to be the premier source for information in the Caribbean. It is expected that members of faculty, as well as graduate students, will have responded to the promotion campaign and heeded the call of the librarians to deposit their research work into the UWISpace institutional repository. The University libraries of the future will also be a welcoming physical space in which users will have access to a range of resources in an environment which is fully equipped with state of the art technology. Among the interesting prospects for the integration of technology in the future are: wide marketing and fee-based provision of digitized, unique Caribbean resources to researchers thereby generating income for the libraries; the development of digital learning objects by the libraries for integration into UWI’s curricula; increased use of Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 technologies to facilitate more direct input by users into the indexing and review of library resources; the recognition and development of the UWI as a single space with one range of IP addresses for all four campuses which will allow for the seamless provision of services to all users irrespective of their location and the streamlining of agreements with vendors of subscription-based services; the recognition of the University as a single entity by all the vendors and the acquisition of all electronic databases as one university so that there is increased benefit to all stakeholders; the availability of interactive information literacy tutorials so that users can learn at their own pace; increased use and customization of open source platforms developed for libraries; more emphasis on the provision of online resources to distance students and the development of the virtual library; and greater linkages at the national level among the various types of libraries and the UWI.

Conclusion The libraries of the Caribbean region including the University of the West Indies are well on the way to achieving the designation of ‘hybrid’ libraries

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which recognize the need to provide all users with print and digital resources. Even though there are constraints, the libraries have embraced technology and continue to explore ways in which services can be streamlined. Since the introduction of technology in library services, the various campuses of the University of the West Indies and the public, special, and school libraries in the region have systematically sought to keep abreast of the changes and to align with the goals for national and regional development. Over the next few years, it is anticipated that Caribbean libraries while continuously embracing all the relevant advances in technology, will have made a significant contribution to the transformation of the teaching, learning, and research of the UWI and the advancement of Caribbean people. Acknowledgement: The author acknowledges with thanks, the contribution of the Campus Librarians of the other three campuses and the staff of the various Systems Units to the chapter. Special thanks must also given to the Executive Director and relevant of the National Library and Information Authority of Trinidad and Tobago as well as Ms Neisha Hyatali, Administrative Assistant at UWI St. Augustine Campus.

References Dowling, Mike. 2005. The Islands of the Caribbean. http://www.mrdowling.com/710islands.html (March 23, 2012). Jamaica Library Service. 2011. Annual Report, 2010–2011. Kingston: JLS: 303. Jordan, Alma. 1964. “Public Libraries in the British Caribbean.” The Library Quarterly XXXIV(2). Modeste, Judith and Cathy Shepherd. 1986. “Towards Bibliographic Control in the Caribbean: The Caribbean Information System.” IFLA Journal 12:(4): 350–352. mongabay.com, The Library of Congress. 2009. Caribbean Islands History. http://www. mongabay.com/reference/country_studies/caribbean-islands/HISTORY.html (March 23, 2012). National Library of Trinidad and Tobago (NALIS). http://www2.nalis.gov.tt/ (February 23, 2012). Ononaiwu, Arlene. 2002. “Caribbean Special Librarianship: Visions for the Future.” In Margaret Pearce (ed.), Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the Threshold of the New Millennium. Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications. Pearce, Margarette. 2002. Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the threshold of the New Millennium. Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications. Peltier, Cheryl-Ann. 1995. Meeting the Challenge: Public Libraries as National Libraries: The Caribbean Experience. A Research Paper. Kingston, Jamaica: The University of the West Indies. Peltier-Davis, Cheryl and Shamin Renwick (eds.). 2007. Caribbean Libraries in the 21st Century: Changes, Challenges and Choices. New Jersey: Information Today Inc. Shelley-Robinson, Cherrell. 2007. “School Libraries in the Caribbean: A Jamaican Case Study.” In: Cheryl Peltier-Davis and Shamin Renwick (eds.) Caribbean Libraries in the 21st Century: Changes, Challenges and Choices. New Jersey: Information Today Inc.

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The University of the West Indies. 2009. Strategic Transformation for Relevance, Impact, Distinctiveness and Excellence (STRIDE): Strategic Plan [2007–2012]. St. Augustine, Trinidad: UWI. The University of the West Indies. 2009. Vice Chancellor’s Report to Council. Kingston, Jamaica: UWI. The University of the West Indies. St. Augustine Campus. Campus Libraries Annual Reports (1970–1979). Wallace, Elaine. 2002. “Information Policy and Special Librarians in Jamaica (Opening Address).” In Margaret Pearce, (ed.) Special Libraries in the Caribbean on the threshold of the new millennium. Kingston, Jamaica: Arawak Publications. Wikipedia. “History of the Caribbean.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbean (March 22, 2010).

2.5 Egypt Information Technology in the Egyptian Librarianship Community Mahmoud Khalifa Introduction Egypt is a leading country in librarianship in the Arab world. In 1870, Egypt established its national library “Dar al-Kutub wa-al-Watha’iq al-Qawmiyah” and in 1951, it was the first country in the area to start education for librarianship and archives. The Institute of Documents and Libraries was established by the royal order issued by the king of Egypt, Farouk. In 1954 the Institute was merged with the Faculty of Arts at Cairo University and became a department. At present, Egypt has 17 departments for librarianship, archives, and information studies, 11 of them have post graduate programs. The latest official statistics about the Egyptian libraries show that Egypt is the leader of Arab countries in librarianship. The following table states types and numbers of libraries in Egypt.1 Table 1: Statistics of libraries in Egypt Library Type School libraries2 Public libraries

Number 20901 1297

Academic libraries Special libraries National libraries Total

504 493 1 23196

Egypt was the first country to establish a School Libraries Association in 1945, but it folded after a few years. In 1984 the Egyptian Association for Libraries and Information was established and has more than 4,000 members. Egypt is

1 2

Information and Decision Making Center, “Egyptian libraries directory: public and special and academic,” (Cairo: The Center, 2000): 16. Directory of School libraries / Information and Decision Making Center (Cairo: The Center, 2000).

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the exporter of librarians to Gulf countries because many countries in the region including Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates do not have library schools. Therefore, Cairo University has also established departments for library education in many Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia. Egypt has Masters and PhD. Programs in 11 departments of librarianship, and over 1,100 theses have been written since 1962.3 Eight scientific journals and one electronic journal in librarianship, archives and information science are published in Egypt. In 2004 the first electronic journal “Cybrarians Journal”4 was started. It is the only Arab journal included in EBSCO databases.

Internet and Libraries’ Web Sites Egypt was one of first Arab countries to connect to the internet in 1989. The service is managed by the Egyptian Universities Network (EUN) and the Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC) of the Cabinet.5 The Egyptian web site was started in 2001, and 1,626 sites were registered under the national domain name of Egypt (e.g.)6 and this number rose to 3,879 sites in 2005.7 Egyptian libraries started to deal with the internet as a service offered to its patrons, because internet was not available to home subscribers. Therefore, people went to public libraries to use the service. “Technology Clubs” were opened in many public libraries. Actually, they were computer labs used to offer training courses about computer skills. At present, there are 42 web sites divided into different categories according to library. Table 2: Egyptian libraries’ web sites according to types

3 4 5 6 7

Type Academic libraries Public libraries Special libraries School libraries

Number 28 7 5 1

National libraries Total

1 42

% 66.6 16.6 11.9 2.3 2.3

Cybrarians Journal: http://www.journal.cybrarians.info/. Makki, Hesham Fathy, “Internet web sites: practical study for the Egyptian sites programming and access” (M.A. diss, Cairo University, 2001): 92–93. Makki, Hesham Fathy, Ibid.: 117. Khalifa, Mahmoud, “Egyptian web sites in the Internet Archive: field study (M.A. diss., Cairo University, 2006): 92. Khalifa, Mahmoud, “Libraries’ catalogs in web 2.0 environment” (Paper presented at Symposium of Arabic Scripts Web-Based Catalogs in 21st Century, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Feb. 28 – Mar. 1, 2010).

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As shown in the table, academic libraries’ sites come on top, because they were included in the university web site, but in many cases the library site is just one page long and contains basic information about the library. From these sites only 57% of libraries access their OPACs online, and 43% of sites are static and contain only textual information. The general status of libraries web sites is absence of dynamic services.8

Libraries’ Automation and MARC 21 The Egyptian Society of Librarianship was the first among all Arab countries in the 1970s to publish information about MARC and libraries automation. Applying MARC was delayed because the first Egyptian library system (LIS) supported MARC only in its new edition entitled e-LIS which was launched in 2006. American University Cairo Library was considered one of early libraries in Egypt to use MARC as a cataloging format. The Egyptian National Agricultural Library through the Virtua Library System used it in the second half of the 1990s.

Library Automation Systems By the second half of the 1990s, automation was introduced in the Egyptian libraries. This was due to the launch of the first Egyptian system issued and managed by the Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC) in 1995. Two versions of LIS were developed (LIS 2 and a-LIS). Then a new system was developed in 2006 and was named e-LIS.9 This system was the main factor for introducing automation in to the libraries of Egypt. IDSC installed the system for free in the governmental libraries, also supported libraries with required equipments, infrastructure, and training, but the main problem in this system was that it did not support MARC 21 until the 2006 version “e-LIS” was introduced. The current situation of automation in libraries of Egypt is very bad. Only 2.2% of libraries have automated systems. The following table gives detailed figures.10

8 9

10

The electronic library system, http://www.products.idsc.gov.eg/products/product-ELIS.html The author depended on the following source and updated the data for years 2004–2009. Automation systems for libraries: functional and technical standards, selection and accreditation (Cairo: Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Software Engineering Competence Center, 2005): 170. Hamdy, Amal Wageh, “Automation systems applied in the Arabic libraries” Journal of Arabic Librarianship and Information 3 ( July 2000): 16–143.

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Table 3: Applying LIS in the Egyptian libraries Types School libraries Special libraries Academic libraries Public libraries National libraries Total

Apply LIS 201 159 107 46 1 514

% 0.96 32.2 21.2 3.5 100 2.2

Not Apply LIS 20700 334 397 1251 – 22682

% 99.04 67.8 78.8 96.5 – 97.3

Total 20901 493 504 1297 1 23196

Table 4: Progress of LIS in Egyptian libraries 1997–2009 Year 1997 1998 2000

Number 136 216 276

2004 2009

473 514

600

500

400

300

200

100

0 1997

1998

2000

Figure 1: Progress of ILS in Egyptian libraries 1997–2009

2004

2009

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In 1997 the total number of automated libraries was 136 and within the last 12 years this number has increased four times. On average, 48 libraries are automated every year. The Egyptian libraries market is not an attractive market to big companies of LIS. Before merging, Horizon and Unicorn were the most famous systems in Arab countries. Horizon was and is still very successful in the Gulf area; however, it failed in Egypt. Virtua and Millennium were installed in a few libraries. Virtua was presented as a gift to the library of Alexandria and Millennium was gifted to the Central Library of Cairo University. There are five categories of library automation systems in the Egyptian market. Table 5: LIS categories in Egypt Categories

Foreign Systems

Systems Horizon

Unicorn Virtua Symphony Millennium ADIS BRS Techlib Plus Automation Mini/Isis The Librarian A-LIS

Egyptian Systems Open Source Local Systems Free Systems

E-LIS Smart Library System KOHA

Weblis Systems developed for specific library CDS/ISIS

Win/Isis

The open source movement in library systems is very new in Egypt. There are no organizations to sponsor the system. On the other hand, many individual efforts were made in translating and installation. Koha and Weblis are the only open source systems which apply to the Egyptian libraries. Local made systems is a remarkable phenomenon in Egyptian librarianship. Many libraries prefer to have a designed system to meet their specific needs. The National Library of Egypt is considered the leader in designing local systems. Because of the lack of budgets, free systems are very popular in Egyptian libraries. CDS/ISIS and its Windows edition, which were developed by UNESCO and

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managed by the Information Center of the Arab Countries League have been applied in 27 libraries in Egypt. It is a database management system and libraries use it to create bibliographic databases. Here are the most recent statistics about the library systems in Egypt. Table 6: Statistics of LIS in the Egyptian libraries System a-LIS Local System WIN/ISIS Unicorn Future Techlib Koha Horizon Automation Weblis VTLS Millennium Symphony Mini/ISIS BRS ADIS Total

Number 371 49 27 19 18 6

% 72.1 9.5 5.2 3.6 3.5 1.16

4 4 4 3 3 2 1 1

0.77 0.77 0.77 0.58 0.58 0.38 0.19 0.19

1 1 514

0.19 0.19

MARC 21 MARC 21 is the training program offered by all training agencies. As a result many librarians have good experience in MARC 21, but most of them do not have any chance to practice it in their daily work because their libraries have library systems which do not support MARC 21. In 2009, Cybrarians Portal trained 33 trainees, but only two of them used the MARC 21 in their library! In Egypt libraries do not decide to use MARC 21 in cataloging process, but it is determined by the library system. There is no policy, no training, and no planning. The natural result is very bad quality of bibliographic records in catalogs. The Library of Congress, Cairo Office (LOC), American University in Cairo (AUC), and Library of Alexandria are considered the best libraries that use MARC 21 with very high quality of records.

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Consortiums and Union Catalogs Egyptian Libraries Networks This is the first project for establishing union catalogs among the Egyptian libraries. It was established in 1998 and includes 152 libraries. 108,505 records had been prepared by January 2010.11 The project includes only those libraries which have e-LIS library system and was developed by IDSC.

MPL Network The Mubarak Public Library (MPL) is one of the largest public libraries in Egypt. The Egyptian government decided to build a branch of MPL in each province in Egypt, up to now the network includes seven libraries and uses UNICORN library system, and all libraries have union catalog, but the quality of records needs improvement. After the fall of President Hosni Mubarak on 11 February 2011, the new interim government decided to drop Mubarak’s name from all public libraries.

Integrated Care Society Libraries (ICS) Another network of libraries is Integrated Care Society Libraries (ICS). It’s the biggest civil society in Egypt. ICS has five public libraries, six children’s libraries, and one cultural center; they are all located in Cairo, and only one children’s library is located in al-Fayyoum province.12 Since 2004 ICS has applied Unicorn Library System, cataloging process is done centrally in the ICS headquarter, and all libraries have only a circulation module. MARC 21 is used as a cataloging format for bibliographic and authority records with an acceptable level of quality, but still needs more improvement.

University Libraries Automation Project The University Libraries Automation project is one of the most ambitious projects in Egypt. It is managed by the Higher Supreme Council for Universities

11 12

Integrated Care Society, http://www.ics.org.eg/libraries.aspx 13. Information and communication technology project (Cairo: Ministry of Higher Education, 2008): 19.

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and its aim is to create a Union Catalog for all university libraries in Egypt. The project is funded by the European Union which supports each library partially with equipment, training, and library systems. Sixteen universities have joined the project, and each university has four libraries in the first stage of the project which ended in 2008. In 2009, each university added six more libraries. At present, the project has 160 participating university libraries and about two million bibliographic records in the Union Catalog.13 The Cairo University Library, the largest and oldest library, has not joined the project yet.

Digital Reference Service (DRS) During the last ten years, Arabic libraries have realized the importance of digital reference services. Therefore, DRS has been introduced through their web sites, but DRS is not part of many Egyptian libraries. An ambitious start for DRS in Egyptian libraries was made 2003 by ARADO Library.14 It created a chat and e-mail reference service, but after a few years the service disappeared without known reasons. The American University in Cairo (AUC) has the best DRS in Egypt; it has variety of formats of DRS like FAQ, e-mail, and web forms. The Library of Alexandria has a e-mail reference service in addition to a traditional means of reference service.

Web 2.0 Applications Since 2008 the term Web 2.0 has spread widely in libraries and the librarians’ community. Many librarians have created their own blogs, others are writing their thesis on topics such as library 2.0 applications, blogs, RSS, and catalogs in the Web 2.0 environment. The most popular Web 2.0 applications in Egyptian librarianship community are online social networks and blogs. A few organizations have started to apply some Web 2.0 applications. “Cybrarians: the Arabic portal for librarianship and information” is the first organization to apply many Web 2.0 applications and it established a YouTube channel called “Cybrarians Channel”15 in 2007. Wikirarians and RSS feeds were applied in its new web site in March 2009. Also Facebook pages and groups were created in 2008 and 2009.

13 14 15

Arab Organization for Administrative Development, http://www.aradolibrary.org.eg Cybrarians Channel, http://www.youtube.com/cybrarians Cybrarians Channel, www.youtube.com/cybrarians

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Table 7: Specialist groups on Facebook Categories Librarianship departments General groups Libraries Specialist organizations Library systems & software Books and journals Conferences

Number 25 20 15 7 3 3 1

Total

75

Table 8: Specialist pages on Facebook Categories Famous persons Libraries

Number 5 2

Librarianship departments Specialist organizations Books and journals Total

2 1 1 10

Blogs The first use of blogs in Egypt was in political aspects. Bloggers used it as a new means of freedom of expression which is limited in traditional media. The first Arabic blog on librarianship was “Arab Librarians Blog”.16 It was established in 2005 by Dr. Abd al-Rahman Farrag and it is considered the best and most active blog. By the end of December 2009,26 Egyptian specialist blogs were listed, but only two blogs belong to libraries, and the others were created by librarians as personal or professional blogs.

Wikis Wikis were one of the first Web 2.0 applications to be introduced in Egypt. In 2007, Dr. Ibrahim Hassan Abu al-Khayr, professor of librarianship at Menia University, created the first Arabic specialist Wiki entitled “The Arabic 16

Arab Librarians Blog, http://arab-librarians.blogspot.com/

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Wiki of Librarianship and Information Science”.17 This Wiki was built on the famous software Wikimedia. Two wikis were launched in 2009. In March Cybrarians portal launched “Wikirarians”,18 then in May Dr. Emad Eisa, professor of librarianship at Helwan University, created the Arabic encyclopedia for Librarianship and Information.19 It was built on GoogleKnol.

Podcasting In 2007 YouTube was used widely by Cybrarians portal through its channel.20 Since its creation, it has covered local events in Egyptian librarianship, and the IFLA conference of 2008 held in Quebec, Canada.

Librarians’ Training and Development Training of librarians in Egypt depends on non-governmental organizations. There are five organizations that offer training programs for librarians in Egypt and in other Arab countries: 1. Egyptian Association for Libraries and Information (ELA) is the oldest one, it was founded in 1984. 2. Library of Arab Organization for Administrative Development (ARADO) is anintergovernmental organization located in Egypt since 1961 which also gives training for librarianship. 3. Center of Information Researches, Systems and Services (ISSRC) is the only governmental organization. It works with the Faculty of Arts at Cairo University. 4. Librariannet, a young private project established in 2002 and which started training programs in 2004. 5. Cybrarians Portal, established in 2002, and started its training programs in 2007. The following table states percentage of technological topics in training programs for each organization.

17 18 19 20

The Arabic wiki of librarianship and information science, http://www.wiki.reslis.net. Wikirarians, http://www.wiki.cybrarians.info/. The Arabic encyclopedia of libraries and information, http://knol.google.com/k/-/-/ 18cx0bjh5v7vt/1#. Cybrarians Channel, www.youtube.com/cybrarians.

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Table 9: Training on technology in Egypt Organization Library of Arab Organization for Administrative Development Egyptian Association for Libraries and Information Librariannet Cairo University, Center of Information Researches, Systems and Services Cybrarians Portal

Total programs

Technological topics

Non-technological topics

46

55%

45%

18

50%

50%

13

54%

46%

7

70%

30%

6

50%

50%

The Library of Alexandria (Bibliotheca Alexandrina) In 2002 the new Library of Alexandria was opened after 14 years of planning. Bibliotheca Alexandrina is the official name of the library, it’s a Greek name, and it has been chosen because the old library of Alexandria was built by Alexander the Great of Greece. The new library is not just a library, it’s considered a cultural center and includes a museum, arts center, manuscripts center, and a library. The library is composed of the Main Library, the Taha Hussein Library, the Children’s Library , the Young People’s Library, the Arts & Multimedia Library and the Nobel Section. Each one of these contributes to the whole, meeting the needs of diverse groups of individuals. There are eight main sections: Special Libraries, Digital Library Services, Technical Services, Access Services, Public Services, New Initiatives, Arts & Multimedia Services, and Enabling Infrastructure. The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) is involved in many projects including Egyptian history and culture and “Memory of Modern Egypt” which has digitized valuable documents about the modern history of Egypt (1805–1981). The Digital Library is considered one of most important projects. In the following sections two of the important projects will be discussed in detail.

The Digital Assets Repository (DAR) The Digital Assets Repository (DAR) is a system developed at the Library of Alexandria, to create and maintain library’s digital collections. DAR acts as a repository for all types of digital material, thus preserving and archiving the digital media as well as providing public access to digitized collections

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through a web-based search and browsing facilities. The goal of this project is building a digital resources repository by supporting the creation, use, and preservation of a variety of digital resources, as well as development of management tools. These tools help the library to preserve, manage, and share digital assets. The system is based on evolving standards for easy integration with web-based interoperable digital libraries. Over 115,000 books are now available on DAR’s web site. For books that are out-of-copyright, their contents are fully available on the Internet. For books that are in copyright, Internet users can browse only 5% of the book, with a minimum of ten pages. However, all books are digitally available in the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Furthermore, for copyright books, the publishing module allows simultaneous access to books purchased by BA to intranet users only. That is, if BA has purchased two copies of a book, only two users can access the digital copy simultaneously. Only when one of them releases the book, another user can have access to it.21

My Book (Children Digital Library) The Children Digital Library is a great project designed to enable children to relate to both printed and digital information, an essential requirement to cope with the rapid technological leaps of today. The project teaches children that written words can be transformed from digital format to printed format and then to a bound book and vice versa. It’s important to mention that this project is a part of the International Children’s Digital Library.22

Obstacles in Applying Technology in Libraries Dr. Usama El Sayed Mahmoud, professor of librarianship at Cairo University is one of famous experts in library automation. He was a consultant of IDSC and participated in over 100 projects for library automation. A survey of 25 Egyptian libraries indicates that there are many problems to introduce technology in libraries. They include: 1. lack of qualification and training for staff. 2. systems do not support all formats of information resources and do not perform all libraries functions. 3. lack of equipment maintenance. 4. electricity network.

21 22

Digital Assets Repository, http://dar.bibalex.org/. My Book, http://mybook.bibalex.org.

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5. funds for development and maintenance. 6. absence of motivation and need for more computers. In addition, there are three major obstacles. They are:

Administrative There is no central authority in the country to guide all libraries which has led to many problems. Some public libraries report to the Ministry of Culture, others follow the National Library. The Library of Alexandria is an independent organization and few of them follow the guidelines of the Integrated Care Society. Therefore, there is no cooperation among public libraries, there are no unified policies, and national strategy for public libraries is lacking in Egypt. A majority of managers in Egyptian libraries are non professionals without any library degrees or professional experience. For example, the current head of the National Library is a professor of Arabic Literature, and the head of the National Archives is a professor of chemistry. The Integrated Care Society has eleven libraries. These libraries are managed by retired army officers including middle management positions.

Financial Obstacles All libraries have financial problems. In 2006 the Ministry of Culture reduced the annual budget of the Egyptian National Library from 15 million Egyptian pounds (about $3 million) to 2 million (about $370,000). Generally, governmental libraries have fixed budgets. School libraries do not have any budget, because all books, equipment, and materials are purchased by the Ministry of Education. Private universities, including the American University in Cairo (AUC), German University in Cairo (GUC), British University in Egypt (BUE), and Nile University (NU) have good libraries to meet the research needs of their students and faculty.

Human Obstacles As mentioned earlier, Egypt has 17 departments for library education and many students graduate with professional degrees every year but there are no positions for the graduates. Over 85% of the positions are filled by non librarians, and only 15% by professional librarians. Many libraries in Egypt have experienced but old librarians who are not able to adapt to new technologies. The Central Library of Cairo University evaluated to its 800 employees, but only 55 of them had training and knowledge of new technologies.

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Future Prospects In 2003 RAND Corporation prepared a report about information technology in the Middle East and North Africa.23 According to the report, Arab countries will not be able to catch the revolution of information technology before the first quarter of the twenty-first century at least, because of the absence of democracy. The report explains that flowing and accessing information in societies will be limited in non-democratic governing systems in Arab countries. Therefore, progress will be slow. In summary: – The projects of Digital Library Unit at the Higher Supreme of Universities in Egypt will make progress in using technology in university libraries. Automation of 16 central university libraries and nine other libraries will continue with new equipment and training. The union catalog of all Egyptian dissertations and the digital repository of dissertations will be completed. – It is important to increase the budget of the National Library of Egypt. It is equally important to appoint a professional librarian as head of the library. It will help to make the needed progress in the information age. – Private foreign universities libraries will continue to grow and lead the progress. – There is an urgent need of strong leadership from the Library Association and commitment from the federal government to help libraries with more money for technology and training. This will help libraries to grow and prepare its citizens to compete with other nations in the information age of the twenty-first century.

23

Burkhart, Grey E., The information revolution in the Middle East and North Africa / Grey E. Burkhart, Susan Older (Pittsburgh: RAND, 2003): 85.

2.6 Ghana Libraries in Ghana in the Technological Age Helena Asamoah-Hassan Introduction Today’s information environment – including access to current and relevant information – cannot be complete without the use of information technology. Technology has come into the information provision business to assist in harnessing the great amount of information available, some authoritative and others irrelevant. Libraries now have to re-examine their role in society and redefine their activities so that provision of authoritative information to users through the most convenient, quick and easy access meansinformation communication technologies (ICT) are given the utmost priority.

Ghana The Republic of Ghana with Accra as its capital city lies on the western side of the African continent. Burkina Faso borders it to the north and north-west, Togo to the east, Cote d’Ivoire to the west and the Gulf of Guinea to the south. Its total land area is 238,533 square kilometers (92,098 sq. miles). It is a lowland country with a range of hills towards its eastern border, with the highest point reaching about 884 metres (2,900 feet) above sea level. It is a predominantly forest vegetation with an undulating savannah in the north.1 The 2008 census estimate puts the country’s population at 23,383,0002 made up of people from about 50 ethnic groups. Its official language is English. About 70% of the population lives in the country’s southern half. A great number of the people depend on farming cash and subsistence crops for their living.3 The economy of Ghana is supported by natural resources, gold, timber, and cocoa. Oil has recently been discovered on its shores and will be commercially productive towards the end of 2010. There are also manufacturing and industrial concerns mostly situated in the southern part of the country.

1 2 3

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/232376 (accessed 2 January 2010). http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/232376 (accessed 2 January 2010). Moses K. Antwi, Education, Society and Development in Ghana (Accra: Unimax,1992): 2.

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Education in Ghana Ghana has educational set ups from nursery to university. Some are publicly owned by the government and others are privately owned by individuals and religious bodies. Currently there are 12,130 primary public schools; 5,450 junior high public schools; 503 Senior High public Schools and 18 public technical institutions;4 38 public teacher training colleges (recently re-named colleges of education)and two private colleges of education. There are also ten public polytechnics one in each region of the country5 and one private polytechnic in Cape Coast, some of them offering undergraduate degree p rograms in addition to the traditional Higher National Diploma p rograms. There are six public universities, six public professional institutions and about 31 privately owned universities and university colleges.6 According to the laws that set up these educational institutions, from the primary to the university level, they all must have functional libraries. However it is only at the teacher training colleges, polytechnics and universities that one can see some functional libraries. The primary, junior and senior high schools have more work to do to improve facilities and services in their libraries. In some privately owned primary, junior and senior high schools there are good libraries serving their pupils and students. Some of the privately owned universities and university colleges however do not have the quality and size of libraries expected of them.

Libraries in Ghana Ghana has several types of library: school, special, public, and academic. These were set up at different stages in the development of the country, some even in the colonial era and they have varied qualities as far as their facilities and services are concerned.

School Libraries The Accelerated Development Plan for Education7 in 1951 brought about the expansion of schools. The schools that were established were expected to

4 5 6 7

http://www.ghanaweb.com/Ghana Home Page/education (accessed 29 December 2009). National Accreditation Board http://www.nab.gov.gh (accessed 5 March 2010). Ibid. A.A. Alemna, Libraries, Information and Society (Accra: Ghana Universities Press, 2000): 31.

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have libraries so a number of schools with religious and government patronage had libraries. However, these libraries, except that of Achimota School, which was located in the capital city Accra, were not up to standard. School libraries were again seriously considered as part of the Second Development Plan of the country which began in 1959.8 In 1972 the Schools and Colleges Department of the Ghana Library Board was made responsible for these libraries. It provided books and journals for the schools; its staff paid regular visits to schools to assist them to organize their reading materials and also trained the staff of the school libraries.9 After about two decades of running this service successfully, shortage of staff and lack of finance has limited the scope of service to only senior high schools and teacher training colleges. The school library scene in Ghana is not the best today. For example, school libraries do not have functional buildings. They also have inadequate and outdated collections and most of their members of staff do not have basic professional qualifications. There is therefore the need for improvement in the current situation to make them serve the purpose for which they were established. It is at this stage in life that people develop reading skills and the love for books and libraries.

Special Libraries Special libraries in Ghana operate within government ministries, departments, and agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), foreign embassies and agencies, financial, industrial and commercial institutions, and those of research institutes. All these are set up to serve the needs of their parent organizations and so most times their services are tailored to meet these needs and so are interest specific. There are many research libraries including 27 agricultural related ones and 14 from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) group.10 One of the oldest special libraries is the Ministry of Food and Agriculture Reference Library in Accra which was linked with the establishment of the Aburi Botanical Gardens in 1890.11 The Supreme Court Library was also established in 1909 soon after the Supreme Court of Gold Coast (Ghana)12 was 8 9 10 11 12

Gold Coast, Accelerated Development Plan for Education (Accra: Government Printer, 1951). E.J.A. Evans, A tropical library service: the story of Ghana’s libraries. (London: Andre Deutch, 1964): 35–41. Grace Annoh, “The objectives of a modern special library with reference to the Ghana situation”. Ghana Library Journal 12 (2000): 47. A.G.T. Ofori, “Ghana” in Contemporary Development in Librarianship: An International Handbook. ed. M.N. Jackson (London: Library Association, 1981): 8. Alemna, Libraries, Information and Society: 21.

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established. Major banking institutions such as the Bank of Ghana and Ghana Commercial Bank also have libraries. Most often libraries of foreign embassies or missions such as the United States of America and their agencies such as the British Council provide very current services to the public from their libraries which are relatively small in size. This is so because they are endowed with the most modern facilities that assist their users by providing access to relevant and current information for their personal and national development. Most special libraries in Ghana face several challenges, the critical ones being inadequate materials and limited space. Sometimes their materials are outmoded and often have little or no value to researchers.13 Today the quality of special libraries in Ghana varies from the very good to the bad depending on the level of interest of the mother organization towards its development.

Public Libraries The Ghana Library Board (GLB) is the government agency responsible for running the public library service in Ghana. There are also a few children’s libraries run by individuals, the most successful being the Kathy Knowles Children’s Library in Accra which is very well used by children. Quite recently community libraries have been springing up under the supervision of district assemblies to provide information to enrich the quality of life of people living in towns and villages. The GLB is under the Ministry of Education whilst the community libraries are under the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development. The national public library service was born on 1 January 1950 with the Gold Coast Library Board Ordinance, CAP 118 of 194914 to establish, equip, manage, and maintain public library services in the country. Prior to this in 1928 the Anglican Bishop of Accra, Right Reverend John Orfeur Aglionby, had offered his personal library of about 6,000 volumes for public use. Soon after it was established, the GLB opened regional libraries in Accra, Kumasi, Cape Coast, Sekondi, Ho, Sunyani, Tamale, Bolgatanga, Wa, and Koforidua. Fifty one branch / district libraries throughout the country were also later opened to cater for the information and education needs of people who do not live in the regional capital. These libraries offer lending, reference and information, book-box and mobile library, children’s library, school and college library, extension, and consultancy services. It also has the George

13 14

A.A, Alemna, “Libraries in research and scholarship in Ghana”. African Research and Documentation 57 (1991): 8. Seth Edekor, “Ghana Library Board” in The use of ICTs in African Public Libraries: a survey of ten countries in Anglophone Africa. ed. Justin Chisenga. (Oxford: INASP, 2004): 57.

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Padmore Research Library on African Affairs that performs some of the functions of a national library15 including the issuance of the International Standard Book Number (ISBN), International Standard Serial Number (ISSN), and the International Standard Music Number (ISMN). The Ordinance was replaced with the Ghana Library Board Act 327 of 1970.16 This Act brought about the establishment of Regional and District Advisory Committees to advise on library policies at those levels. Since the 1980s the public library service which was a show piece of public libraries in Africa in earlier years has suffered serious decline. It is only quite recently that some funds in addition to the regular annual budget are being made available to the Ghana Library Board to revamp it. For example, towards the end of 2006, ten mobile library vans filled with 4,000 books each on various subjects were acquired for the GLB, one for each region to support library services to rural communities. An Act of Parliament in 2000 established the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFUND) to support teaching, learning, and research in the country. The GLB is one of the beneficiaries of this fund. The GETFUND has made it possible for the GLB to purchase 40,000 volumes of books annually for distribution to all its libraries in the country. With this it is hoped that the service will be able to reclaim its past glory.17 It is the public library service that occupies a unique position in mobilizing public support for national development through the acquisition and dissemination of information useful and necessary for all categories of people in Ghanaian society.18 Unfortunately the collection of the GLB is currently mainly book / paper centerd which makes it difficult for a large percentage of the society, especially the illiterate population, to patronize it. The GLB should brace itself to meet the expectations of users by fulfilling this key function of public library services through the provision of all formats for access to information to cater for its varied types of users.

Academic Libraries Academic libraries in Ghana are those of the tertiary institutions, that is, the colleges of education, polytechnics, and universities. The oldest public tertiary institution library is that of the University of Ghana, Legon in Accra which was opened alongside the university in 1948. That of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Kumasi came in 1951,

15 16 17 18

Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 57. Ghana Library Board Act 327, (Accra: Government Printer,1970). http://ghanalibraryboard.com/gba_iDetails.cfm (accessed 5 January 2010). Alemna, “Libraries in Research and scholarship in Ghana”: 8.

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University of Cape Coast (UCC) in 1962, University for Development Studies (UDS) Tamale in 1992, University for Education (UEW) Winneba in 1992 and University of Mines and Technology(UMaT) Tarkwa in 2005. The oldest private university library is the Valley View University (VVU) at Oyibi near Accra opened in 1979 and the oldest private university college library is the Christian Service University College in Kumasi opened in 1974.19 The remaining private university and university college libraries, about 20 of them, were opened between 1988 and to date. Such university colleges spring up by the day and so it is difficult to provide up to date statistics for them and their libraries. There are also 11 polytechnic libraries established and 38 colleges of education. Academic libraries in Ghana, especially the university libraries, are better stocked than the other types of library. Some university libraries are used by the public as the ‘library of last resort’ when critical and/or current information is needed. This is because most of the university libraries stock information on a wide array of subjects because of the courses they offer. They also subscribe to some electronic journal databases through the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana, CARLIGH. A number of them are also depository libraries for some United Nations agencies and the World Bank. In spite of these, most of their print materials, especially textbooks, are outdated and so the function of providing current materials for teaching, learning, and research is in great danger. A former vice chancellor observed that a university library should be “the heart if not aorta of any university, and its [university] academic health, intellectual vitality and effectiveness, therefore closely depend on the state of health and excellence of its library, which indeed is its life blood. An inert and moribund library, invariably means an inert and moribund university”.20 Academic libraries in Ghana now face problems of experienced personnel as most of the experienced staff are either on or close to retirement, inadequate physical facilities, and funding. Some of the libraries are currently being provided with additional buildings to ease the problem of limited space. As a result of the existence of CARLIGH, limited funds are being pooled for access to a large amount of electronic information. Efforts are being made to recruit and train personnel so that there will be effective transfer of knowledge to the advantage of the libraries. It is hoped that more funds will be made available in budgetary allocations to the libraries to purchase books and also subscribe to print journals because academic libraries in Ghana are hybrid libraries. University libraries in Ghana need to update their print information sources regularly to ensure effective support for teaching, learning, research, and knowledge dissemination in the universities.

19 20

http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/list_of_universities_in_Ghana (accessed 2 January 2010). A. Kwapong, “Libraries in University education in Ghana” Ghana Library Journal 4(1) (1970) 42.

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Use of Technology in Libraries We are in the information explosion age. There is so much information created in the world that there is the need to organize it for effective use. The existence of information communication technologies (ICT), which go through rapid changes and updates, assists greatly in the selection, storage, and general management of information. Electronic networks and multimedia technologies are being used to the fullest. These technologies have dramatic effect on library and information services provision because their proper usage provides access to a great amount of relevant recorded knowledge. ICTs have come to support the development, improvement, and modernization of libraries and their work, to provide ‘just in time’ information and not the traditional ‘just in case’ function of libraries. Libraries in Ghana have embraced the use of technology to provide library and information services, but in varying degrees. The use of technology in libraries includes integrated library systems, library web servers, digital libraries, institutional repositories, computers, scanners, printers, radio, television, video and audio, telephone and fax machines. User support in the use of the technologies is also inclusive. In some libraries, such as the UG and KNUST, there are fully equipped and staffed information technology support units within the library to coordinate the use of the technology for access to information in various departments and libraries and to ensure that the current needs are met and future needs planned for. It is also important to consider some issues when planning to use technology in libraries. Some of them are: – what the technology will be used for, for example access to the web, email, online library catalog, routine library and administrative work; – how to plan it, for example setting up of a committee; – how to fund it and a budget , for example grants, institution funding, fees and charges; – costs for maintenance and upgrading of equipment; – decision on equipment and requirements for take-off and continuity; – information technology training of staff , for example for basic and technical skills and users, for example on the use of Internet and search engines; – rules/policies to guide the use of the technology; – periodic measurement of the use of the technology to determine level of usage and also for user satisfaction to inform future decision making.21

21

Nancy Willard, “Technology planning for libraries” http://www.cyberbully.org/onlinedocs/ pdf/planlibrary.pdf (accessed 4 January 2010).

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Fortunately, these issues have been taken into consideration by libraries, especially academic and special libraries, in Ghana that have these services. This is a positive step that will ensure that the services started will continue to be offered.

Use of Technology in Ghana’s Libraries Over sixteen years ago in 1994, it was observed that “Libraries in Ghana have a long way to go in embracing the information technology revolution which is sweeping across the world.”22 The situation today is encouraging although it could be better. Apart from the university libraries, some polytechnic libraries, a few special libraries and of course libraries of foreign embassies and missions (most of which are sometimes better equipped than university libraries in relation to their sizes) the use of computers in library and information service provision has not been explored to the fullest in libraries in Ghana. The public library system between 2007 and 2009 acquired computers in numbers which were grossly inadequate for their services. Information systems, like other social structures, are intended to contribute to the socio-economic and cultural development of individuals in society23 as well as for the total national development. It is unfortunate that not much attention or priority is given to the promotion of library and information services in Ghana. This is because as a country, information is not seen as of much value although people use information regularly and on daily basis. This may be due to the fact that information cannot be seen in a physical form or felt, as it is intangible. For a nation to develop its human, economic, rural, urban aspects, and also provide an enabling environment as stated in Section 5 of Ghana’s Vision 2020,24 to ensure national development, libraries will need to play a vital role to achieve this. Currently it may not be possible for most libraries to do that because they are not well enough equipped with the information and communication technologies of today. There are trained personnel to use these technologies but the big challenge is the limited availability of resources, such as funding, to provide the computers, accessories, and necessary logistics like network cabling and payment for Internet Service Provider (ISP), which bring us back to the lack of attention or priority given to library and information services in the country.

22 23 24

A.A. Alemna, Libraries and information provision in Ghana. (Accra: Type Co.Ltd., 1994): 85. Clement Entsua-Mensah, C., “Strategies for library and Information development in Ghana.” Information Development 10(3) (1994): 200. Government of Ghana, Ghana Vision 2020 (The first Step: 1996–2000) (Accra: Assembly Press,1995): 47.

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School Libraries The Ministry of Education in Ghana set up a committee at the beginning of the millennium to develop ICT in education policy framework. Its objective among others, was to promote ICT as a learning tool in the school curriculum at all levels.25 Before this committee was set up, the Ghanaian education authorities started some projects to introduce ICTs into education, especially at the basic and secondary school levels. This was as a result of the realisation in the mid-1990s by education providers that education leaverscould not compete well on the global job market because of some limitations in skills especially in information technology (IT). The study of ICT was therefore made part of the science syllabus. The assumption was that ICTs would assist in teaching and learning in the basic and secondary schools. With the assistance of some NGOs, Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) and philanthropists, 110 science resource centers were opened to assist in the teaching of science and ICT. It was however later found out that the p rograms were not well structured and did not cover all the schools.26 The p rogram of the Ministry of Education to introduce ICTs in schools faces challenges of lack of adequate number of computers, inadequate ICT infrastructure, limited access to reliable electricity supply especially in the non-urban areas, poor Internet connectivity, limited number of personnel to support training in ICT and maintenance of equipment in the schools that have begun. Also there is no clear cut ICT policy framework to govern the initiative.27 ICT is changing the way classrooms operate even within more traditional learning environments as the integration of multimedia project presentation and online research are making the learning process more interactive and participatory.28 This clearly infers that libraries need to be established in schools to support teaching and learning by providing access to online research information.

25 26 27 28

Government of Ghana , Government of Ghana Ministerial ICT Policy Statement.(Accra: NBS Multimedia, 2005). E. Nyarko, “Developing ICT enabled education – the future for Ghana” (2007), http://www. iconnect-onlin.org/Documents/Ghana%20Elearning%202007%20eng-%20,connect.pdf (accessed 29 December 2009). Ebenezer Malcolm and Francis Godwyll, “Diffusion of information Communication Technology in Selected Ghanaian Schools”, http://www.iconnect-online.org/News/Diffusion_ ICT_Ghanaian_Schools_ Malcolm_Godwyll.pdf (accessed 29 December 2009). United Nations, World Youth Report 2005. (New York: Department of Social and Economic Affairs, 2005).

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The Internet provides cost-effective information delivery services29 and more greatly assists in distance learning than has ever been thought of.30 In the schools with computers and Internet access, students used ICTs to enhance their learning as they sought information on the Internet themselves to support their understanding of subjects and courses taught.31 Obviously the schools of these students do not have libraries and the quality of materials they accessed on the Internet may have been poor. It is expected that when the national fibre optic communication backbone project being undertaken in Ghana is operational there will be a reduction in costs of communication to enable a large number of schools that are currently not connected to the Internet to be able to do so. In all these efforts, plans, and pilot projects by the Ministry of Education in Ghana to introduce the use of ICTs in basic and secondary schools, no attention has been given to the role libraries will play. Computer laboratories are being considered as the ultimate means for acquisition of information to supplement classroom teaching. It is important to understand that not all information from the Internet is authoritative so the earlier the Ministry of Education considers the role of school libraries along with the setting up of computer laboratories to support teaching and learning with authoritative information that will assist in the educational and intellectual development of the pupils and students, the better it would be for the nation, whose leaders of tomorrow are being trained now.

Special Libraries The Central Reference and Research Library (CRRL) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) established the Ghana National Scientific and Technological Information Network (GHASTINET) in 1989. The main objective of GHASTINET is to establish a coordinated national mechanism of the results of scientific research carried out in Ghana and other science and technology information generated elsewhere but of relevance to Ghana’s development needs.32 It is in carrying out this objective that ICT was introduced in CRRL by its management committee in the form of the maintenance of a database and the establishment of links with local, regional, and international networks.

29 30 31 32

A. Clyde, “Computers in School libraries: the Internet and Australian Schools” ACCESS, 9(2) (1995): 26–28. R. Todd, “Information Technology and learning: a never-ending beginning” ACCESS, 11(1) (1997): 11–14. Malcolm and Godwyll, “Diffusion of information Communication Technology in Selected Ghanaian Schools”: 16–17. Alemna, Libraries and information provision in Ghana, 47.

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Special libraries in Ghana, among other aims, are expected to promote the use of information technology in data manipulation and management and the education of users interested in the use of information and technology.33 Most special libraries in Ghana carry out these activities. However from the late 1970s there has been a decline in the quality of output because of economic challenges. This is because only a few government funded libraries have access to computers, Internet, and CD-ROM facilities.34 Computers are expected to enable the computerization of their collections and also have improved services. The Internet makes it possible for them to access electronic journals and databases, some of them for free and others by subscription through the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH) package. The situation in special libraries of private companies, businesses, and NGOs is better than that in the government funded ones. Computers in these libraries are generally kep up to date and they usually maintain networks with their branches in the country and even overseas where relevant. This enables the library to be active in the provision of ‘just in time’ information for electronic and face to face requests from users from their desk terminals at their branch offices and head offices. Special libraries of foreign embassies and missions in Ghana like the United States Embassy, the British Council, and the United Nations agencies including the World Bank maintain state of the art ICT equipment and accessories and also have access to a lot of authoritative electronic information through the Internet. They upgrade their equipment regularly and offer the old ones to other libraries in Ghana who may need them. They also open their libraries to users and all other libraries in the country that may need to access information that they do not stock. They offer the full range of special library services because they have automated their services thereby making storage, access, and retrieval of information easy. There is not much literature about the usage of technology in special libraries in Ghana as it attracts very little research. Interestingly it is not only in Ghana that this occurs. This also occurs in the United Kingdom.35 Most of the information used in this section is therefore verbal communication from persons working in these special libraries. There is a lot of knowledge on specific subjects and fields from authoritative sources that can be retrieved by special libraries through the use of ICTs to satisfy their users. ICTs can also be used for inter-library loans to ensure that

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Annoh, “The objectives of a modern special library with reference to the Ghana situation”: 47. Annoh, “The objectives of a modern special library with reference to the Ghana situation”: 48. Karen Furness and Margaret Graham, E. “The use of Information technology in special libraries in the U.K.” Programme, 30(1) (1996): 23.

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there is access to information that the special library does not stock. They can be used to create a database of local research results, which is essential to national development, and also maintain an online catalog that will greatly assist in resource sharing among related special libraries. Using ICTs to carry out the functions of the special library is also critical as most times such libraries employ only a limited number of staff. When ICTs are used in special libraries quick access to current information is ensured. The services will be more efficient and of a higher quality. Special libraries in Ghana by their very nature deal with access to specific and critical and/or current information. Government funded parent institutions must therefore make it a priority to provide current information and communication technologies in their libraries which are valuable assets to them if they aim at carrying out their functions towards national development effectively.

Public Libraries The Ghana Library Board (GLB), which provides public library services in Ghana, received its first computer as a gift from the Barclays Bank of Ghana in 1999. In 2001, 24computers were purchased by the GLB with government funding. Each regional library was given one except the Greater Accra regional library which got three. The George Padmore Research Library on African Affairs and the Headquarters were also given some of the computers. These computers were not networked. The Ghana Library Board has printers, telephones, television and video cassette recorders in all the regional libraries, the Headquarters and the Padmore Research Library36 to facilitate access and dissemination of information. The operations of the GLB are not yet automated although it has plans to deploy PURNA Version 237 an integrated library system to link all its branch libraries with the headquarters. The lack of an automated book processing system cost the GLB dearly in its acquisition of books. As a result of the limited number of professional staff at the GLB, processing of books took a very long time necessitating international donors to suspend shipment of books in 2003 because of the long delay in processing the books for the shelves.38 The Ghana Library Board has a website (http://www.ghanalibraryboard. com) which was created in 2008. The pages are scarcely populated with information, it has several blank pages and it has not been updated since 26 April 2008. The website is a very important tool for access to historical and current information about public library services in Ghana. It is the gateway to the

36 37 38

Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 57–58. Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 61. Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 58.

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Ghana Library Board and its services. As the website situation is now, it is difficult to access current information about its services and so one has to rely on anecdotal evidence from its staff and the general public. Currently there is Internet connectivity in the Accra Central Library as well as the Padmore Research Library also in Accra. The regional libraries in Cape Coast, Sekondi, Kumasi, and Tamale also have Internet connectivity. These offer very limited services to the public because of the inadequate number of computers. The other remaining regional libraries (Ho, Sunyani, Wa, Koforidua, and Bolgatanga) at present do not have connectivity as they are upgrading their physical facilities and will be connected when the upgrading work is completed. None of the district libraries currently has Internet connectivity but there are plans to extend the service to them soon. It is important for an organization to have an ICT plan. Unfortunately the GLB does not have one yet and relies on the national ICT policy to assist it in the introduction of ICT into public library services in the country. It also looks up to the Ministry of Education’s Strategic Plan 2003–2015 which states the promotion of ICT in schools, and hopes that there will be a fall out from that to public libraries. This is an exercise in futility because even when the public library is mentioned to benefit from ICTs in the Plan, the system that operates is such that several hurdles will have to be jumped to access funds to carry out the activities as several institutions will be chasing after the very limited funding so it becomes a case of the ‘survival of the fittest.’ It is very important for the GLB to write its ICT plan, market it, and ensure that it is implemented. One markets what is physically available and not an idea on the horizon or in the minds of people. There are however some indications that the GLB is putting a team together to draw up the ICT plan and this is a welcome development. The GLB has been battling with some challenges that have affected its ICT development. The lack of appreciation of some decision-makers and funding bodies of the great contribution that ICTs in the public library will make towards information processing and delivery is a major issue.39 In some cases when the decision-maker in the library does not appreciate the importance of ICTs in information delivery for national development, ICTs may not be budgeted or even advocated. The same goes for those who provide funding for the public library service. Fortunately the GETFUND window for additional funding and the allocations from it will assist to improve this area of its services. It is important that more of this fund is used to secure infrastructure and facilities for ICT in its network. The District Assembly (Local Government) Common Fund is another type of funding which can be assessed at the district level to set up ICT facilities in the district libraries.40 Altogether,

39 40

Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 60. Edekor, “Ghana Library Board”: 59.

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if the GLB gets its act together, it can access funding to implement its ICT plans. The GLB has a responsibility as the provider of public library services in Ghana to make available ICT services including Internet in all its branches. This is a responsibility to the teeming numbers of the population who use their services to educate themselves to improve their status in life as they see the public library service as “the poor man’s university.” It is also this service which is available to the rural community who are mostly farmers and so need information to assist them improve their farming methods for greater yield. It is heart-warming that the staff of the public library service have received training in basic ICT skills including the use of application software, and Internet searches. Some of the staff have email addresses and often use Internet cafes to sharpen their searching skills, especially those from the branch libraries where there is currently no connectivity. This makes the staff ready to offer their services when the necessary facilities are in place.

Academic Libraries The provision of library services by university libraries today is changing. The emphasis is on access to a greater amount of information rather than number of holdings in the Library. A library without walls is the expectation. Access to and use of information technologies in promoting and managing information resources is therefore of great importance. In view of this, several university libraries are using ICT for service provision but the available infrastructure and the required expertise to use these technologies are not up to the expected standard. As a result of the recent increase in the number of private universities and university colleges in the country, there is now a big challenge for libraries to provide materials to meet the needs of users. It is therefore an observation in the right direction in a report for libraries, whose essential function is to provide the information for their institutions’ teaching and research missions, that the challenges have never been greater.41 Again, in a study conducted on polytechnic libraries four years after the institutions had been upgraded to tertiary status, it was found that their libraries were not positioned to provide the information support needed because of the lack of resources including ICT.42

41 42

Deb de Bruijn and Kathleen Robertson, “Beyond collections to connections: increasing library capacity in Ghana” (prepared for the Commonwealth of Learning with Supplement from the Overseas Development Administration, UK, 1997). A.A. Alemna, C.O. Kisiedu and I.K. Antwi, “Library facilities in the Polytechnics of Ghana; a review of their roles as tertiary institutions,” Aslib Proceedings 48(10) (Oct. 1996): 233– 240.

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Staff of academic libraries at the advent of ICTs had little training on their use. The Department of Information Studies at the University of Ghana, Legon, introduced IT in its syllabus in the late 1990s for those going through formal education. The university libraries since 1999 have been organizing several IT workshops in Ghana and also through linkages with partners overseas they have been sending their staff for training or invited resource personnel to Ghana to carry out such training. The IFLA/ DANIDA Inter Library Lending and Document Delivery (ILL/ DD) Project (1996–2003) trained six persons from the public universities in the United Kingdom and Denmark in inter-library lending procedures and Internet searching to become core trainers. The Project also provided computers, servers, IT infrastructure development, connectivity and networking equipment to support the setting up of inter-library lending infrastructure and the Internet. The same project enabled the five public universities and the Institute for Scientific and Technological Information (INSTI), to access some online databases through INASP.43 The Info Dev/GNCIC project was started in 1996 to promote the acquisition and use of ICT in the public sector of the country for economic development. It set up an Internet backbone which connected four of the public universities at Legon, Kumasi, Cape Coast, and Winneba, and also provided servers and other connectivity equipment to the universities to enable Internet access, as well as a year’s free Internet access. The project also organized workshops on Internet working and national backbone networks in 1992, 2000, and 2001.44 These were communal efforts made to start public university libraries on the path to using ICT for library service delivery. Since then the universities have individually pursued the development of ICT services in their libraries. The polytechnics have also been seriously equipping their libraries to use ICT in their work. Today some of the academic libraries have computer laboratories where students and staff receive training on how to use computers, search the Internet, and access databases. Most of the libraries are endowed with some computers for users, although there is still the need for more. There are several wireless hotspots on campuses that enable access to the Internet even when the libraries and computer laboratories in various departments are closed. Most of the libraries have also automated or are in the process of automating their catalogs and other routine procedures. The University of Ghana’s Library in May 2009 launched its OPAC; KNUST Library installed its

43 44

42.A.A. Alemna and M. Cobblah, The Ghana Interlibrary lending and documentdelivery network (GILLDDNET) (Oxford: INASP, 2004). C. Kisiedu, Ghana Universities’ Case Study: The Libraries of the Public Universities of Ghana. (Unpublished report, 2009).

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integrated library system software and completed bar coding its materials in August 2009. Records are now being entered in the system to enable the commissioning of its OPAC. The other public universities, UEW, UDS and UMaT are on the verge of installing their integrated library systems. Some of the private universities like VVU and Ashesi University College are also treading this same path as well as some of the polytechnic libraries. Automating a library’s service has to be well planned and executed so that one can avoid making very costly mistakes. From no computers in the university libraries in the 1990s, academic libraries today can boast of computers and Internet connectivity. Most of the computers are used for Internet searches, email, cataloging, CD-ROM and database searches and also for word processing. All these libraries have telephones and fax machines which are necessary for transmission of ‘just in time’ information. The Database of African Theses and Dissertations (DATAD) project begun by the Association of African Universities (AAU) in 2000 enables theses and dissertations originating from African universities and collected by university libraries for storage and dissemination to be made available online through the use of computers and the Internet and on CD-ROM to African researchers and also scholars globally. This was the first type of materials to provide wide access to users through the use of computers. The DATAD project is still ongoing and universities in Ghana are still contributing materials to it. The establishment of the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH) in 2004 enables access to over 19,000 electronic journal titles through databases to support teaching, learning, and research. The Consortium has facilitated a drastic reduction in cost of access to electronic resources. It also promotes cooperation and networking among academic and research libraries in the country. CARLIGH currently has 23 members consisting of university, public and private, polytechnic, and research libraries in Ghana. It runs workshops regularly to update the ICT and other information access skills of the academic and research library staff in the country. Technology deployment has come to stay in academic libraries in Ghana because they have improved the services which hitherto were being provided manually to users. Efforts are being made to build upon what has been achieved so far. Several members of staff have received training and some of them have become trainers passing on the expertise to newly employed personnel. Access to electronic information as earlier indicated is being made available through CARLIGH and each year additional databases are added as new libraries join, making the cost per institution very economical. Equipment and infrastructure are also regularly upgraded and maintained. What is left is for more computers to be acquired to enable more users to be at work on them simultaneously as opposed to the current regulated times for usage per user. It can therefore be conveniently said that so far the provision and use of technology in academic libraries in Ghana is very encouraging.

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The Ghana Library Association Mention must be made of the contribution of the Ghana Library Association (GLA) towards the development and improvement of the IT competence of library personnel in the country. The GLA has been in existence since 1962 as the association for library personnel to offer training and other services to its members. It regularly organizes workshops and seminars to upgrade the skills of its members in modern techniques of information delivery including the use of IT. This it does on its own or in collaboration with local partners like the Public Affairs Section of the United States Embassy, the Goethe Institut, and the British Council. It also publishes a peer reviewed journal, Ghana Library Journal twice in a year and it is indexed by African Journals Online (AJOL). This journal offers an avenue for transfer of knowledge on new ways of information delivery services including the use of ICT to its members and the general public.

Technology in Ghana’s Libraries by the year 2025 In the next fifteen years it is expected that the various types of library will be offering more services through the use of technology than what pertains now. With the arrival of the submarine Internet cabling on the shores of Ghana, the cost of Internet connectivity is expected to go down thereby enabling several libraries that cannot afford the cost of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) now to be able to do so. Many more school libraries will have been set up because of the current calls for them. The Ministry of Education through its ICT Policy for Schools will have provided computers and Internet access in these school libraries and also employed the appropriate personnel to support and train users, and also to maintain the equipment. For example, the ‘one laptop per child’ project initiated by the Kufour government (2001–2008) will have been brought to fruition by successive governments enabling every child to own a laptop. Special libraries, especially those going through difficulties now in the acquisition of ICT facilities, will have improved their services as it is expected that with the current demand from government on research institutes and other research organizations to produce research results as input into plans for national development, the institutions will pay more attention to the needs of their libraries so that they will be in a position to assist the researchers to produce good research results. The public library service, which has been without a management board for a long time until the end of 2008, will now be given a new direction especially for accelerated development in ICT infrastructure to enable more services to be offered in that mode. Such development will not only be seen at

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the headquarters and a few regional libraries, but at all its regional libraries and as much as possible in the district libraries. More workstations will also be made available to users. There will also be a good cooperation between the Ministries of Education and Local Government and Rural Development to ensure that there is a uniform quality of service in the regional / district / community libraries under their supervision. The academic libraries it is envisaged will see greater development in the next fifteen years. Currently most of them are beginning to establish their institutional repositories to make available electronically the research output of their staff to the world. Plans are also in motion for a national repository to be set up under the auspices of CARLIGH and hosted in one of the universities with the technical expertise to do so. Again, most of them will have their services automated to ensure efficient inter-lending services and resource sharing among the academic libraries in the country and ensure quick turnaround times for their routine work within their libraries. There is now a core of qualified technical personnel in the country to train staff and users of libraries to use ICTs. These trainers mostly found in the academic and special libraries will continue to train a great number of staff in all the libraries in the country so that there will be continuity in further training activities and also for the maintenance of equipment. Some libraries have started employing persons with Bachelor’s degrees in Computer Science to assist in maintaining their ICT equipment. Funding in the next few years may not be as big problem as it is now. Oil has recently been discovered off the shores of Ghana in commercial quantities. It is expected that trial pumping will begin towards the end of 2010 and by 2012 full pumping will commence. It is hoped that a good percentage of the revenue to be accrued will be channeled to the education sector of the economy. This is because education forms the bedrock of any country’s development. Educated and skilled personnel are what are needed to develop the economy. The process of educating and skilling people to be useful in national development today will need to include the use of ICT. It is this notion and the desire to carry this out successfully that will inform the deployment of ICTs into all libraries to enable easy and quick access to current information. Ghana’s libraries in the next fifteen years it is hoped will see a lot of improvement that will gladden the hearts of their personnel and users. Library personnel will have great job satisfaction because tools, equipment, and funds will be made available to them to enable them to offer the services they have been trained to do more effectively. Users of the library will also have great satisfaction because the information they need to assist them in the development of their academic, professional, and personal lives which will put them in great stead to contribute effectively to national development will be easily available. These improvements will make libraries more relevant in the development of the Ghanaian nation.

2.7 India Libraries Through the Ages in India: Sojourn from Palm Leaf to Palmtop R.K. Bhatt and S. Majumdar Introduction In a modern society, besides fulfilling the three necessities of food, clothing, and housing, feeding the intellectual hunger of each citizen and providing him with the information relevant to his profession, health, happiness, and prosperity are the indicators of its success or failure. India, being a democratic country, with its vast and multisided regional, cultural, social, economic, and political problems, the need for organizing libraries is imperative. It is the library that is responsible for the development of the personality of the citizens of a nation, and, undoubtedly it plays an indispensable role as a community center for education, information creation, and culture. It is the need of the hour that the government of India should give serious consideration to the problems being faced by the libraries. Only then the wish of the late Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, which he expressed while inaugurating the Gujarat Vidyapeeth Library on 5 January 1955, can be fulfilled. He said that it should be our endeavor to locate at least one library in every village in the country. Indian libraries, in fact, draw on the evolution of society and the consequent rise of the library as an important institution of human civilization and culture was modulated by political, social, economic, and cultural developments. The government of India immediately after independence put a lot of emphasis on the development of higher education vis-a`-vis libraries in order to achieve prosperity and development as compared to other developed and developing countries. In order to make an assessment of the libraries in past and present and to envisage the future of librarianship in India, we need to look into the status of libraries in ancient, medieval India along with the study of the status of present day librarianship. Therefore, the present chapter shall be divided into the following parts: 1. 2. 3. 4.

libraries in ancient and medieval India libraries in modern India present day librarianship in India future libraries in India

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Libraries in Ancient and Medieval India Writing the history of libraries in India has not yet received the attention it deserves. Unfortunately, even the library schools in India have not given due importance to the study of library history. This pathetic scenario has resulted in scanty literature available in this area and the students of library and information science have not undertaken serious studies in this regard. Commenting on the status of library history in India, Donald G. Davis, Jr. of the University of Texas at Austin, writes that “although a core literature on Indian library history exists, it has many imbalances and gaps. The scholars are very dispersed in their interests and their geographical location, with one person rarely contributing more than one work. There is little pattern to existing research efforts.”1 In this context, the role of historian happens to be much more crucial and significant to make an assessment of the growth and development of libraries in India, the factors responsible for their development and the impact of those factors on the library progress. Rajgopalan, in his 1987 presidential address to the Indian Library Association rightly said, “it is generally acknowledged that our libraries are underutilized in relation to investments being made in them. Non-use and low-use of libraries amount to wastage of facilities being made available. Maybe the literacy rate, lack of reading habits, etc., are the causes for low use from the side of patrons … User education programmes must be organized by libraries in a way that libraries are fully utilized.” He further remarked that, “if library historians would address the roots and trends of library issues, they would provide a valuable service to the profession and society.”2 The father of library and information science in India, Padmashri Dr. S.R. Ranganathan, while giving a radio talk in April 1956 said, “an account of the libraries in the first four periods (the Vedic, the Buddhistic, the Medieval, and the Muslim) must necessarily depend upon the historical research. This has not yet been done. The library profession is too small in India to spare a person to fill up this antiquarian gap. Those trained in the scientific method of tracing history are too preoccupied with dynastic and political history to spare sufficient time for cultural history in general and library history in particular.”3 Thus, an historical study of the growth and development of academic libraries in India is a desideratum, the fulfillment of which should go a long way to removing the imbalances and gaps mentioned above. Such a study becomes significant not only in view of the tremendous activity concerning the

1 2 3

Davis, Donald G., Jr. “The Status of Library History in India: A Report of an Informal Survey and a Selective Bibliographic Essay.” Journal of Library and Information Science 14.2 (1989): 98. Rajgopalan, T. S. “Trends and Perspectives in Indian Librarianship.” Presidential Address, Indian Library Association Conference, 1987. Ranganathan, S. R. “Radio Talk of April 1956. Mohamed Taher and Donald G. Davis, Jr. Librarianship and Library Science in India: 3.

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growth and development of libraries in India, but also because their growth has been shaped firstly by the phenomena that have shaped the historical course of this period and, secondly, the rise of library as an important instrument in the advancement of knowledge and socio-economic transformation.

Source Material for Writing History of Libraries For the purpose of scientific writing of history of libraries, understanding the nature of existing source material and knowing the art of using it is essential. The sources for writing the history are available in Pali, Sanskrit, Chinese, Arabic, Persian, and European languages and most of them have been translated into English. These exist in various formats, such as manuscripts, inscriptions, copper plates etc. They can be indigenous or foreign. The contribution of foreign travelogs such as Tibetan, Chinese, Muslim, Portuguese, English and other European countries is highly useful. Some noteworthy foreign travelogs are: Itsing, Fahien, Hieun Tsang, Aliberuni, Ibn Batuta, Minhaj, Firishta, Badauni, Afif, Bernier, Mandelso, Manrique de Lara, Martin, Count Noer. In addition to the contribution of the travelogs, the contribution of historians like Henry M. Eliot, John Dawson, Stanley Lane-Pool, Ishwari Prasad, R.C. Majumdar, Jadunath Sarkar, V.D. Mahajan, Mohammed Muhammed Zubair, J.S. Sarma, N.N. Law etc. are also useful. In addition, though scanty, there are articles written by library professionals on the history of libraries. A few efforts have also been made in conducting research in the area of history of libraries and such works have been consulted for the purpose of writing this paper. In the Vedic age instructions were imparted “orally, without the medium of books.”4 Taxila from 700 BC to 300 AD was considered to be the most respectable seat of higher learning and education in India5 but still there is no evidence found so far in the archaeological excavations at Taxila that there was a good library system at the Taxila University. Fa-Hien noticed such libraries at Jetavana monastery at Sravasti (U.P.). In 400 AD, there came into being one of the best known universities, the Nalanda University, which by 450 AD had become a renowned seat of learning, its fame spreading beyond the boundaries of India. Nalanda near Patna grew to be the foremost Buddhist monastery and an educational center. Most of what we know of the Nalanda University during the sixth and the seventh centuries AD is due to the accounts left by Hiuen-tsang, who lived in the institution for three years in the first half of the seventh century, and I-tsing who also stayed

4 5

Agarwal, J. N. “Libraries in Ancient India.” Indian Librarian 8.4 (1954): 141. Chakravorty, S. N. “Libraries in Ancient Times with Special Reference to India.” Indian Librarian 9.2 (1954): 53.

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there for ten years towards the latter part of the same century. Information on the Nalanda University Library is also found in the Tibetan accounts, from which we understand that the library was situated in a special area known by the poetical name the Dharmaganja (Piety Mart) which comprised three huge buildings, called the Ratnasagara, the Ratnodadhi, and the Ratnaranjaka of which the Ratnasagara was a nine-storied building and housed the collection of manuscripts and rare sacred works like Prajnaparamita Sutra etc. The library at Nalanda had a rich stock of manuscripts on philosophy and religion and contained texts relating to grammar, logic, literature, the Vedas, the Vedanta, and the Samkhya philosophy, the Dharmasastras, the Puranas, astronomy, astrology, and medicine.6 The University of Nalanda and its library flourished down to the twelfth century until Bakhtiyar Khalji sacked it in 1197–12037 and set fire to the establishment of Nalanda.The world famous universities, such as the Vikramasila, the Vallabhi, and the Kanchi were coming up in other parts of the country from the fifth century to the eighth century. All these universities possessed rich libraries (Pustaka-bhandaras) and in the hall containing such books there used to be an image of the goddess Saraswati with a book in her hand. The Nalanda and the Vikramshila universities were under the control of the king Dharmapala. He founded the Vikramshila monastery in the eighth century.It had a rich collection of texts in the Sanskrit, the Prakrit and the Tibetan languages. Regarding the library of the university, the Tabaqat-i-Nasiri informs us that there were great number of books on the religion of Hindus (Buddhists) there; and when all these books came under the observation of the Mussalamans, they summoned a number of Hindus that they might give them information regarding the import of these books; but the whole of the Hindu community had been killed in the war. Muslim vandalism caused the disappearance of the excellent collection at Vikramashila.8 The Jaggadal Vihara in Varendrabhumi was also an important center of learning with a considerable collection of reading material. It was established by the king Kampala, who ruled from 1084 to 1130 AD9 The provision of facilities for reading, writing, editing, and translating manuscripts shows that this library was in no way less than its contemporary libraries in importance. Though not as large as the library of Nalanda, it abounded in private collection of texts. Likewise Mithila had been famous for its scholars since the days of Rajrishi Janaka and had a rich collection of various commentaries on the different branches of the Hindu Shastras. The library of its university played an important role in teaching and learning. A needle (Shalaka) was pierced through the

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Mukherjee, A. K. Librarianship: Its Philosophy and History. Delhi: Asia Publishing House, 1966: 84. Ibid. Ibid. Misra, Jogesh. History of Libraries and Librarianship in Modern India since 1850. Delhi: Atma Ram & Sons, 1979: 14.

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manuscript on the subject of the student’s specialization and he was expected to explain the last page pierced. In this way the student’s all round mastery of the subject was tested.10 Mithila continued to enjoy its all India importance in the field of learning till the end of the fifteenth century.The university at Sompuri, like that of Vikramshila, had occupied a significant position since the days of Dharampala (769–867 AD). Like Nalanda, this university also had its own library. Atisa Dipankar, a noted scholar, lived there. He with the help of other scholars, translated into the Tibetan the Madhyamkaratnapradipa of Bhavaviveka. This university was destroyed by fire in the middle of the eleventh century AD11 Efforts were made by the monk Vipulsrimitra to renovate the university but it could not regain its past glory. At a time when Nalanda was famous for its Mahayana courses of study, the Maitraka kings (475 to 775 AD) provided their patronage to the Mahavihara of Vallabhi. This university was famous for its Hinayana studies. The fact that this university had a good library is supported by a reference in a grant of Guhasena, dated 559 AD, wherein a provision was made out of the royal grant for the purchase of books for the library. This important seat of learning at Kanheri, on the West Coast, flourished during the reign of Amoghavarsha in the ninth century. The library occupied a significant position within the establishment, and the donors provided money to buy books for the library.12 The last of the famous seats of learning in Eastern India was Navadwipa in the West Bengal. It reached its height of glory from 1083 to 1106 as a center of intellectual excellence as well as its rich library facilities, when Lakshman Sen, a king of Gauda, made it his capital.13 However, this library was also destroyed along with the center by Bakhtiyar Khalji. Situated in South India at Amaravati, on the banks of the Krishna, the Nagarjuna Vidyapeeth flourished around the seventh century.14 Its library was housed in the top floor of the five story building of the university had an enormous collection on the Buddhist philosophy, particularly of the Mahayana school that Nagarjuna had founded, science, and medicine. There is enough archaeological evidence that supports the existence of this seventh century university and its library. The enormity of the collection in this library is borne out by the fact that it not only had works on the Buddhist literature and the Tripitakas, but also works on several branches of scientific knowledge, such as botany, geography, mineralogy, and medicine. It was a great attraction for scholars from the different parts of India and from countries, like, China, Burma, and Ceylon.

10 11 12 13 14

Mukherjee, R. K. Ancient India Education. Delhi: Motilal Banarsi Das, 1969: 596–7. Misra, Jogesh. Op. cit. Datta, Bimal Kumar. Libraries and Librarianship of Ancient and Medieval India. Delhi: Atma Ram and Sons, 1970: 33. Majumdar, B. P. The Socio-Economic History of Northern India 11th and 12th Century. Calcutta: F.I.C.C.I, 1960.: 164. Mukherjee, A. K. Op. cit.: 85.

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The growth and development of libraries in medieval India presents an interesting historical scenario, one in which we come across epochs of both high and low profiles of development from the times of destruction and disregard to the times of committed efforts for the development of libraries. Two factors during this period, had a far reaching influence on the growth and development of libraries in India. One, during the period from 800 to 1200, when the northern and the southern halves of the sub- continent came into closer contact, and, the other, the growing literary, scientific, religious, and philosophical activities which were promoted more after the establishment of the Mughal Empire in India. Medieval Indian society grew out of the earlier systems. By the time of its latter phase these changes had become pronounced, and were no longer regarded as new. Besides, there were other new ideas and some further changes, which came from outside India, with the new dynasties that were ruling in some parts of the subcontinent. But, what is more interesting from the point of view of a critical historical appraisal of the growth and development of libraries in India is the fact that it was during this period that in India scientific knowledge made major advances basing itself on the foundations laid in ancient times. Spectacular success was, thus, achieved in the spheres of mathematics, astronomy, and medicine, and was equally felt in their applications in such fields as arts, agriculture, construction work, and healing. No doubt the Muslim rulers encouraged Arabic and Persian literatures in all branches of learning. But Persian writings on history, literature, and religion influenced Indian thought and introduced systematic historical writings in India. Several Sanskrit works on music, dancing, astronomy, and romantic poetry were also translated into Persian. While this happened, the rulers of Vijayanagar, Warangal, and Gujarat patronized Sanskrit writings, and the Jains also made substantial literary contributions during this age. As a result of these cultural activities, innumerable manuscripts were written, and collections of these records were accumulated in different parts of the country.15 Muhammad Ghori and some of the earlier Sultans and generals like Qutubud-din and Bakhtiyar out of fanatic zeal caused considerable harm to the Hindu and Buddhist educational centers by destroying the temples, monasteries, universities, and libraries and by killing all the monks and students. But they also tried to compensate for these destructive acts by erecting mosques, colleges, and libraries to spread the Islamic religion and learning.16 During the so-called slave dynasty the reigns of Sultan Iltutmish, Razia Sultana, Sultan Nasir-ud-din, and Sultan Balban were notable for their patronage and zeal for learning. From the scanty records available, it is clear that during this period, through the direct patronage of the Sultans, Delhi became a place

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Majumdar, R. C., ed. The History and Culture of the Indian People. Vol. 6. Bombay: Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, 1954: Chapter 15. Raverty, H. G., trans. Tabaquat-i-Nasiri. By Minhajus Siraj. New Delhi: n.p., 1970: 552.

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of learning. During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the rulers of the Khalji and Tughluq dynasties had some literary flair and recognized the need topatronize learning and culture, and to show personal involvement in them. Almost all the ruling princes of the time had their own private collections and it was common for them to spend some time every day in their personal libraries. No separate building was earmarked for the library, it used to be an integral part of the palace, though sometimes it was also attached to the mosque. The name of Jalal-ud-din Khalji deserves special mention who as well as being a poet was surrounded by eminent men like Amir Khusrau, Taj-ud-din Iraqi, Khwajah Amir HasanSijzi, Muyyid Diwanch, Amir Arslan Quli, and Baqui Khatir.17 He established the Imperial library at Delhi and appointed Amir Khusrau as the librarian. The Sultan gave great importance to the post and selected the right person for the right place. Not only did he appoint him as the librarian of the Imperial library but he also made him the keeper of the holy Quran. Amir Khusrau, the Librarian was a great scholar and poet, and was held in high esteem by the Sultan who raised him to the peerage and allowed him to have a royal distinction of wearing the white garment. Even as a nobleman, during the reign of Kaiqubad, the Sultan sanctioned a pension and rewarded Amir Khusrau with princely awards. It is evidently clear from the above that the office of the librarian of the Imperial library carried much prestige and its occupant was considered a valuable and very responsible officer.18 Among the many poets and philosophers who flourished in this time, the name of the learned saint Nizam-ud-din Auliya needs to be mentioned. He established a library by raising public donations. It was a big library with a large collection of manuscripts. It was, however, more like a public library since unlike other libraries of the time, the public is stated to have had access to this library.19 The library was housed in his Khanqah in Ghiyathpur in Delhi which came to be known after the Saint. Shaikh AbdulHaq, the Muhaddith of Delhi, while writing of Siraj Uthman says, “after this, he acquired proficiency in Kafiyah, Mufassal Qaduri, Majma-ul-Bahrain under Maulana Rukr-ud-din’s supervision. And after Shaikh Nizam-ud-din’s death he acquired other kinds of education for three years and carried with him some books from the Shaikh’s library.” Shaikh Siraj Uthman, known as Maqdum Siraj-ud-din was the first disciple of the saint and when he went to Lucknow he carried along with other things some valuable books from the library of his master.20 Among the rulers of the Tughluq dynasty,

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Law, N. N. Promotion of Learning in India during the Muhammedan Rule. London: Macmillan & Co., 1900: 30. Elliot, H. M., and John Dawson. The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians. Vol 3. Trans of Tarikhi-i-Firuz-Shahi. By Ziauddin Barni. London, Trubner Company, 1867–77. Ibid.: 144. Carr, Stephen. The Archaeology and Monumental Remains of Delhi. Calcutta: Calcutta, 1876: 56.

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Muhammad-bin-Tughluq was famous for his learning and mastery over calligraphy. “The versatility of his genius surprised those who came in contact with him. A lover of the fine arts, a cultured scholar and an accomplished poet, he was equally at home in logic, astronomy, philosophy, mathematics and the physical sciences. He was thoroughly acquainted with the literary works like the Sikandarnamah and the Tarikh-i-Mahmudi. No one could excel the Sultan in composition. He had at his ready command a good deal of Persian poetry of which he made a large use in his writings and speeches.”21 Khan Azam Qutlugh Khan was the Kharitadar, keeper of the Sultan’s pen and paper, and Amir Nukbah the Dawatdar or the custodian of the King’s inkpot.22 Firuz Shah Tughluq, the third Sultan of the dynasty, was a patron of learning and himself composed the Fatuhat-i-Firuz Shahi. Historians, and scholars like Tatar Khan gathered round him. The Sultan educated even his slaves and “some of the slaves were to spend their time in reading and committing to memory the holy book, others in religious studies or in copying books.”23 During this period, like the Muslim rulers and the nobles, the Hindu chiefs also maintained libraries. Most of the libraries were housed within the temples. In the temple of Jawalamukhi at Nagarkot there was a fine library consisting of 1,300 volumes.24 Firuz, after conquering Nagarkot invited scholars and ordered them to translate some of the books. One of the translators was Izzud-din Khalid Khani, the poet, who translated one of these books dealing with physical sciences into Persian and the Sultan named the book as the Dala’il-Firuz Shahi.25 The Tughluq dynasty was succeeded by the Saiyid Sultans who ruled from 1414 to 1451, followed by the Lodi dynasty under which the work of translation and compilation received a fresh impetus and the Hindus allied themselves more to the study of Muhammedan literature. With the advent of the Mughals in India, libraries along with other institutions of social and cultural value received considerable impetus.26 The Mughal sovereigns were greatly fond of books and even used to take pride in collecting rare books, and, as such, in maintaining their personal libraries.27 The educational institutions of the Mughal period also had, in most cases, well-equipped libraries of their own, chiefly with a view to help the teachers and scholars in studying various arts and sciences. This fundamental principle of education was, thus, well recognized by the medieval Indian scholars, teachers, and educationists, and that is why every Madrasa of the period normally had a library. 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 37. Iswari Prasad. A History of the Qaraunah Turks in India. Allahabad: The Indian Press, Ltd., 1936: 311. Ibid. Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 54–5. Ibid.: 64. Ibid. Sahay, Binod Kumar. Some Aspects of North India Education and Learning under the Great Mughals, 1526–1707A.D. Bombay: New Literature, 1968: 169.

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One trait common to all of the Mughal emperors, from Babar to Aurangzeb, was that they all patronized learning and scholarship, and also maintained their palace libraries. Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babar was a scholar, man of literary taste, and author of several books. He encouraged calligraphy and he invented a new style of writing, known as the Babri hand.28 He was very fond of books and took a keen interest in the development of his library. He regularly used his library which was in the Delhi Fort, where he is said to have written his memoirs – the Tuzuk-i-Babri. In 1525, he took possession of the personal library of Ghazi Khan and expected to find many good books there, but he was disappointed, because as he “did not on the whole find so many books of value as, from their appearance, [he] had expected.”29 He gave some of the selected titles to Humayun and Kamran.30 During his reign one of the duties of the Shuhrat-i-Am or the Public Works Department was the building of Maktabs (schools) and Madrasas31 (colleges). Every Madrasa usually had its own library.32 Babar is also credited for introducing the art of book illustration, which considerably developed during the reigns of his son and grandson.33 Babar was succeeded by his elder son, Humayun, in 1530, who was also a scholar and a bibliophile. He wrote a few volumes on the nature of elements and loved to study geography and astronomy.34 The other favorite subjects of the emperor were literature and poetry, and like his predecessors he used to hold discussions with the poets and philosophers.35 He was a great lover of books and even at the time of his expeditions to Bengal and Gujarat he carried his library with him.36 Even on his defeat by Sher Khan, and his consequent exile, he did not forget to have with him books and his librarian Baz Bahadur.37 The emperor’s promotion of the cause of libraries is further emphasized by the fact that he converted a pleasure-house in the Purana Qila of Delhi into a library, shortly before his death. This house was built by Sher Shah in 1541 and was named as the Sher Mandal.38 Nizam, father of Lala Beg or Baz Bahadur, was a librarian of the king.39 The emperor fell down from the stairs of

28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39

Ibid. Talbot, F. G. Memoirs of Babur-Emperor of India: First of the Great Mughals. London: n.p., 1907: 97. Ibid.: 176. Ibid. Bhatt, R. K. History and Development of Libraries in India. New Delhi: Mittal Publications, 1995: 31. Chopra, P. N. Society and Culture in Mughal Age. Agra: Shivlal Agarwal & Co. (P) Ltd., 1955.: 162. Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 126. Ibid.: 127. Ibid.: 128. Datta, Bimal Kumar. Op. cit.: 62. Ibid. Rapson, Edward James. The Cambridge History of India. Vol. 3. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1922: 69.

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his library and passed away on Sunday, January 25, 1556 aroundsunset.40 His contribution, within such a short and disturbed period, to the establishment of libraries and the upkeep of the books is a praiseworthy and notable achievement. Akbar the great (1556–1605) succeeded Humayun. Although he himself was illiterate, he was a highly cultured man with a strong desire for learning. The growth and development of libraries in medieval India was much boosted during his regime, because he was more intent on establishing the library on a firm foundation with regular administrative supervision and state control, which has been amply substantiated by the available records. His predecessors were fond of books and they were more or less of scholarly and literary temper. It is interesting, however, in the case of Akbar that, although illiterate, he was perhaps the most consummate listener, keen to learn. Abul Fazl informs us that experienced people bring them (books) daily, and read them before His Majesty, who hears every book from the beginning to the end. At whatever page the readers daily stop, His Majesty makes with his own pen a mark accordingly to the number of the pages; and rewards the reader with presents of cash, either in gold or silver, according to the number of leaves read out by them.41 The Imperial library’s collection of books was enriched to a large extent. These collections came mostly from some of the private libraries and also from the libraries of Gujarat, Jaunpur, Kashmir, Bihar, Bengal, and the Deccan.42 Faizi’s library had a collection of about 4,300 manuscripts, which after his death was transferred to the Imperial Library.43 By the order of the emperor many important works originally written in Sanskrit and other languages were translated into Persian. The Mahabharata was translated by Persian scholars like Naquib Khan, Maulana Adul Qadir of Badaun, and Shaikh Sultan of Thaneswar and it contained nearly a thousand verses and was named as the Razm-Nama or the books of wars.44 In 1589 Badauni45 translated the Ramayana after working hard for four years. Hazi Ibrahim Sirhind translated the Atharvaveda and Faizi the Lilabati, a Hindu mathematical work. Mokammal Khan of Gujarat translated the Tajak, a well-known work on astronomy. Mirza Abdur Rahim Khan Khanan translated the memoirs of Babar from Turkish into Persian and Maulana Shah Mahammad of Shahbad translated the history of Kashmir from Kashmirian.46 It is, thus, evident that during the reign of Akbar there functioned a regular translation bureau and many important volumes were added to the Imperial

40 41 42 43 44 45 46

Rogers, Alexander and H. Beveridge, trans. Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri [Memoirs of Jahangir]. Vol. 2. Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 1968: 21. Blochmann, H., trans. The Ain-i-Akbari by Abul Fazl Allami. Vol. 1. Calcutta: The Asiatic Society, 1927: 550. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid.: 112. Ibid. Ibid.

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Library.47 In order to enhance the production of beautiful volumes Akbar encouraged the arts of calligraphy and painting and established a royal studio.48 In the Imperial Library, there were a large number of volumes which were written by his nobles and high officers. Akbar was not satisfied with the collection’s development only. He also wanted to develop the art and science of librarianship. He introduced science in management, classification, and storage of books in his Imperial Library.49 Books were cataloged and classified in three different sections. The first section included poetry, medicine, astrology, and music; the second, philosophy, philology, sufism, astronomy, and geometry; and the third comprised theology and law.50 Books were cataloged by a catalog officer. Akbar was the chief patron in the technical processing of books. “Akbar issued instructions for the proper preservation, management and classification of books in the Imperial Library.”51 He provided a suitable type of administration for the libraries and appointed Faizi, the great Persian scholar, as the Librarian of the Imperial Library and Mulla Pir Muhammad that of his personal library.52 He created a separate department for the libraries to look after not only the State Library, but also the public libraries located in the capital.53 The Emperor was its chief patron. A director or superintendent was in charge of the Department of libraries. He was called Nazim and was considered a great scholar of dignity. He was responsible directly to the emperor. He prepared the annual budget, made appointments of the junior staff, sanctioned their leaves, and even dismissed them. His deputy was called Darogha-i-Kutubkhana. He was usually a man of high administrative ability. The Darogha selected books, purchased them and was also responsible for their processing and maintenance. He had, of course, a number of other staff of junior ranks. Among the library staff, there were copyists or warraq shaafs, book-binders, translators, calligraphers, gilders, line drawers, cleaners, etc.54 Akbar died in October 1605. After his death an inventory of the Imperial properties, housed in the fort of Agra was made. Two European authors Manrique and De Laet had given in their books this inventory from official records, where we find that the Imperial Library contained 24,000 illustrated and well bound volumes. The approximate price of the collection was Rs.64,630,131. The average price of each volume, thus, should be £27 to £30 and similarly according to the rate of exchange total valuation should be £7,370,169.55 Akbar’s successor, Emperor Jahangir (1605–1627), was also a

47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55

Elliot, H. M., and John Dawson. Op. cit.: Vol 5, 374. Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 154. Mukherjee, A. K. Op. cit.: 101. Elliot. H. M., and John Dawson. Op. cit.: Vol. 5, 548. Srivastava, A. L. Akbar the Great. Vol. 3. Agra: Shivlal Agarwal & Co. (P) Ltd., 1962: 157. Mukherjee, A. K. Op. cit.: 100. Ibid. Ibid. Datta, Bimal Kumar. Op. cit.: 68.

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patron of learning and promoter of the cause of education. He ordered that the properties of rich heirless men should be utilized for building and repairing Madrasas, monasteries and libraries. He even got “repaired even those Madrasas that had for thirty years been the dwelling places of birds and beasts and filled them with students and teachers.”56 The emperor not only inherited a rich Imperial library but considerably enriched the collection and added a picture gallery to it. During his time Maktub Khan was the superintendent of both the Imperial Library and the Picture Gallery.57 In order to enrich the Imperial Library, he used to purchase manuscripts at a very high price. Martin writes, “The manuscripts of a sum equivalent to £10,000 would not fetch £2000 at a sale in Paris today. Through the following centuries, the same love for old books prevailed and ridiculous prices were paid for them, as high in proportion as Americans now pay for Rembrandts and Van Dycks.”58 In addition to the Imperial Library, he also organized a personal library for his own use containing a number of books on various subjects.59 Like his predecessors Shahjahan also patronized learning and education. He encouraged learned men with gifts and presents and many poets, musicians, and historians flourished in his time. Among them special mention should be made of Abdul Hamid Lahori, the author of the Padshah-Nama; Aminai Qazwini, the author of another Padshah-Nama; Muhammad Salih, the author of the Amal-I-Salih; and Inayat Khan, the author of the Shah-Jahan-Nama. Though the contribution of Shah Jahan in the growth and development of libraries is not considered so vital by scholars, Dara Shikoh, his eldest and most favorite son, was the author of original books as well as commentaries and translations.60 He patronized Sanskrit scholars61 and had translated the Bhagvad Gita and Upanishads into Persian. Besides his encouragement of translation and patronage of Sanskrit scholars, he got four voluminous dictionaries compiled and dedicated to his father, which dealt with religious, philosophical, political, ethical and cosmographical matters.62 In July 1658 Aurangzeb assumed the Imperial dignity. He was a man of high intellectual powers, a brilliant writer, a skilled administrator, undaunted soldier and a pious Muslim king. He encouraged Islamic learning, founded a number of schools and colleges, repaired the old Madrasas. He, being passionately devoted

56 57 58

Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 175. Rogers, Alexander, and H. Beveridge, trans. Op. cit.: 12. Martin, F. R. The Miniature Painting and Painters of Persia, India and Turkey: From the 8th to 18th century. Vol. 1. Delhi: Low Price Publications, 1993: 58. 59 Rogers, Alexander, trans. Tazuk-i-Jahangiri by Emperor Jahangir. Vol. 2. Ed. H. Beveridge. London, Royal Asiatic Society, 1914: 440. 60 Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 185–6. 61 Hasyrat, Bikramajit. Dara Shikoh: Life and Works. Calcutta: Viswa-Bharati Publication, 1953: 213–5. 62 Saksena, B. P., ed. History of Shahjahan of Delhi. Allahabad: Central Book Depot, 1958: 252–7.

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to the Islamic law and theology, ordered eminent jurists to compile the Fatawai-Alamgiri under the direction of Mulla Nizam and collected books on Tafsir, works on Hadis, Fiqh etc. These volumes enriched the collection of the Imperial Library.63 Emperor Aurangzeb died in 1707. Bloody feuds started for the capture of the throne. Among his successors, Bahadur Shah I (1707–1712), Muhammad Shah (1719–1748), and Shah Alam II (1759–1806), being cultured and men of literary tastes, tried to continue the family tradition in spite of the vicissitudes of fortune and the invasion of Nadir Shah64 in 1738, who carried away with him the celebrated Imperial Library along with an enormous treasure trove. Thus the Imperial Library of the Mughal emperors met an inglorious end. Besides the Mughal Sovereigns and the princes, the Mughal ladies were also very interested in the collection of books for their personal libraries. Almost every royal lady of the Mughal court had her personal library, where she devoted her time to reading and writing for her academic advancement and recreation. Salima Sultana, Nurjahan, Mumtaz Mahal, and Zeb-unNisa Begum were some of the most striking examples in this respect.65 Among the other contemporary libraries the valuable collections of Maharaja Chikka Devo Raya (1672–1704) of Mysore and Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II (1699– 1743) of Jaipur deserve special mention. Chikka Deva’s library of the rarest Sanskrit, philosophical, and historical works was destroyed by Tipu Sultan. Jai Singh, being highly interested in astronomy collected books on astronomy even from Europe. The library of Jai Singh contained volumes like Euclid’s Elements, books on plains and spherical trigonometry, La Hire’s Tabulee Astronomical, Flamsteed’s Historia etc.66 After his death “Jai Singh’s son Jagat Singh gave this valuable library to a courtesan and it was thus destroyed and its books distributed among its base relations.”67 The decline of the Mughal power over India from the eighteenth century onwards, paved the way for the spread of the British influence; and the building up of India as the citadel of the British Empire came to be reflected in the waning influence of the indigenous rulers, both Muslim and Hindu. This provides the background of the cultural trends of the nineteenth century. In India’s history, nations foreign to it have been seen to promote their own ideas and culture through the centuries of their domination over this vast continent.

63 64 65 66 67

Law, N. N. Op. cit.: 193. Marshall, D. N. History of Libraries: Ancient and Medieval. Oxford: IBH, 1983: 100. Sarkar, Jadunath. Maasir-i-Alamgiri. Calcutta: Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1947: 322–3. Chopra, P. N. Society and Culture in Mughal Age. Agra: Shivlal Agarwal & Co. (P) Ltd., 1955: 165. Kaye, George R. The Astronomical Observatories of Jai Singh. Calcutta: Calcutta Superintendent Printing, 1918: 2.

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Libraries in Modern India (1757–1947) During the period from 1901 to 1947 – a period of turbulent socio-political scenarios with an overall discontent against the British rule – the growth and development of libraries was rather slow in comparison to the postIndependence era. Several factors account for this slow development. For example, during this period the government policy was by and large detrimental to higher education and learning. It was the period when Indian masses were more interested in independence and they gave priority to the freedom movement rather than in the educational activities. Above all, during this period, India faced the far reaching impact of the two World Wars. However, there were some developments which can be considered historically important as far as the history of libraries is concerned. Some universities with their libraries were founded and such institutional libraries came into being as the Imperial Record Office Library; the Indian Council of Agricultural Research Library; the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute; libraries along with the Baroda Public Library Movement. Moreover, the recognition and promotion of professionalism in the field of library organization and management also began. Professionalism has played a vital role in the growth and development of libraries in India. During the British rule in India, number of academic institutions were established by the East India Company and by the Christan missionaries. Some of the events worth mentioning which led to the growth and development of higher education in India during this period were the establishment of the Calcutta College in 1781, Jonathan Duncan, then British agent, founding the Benaras Sanskrit College in 1792 and the founding of the Calcutta Fort William College in 1800. All these colleges had their own libraries. The Charter Act of 1813, the foundation of Fort William and Serampore Colleges, Calcutta, Madras and Bombay universities and their libraries, Hunter, Raleigh and Calcutta University Commissions, library training programs, the establishment of the Inter University Board, the Sargent Report and appointment of the University Grants Committee, the establishment of Madras University, the University of Bombay, the University of Calcutta and their libraries, the appointment of Hartog Committee, the Montague-Chelmsford reforms of 1919, the Government of India Act of 1935, and the Sargent Committee Report etc. laid foundation for the establishment of libraries in various parts of the country. The Fort William College was founded in Calcutta on 18 August 1800 by the Marquis of Welleseley, the Governor-General of India during 1798–1805. Reverend David Brown, provost of the college was instrumental in setting up the library which had a well rounded collection of Eastern manuscripts. In the absence of adequate financial support, the library could not survive for a longer period and in 1835 it was decided to close the library and its valuable collection was transferred to the Asiatic Society Library in Calcutta between 1835

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and 1839.68 The Charter Act of 1813 passed by the British Parliament gave to the East India Company complete responsibility for educating Indians. The establishment of C.M.S. College in Kottayam, Hindu (Presidency) College in Calcutta in 1816 and Raven Shaw College in Cuttack in 1816 was the immediate result of the Charter Act 1813. These and other colleges came into existence and had their own libraries from the day they were established.69 Serampore College was founded by the Danes in 1818 and the King of Denmark in 1927 agreed to give the college an academic status by providing equivalence to Danish universities and the power to confer degrees.70 The library of this college too was established along with its foundation and at a later stage the college was given affiliation to the University of Burdwan for the purpose of conferring degrees.71 The 7 March 1835 decision of the British Indian Government to promote English literature and sciences in India result in an increase in the number of colleges in India and by 1839 there were over 40 colleges with attached libraries in the British territory in India. For their establishment, lots of money was made available by the Indians in the form of donations.72 In 1840 Presidency College was founded in Madras, followed by a medical college in Bombay in 1845. This progress in education was instrumental in establishing universities in India. The Charles Wood dispatch of 1854 popularly known as the ‘Magna Carta of English Education’ in India also paved the way for the establishment of the universities in the presidency towns.73 Sir John Colville introduced the Bill to establish universities in India and it was passed by the Governor General of India Lord Dalhousie on 24 January 1857, paving the way for the foundation of three universities based on the London Universities Model in the Presidency towns of Calcutta, Madras and Bombay. The Indian Education Commission, popularly known as Hunter Commission was appointed by the British Indian Government in 1882 to study the progress of education under the new policy adopted in 1854 by the East India Company and transferred to the Crown and accepted by the Secretary of State in 1859.74 Sir William W. Hunter in his report had clearly stated

68

Kopf, David. British Orientalism and the Bengal Renaissance: The dynamics of Indian Modernization. California Press. 1969: 233. 69 Ohdedar, A. K. The Growth of the Library in Modern India: 1498–1836. Calcutta: The World Press Private Limited, 1969: 159. 70 Khurshid, Anis. Standards for Library Education in Burma, Ceylon, Indian and Pakistan. University of Pittsburg, 1969: 161. 71 Mathai, S. “The Universities of India.” Commonwealth Universities Yearbook 1970: A Directory to the Universities of the Commonwealth and the Handbook of Their Association. London: The Association of Commonwealth Universities, 1970: 1031. 72 Naik, J.P. and Nurullah, Syed. A Students’ History of Education in India:1800–1973. Macmillan Publishers India Ltd: India: 279. 73 Subramaniam, S. History and Development of University Libraries. Oxford University Press: New Delhi, 2001: 5. 74 Majumdar, Raychaudhuri, and Datta, K. An Advanced History of India. MacMillian Press: London, 1946: 871.

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that the libraries were in a very poor state and declared them “hardly creditable.”75 The Commission paid special attention to the colleges and their libraries and other facilities. The direct result of the Commission was the establishment of Panjab University, Lahore (now in Pakistan), and Allahabad University in 1882 and 1887 respectively but still the condition of the education and libraries remained in poor state of art. The Raleigh Commission of 1902 appointed by Lord Curzon to investigate the conditions and prospects of the Indian universities and to recommend measures to improve their constitution and working and standards of teaching also paid special attention to the academic libraries and found that, “the library is little used by graduates and hardly at all by other students.”76 Further, the Commission commented, “In a college where library is inadequate or ill arranged, the students have no opportunity of forming the habit of independent and intelligent reading.”77 Thus, the Commission specifically recommended that reference services must be made an integral part of all libraries in colleges and universities, and that one of the pre-requisite conditions for the grant of university affiliation to a college be the accessibility of students to the library of the institution.78 The recommendations of the Raleigh Commission were included in the Universities Act of 1904 and provided the power to all universities to require that all colleges applying for affiliation maintain proper libraries, equipment, library building, and lend books to all students but the situation and the status of libraries could not be improved much simply because the recommendations made by the Commission and the provisions made in the act could not be implemented properly.79 The Calcutta University Commission popularly known as Sadler Commission was appointed by the government in 1917 to study the situation and the status of education in the country and to make recommendations to solve the existing problems.80 The Commission noticed that “one of the greatest weaknesses of the existing system is the extraordinarily unimportant part which is played by the library”81 and found that “in some colleges the library is regarded not as an essential part of teaching equipment but merely as a more or less useless conventional accessory.”82 The Commission made the recommendations that college libraries be

75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82

Ali, Muzaffar. “Indian University Library Development.” Progress of Libraries in Free India. Ed. N. B. Sen. New Delhi: New Book Society of India, 1967: 182. Ibid.: 192–3. Goil, N.K. “College Libraries in India: Needed a Policy for Development.” Library Herald 9 (1966): 219. Khurshid, Anis. Op. cit.: 173. Hungun. Development of University Libraries: 28. Datta, D.N. Short History of Libraries with Special Reference to India. World Press: Calcutta. 1975: 108. Report of the Committee appointed by the Government of India to Enquire into the Conditions and Prospects of the Calcutta University Commission, 1917. Vol. 1: 407. Hungun. Op. cit.: 86.

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strengthened and that training should be given to the students and occasionally to the teachers about use of the library.83 One of the immediate result of the Calcutta University Commission was the establishment of a few new teaching-cum-residential universities at Patna in 1917, Osmania in Hyderabad in 1918, Dacca (now in Bangladesh), Aligarh, and Lucknow in 1921, Delhi in 1922, and Nagpur in 1923, and all of them were established along with the establishment of libraries as an integral part of the university system. This was the period when in the library world, a person appeared who at a later stage transformed the entire scene and become the father of library science in India. The man was none other than Dr. S.R. Ranganathan. The University of Madras appointed Dr. S.R. Ranganathan as its Librarian in 1924. He was trained at the University of London Library School before starting his duties at Madras. Things did change rapidly after his joining. For example, he introduced the lending and reference services at the Madras University Library and extended the library hours for the benefit of the readers. Whereas the hours had previously been 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., they were changed to 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.84 He delivered a series of lectures to about 2,000 teachers at the conference of the South Indian Teachers’ Union in 1929 regarding the use and importance of the library services. The Madras Library Association started a summer course in librarianship and the lectures for this course were mainly delivered by Ranganathan. The main objective of the course in the beginning was to spread the ideas of the value of good library services and modern library methods85 among potential users of the library. The budget of the university library of Madras had been very poor from the beginning and it was really a difficult task to manage, run, and administer the library effectively within it. Ranganathan brought this poor financial position to the notice of the then Chief Minister, Dr. P. Subbaroyan, when he delivered a speech during an educational conference held at Madras in 1926. In his speech, Ranganathan “gave a graphic account of the library network in Europe and the United States of America and compared it with the poor, appalling facilities existing in India. … [he] added that paucity of funds prevented him developing his library.” The Chief Minister was highly impressed by Ranganathan’s speech and promised to give more state help to the University Library. Its immediate result was a grant of Rs.6,000 which was added to the annual grant from the State, and, in addition, a lump sum of Rs.100,000 was sanctioned by the Madras State Government in the same year to buy books and periodicals in pure sciences, humanities, and social sciences.86 Provision was also made for additional grants to the library, as and when new departments of study 83 84 85 86

Sharma, O. P. “History of the Development of the University Libraries in India: An Appraisal.” Indian Librarian (1964): 128–43. Subrahmanian, S. Op. cit.: 83. Ibid.: 86. Ibid.

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and research were established. In the words of Ranganathan, “This was the first time when such a forward financial step in the history of the university libraries in India was taken in the second quarter of the twentieth century.”87 The University of Madras library made a good start under Ranganathan’s effective leadership and administration. In 1930, the library had five welltrained reference librarians to help the readers, and they “carried the work to a high pitch of efficiency.”88 This was the first time in the history of Indian libraries that a special reference service was introduced in a university library. The library collection increased to 93,000 volumes in 1935 and on 3 September 1936, the library was shifted to its first new and permanent functional building. By 1944, when Ranganathan resigned from the position of the Librarian, to become the University Librarian at the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), the collection of the Madras University Library had augmented to 1,200,000 volumes.89 The contribution of Dr. Ranganathan in the growth and development of libraries in general and the Madras University Library in particular is undoubtedly tremendous and unforgettable. It would not be wrong to say that the Library School of Madras and the Madras University Library were the laboratories of Ranganathan to propound his ideas in library science and to test them practically. Some of the important and major ideas of Ranganathan were the Five Laws of Library Science which were enunciated by him in 1924,90 and their formulation and publication in 1929 and 1931 respectively. These laws are still considered a unifying theory for all library practices and services, and a set of guidelines for the dynamic development and study of library science as a whole. The University of Bombay Library received a special grant of Rs.50,000 from the Central Government in 1939 to strengthen its collection for graduate studies. During the period from 1931 to 1939, a few more special grants were given to the library for its collection development. A very special grant of Rs.10,000 was given by Kikabhai and Maniklal, sons of the late Premchand Roychand, in 1931 to replace the electric clock of the library tower.91 The collection, which stood at 4,504 volumes in 1900, rose to 70,000 in 1939 and 73,582 in 1947.92 Though higher education and academic libraries made some progress during the first quarter of the twentieth century, yet their growth and development was not very well organized. Academic institutions and their growth after 1916 created a few problems and the general feeling was that the “quality of Education was being sacrificed for quantity.” While such a situation prevailed, the Indian Statutory Commission, popularly known as the Simon Commission, was appointed by the Government

87 88 89 90 91 92

Ranganathan, S. R. “University Library, Then and Now.” Library Herald 6 (1963): 64. Subrahmanyan. Op. Cit.: 96. Ibid.: 88. Ibid. Ibid.: 69. The World of Learning. London: Europa Publications, 1967: 238.

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in 1927 to study the conditions prevailing in India.93 The Simon Commission appointed an Auxiliary Committee to look into the growth of education in India. Sir Philip Hartog, a former member of the Calcutta University Commission (1917–1919), and a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dacca, was appointed its Chairman. In its report, submitted in 1929, the Committee stated that “the dispersal of resources for university teaching among a number of colleges had made it difficult to build up university libraries of the type required for advanced work both at the Honors and the research stage [therefore] majority of the university libraries were inadequate and all needed great additions.”94 In addition to want of books, libraries also lacked good current periodicals in their collections. The Committee also made a special note of the low academic standards in many colleges and universities and the “unhealthy competition for candidates between neighboring universities. This report, however, did not offer any comprehensive, detailed, and realistic solutions”95 to the problems. IIn 1935, the Ministry of Education was formed in each province, as per the provisions of the dyarchy in the Montague-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919, supplemented by those of the new Government of India Act of 1935. The Ministry of Education in India requested the Central Advisory Board of Education in 1944 to survey the educational conditions in the country. The Board’s report, known as the Sargeant Report, after its Chairman, Sir Sargeant, the Educational Advisor to the Government of India, came up with a master-plan for the development of education in post-World War II India.96 Its terms of reference covered education at all levels – primary, secondary, and higher. The Indian universities, as they existed then, despite many admirable features, did not fully satisfy the requirements of a national system of education.97 During the British rule, several committee and commissions set up in intervals paved way for the foundation of several colleges and the establishment of many universities and in many cases the libraries were also established along with them. It is also true that as compared to the first two decades the development of university libraries after 1924 did make better progress but the college libraries were still neglected and were struggling to get recognition. There were only 12 universities in India in 1924 which swelled to 18 by the time India got freedom in 1947. In fact, the academic libraries during the British rule had no significance in the academic life of the institutions of higher education and the pivotal role that can be played by the academic libraries

93 94 95 96 97

Haggerty, W J. Higher and Professional Education in India. US Government Printing Office: Washington, 1970: 45. Bose, P. C. “School and College Libraries in the Evolution of Education in Modern India.” Indian Library Association Bulletin 1(1965): 20. Haggerty. Op. cit. Ibid. Ibid.: 45–6.

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in the life of the institutions could very well be seen in the policy statement of higher education of the free India and the fact was also proven when at the time of national reconstruction, the importance of libraries in teaching and research was recognized, and libraries received the early attention of the government of India.98

Libraries in India After Independence Following independence, several changes have been made in the organization and activities of research development programs, leading to the birth of so many research institutions and organizations in the country. The Indian Research Fund Association and the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research were renamed as the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (IARI) in 1949 and 1947 respectively. In 1948 India entered the field of research and development in atomic energy with the setting up of the Atomic Energy Commission. Now the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) is conducting extensive research programs in this field. Similarly, the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), the Department of Science and Technology, and the NISSAT were established. To meet the specialized needs and requirements of the information scientists and research scholars various documentation and information centers were established, such as the INSDOC, the DESIDOC, the NDCMC, and the NASSDOC which are playing an extensive role by providing various kinds of documentation and information services to the research scholars in the fields of science and technology and social sciences. All these institutions have been provided with well-equipped libraries to achieve their objectives. It is true that these specialized information and documentation institutions are doing well in their respective fields of knowledge, yet there is a need for developing a national information policy and the national information systems for agriculture, medical, bio-medical, and space sciences, environmental studies, and atomic energy research etc. establishing a national information system for science and technology and social sciences to fulfill the growing specialized requirements of the scientists and research scholars engaged in various research programs is the need of the hour. After independence, Delhi became the focus of the development of higher education and learning resulted into the establishment of libraries, particularly special and academic libraries, and they will be discussed at the end of this chapter. The actual process for the development of university libraries in India can be said to have been set in motion with the appointment of the University

98

Mangla, P. B. “University Libraries in India: Their Development and Proposal for the Fifth Five Year Plan.”International Library Review 6 (1974): 453–470.

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Education Commission presided over by Dr. S. Radhakrishnan (1948–1949) and its recommendations, such as annual grants, open access system, working hours, organization of the library, staff, steps to make students book conscious, and the need to give grants to teachers to buy books. The section on libraries in chapter four of the report opens with a powerful statement of the importance of libraries in university education and states, “teaching is a cooperative enterprise. Teachers must have the necessary tools for teaching purposes in the shape of libraries and laboratories as also the right type of students.”99 The Commission in the course of its study of the academic libraries, found that “libraries were hopelessly inadequate to serve the curricular needs of a modern university. They were ill-housed, ill-stocked, and ill-staffed and were totally lacking in standard literary and scientific journals. Service was in the hands of personnel that had hardly any notion of the objectives of university education. The annual appropriation for book purchase seldom exceeded the ten thousand mark.”100 In addition, the annual grants for these libraries were not sufficient. Therefore, the Commission recommended that at least 6% of the total budget of each academic institution should be set aside for the library. Only then will the condition of these libraries will improve.101 It added that if institutions were not willing to allocate 6% of their budget to libraries, they should spend Rs.40 per student enrolled. The Commission also suggested that more attention should be paid to improve the reference services in the university libraries. Therefore, “documentation and bibliographical services must be developed in order to promote research among the faculty and students, make libraries proper centers for research activities, and to raise the standards of services.”102 As far as library staff were concerned, the Commission was of the view that it was very important to have well- qualified staff, including the Director, in order to provide excellent service in any library. The Director’s qualifications must include a Ph.D. in Library Science and he must have the rank and salary of a professor, capabilities of organization and management, and should have full powers of an administrator to run the library effectively.103 There is no doubt that the recommendations of the Commission “were based on the needs of the modern library services in universities for the promotion of research and creative learning.”104 It was for the first time that such detailed attention was paid to the library matters by a commission on university education in India. The most comprehensive and significant

99 India, Ministry of Education. Report of the University Education Commission 1948–49. Delhi: Manager of Publication, 1949: 113. 100 Bashiruddin, S. “University Libraries since Independence.” Cultural Forum 9 (1967): 40. 101 Subrahmanyan. Op. Cit.: 35. 102 Ibid.: 13. 103 University Education Commission (1948–49). Report. Delhi. Ministry of Education: 110. 104 Shrivastva, Anand Prakesh. “Documentation Research in University Libraries in India.” Indian Librarian 14 (1959): 2.

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document on university and college libraries is the Report of the UGC library committee, chaired by Ranganathan. The report was published by the University Grants Commission in 1959 entitled ‘University and College Libraries.’ It was perhaps the first attempt by any library committee in India to systematically survey academic libraries on a national basis, and it was also the first time that the government of India had decided to seek advice from a professional librarian regarding academic libraries. The committee was to advise the UGC on the standards of libraries, building, pay scales, and library training. After the survey the library committee invited all academic librarians to a seminar on “Work flow in university and college libraries,” at Delhi from 4–7 March 1959 to keep them informed about the progress the committee had made in surveying academic libraries. It wanted to discuss its recommendations with them. Some of the recommendations of the committee included the provision that the UGC and the state government should help college and university libraries in the collection development of both books and periodicals. The formula suggested by the committee was that funds be given “at the rate of Rs.15 per enrolled student and Rs.200 per teacher and research fellow. There should also be special initial library grants in the case of a new university and of a new department in an existing university; a similar scale should be followed for college libraries.105 In order to promote co-operation among libraries, a Union Catalog of books and a Union List of periodicals was to be prepared. The committee strongly recommended that an open access system be introduced in every academic library.106 The committee also stressed “that reference Service is the essential human process of establishing contact between the right reader and the right book by personal service. Reference service is vital in promotion of reading habit in student [therefore] each library should provide an adequate number of reference librarians to function as library hosts and human converters.”107 Other recommendations included building up a microfilm collection, copying facilities for microfilms and book material,108 the appointment of a committee to look into the standards of teaching, examination and research in the library schools,109 and appointment of full-time teaching faculty members rather than asking librarians to teach part time in the library schools.110 The committee added that “the status and the salary of the library staff should be the same as that of the teaching and research staff’, i.e., Professor, Reader, and lecturer etc.”111 The 105 India University Education Commission. University and College Libraries Containing University Grants Commission and Proceedings of the Seminar from Publisher to Reader held on March 4–7, 1959. New Delhi: University Grants Commission, 1985: 21. 106 Ibid.: 42. 107 Ibid.: 44. 108 Ibid.: 56. 109 Ibid.: 88. 110 Ibid.: 81. 111 Ibid.

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recommendations of the committee had a far-reaching effect on the development of university libraries later. They had not only provided a framework to the UGC to implement its grants-in-aid programs but also given to the university authorities important guidelines. Particular mention, in this connection, may be made of the recommendations concerning the library finances which had helped libraries to secure enough finances by way of annual grants from the universities themselves and of development grants from the UGC. The recommendations on library personnel and staff strength have given to library staff status and salaries equivalent to the academic staff and ensure provision for adequate staff for various library operations. The committee submitted its report to the UGC with the hope that it would provide a blue-print for the systematic development of university libraries in the country. Hence, in spite of many hurdles like education being a state subject in the Indian constitution, considerable development in the university libraries took place and as such the condition of these libraries in 1953 was much better than in the 1940s and even the early 1950s. The Education Commission under the Chairmanship of Dr. D. S. Kothari (1964–66) marked another important stage in the history of university libraries in India. The commission devoted considerable attention to the development of university libraries and made suitable recommendations on the following points: (i) norms for financial support; (ii) long range planning for library development; (iii) the need for the establishment of a well equipped library before the starting of a university, college, or department; (iv) suitable phasing of library grants; (v) encouraging the students in the use of books; (vi) inter-disciplinary communication; and (vii) documentation service in libraries etc. The Education Commission had also addressed itself to the role of libraries in adult education and recommended establishment of a network of public libraries. It wanted school libraries to be integrated with public libraries for purposes of the adult education programs. The report, submitted by Dr. D. S. Kothari, on 29 June 1966, emphatically pointed out that “nothing can be more damaging than to ignore its library and to give it a low priority. No new college, university or department should be opened unless adequate number of books in the library are provided.”112 The Commission was shocked to note that the recommendations of the Radhakrishnan Commission had not been fully implemented, for only four universities in India has spent 5% or more of their budget on books and periodicals acquisitions, though the 1948 University Education Commission had suggested that 6% of the total budget be spent on libraries. Other universities had spent less than 5% of their budget on libraries, “Surprisingly enough there are five universities which spent even less than one per cent of the total budget on

112 Mohan, Lal. Documentation of University Libraries in India in Post Independence Period: A Study. Chandigarh: Panjab University, 1974: 84. (M.Lib.Sc. Dissertation).

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the libraries.”113 It was clear proof that the university libraries in India were not functioning properly to fulfill the needs of higher education. The Kothari Commission recommended that a long range plan for library development be drawn up for each academic institution taking into consideration anticipated increase in enrollment, introduction of new subjects, and research needs114 etc., and a documentation service be encouraged in libraries, and documentation experts be appointed to help researchers and do indexing and abstracting.115 It was further recommended that “the book selection should be oriented towards supporting instruction and research.”116 The library should “provide resources necessary for research in fields of special interest to the university; provide library facilities and services necessary for the success of all formal programs of instruction.”117 Monetary guidelines were also suggested by the Commission. “As a norm, a university should spend each year about Rs.25 per student registered and Rs.300 per teacher [of the total budget] depending on the stage of development of each university library.”118 It was also suggested that “the foreign exchange needed for university and college libraries should be allowed separately to the UGC.”119 The Wheat Loan Programme is the another landmark in the history of academic libraries in India. During the 1950s and early 1960s Indian academic libraries received huge grants from the UGC amounting to Rs.100,000 for books, buildings, equipment, and even for additional staff.120 At the same time many libraries got additional grants from a special US fund called the ‘Wheat Loan Programme.’ The American Congress passed a special Act in 1951 known as the ‘Public Law 480’ to loan India $19,000,000 to buy much needed wheat (two million tons) from the U.S. Under the agreement of the loan, India had to buy American books, periodicals, and scientific equipment worth $50,000 to be used for research purposes in Indian libraries. This money India had to pay as interest on the loan. Part of the money was to be spent on the exchange of scholars, including librarians, between the two countries.121 The United States authorities bought some educational material and equipment from India for research purposes and higher education in the American

113 Sharma, Jagdish Saran. “Origins, Development and Problems of University Libraries in India.” Proceedings, First Seminar of University Librarians in India held at the Rajasthan University, Jaipur, from 16th to 19th November 1966. Vol. 2. Ed. N. N. Gidwani. Jaipur: University of Rajasthan, 1967: 105–23. 114 Education and National Development. Report of the Education Commission. New Delhi: National Council of Educational Research and Training, 1971: 519. 115 Ibid.: 520. 116 Ibid. 117 Ibid.: 521. 118 Ibid.: 522. 119 Ibid. 120 Shukla, J. The Development of University Libraries in India: 237. 121 Ojha, D. G. University Libraries in India. Jodhpur: Latesh Prakashan, 1980: 21.

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Universities.122 During 1951–1961 Indian libraries spent $1,400,000 of the purchase of American books, $160,000 on libraries, $40,000 on the travel and study grants for 33 Indian librarians to visit the United States and $75,000 on the travel and study grants of five Americans.123 In fact these developments had a far reaching impact on the growth and development of college and university libraries in India. For example, when India attained independence many of the 533 affiliated colleges124 did not have their own libraries and every college in the country that did have one continued to neglect it.125 The majority of college libraries did not have proper facilities to meet the needs of their users. Their collections were not up-to-date, their budgets were very inadequate and limited, and a large number of them were single libraries.126 In many colleges, there was neither a library hall nor a sufficiently big room, not to think of a separate building for the library. Any unused room, quite often somewhere out of sight, would be considered adequate to house a few shelves of books. And in most college libraries there was complete darkness even during the day time, as the windows were closed out of a fear that the books may be stolen.127 Different studies, conducted by scholars like A. K. Mukherjee,128 K. S. Hingwe,129 M. S. Rana,130 Girija Kumar,131 R Sreepathi,132 Roshan Raina,133 J. K. Anand,134 J. L. Sardana,135 D. W. Shewde,136 122 Misra, Jogesh. Op. cit.: 77. 123 Kipp, J. L., and C. R. Kipp. Indian Libraries and the Indian Wheat Loan Educational Exchange Program: A Report. New Delhi: The Wheat Loan Office, American Embassy, 1961: 78. 124 Sharma, R. N. Indian Academic Libraries and S. R. Ranganathan: A Critical Study. Delhi: Sterling Publishers, 1986: 97. 125 Deshpande, K. S. “User Orientation in College Libraries.” Library Science with a slant to Documentation 15.12: 194. 126 Ibid. 127 Susheela Kumar. “Physical Facilities in the Library.” New frontiers in Education 8 (1978): 27. 128 Mukherjee, A. K. “Library Facilities in Training Colleges of India.” IASLIC Bulletin 10 (1965): 54–68. 129 Hingwe, K. S. “Organizational Patterns of Academic Libraries.” Library Herald 2 (1969): 139–53. 130 Rana, M. S. “Mutilation of Books: A Case Study of Kirori Mal College Library.” Library Herald 11 (1969): 154–67. 131 Girija Kumar et al. “College Libraries in India: A Survey Report.” Journal of ibrary and Information Science 4 (1979): 1–23. 132 Naidu, R. Sreepathi. “College Libraries in Andhra Pradesh with Special Reference to Andhra University.” Library Herald 19 (1980): 134–47. 133 Naidu, R. Sreepathi. “College Libraries in Andhra Pradesh with Special Reference to Osmania University.” Indian Library Association Bulletin14 (1980): 162–73. 134 Anand, J. K. “Library Committee in Delhi University College: A Survey Report.” Journal of Library and Information Science 6 (1981): 45–59. 135 Sardana, J. L. “University and College Libraries during the Fourth Plan, 1966–71.” Herald of Library Science 5 (1966): 53–61. 136 Shewde, D. W. “Cataloging Methods in College Libraries in Poona University.” Timeless Fellowship 7 (1972): 131–47.

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Krishan Kumar,137 R. N. Sar,138 Shalini Rewadikar,139 and A. P. Srivastva140 have explicitly established that the condition of college libraries in India was far from satisfactory. College Libraries were open only six to eight hours a day. Many did not have any qualified librarian on their staff and have closed stacks only.141 The several commissions and committees, like the Radhakrishnan Commission of 1948, did not stress the importance of the college libraries in their reports. However, the University Grants Commission gives more importance to the college libraries as the quality of higher education and research, especially at the graduate level, depends upon, among other things, the standard of the college libraries and their services. Therefore, the UGC has played a significant role in the growth and development of college libraries since 1953 by giving grants for books, equipment, staff, and library buildings, and has done a remarkable job in salary improvement of the college librarians. The UGC’s contribution to the college libraries is at the rate of Rs.15 per student with a maximum of Rs.10,000 with some additional and special grants for textbooks, when a new subject is introduced in the curriculum.142 On the other hand, the colleges and the state governments have failed to provide their equal share. The total expenditure on the college libraries according to the recommendation of the Education Commission should be 6.25% cent of the total budgets of the colleges, but in most cases it has remained between 1.5 per cent and 2.3%.143 Collection development of the college libraries is done without taking into consideration the actual needs of the faculty and the students of the colleges as 60% of them consist of text books and 20% cover fiction.144 Even this small inadequate collection, in depth and content, is not used effectively due to the closed stack system and lack of staff and facilities for instruction concerning their use. The net result is that the utility factor of the college libraries comes practically to nothing.145 In most college libraries, books are neither properly classified nor cataloged. In several libraries no systematic

137 Krishan Kumar, and S. D. Vyas. “Classification Practice in Delhi University College Libraries.” Journal of Library Science and Information Science 4 (1979): 41–67. 138 Sar, R. N. “College Libraries in Delhi.” Herald of Library Science 10 (1971): 57–62. 139 Rewadikar, Shalini. “College Libraries and their Environment in Punjab, Delhi, and Madhya Pradesh: A Comparative Study.” Journal of Library and Information Science 4 (1979): 94–112. 140 Srivastava, Anand P. Reading Preference in Higher Education. Jaipur: University of Rajasthan, 1965. 141 Deshpande, K. S. “Users Orientation in College Libraries.” Library Science with a Slant to Documentation 15 (1978): 194. 142 Vyas, S. D. “Does College Libraries Meet the Present Day Demand?” Indian Library Association Bulletin 10 (1974): 101. 143 Sardana, J. L. “College Libraries in India.” Op. cit.: 48. 144 Reddy, D. Jayanathan. Issues in Higher Education. Madras: M. Seshachalem & Co., 1974: 151. 145 Trehan, G. L. Administration and Organization of College Libraries in India. Delhi: Sterling Publishers, 1974: 31.

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classification is followed for collection arrangements. The only service the college library renders to its clientele is book-lending. There are colleges where students are not even allowed inside the library.146 The UGC is aware of the slow progress of the college libraries. In addition to providing financial help for development, it has also from time to time organized seminars to keep the college librarians aware of the new developments in the field. But these seminars have had only a limited effect on the progress of the college libraries. The condition of college libraries in the country should be a cause for alarm among the academic community. In the interests of the development of higher education in the country along proper lines, it is important to make a detailed study of the style of functioning of college libraries and of the utilization of library resources and facilities by the students and teachers. This will help in the preparation of more realistic and operational policies and programs for ensuring the proper functioning, utilization, and development of college libraries. The college library has to be made the intellectual hub of the institution, serving equally both the students and teachers. This is all more necessary because about 90% of the students in higher education in India pursue their studies in colleges and they have only very small and substandard college libraries resources to fall back upon. Although, due to various efforts of the UGC as well as other forces, the traditional concept that the college library is a custodian of books has changed, there is evidence enough to show that the condition of college libraries is generally poor, their development is rather slow and that the position of the college libraries and their librarians in India, with a few exceptions, is pitiable. University libraries all over the world have their own place of importance in the scheme of higher learning. Libraries are not only repositories of knowledge but also dispenses of such knowledge. There is no doubt that where libraries of universities and institutions of higher learning are ignored or not given due recognition, the country as a whole suffers because the standards of study, teaching, and research very heavily depend upon the qualitative and quantitative service rendered by the university libraries. The Radhakrishnan Commission (1948–1949) expressed that “the library is the heart of all the university’s work, directly so, as regards its research work and indirectly as regards its educational work, which derives its life from research. Scientific research needs the library as well as its laboratories while for humanistic research the library is both library and the laboratory in one. Both for humanistic and scientific studies, a first class library is essential in a university.”147 The growth of university libraries since independence can be seen in respect of the initiatives taken by central government considering the vital importance of higher education and role of libraries in the

146 Bavakutty, M. “College Libraries in India.” International Library Review 14 (1982): 394. 147 India. University Education Commission 1948–49. Report. Vol. 1. Delhi: Manager of Publication, 1949: 110.

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educational development, commitment to fulfill the demand of higher education, and the foundation of the UGC in 1953 by an Act of Parliament. The Radhakrishnan Commission recognized the value and importance of a well equipped and organized library system and its role in higher education. It found many drawbacks and pitfalls in the university libraries and had made many recommendations for the improvement of library facilities. The Ranganathan Committee, appointed by the UGC in 1957, made some outstanding recommendations, which included standards for library building, collection development, staff and services, and furniture etc. These recommendations were accepted by the UGC and forwarded for implementation. The Kothari Commission also made valuable recommendations for this purpose, but the role of the University Grants Commission deserves special mention, because it has played a vital role by “regularly providing appropriate grants and funds to all universities for development of libraries, to purchase books and journals … construction of new library buildings and for library equipment and furniture.”148 Dr. D. S. Kothari, the Chairman of University Grants Commission, said, “Libraries play a vital role in the development of institutions of higher learning. The University Grants Commission attaches great importance to the strengthening of library facilities in the universities and colleges and their efficient administration. The commission has also been giving grants to institutions for books and journals construction of library building and appointment of library staff.”149 One of the most remarkable and identifiable developments in the history of higher education and libraries was the foundation of the INFLIBNET in 1991. Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET) center is an autonomous inter-university center of the UGC of India. It is a major national programme initiated by the UGC in 1991 with its headquarters at Gujarat University Campus, Ahmedabad. Initially started as a project under the IUCAA, it became an independent inter-university center in 1966.150 Its objectives are as follows.151 – To promote and establish communication facilities to improve capability in information transfer and access, that provide support to scholarship, learning, research, and academic pursuit through the cooperation and involvement of agencies concerned. – To establish INFLIBNET (Information and Library Network) a computer communication network for linking libraries and information centers in universities, deemed to be universities, colleges, UGC

148 Ojha, D. G. University Libraries in India. Jodhpur: Latesh Prakashan, 1980: 20. 149 India. University Grants Commission. University and College Libraries. New Delhi: UGC, 1965: 8. 150 http://www.inflibnet.ac.in. (Accessed on 12 Mar. 2010). 151 Chakravarty, R., and S. Singh. “E-resources for Indian Universities: New Initiatives.” SRELS Journal of Information Management 42.1 (2005): 57–8.

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information centers, institutions of national importance and RD institutions, etc., avoiding duplication of efforts. INFLIBNET performs following major activities:152 1. Provides grants to universities to automate the libraries, establishing the network facilities and create an information technology environment. 2. Developed and distributed Software for University Libraries (SOUL) which is an integrated user-friendly library management software. The latest version of the software is 2.0 which can be operated with the latest technologies and international standards such as MARC21, Unicode based and NCIP 2.0 based protocols for electronic surveillance and control. 3. Indian Catalogue of University Libraries in India (IndCat) is the online library catalog of books, theses, and journals available in major university libraries in India which provides the bibliographic description and location of the material in all subjects available in more than 112 university libraries. Thus, IndCat has over 10 million bibliographical records of books from more than 113 universities. In addition, the database of theses, expert databases, project databases, and SEWAK-OFFLINE database access facilities are also extended to the libraries of higher learning institutions. 4. To enhance the skills of university library staff for implementation of INFLIBNET program, it conducts training program for library staff, on-site training for member library staff, training on SOUL software, holding the CALIBER convention every year and conducting workshops for senior level staff of the university libraries. 5. It has brought out a document entitled ‘INFLIBNET Standards and Guideline for Data Capturing’ prepared by a task force of experts based on Common Communication Format (CCF). Another very important and significant landmark in the history of higher education and development of libraries in India is the establishment of UGCINFONET digital library consortium by the UGC on the concluding day of its golden jubilee celebrations by his Excellency the then President of India, Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam at Vigyan Bhawan on 28 December 2003. UGC-InfoNet is an innovative project launched by UGC to facilitate scholarly e-resources to Indian academies through joint partnership of UGC, INFLIBNET, and ERNET. This includes the interlinking of universities and colleges in the country electronically with a view to achieving maximum efficiency through Internet enabled teaching, learning, and governance. The 152 Bavakutty, M., and A. Azeez. “Library Consortia in India: Initiatives and Concerns.” SRELS Journal of Information Management 43.2 (2006): 177–84.

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UGC-INFONET is overlaid on ERNET infrastructure in manner so as to provide assured quality of service and optimum utilization of bandwidth resources. The network will be run and managed by ERNET India. The project is funded by UGC with 100% capital investment and up to 90% of recurring costs. UGC and ERNET India have signed the necessary MoU for this purpose. A joint technical and tariff committee, has been setup to guide and monitor the design, implementation and operations of UGC-InfoNet. Information for Library Network (INFLIBNET) an autonomous interuniversity center of UGC, is the nodal agency for coordination and facilitation of the linkage between ERNET and the universities. Under this program, information and communication technologies (ICT) and the Internet will be used to transform the learning environment from a mono-dimensional one to a multidimensional one.153 This was created to help and benefit more than 310 universities and about 14,000 colleges affiliated with these universities and approximately 10 million students with the e-journals and is thus a boon to the higher education system in many ways.154 The UGC-INFONET digital library consortium has the following objectives:155 – to subscribe electronic resources for the members of the consortium at highly discounted rates of subscription and with the best terms and conditions. – to promote the rational use of funds. – to guarantee local storage of the information acquired for continuous use by present and future users. – to impart training to the users, librarians research scholar and faculty members of the institutions on the electronic resources with an aim to optimize the usage of the electronic resources. – to have more interaction amongst the member libraries. – to increase the research productivity of the institutions in terms of quality and quantity of publications. – Strategic alliance with institutions that have common interests resulting reduced information costs and improved resource sharing. The futuristic academic libraries in the higher education system must globalize if they want to add value to the academic enterprise, concluded the recently held International Conference on Academic Libraries – ICAL 2009. Academic libraries in India and other developing countries are at least a decade behind their counterparts in the developed countries. ICAL 2009 which was specifically called to reposition academic libraries as the next generation libraries,

153 Chakravarty, R., and S. Singh. Op. cit.: 58–9. 154 http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/UGC-InfoNet/ugcinfonet.html#5. (Accessed on 12 Mar. 2010). 155 Bhatt, R. K. “Library Consortium: Effective Collaborative Approach towards Resource Sharing.” Journal of Library and Information Science 31.1 (2006): 69–79.

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recommended ‘globalizing academic libraries’ in the network environment. The new model proposed by the conference in essence envisages collaboration between libraries at local, state, national, and global level on all library dimensions, for instance performing library functions of resource building, cataloging, and back end operations at consortia level and not at client level. Technologically, the new model envisages integration of all participating university libraries in an open systems environment for facilitating management of library operations, functions, and services at consortia level, and building common resources for sharing and access. The pre-requisites of the new model include the setting up of a major centralized facility equipped with state of the art ICT infrastructure at the consortia level offering online avenues for managing library functions. This sort of new set up would essentially be helping client libraries, relieving them of the hassles and burden of managing local library management systems as well as obviating the need to undertake the capital intensive and time consuming activity of building cataloging databases at local level. In the context of the recommendation of the National Knowledge Commission to expand the number of universities in India from 475 as at present to 1,500 in the near future, the new model is considered highly relevant in terms of economy and performance, in offering low-end investment options in the ICT infrastructure at client level, in offering academic community access not only to local resources but to resources of all other university libraries as well, and in addition opening up new opportunities for libraries to play more effective, strategic and educational roles to add value to the academic enterprise.

Libraries in Twenty-First Century India The National Knowledge Commission was set up by the government of India on 13 June 2005 with a time-frame of three years, from 2 October 2005 to 2 October 2008. As a high-level advisory body to the Prime Minister of India, the National Knowledge Commission was given a mandate to guide policy and direct reforms, focusing on certain key areas such as education, science and technology, agriculture, industry, e-governance, etc. Easy access to knowledge, creation and preservation of knowledge systems, dissemination of knowledge, and better knowledge services were core concerns of the commission.156 The commission envisaged the future road map for the growth and development of academic libraries by giving core issues such as: set up a national commission on libraries, prepare a national census of all libraries, revamp LIS education, training, and research facilities, re-assess staffing of libraries, set up a central library fund, modernize library management, 156 http://www.knowledgecommission.gov.in/about/default.asp. (Accessed on 12 Mar. 2010).

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encourage greater community participation in library management, promote information communication technology applications in all libraries, facilitate donation and maintenance of private collections, and encourage public private partnerships in LIS development, etc.157 In this context, the commission recognized that the long era of secluded, stand alone libraries is now over and also recognized that things happen differently with togetherness. The future of academic libraries therefore lies in their coming together with a view to collaborating in managing their functions, operations, and services from a common platform, building and sharing common resources, and exploring and executing future programs and activities of common interest. It is from such a common pool of resources that academic libraries could think and hope of adding value to the academic enterprise. The ICAL 2009 therefore gave a call for ‘globalizing academic libraries’ in the network environment as the academic library vision for 2020. Given the challenges on how to develop academic libraries as the next generation libraries and on how to enable them to cope with imminent expansion planned in the higher education sector, the ICAL 2009 call for globalizing academic libraries is very timely and relevant. Globalized academic libraries are to be seen as another but different library model that advocates futuristic library development based on collaboration between libraries at local, state, national, and global level and on all dimensions of academic library activity. The new model promises to offer several inherent advantages over the current library model such as strategic, operational, and economic on the following lines: – enabling utmost economy and performance in the library operations at the client level, – enabling libraries to build common resources at the consortia level as opposed to current practice of building resources at client level in the distributed environment, – enabling libraries to go in for minimal ICT infrastructure at client level compared to high end requirements mandated as at present, – enabling access not only to local resources but also to resources distributed across university libraries, – enabling professional staff sufficient opportunities to develop expertise in core library and information science areas and not be bogged down with the requirements to necessarily develop high end expertise in the ICT, and – enabling libraries to play strategic and educational roles in order to add value to the academic enterprise.

157 http://www.knowledgecommission.gov.in/recommendations/libraries.asp. (Accessed on 12 Mar. 2010).

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The ICAL 2009 proposed 11 points for making the Roadmap for Globalizing Academic Libraries. They are as follows. 1. To ascertain the strengths and weakness of libraries under the central and state universities in India in the form of a status report; 2. To identify alternate modes of managing traditional library functions in the global academic library mode; 3. To identify the new dimensions that could be added to academic library services by exploiting common pool of resources; 4. To identify the strategic and educational roles that libraries and librarians could play to add value to academic enterprise and in the knowledge society; 5. To undertake new initiatives such as building digital resources of indigenous knowledge of unique character; 6. To formulate ICT plan for systematic development of futuristic global academic libraries; 7. To formulate plans for ensuring quality and standards in the functioning and performance of futuristic global academic libraries; 8. To encourage international collaboration on all library fronts for bringing about qualitative change in the functioning and performance of futuristic global academic libraries; 9. To identify and formulate appropriate policies, programs, and systems for ICT integration at library client level and consortia level; 10. To identify the priority areas for talent development and formulating talent development plans for the purpose; and 11. To evolve suitable strategies for change management, library advocacy and marketing essentially with a view to change the public image of the academic libraries

Factors Responsible for Paradigm Shifts in University Libraries The factors that are responsible for the paradigm shift in the university libraries in India are: (i) the advent of ICT and its use in library operations has changed information needs and the behavior of users especially looking to have information in a multi-disciplinary and multi-lingual nature; (ii) the change in the mindset of the authorities both at national and university levels thereby changing the perception and image of the library and resulting the setting up of high power committees and commissions to improve upon the library collection and services; (iii) the change of work environment such as teamwork, job sharing, tele-work, outsourcing, staff downsizing, and reengineering, among others. These developments have necessitated the acquirement and development of new skills in librarianship along with adequate

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knowledge of the use of ICT tools. These factors have helped university libraries in (i) identification, assessment, and evaluation of the information needs of the readers; (ii) need-based collection development and collection building; (iii) analyze, evaluate, and organize information contents of various types of sources as a content manager; (iv) marketing LIS products and services to promote the underutilized information resources and enhance the use of library resources and services; (v) consolidation and repackaging of information products and services in a fashion that suits and meets the information hunger of the library readers; (vi) intranet and Internet potentiality be used extensively by organizing training sessions, information literacy programs; (vii) developing e-learning modules and training staff and readers to make use of these for their research and development activities; (viii) establish or participate in the library consortium for mutual benefits, especially in the area of journals subscription through electronic environment and for this develop the skills of negotiation while signing the contracts with information providers having adequate knowledge about licensing and other legal arrangements for access to digital resources.

Use of ICT in India’s Libraries Acceptance of the use of ICT in libraries has revolutionized the entire perception of university libraries in India especially in the past decade. India’s libraries are now moving towards electronic resources for which they are now getting the benefits of the library consortia such as INDEST-AICTE digital library consortium, UGC-InfoNet e-Journals Library Consortium etc. But for getting the maximum benefits of ICT, it is imperative for librarians working in the university set up to acquire new skills to be competent enough to work in this new environment.

Internet in India’s Libraries Statistical data available reveals the fact that there is a increasing trend of Internet users in India. Their number is increasing rapidly. It is being used for both academic as well as commercial purposes by a large segment of the Indian population. Librarians in India are now advocating Internet connectivity even inplaces like recreational rooms, clubs, hostels, playground and every public place in the university for maximum utilization and feeding the information appetite of the user community. But, at the same time they need to develop more skills and strategies that can help them to retrieve information from the Internet with more precision which is need of the hour. Since technological developments are fast, these calls for regular training to learn more and more new skills and competencies, which need an intense focus on users’ information needs and continuous assessment of their skills to remain updated.

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Networks and Library Consortia ICT has facilitated libraries all over the world in establishing networks for resource sharing. Further, the emergence of e-journals has forced libraries to opt for journal subscriptions in electronic format due to variety of reasons. One of the reasons for opting subscription of e-journals through library consortia is the best possible bargaining of the prices and saving attractive sums of money in comparison to subscription in print format. The government of India allowed the University Grants Commission to the UGC-InfoNet digital library consortium to provide access facilities to e-journals and databases to the majority of university libraries in India. UCG-InfoNet has helped libraries meet their users’ diverse information needs.

Libraries vis-a`-vis Subject Gateways and Portals Though the Internet is considered a boon for present day librarianship and undisputedly, considered as an essential technology for research and development activities almost in every discipline,its huge information resources, both available in the commercial domain as well as in the public domain, have made it the first choice to anyone working in the digital environment. But one of the biggest problems people are facing while using the Internet is the vast amount of junk information. To overcome this problem, a lot of efforts are being made globally. In addition to many of the workable solutions on which the professionals are working, the available solutions are the formation of subject gateways and subject portals. For example, SOSIG, now known as Intute is the information gateway in the field of social sciences. The research in the field of semantic web is also going on to solve the problems of garbage and provide more precision than of more recall.

Libraries and Digital Technology Creating a digital library is the latest phenomenon being observed and advocated by librarians, especially librarians working in the academic environment. Digital technology has become the answer to the problems of preservation, adding new life to rare, brittle and fragile documents in addition to its potential to provide access to information speedily, accurately, and efficiently. The philosophy of library cooperation and resource sharing is executed in best possible manner through the digital technology as it enables creation of networked libraries.

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Information Consolidation, Repackaging, and Marketing LIS Products and Services The days have gone when the reader would have been satisfied simply by a librarian providing him/her the book he/she wanted to read or to just guiding him/her to the location of a book on the shelves. In the present day environment, he/she is more concerned with pin-pointing exhaustive information, and in a format which suits him/her best. This change in the informationseeking behavior of users has forced university librarians to adopt mechanisms to consolidate and repackage the information. The information repackaging process involves several tasks like selection, analysis, evaluation, restructuring, and synthesizing the information to provide specific information to users in a bespoke, tailored manner. In the changing scenario of librarianship in India, the restructuring and repackaging of existing information and knowledge is considered as highly essential to meet the information hunger of the users with utmost satisfaction.

Outsourcing and Flexi-Working One of the new trends at India’s libraries is to outsource the various jobs. Though the downfall in the work culture in government organizations is one of the major reasons to opt for outsourcing, slowly and gradually, this is becoming an identifiable feature of university libraries, especially for the jobs such as cataloging and classification, retro-conversion, stocktaking, compilation of bibliographies, automation of the library, etc. Another trend which is being witnessed is the adoption of the philosophy of flexi-working. Flexiworking means employing temporary or part-time professionals and semiprofessional staff to save on fringe benefits and employment costs. Instead of employing the staff on regular basis, under such a system the employees are employed as and when needed and on a day-to-day basis.

Knowledge and Participative Management Knowledge management (KM) is one of the hottest topics of debate amongst librarians, though there is a dispute on the nature of job involved in the KM when performed in a library environment in comparison to the environment of industrial houses. However, university libraries have also started to take care of certain issues related to specialized areas of knowledge. KM is understood to be the efforts of the organizations to identify, capture, and retain tacit and explicit knowledge. In other words, management of intellectual capital

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within the organization for which the parent organization creates and maintains a database of expertise about employees, their experiences of handling difficult moments and tasks, decisions taken in adverse circumstances that resulted in the best solutions and benefited the organization, etc. along with their complete biographical details and their contact address, etc., so that as and when the organization needs their services and valuable guidance, they can be contacted. Likewise, participative management works on the philosophy of taking every one into confidence to work as a team to achieve the goals of the organization in the best possible way. It is a comparatively new concept and was first adopted in the United States and then slowly and gradually attracted the whole world. Now, participative management is taught almost in every management school. The basic characteristics of participative management is to give an equal opportunity to each one to understand and learn new things and it does not have scope to induct anything of disputed nature. It utilizes energies in a more personally responsible manner, to achieve the goals of the organization.To perform the above mentioned tasks effectively, librarians need to have skills and unique competencies such as technical skills, time management skills, presentation and communication skills; (iii) evaluation and assessment skills, etc.

Conclusion A critical appreciation of the growth and development of libraries in India since 1947 makes it fairly evident that the period constitutes a new era, marked by salient features as: – – – – – – – – – –

the legislative provisions for the growth and development of libraries; their multifarious growth and development; both vertical and horizontal development of libraries; identification of the need of dissemination of academic and scientific information; establishment of information network services; resurgence of the past and establishment of new libraries or strengthening of already existing indological and historical libraries; the shift of emphasis clearly reflected in government policies and planning; higher plan allocations; increasing professionalism in management and organization of libraries; the emergence of Delhi as the epicenter of the unfolding scenario of the growth and development of libraries in modern India.

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Therefore major factors that seem to have influenced such growth and development of libraries in the post-independence era, are: – the recognition of the role that libraries can play in nation building and in the consequent necessary provisions for the planned growth and development of libraries in India after independence; – the realization of the global problems and the problems of a developing country and of the fact that public libraries can play a vital role in the eradication of these problems; – the other factors that have largely contributed to the growth and development of libraries, in particular the explosion of knowledge, the meteoric progress, efforts for improvements in agriculture, exploitation of the natural manpower resources, rapid industrialization, the consequent explosion of knowledge owing to the significant level of advancement in higher education and research; – the acceptance of the role of the government in the funding of the libraries in addition to the growth and development of the departmental libraries of several government organizations, the making of the national information policy and establishment of various information and documentation centers. The post-independence era has truly transformed Delhi from a city of virtually no library worth its name to its present position of a center of the most actively funded and used libraries and information networks. During the Sultanate period Delhi became a center of learning and intellectual pursuits and thus necessitated the founding of libraries. With the establishment of the Mughal Empire, Delhi’s true position as a seat of political power was achieved only after Shah Jahan shifted his capital from Agra to Delhi in 1638. He also brought the Imperial Library to Delhi. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the political status of Delhi changed more frequently than that of any other city of India. The Delhi College, originally founded in 1792 and re-established as an institution of education in 1825, was closed by the British Government in 1877. St. Stephen’s College was established in 1881. The Hindu College was founded in 1899. These two were the only institutions which were imparting education in Delhi and except these two there was no important development which could make the environment conducive to the growth and development of libraries in Delhi. Upto 1922 when the Delhi University was established, we do not find any documentary evidence to tell us about the other libraries, established during this period. The foundation of the Delhi University in 1922 is considered a landmark in the history of Delhi and this institution has over the years evolved a colossal library system. Before independence, the establishment of the Jamia Millia Islamia University (shifted from Aligarh to Delhi in 1925), the Library of Marwari Community known as the Marwari Library, the Hardyal Public Library (previously known as the Hardinge Library) there were few other important

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developments in this area. Delhi became a center for the rapid growth and development of education and research activities after independence and so many significant academic and research institutions came into existence. Some of them are: the DPL (1952), IIPA (1954), SPA (1955), the IIMS (1956), the NCERT (1961), the NIEPA (1962), the IIT (1963), the IIMC (1965), the JNU (1969), the NSD (1975), and many other old institutions like the National Archives of India (NAI), the Archaeological Survey of India, etc. All of them have good library facilities and provide various library services to meet the needs and requirements of their research scholars. What is, however, most significant regarding the library history of Delhi is its emergence as a city with a network of information and documentation services particularly in the areas such as environment, space, bio-technology, defence, electronics, social sciences etc. Therefore, in a true sense Delhi has grown into a nucleus of documentation and information centers and has a lion’s share in this respect. This dimension in the library history of Delhi needs further in-depth study, particularly in view of the centers that have sprung up in Delhi in pursuance of the Information Policy. At present, Indian libraries are passing through a very crucial period. They are in a process of change and transformation. Over the last two decades libraries have witnessed a number of significant changes affecting their structure and services to a great extent. Presently our libraries and documentation centers are facing a number of problems like lack of space, manpower development, standardization, professional development of the staff, challenge of information technology, how to make use of the innovations made in the field of communication technology, and above all, the huge financial crisis. The most important features of modern era influencing development of libraries and documentation centers are: – the rate of growth of information and knowledge is faster than ever before and it is still accelerating; – the subscription rates of foreign periodicals are continuously increasing; – the continuous increase in the publishing cost of reading material; – the devaluation of the Rupee is also a constraint. The solution to the problem of information explosion, increasing amounts for subscriptions to periodicals, increasing cost of publications, shrinkage of university and special libraries budgets, devaluation of money and its impact on the acquisition of books and journals, can be found in the system of resources sharing through network of libraries and documentation centers. Through the network of libraries and documentation centers available even in distant places can be made available to scholars at their places of work. There are so many examples at the international level, where in certain developed countries such as the USA and the UK the system of network of libraries and information and documentation centers has been found highly successful in solving the

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problem of financial crunch upto a certain level. Realizing the need for resources sharing through networks, the Government of India has also taken initiative to establish networks. Some of the networks established in India are: NICNET, established by the National Informatics Centre (NIC); I-Net, introduced by the Department of Tele-communications, government of India; ERNET established by the Department of Electronics (DOE); SIRNET, established by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research; INFLIBNET by the University Grants Commission; DELNET by the NISSAT (now independent with new nomenclature i.e. Developing Library Network ) etc. For the successful functioning of these networks the use of information technology and communication systems is a must. Therefore, the dependence of libraries in India is going to be much more on the modern access facilities especially on ICT tools, Internet, digital libraries etc and their role is going to be more significant than ever before. The days for pure traditional libraries are likely to be over but at the same time India will have to wait for the most advanced libraries due to its own political, social, and environmental factors. Under these circumstances, the viable model seems to be a hybrid library system in which both traditional as well as libraries using ICT gazettes will be there to meet the challenges of the globalization of libraries.

2.8 Iran Armenian Libraries in Iran: Will They Ever Be Able to Move Forward? Nancy Beygijanian Introduction Historically, Armenian libraries have been in existence for over a century in Iran, originating back to church libraries some of which to this day still stand and are at least one hundred years old. Yet currently, it is astonishing to discover that many Armenian libraries suffer from a lack of technological progress because of different factors. The social and political elements of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran towards information and communications technology has affected all libraries in Iran and their adoption of technology to varying degrees. But technology in Armenian libraries has either not been introduced or when it has in a small number of cases, it has faced difficulties because of a lack of a budget, no professional librarians on staff, poor planning, software issues, and/or challenges in trying to purchase proper equipment. Thus, Armenian libraries have not had the advantage to fully enjoy the benefits that technology can offer. In addition, the Diaspora of the Armenians from Iran to other countries has caused the closure of many Armenian libraries. The purpose of this chapter is to focus on the difficulties Armenian libraries face in introducing technology in their organization, the reasons for it, and to make recommendations on how Armenian libraries can improve the status of their condition. Specifically, it will look at some of the libraries in the capital city of Tehran.

History of Armenians in Iran Armenians and Iranians have had a long past with each other going as far back as before the third century AD, when marriages between the aristocracy of both ethno-linguistic groups occurred often. Both groups even enjoyed political and religious similarities up until the seventh century when Iran converted to Islam (Armenia had converted to Christianity by the fourth century). The Seljuk Turks, in the eleventh century, forced many Armenians into Iranian Azerbaijan, where they either worked as artisans and merchants or some

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were sold into slavery.1 Then in the sixteenth century, the Safavid ruler, Shah Abbas I (1587–1629) having visited Julfa, a wealthy commercial city in Armenia where Armenians traded with India, decided that Armenians could bring the same success to his country where international business had not been flourishing.2 So, even more Armenians were relocated to Iran, and were settled into various cities in Iran, including New Julfa, a town near the capital city of Isfahan. In New Julfa, the shah allowed his citizens the freedom to choose their own mayors and to not only practice Christianity but also the right to build churches for themselves.3

Historical Background of Church Libraries Churches in Iran date back to at least 400 AD,4 however, current documentation seems to reveal that church libraries were constructed much later. When the Armenians of Julfa established themselves in New Julfa, “over a score of churches were built. … Thirteen are still in existence. The two largest is All Saviors Cathedral, constructed in 1606 and rebuilt in 1655, and the Church of Bethlehem, built in 1627.”5 The All Saviors Cathedral which is also referred to as the Vank Church or the Church of the Saintly Sisters had a library “established in 1884 by the religious leader, Havans Surnian.”6 By 1971, the Vank Church’s library became a public library.7

Problem Statement Studies on Armenian libraries in Iran tend not to focus on the challenges they experience when trying to introduce technology in their organization. Rather, information on Armenian libraries is basically focused on its history, little information on the print materials they provide, and some data on budget. While this information is important for a variety of reasons, an examination of how these libraries are progressing technology-wise is important. Because 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

George A. Bournoutian. A Concise History of the Armenian People (Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 2002): 205. Vrej Nersessian. Catalogue of Early Armenian Books: 1512–1850 (London, EN: The British Library Board, 1980): 21. Vartan Gregorian. “Minorities of Isfahan: The Armenian Community of Isfahan 1587– 1722,” in Iranian Studies (Taylor & Francis, 1974): 652–680. See ‘Sorop Sarkis Church’ of the Iran Tourism and Touring Online at http://www.itto.org/ tourismattractions/?sight=1253&name=Sorop+Serkis+Church (accessed 20 March 2010). The Armenians of Iran, ed. Cosroe Chaqueri (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1998). Heshmatollah Entekhabi, ed. Churches of Iran (Islamic Republic of Iran, 1998). Encyclopedia of Librarianship and Information Science, (2002), s.v. “Armenian Libraries,” trans. Tohid Bahrambaigi.

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technology is constantly changing, and those who have access to technology have access to information which may no longer be available in print form, a study on the difficulties of introducing technology in the twenty-first century can reveal whether these libraries are moving forward or are lagging behind. Recognizing the contributing factors that affect whether Armenian libraries are able to upgrade their libraries to new technologies also aids in the understanding of whether they are providing access to current information. For instance, if scholarly material is only available via the Internet and through other library databases, then researchers, students, and the general Armenian community might be missing out on new information that is out there if they do not have access to the variety of technology that is available in other countries. Hence, knowledge produced by the world is taken away from them without access to the different technologies and information that libraries can offer. So, this study not only makes aware to the field of international librarianship the fact that Armenian libraries suffer from all kinds of challenges in general when trying to introduce technology, but it also fills the gap in the literature by discussing the possible outcome of such challenges.

Literature Review A thorough literature review was conducted in several databases for this article through January 2010 using two pairs of keywords. The first pair was ‘Armenian libraries’ and ‘Iran’. The second pair was ‘church libraries’ and ‘Iran’. The electronic databases that were searched include: Library & Information Science Abstracts (LISA), which dates back to 1960, Library Literature & Information Science with some materials as early as 1979, Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, which goes back to 2002 for the keywords mentioned above. Also, Dissertation Abstracts International which goes as far back as the late nineteenth century, and Sociological Abstracts, ERIC, and Family & Society Studies Worldwide with dates going back to 1960. Furthermore, a literature review was conducted in Iranian journals in Iran8 which revealed only three relevant articles and one dissertation,9 however, these short articles do not cover information on the challenges these libraries have experienced in introducing technology.

8 9

Literature review conducted by Shahed Rashidi, (MLIS). The relevant citations for this study are as follows: Orfa Housepian and Anasik, “The Precious Heritage of Esfahan’s Armenians,” Iranian Librarianship and Information Science Association Newsletter 33 (nd): 22–23; Kardan M. Neshati, “Investigation on the Situation of Tehran’s Church Libraries,” Payam-e Ketab-khaneh 37 (2000): 33–39; Encyclopedia of Librarianship and Information Science, (2002), s.v. “Armenian Libraries”; Mohammad Ali Kalbasi, “Armenian Libraries in Isfahan” (master’s thesis, University of Tehran, 1995).

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Neshati’s 2000 article, “Investigation on the Situation of Tehran’s Church Libraries”, mentions that none of the church libraries in Tehran provide computers, even though they are supposed to, except for two libraries that do not deem it necessary. But his statements about the reasons the other church libraries in Tehran did not introduce technology in their library is obscure.10 Housepian and Lalehzariyan’s report on the Vank Church Library only broaches the reader on the fact that the library has considered upgrading to an “electronic system”, and has not been able to, but does not inform the reader as to the reasons.11

Methodology A request for permission was submitted to the Educational Council of the Armenian Diocese in Tehran in order to have the right to interview Armenian school libraries. Moreover, information gathering from the participants consisted of a two-fold process: 1. The methodology consisted of semi-structured in-person interviews of questions that I wrote and sent to my contacts in Tehran, which was then passed on to different libraries by my two research assistants12 and sent back to me via e-mail; 2. I personally e-mailed questionnaires to the Armenian libraries in Iran where I was able to find their e-mail. The questions were open-ended and I sent follow-up questions to some of the participants in order to clarify answers that were not clear or needed further investigation. See Appendix A in the back for typical questions asked. Once the information was gathered from the Armenian libraries, I used the strategy of data triangulation as a supplement. My triangulation consisted of reading a report which was provided by the Educational Council of the Armenian Diocese on the state of Armenian school libraries;13 searching for websites of Armenian libraries, and researching on non-Armenian libraries in Iran in order to have an understanding of the context as a whole for the research study that I was conducting.

10 11 12 13

Kardan M. Neshati. “Investigation on the Situation of Tehran’s Church Libraries,” Payam-e Ketab-khaneh 37 (2000): 33–39, trans. Tohid Bahrambaigi. Orfa Housepian and Anasik. “The Precious Heritage of Esfahan’s Armenians,” Iranian Librarianship and Information Science Association Newsletter 33 (n.d.): 22–23, trans. Tohid Bahrambaigi. Shahed Rashidi at the University of Tehran and Vahik Voskan at the National Library and Archives of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Evet Mooradkhanian. “Tehran’s Armenian National Schools Libraries Current State and Their Difficulties,” (March 2010): 1–2, trans. Nejdeh Badalian.

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Methodological Issues Several difficulties arose when researching on Armenian libraries in Iran. For example, most of the Armenian libraries do not have a web presence and therefore, names of libraries and their contact information, such as an e-mail address, could not easily be located. A Google search was done using the keywords ‘Armenian schools and Iran’, which did not retrieve any significant information in the top 40 results. There was a Wiki site listing Armenian schools worldwide;14 including three school names in Iran, but none of them were linked. It was found that one of the Armenian schools, Alishan School, listed on the Wiki site, had a Facebook group page. In fact, this high school15 has two different Facebook group pages but it is only intended for alumni who want to get back in touch with their friends and neither of the Facebook pages of this school had links to their school’s website, if such a website even exists! Also, Alik (Moj) Armenian School and Abraham Soghomonian High School, both had a Facebook group page, but neither of the pages had links to a school webpage.16 One other website on Google, which was called gradFinder™, listed several schools in Iran; including six which were Armenian schools. Although the names were linked, they led to a social network site only.17 Four of the six schools listed, including the Institute of Mary School (Anisto Maryam School); Kooshesh Middle School and Kooshesh Maryamian High School, and Alishan Armenian School as mentioned above had a Facebook18 presence, but again no website was listed for these schools. Alik Daily, a newspaper company, did have a website19 with two e-mail addresses,20 however, one of the e-mail addresses bounced back, while 14 15

16 17 18

19 20

See Wiki site of Armenian schools worldwide at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ Armenian_Schools_worldwide (accessed 12 January 2010). See link to the Facebook page of Alishan School at http://www.facebook.com/group.php? v=info&gid=2348706242 and at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=info&gid= 2348706242#!/group.php?v=info&ref=search&gid=127702108130 (accessed 22 March 2010). See the Facebook page of Alik (Moj) Armenian School at http://www.facebook.com/ group. php?gid=55311423243 and Abraham Soghomonian High School at http:// www.facebook. com/ group.php?v=info&gid=89058490457 (accessed 24 March 2010). See gradFinder site at http://gradfinder.com/p/grad/browse.cgi?country=102&city=Tehran (accessed 24 March 2010). For the Facebook group page for Anisto Maryam School, please visit at http://www. facebook.com/group.php?gid=36142146985. For Facebook group of Kooshesh Middle School, see http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=39404085657vand for the Facebook page of and Kooshesh Maryamian High School, see http://www.facebook.com/group.php? gid=69201672720 (accessed 24 March 2010). Please see the newspaper site of Alik at http://www.alikonline.com/ (accessed 22 March 2010). See the website of Arax Bi-Weekly Magazine at http://www.arax-online.com/ (accessed 24 March 2010).

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fortunately, the second one functioned properly. Also, Arax Bi-Weekly,21 an Armenian newspaper office that houses a library, currently has a website, but no contact information is provided. Furthermore, another Google search was run in order to see whether a website and an e-mail address could be retrieved for church libraries. The keywords that were utilized were as follows: ‘churches and Iran’, ‘Armenian libraries and Iran’, and ‘libraries and Iran’, again none of which produced any significant information, such as contact information in the top 40 results regarding the libraries of Armenians in Iran. Only through my contacts in Tehran, was I able to find the phone numbers and e-mails of most of the Armenian libraries in Iran that responded to my inquiry to interview their organization. The Church of Holy Mary of Tehran, which houses the largest library for the Armenian community and is the church of the Armenian Prelacy in Tehran, has an official website, even though it did not come up in the Google search. However, the website experienced a “500 Internal server error”.22 The contact information for the Bishop of the Armenian Prelacy of Tehran was listed on a different website and did not experience any difficulties. Also, although, no website could be located for the All Saviors Cathedral in Isfahan or the cathedral in Tabriz, both of the bishop’s e-mails were listed on the same website as the Bishop of the Armenian Prelacy of Tehran and they too did not experience problems.23 So, although there are many challenges to finding Armenian libraries on the Web, the most unfortunate fact about Armenian libraries in Tehran is that most of them have closed down permanently because of lack of users, whether it is libraries in churches, sports clubs, charity organizations, newspapers, or schools. This current state is a large disparity when one considers the fact that in the mid-twentieth century, “Armenian churches, schools, cultural centers, sports clubs and associations flourished. … Thirty churches and some four dozen schools and libraries served the needs of the community.”24 But in the twenty-first century, although there are many non-Armenian libraries,25 Iran has experienced a rapid rate of decline of all types of Armenian libraries.

21 22 23 24 25

E-mail of Alik that was accessible was [email protected] at this URL http://www. alikonline.com/aboutalik.aspx and [email protected] bounced back (accessed 20 February 2010). See error at http://www.tehrantemakan.org/ (accessed 24 March 2010). See contact information for the Bishop of the Armenian Prelacy of Tehran and for the Bishop of Isfahan as well as the Bishop of the Armenian Prelacy of Tabriz at http:// www.armenianorthodoxchurch.org/x02/doc/main.htm (accessed 24 March 2010). Bournoutian. A Concise History of the Armenian People: 349. See PDF file of Iranian libraries at http://nlai.ir/Portals/2/files/pdf/isil/isil_en.pdf (accessed 23 March 2010).

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Participants Of the ten Armenian libraries in Iran that were asked to participate in the survey, only eight of them agreed. The All Saviors Cathedral never replied despite numerous e-mail requests for an interview and there was no available person at the Tabriz Prelacy that could assist in answering questions regarding libraries in the city of Tabriz. Thus, the research study was narrowed down to only the city of Tehran. The population interviewed in the Tehran libraries consisted mostly of non-professionally-trained librarians, and managers who oversaw the libraries that were surveyed. During this study, it was discovered that there was a lack of professional Armenian librarians and that most of the libraries were run by staff who had a background in another field, such as journalism. Only Armenian school libraries were run by professionally-trained librarians. Moreover, the libraries that were asked to participate in the survey comprised different types of libraries, including two Armenian club libraries, two newspaper libraries, three school libraries, and one church library. Table 1 lists the names of the libraries, whether the library is still operating, and if these libraries have technology in their organization. Table 1: Armenian Libraries in Tehran (2010) Name of Library Raffi Sports & Cultural Club26 Nairi Club27 Toonian High School28 Kooshesh High School29 Gohar Secondary School30 Arax Bi-Weekly31

Still in Operation Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Has Technology Yes No No No No Yes

Alik Daily32 Library (Church of Holy Mary)33

Yes No

Yes No

26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33

Sevak Hosepian Vahik Voskan Vahik Voskan Vahik Voskan Vahik Voskan Sevak Hosepian Varuj Hovhannisian Tina Tamazian

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Findings Out of the eight libraries surveyed, it was found that only three libraries had introduced technology in their libraries; yet these libraries have faced several challenges in trying to introduce technology as have the libraries that have not been able to or those that have decided to not go through with such an endeavor. For example, Gohar Secondary School did not try to introduce technology because it was only open only twice a week for two hours; therefore, the library staff did not feel there were enough users who needed technology in their library.34 The Armenian Prelacy Library in the Holy Mary Church has been temporarily closed down since 2009, when the library director, Tina Tamazian, resigned. However, the library director’s reply to the challenges that the library experienced in introducing technology was that she felt that the church library was not yet ready to adapt to technological resources, even though the library contains over 25,000 books.35 Because this library has no computer catalog, searching for library materials is extremely difficult!36 Yet, the Bishop of the Prelacy has considered purchasing computer software for a library catalog, but currently, this is not a priority, since the Prelacy first wants to move the library out of the basement of the Holy Mary Church.37 The rest of the libraries stated various difficulties when trying to introduce technology in their libraries, including inability to find computers, lack of leadership, and poor planning. But the main challenge stated by the participants in the survey in trying to introduce technology in these libraries was a lack of a budget and no professional librarians on staff. For instance, Raffi Sports and Cultural Club, which is not only a place for young people to enjoy athletic games, but also an Armenian cultural center that also houses a library that contains more than 2,000 books on different subjects, stated that although they had computers with Internet access, budget problems hindered them from acquiring suitable equipment.38 Since Raffi Club’s budget comes from its private members, the fewer the members, the lower the budget and the bigger the challenge to buy good equipment. Furthermore, the library has no professional librarian on staff and is run by Mr. Sevak Hosepian, who is a journalist. With a low budget and no professional librarian on staff at the library, the books are not even cataloged into a computer, but instead, old-fashioned card catalogs are still utilized.39 The same is true for Arax Bi-Weekly Library,

34 35 36 37 38 39

Vahik Voskan, e-mail message to author, 13 March 2010. Tina Tamazian, e-mail message to author, 7 January 2010. Shahed Rashidi, e-mail message to author, 15 December 2009. Shahed Rashidi, e-mail message to author, 22 December 2009. Sevak Hosepian, e-mail message to author, 19 January 2010. Hosepian, e-mail message to author, 1 March 2010.

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which is also run by Mr. Sevak Hosepian. Arax Weekly’s library does not have a professional librarian on staff either, and suffers from financial problems. Moreover, although Arax Bi-Weekly provides computers and Internet access for its users, once again, their library materials are not cataloged into a computer database.40 Alik Daily, an Armenian newspaper office who used to have an official public library in a separate room in its previous office in downtown Tehran four years ago, still has a “library”, but currently it is in disarray. For instance, the books that come in from the publishing companies are stored in different offices in the building and some are still in storage. In addition, Alik Daily provides computers with an Internet connection, but it has decided not to catalog their library materials because of a low budget, poor planning, and difficulty to find equipment, no professional librarian, no training, and also a lack of interest from the Armenian community to use the materials.41 So, except for the computers, Alik Daily does not use any other technology. Thus, when a researcher or a member of the Armenian community wants to borrow a book, the staff rely on their memory to retrieve materials from the different offices. Moreover, there are no digitized library cards as one can find in the United States, but instead a borrower fills out their name on a piece of paper and returns the book once they have finished using it.42 Furthermore, although Kooshesh High School felt their libraries needed to be installed with computers for their students, budget and leadership were the difficulties that prevented them from purchasing computers.43 Toonian High School expressed the same reasons as Kooshesh High School for the inability to purchase computers. In addition, the library staff stated that if they had enough money they could not only computerize their library, but also change the furniture and shelves because currently their library looked like a “warehouse.”44 Nairi Club felt that an insufficient budget, no training, lack of equipment, bad leadership, and poor planning, all played a major role in not being able to introduce technology in their library. The interviewee also felt that the point of view of the leaders needed to be changed. He stated that the leadership felt that if there were not enough users coming into their library, then the library needed to be closed down.45

40 41 42 43 44 45

Hosepian, e-mail message to author, 1 March 2010. Varuj Hovhannisian, e-mail message to author, 8 March 2010. Hovhannisian, e-mail message to author, 10 March 2010. Voskan, e-mail message to author, 16 March 2010. Voskan, e-mail message to author, 13 March 2010. Voskan, e-mail message to author, 15 March 2010.

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Discussion Although the sample size is not as big as the author strived for, nevertheless it is not surprising that the majority of Armenian libraries in Tehran are facing challenges in introducing technology in their libraries since most nonArmenian libraries in Iran are also lagging behind libraries in the developed world. Although non-Armenian libraries are not as challenged as Armenian libraries in Iran, they still face difficulties that libraries in big cities in the United States generally do not. For example, chat reference, which was introduced as early as 1995 in developed countries, is just beginning to be introduced in a few libraries in Iran because most librarians are not aware of this concept. Moreover, library and information science curricula in Iran do not cover the competencies for chat reference.46 Furthermore, networking and using cataloging products are “still very new to them. Lack of networking among public libraries hindered the development of concepts such as interlibrary loan and access to databases and other library collections.”47 When so many problems persist in many non-Armenian libraries in Iran, where the libraries have professionally-trained librarians on staff, it should come as no shock that with a lack of professionally-trained librarians in Armenian libraries and an insufficient budget can be a source of a library system that is still operating as if it was in the age before the advent of technology use in libraries. Also, Iranian libraries are funded by the government, and are likely to have a bigger budget than Armenian libraries, which are funded by donation or membership, except for school libraries which receive some funding by the government of Iran.48

Implications Currently, Armenian libraries in Iran are not progressing technology-wise. The management of these libraries needs to address the fact that the major issue with these libraries is funding and training in library methods, and changes need to be implemented in order to upgrade their library and bring in more users. Currently, Armenian school libraries are suffering greatly and since the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran provides some financial support to these schools, it would be prudent of the Ministry of Education of Iran if they worked together with Armenian school libraries to develop policies regarding the provision of computers, as recommended by the IFLA/UNESCO 46 47 48

Atefeh Noorizadeh Ghasri and Mozhdeh Dehghani. “Chat Reference: Training and Competencies for Librarians,” Library Philosophy and Practice, (2009): 1–7. Z. Hayati. “Competency Definition For Iranian Library And Information Professionals in Public Libraries,” International Journal of Information Science & Technology 6, no. 1 ( January/June 2008): 73–86. Nader D. Naghshineh, e-mail message to author, 10 January 2010.

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School Library Guidelines.49 The Ministry of Education has already provided Iranian secondary schools, such as in the city of Isfahan, with computers from 1992 onwards for students with a Math and Physics focus;50 thus, the same consideration should be given to Armenian school libraries by the government. As stated in the discussion, librarians at non-Armenian libraries face difficulties in current awareness of library methods; nevertheless, they are still progressing much faster than Armenian libraries. So, librarians at Iranian libraries, such as the National Library and Archives of the Islamic Republic of Iran, could help train library staff at Armenian libraries about professional issues and techniques. For example, professional librarians can train library staff at private club libraries on how to get more users into their library and thereby increase their budget. With a gain in their budget these libraries can then afford to acquire better technology and digitize their catalog. They can also share their current knowledge with Armenian library staff about the different technologies that are out there and available for at low cost. Librarians working with ALA’s Cooperative International Library Projects,51 can aid Armenian libraries by helping them acquire the technology that they need. Also, the Armenian and Museum of America,52 which is based in the United States in Massachusetts, can collaborate with Armenian libraries on how to overcome many of the challenges that their libraries suffer from and possibly prevent the closure of further libraries. In addition, when the library of the Holy Mary Church in Tehran finally opens, it could contact church libraries in other countries and partner up with them as “sister libraries” as a way to gain access to professional knowledge on technology.53 But this collaboration mainly depends on Armenian libraries in Iran reaching out for the assistance that might possibly be out there in order for changes to take place!

Conclusion For the Armenians that currently live in Iran and will continue to live there for their entire lives, changing how Armenian libraries are currently running is 49 50 51 52 53

Tove Pemmer Saetre and Glenys Willars. “The IFLA/UNESCO School Library Guidelines,” 2002, http://archive.ifla.org/VII/s11/pubs/sguide02.pdf (accessed 28 March 2010). Bibi Eshrat Zamani. “Successful implementation factors for using computers in Iranian schools during one decade (1995–2005),” Computers & Education 54 (2010): 59–68. ALA. “Cooperative International Library Projects,” http://0-www.ala.org.sapl.sat.lib.tx.us/ ala/aboutala/offices/iro/iroactivities/cooperativeintproj.cfm (accessed 28 March 2010). Armenian Library and Museum of America, for “Staff ”, visit http://www.almainc.org/ about_staff.html (accessed 28 March 2010). ALA, “Why Become A Sister Library,” visit http://www.lita.org/ala/mgrps/affiliates/ relatedgroups/sisterlibraries/tips/whybecomeasister/whybecomesister.cfm (accessed 28 March 2010).

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imperative to their sustainability. If the current underdeveloped state of Armenian libraries in Iran continues, there will be more closure of these libraries; most likely it will occur in less than 15 years. Coupled with the Diaspora of the Armenian community from the Islamic Republic of Iran to other countries this presents an even bigger challenge to sustaining these libraries let alone upgrading their technology. It is estimated that there are currently fewer than 450,000 Armenians left in Iran,54 and many more are continuing to leave the country permanently. In addition, if management staff do not begin to realize the benefits that technology can offer to users in their libraries, patron numbers will go down significantly along with the budget that it obtains from patron membership and also from donations. So, unless Armenian library staff take a proactive approach in reaching out to other libraries around the world and also among the Iranian community, their future state is not likely to progress, while other libraries in Iran are slowly moving forward. Technology is changing at a rapid speed and more and more documents are going online and are no longer being published in print format. This research study reveals that although the libraries are facing challenges with finance, equipment, poor training, and bad leadership, there also seems to be indifference about changing the status quo of these libraries. This lack of interest could be because of the low number of users. But it could also very well be because of a lack of knowledge about the importance of libraries and the services they can provide through different resources that are now digitized and accessible when at one time they were not. In addition, if Armenian libraries in Iran were ever able to purchase software that used Armenian font, this would be beneficial for the Armenian community, especially for younger members of the community, since they would be able to read information in their own language thus preventing the loss of their mother tongue. In the future, if more research is conducted on Armenian libraries in Iran, it would be beneficial to ask further questions: 1. What percentage of the budget of the library is spent on technology?; 2. How knowledgeable are the staff about the different technologies out there?; 3. Have Armenian libraries ever considered reaching out to other libraries either in Iran or other countries for expert knowledge on library methods and policies? Acknowledgements: The author wishes to thank Shahed Rashidi, alumna at the University of Tehran and Vahik Voskan at the National Library and Archives of the Islamic Republic of Iran for their assistance in this research and translation of documents. In addition, the author also wishes to thank Dr. Nader D. Naghshineh for his support and assistance in this study.

54

Naghshineh, e-mail message to author, 10 June 2009.

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Appendix A. Questions to Armenian Libraries in Iran What is the name of your library? Are there professional librarians on staff ? Can you please tell me about your Library? What kind of library is it? What kinds of information does it provide? When did it first open? Is it still open? Is your library for the public or only for its employees? What problems if any has your library faced in introducing technology in your library? For example, budget, training, equipment, leadership, and or poor planning? Did your library try to introduce technology in the library, such as computers, Internet, computerized catalog, databases? Is there a big interest among community members to use Armenian materials in your library in Iran? If not, why is this case? Can you provide statistical information on the number of Armenian libraries, whether in schools, associations, charity organizations, and clubs in Iran? Can you give the names and whether they are still in operation? Note: If you do not want your name used in this article, please specify.

2.9 Iran Iranian Library Landscape: The Humanware Dilemma Nader D. Naghshineh “Who are you?” “What do you want?” Two simple questions I put to my graduate students at the commencement session of my course on applied information technology. While having the usual emphasis on various aspects of information and communication technology as it pertains to libraries, the course is essentially focused on how to deploy these technologies as mind tools (Maleki and Naghshineh 2006). Self-awareness is a pre-requisite of fosteringthe ability to sense the matrix of ambitions, aspirations and demands of customers or clients. To know what one wants is a compass by which to understand the needs of the client. This approach is unique and tailor-made to Iran. For only in Iran may you travel for half a day and find yourself in an area where people still use the local Ghahve-khaneh or coffee shop as their primary information exchange point. You may be working with the latest state of the art technology at ISL in Tehran today, and the next day you would be required to run a library on horseback for the nomadic tribes in the Central Plains. So essentially when we talk and teach technologies for use in libraries to students, what we really look for is to internalize this knowledge to the point that a student would find solutions beyond the usual gadgetry (Naghshineh 1998). This is a necessary step in order to overcome the effects of nearly four decades of neglect in public library development. While Iran maintains a global role for itself and claims to have the fastest growth in science and technology among Muslim countries, it is still a developing country. As such it suffers from the predicaments common to such countries, such as inefficient bureaucracy and resources allocation. While boasting a culture that spans nearly 3,000 years, in recent memory humanities have been neglected in favor of engineering and technology. Thus while the library and information science – in its American interpretation – has been taught here for more than four decades (Hayati and Fattahi 2005), it has failed to bear the promised fruit. One reason is that it never built on the library and information skills of the past. Failing to do so led to the lack of bridging theories that could have reconciled the idea with practice. Thus while many boast about Iran’s ancient heritage and culture, readership in its libraries has steadily declined over the past four decades (Farhangi 2009). But why do we start a discussion on library technology with a mixture of sociology, pedagogy, and history with a dash of psychology? Perhaps one

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explanation is that we are not dealing with a homogenous population that represents potential clients and patrons of the public library systems. With a book reading average of less than 10 minutes, being a librarian in Iran is a tough call. Some however contend that in the age of Web, normal denominators such as readership do not count as people increasingly go online for their immediate information needs. Technology is becoming mobile and versatile enough that information can be tailored for the best effect. What is missing here is of course is the answer to the question of, given the inherent quality of technology to reinvent itself every five years, how do we cope with change without suffering from technosis (Rose 2003)? It is a question that has no clear-cut answer and whose partial solution, I have found, is contingent on the psychosocial character of the community to which it is addressed. Many of the librarian, who I have met over the years acknowledge that they have found it easier to adapt to a technology than tailoring it within the information skill set awareness of their clients.

Library Technologies: Are We All on the Same Page? In the past 10 years, the technological landscape in libraries has been constantly shifting. There are currently 120 topics that cover the technologies specifically deployed in libraries (Library and Information Technology Association 2006). The list would expand tremendously should we include those technologies that while not specifically aimed at libraries, are used extensively nevertheless. These would include material science as well as the latest in energy efficient protocols and green technologies (Antoneli 2007). Great many library technologs espouse the notion that easy access to and availability of information and communication technology would elevate the library technical landscape. This is not often the case in developing countries such as Iran that have a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural population. The fact makes its presence painfully known especially in areas where the unjustified disparities of resource allocations have led to tech-haves and tech-nots. While one needs to be concerned about the dire corollary of digital divide, there are always disenfranchised groups that will be left out of the information bandwagon offered by the modern library technologies (Mates 2004). While the first PCs hit the Iranian market in early 1980s, public libraries did not start using them before 1995. During this time several software houses tried to put out library specific products. Due to embargo, most of these libraries either started from scratch or more often based the core of their systems on the UNESCO CDS/ISIS information retrieval system. However, in the ensuing library software competition, two systems emerged: NOSA’s Simorgh Integrated Library System (Iran Software and Hardware Company 2008) installed in the majority of Iranian academic libraries, and Pars Azarakhsh

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ILS that had the blessing of the National Library and Archives of Iran (NLAI 2008). These two have been focused on corporate, academic, as well as government library markets. There have been several other smaller ILS such as Kavosh which catered to niche markets, including public libraries (KavoshSoft Co 2006). A smaller number still use open source software. The main concern is that by and large the majority of this software does not value data exchange (Hafezi 2008). This might not look important at first, but given the current realities of e-resource management, such lack of interoperability makes the prospect of interlibrary cooperation very difficult. Furthermore, the business model adopted by many of these software houses is not forward looking. Most lack a tiered pricing based on customer’s sector. Thus the majority of LIS departments could not afford the software needed for their students to try their hands on. The nature of public library funding also does not contribute to their agility in the technical domain. By early 1990s, there were two sets of public libraries operating in Iran. One group was being administered by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, which oversees and vets all publications while the other group was controlled by the Ministry of Education (Zanjani 1989). These two ministries decided what titles should be included in library collections. The majority of decisions were made in Tehran. Little or no competency had been defined for Iranian library and information professionals back then, leading to a manpower skill composition that was not amenable to adopting new methods and technologies. This was further exacerbated by the national culture; the shared customs, and representations of society. By deploying a Values Survey Module, some researchers maintained that the lack of desired success in many of the government sanctioned ICT plans – including those for public libraries – were not successful because they did not include each cluster of society (Hakimzadeh Moghadam and Assar 2008). In fact, in the e-readiness study done by the Economist Intelligence Unit, Iran ranked lowest in 2008. In mid-1990s a number of municipal governments had established a program called Culture Halls or Farhang-Sara. These entities served as hub of civic cultural activities and often operated libraries. In major metropolitan areas such as Isfahan and Shiraz, these libraries rivaled the public libraries and were not as tightly controlled. By 2005, the Iranian government established an entity called the National Public Libraries Establishment to oversee all aspects of public library administration, including the privately operated libraries open to the public. The difference this time was that the reorganization was taking place at the time when nearly 51.7% of the population had access to the Internet (Internet World Stats 2009). In the absence of a choice of materials, many potential patrons flocked to blogs or other nascent, virtual social networks to satisfy their needs. NPLE decided to ride the tiger instead of avoiding it. With nearly four million dollars deficit, it was forced to seek endowments and contributions from people and other benefactors. By the end of 2010, NPLE not only needs to increase the number of public libraries to 1,800,

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but also needs to equip libraries with a standard set of ICT equipment (NPLE 2007). Based on the last investment figures released by the now privatized Iranian Telecom, nearly 73.68% of total revenue was reinvested for expansion of telecom and cyber infrastructure. This means that currently 54.2% of population uses mobile phones. However, few libraries in Iran employ telephonybased services. The NPLE also is faced with the challenge of diversifying library service channels to acknowledge the readership styles of its target patrons. Iran also has the world’s most thorough selective Internet content access system, following China (Information Studies Lab 2009). With the exception of Ministry of Higher Education, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting and some national security agencies, the bulk of Iranian broadband services are supplied only through Iranian Telecom which is yet to provide a viable service level assurance in this area. Private companies who often provide add-on value services pick up the slack. Many public libraries are essentially one man operations, as far as technical library systems are concerned. While attempts have been made to address this through in-service training and recruiting tech-savvy young librarians, it is yet to bear any tangible results. Of 71 LIS departments in Iran, only five have a course structure anywhere near the ones required to train system librarians. One of the primary areas that has been neglected by public libraries was their role in addressing home scholars. Due to the arrested policies of the Iranian Ministry of Education, the Iranian public school system is becoming rather a fast vanishing breed. Many schools are being handed to the private sector at tuition fees beyond the majority of Iranians (IRNA 2009). For many of students who come from lower income families, public libraries serve as a surrogate for schooling. This fact is reflected in the collection maintained by those libraries that are located in working class areas. Some libraries in Metro-Tehran are open around the clock to serve this sector. There is also an increasing trend towards homeschooling by parents, in which the library serves an important role. However, many libraries lack the facilities to answer the most frequently asked questions by such clients. Internet or telephony reference services are non-existent. Many public libraries lack the operational free hand to sign-on some of their most qualified patrons to serve as mentors or education guides to these students and parents. On the other hand, given the tradition that promotes the convergence of prayer with scholastic pursuits, it is possible to enroll the local mosques to serve as library service points to these clients. A pilot project conducted by University of Tehran Central Library revealed that this approach could succeed in establishing successful school-cum-public libraries at primary level (PoorSalehi and Fatima 2006). There is also another challenge that faces public libraries in Iran. While the majority of policy makers have set their sights on increasing readership and increasing collections, they forget that the advent of modern technologies have upset the equation. In more developed areas of Iran, where there is a

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propensity of institutes of higher learning as well as commercial hubs, users do not read but scan information. Many own a handheld device, be it a smart phone or a PDA. They are more at ease using a library as they use web. As such they need, or rather demand, a more interactive, customizable library webpage (Garcia and Chia 2003). Since knowledge is created through conversation, and given the fact that libraries serve as a knowledge adjunct, they could also partake in conversation through shared participatory web technologies (Lankes, et al. 2007). Given the general propensity of normal Iranians to rely on oral narration for bulk of his/her information needs, such a participation network would prove very effective. In the absence of any domestic technology to address this, public libraries have often employed blogs as a substitute. A web log or blog, is a kind of website where the owner regularly leaves his/her comments about their personal experiences and hobbies. It is a method of asynchronous, remote conversation that allows users to share opinions, reflect on, and discuss various topics (Dictionary.com n.d.). The LIS program at Tehran University, for instance, requires students to learn deploying weblog access to patrons as means of diversifying and adding value to a library collection. Within a participatory network such weblogs could also serve as a sounding board for patron-driven folksonomies that tap people power (Terdiman 2006). It serves an added function of content enrichment for assorted media handled by libraries. In early 2010, NPLE approached University of Tehran to explore the possibility of making a number of its public libraries financially self-sufficient. The requirement was to provide a business model whereby a library could serve its intended function and in the process return some of its investments. Based on an earlier transcultural study, it was posited that libraries must serve as community centers for information transactions. Libraries would serve as engines for community transformation (Naghshineh 1998). In this respect, they would need to provide an enabling suite of social technologies for their patrons (Kamel Boulous and Wheeler 2007). This would require trust management as well as usability engineering. In order to do this, public libraries need to agree on a set of standards for interoperability of their social networks as well as their knowledge assets. In this respect, Iranian libraries are deprived of using the usual, money-saving social networks, software, andvirtualization tools. This is partly due to sanctions as well as government content restrictions.

Librarian as a Technolog: An Iranian Slant Librarianship is not a glamorous job in Iran; it is not a well-paid one either. On average there is one public library for every 41,000 Iranians. In deprived areas such as Lorestan, in western Iran, for every 57,000 people there is one public library (Ebooknews 2008). A librarian is required to play the role of a Swiss

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army pocketknife or a Leatherman tool. Depending on where he or she is stationed, a librarian not only needs to take into account the stated mission of NPLE, the central government as well as local customs, but also to weave a path not only to increase membership but to include minority groups. In order to do this the approach of an Iranian librarian, at least those who received a formal training, towards the deployment of technology is holistic. The simplest solution to a problem is not always the best and the most likely to be adopted (Sheikh Shoaie and Oloumi 2006). Given the average level of technical prowess available in ICT and other library-related technologies, the librarian is required to combine both hardware and software into an association, or what we call an operational matrix that is more focused on end-user experience. It requires an understanding and insight into the needs and limitations of the end user. The end user could be a person with disability, a person needing to be included socially, or a person who needs to develop some skills. Not all LIS programs provide their graduates with the necessary skill set to identify, interact, and impact with the community to which they are assigned. The essence of humanware design for a well-motivated librarian here is to provide a sustainable product tailored to the need of customer. For instance, at the LIS department in University of Tehran, in addition to 18 hours credit units in basic ICT, the students are also taught basic psychology, ethnology, linguistics as well as marketing. In one course, Library Applications of the Internet, the students are required to design a product and service for a special target group and to treat it as a live exercise. In one exercise, the students were asked to design an audio library for senior citizens whose technical prowess was limited to a telephone touch pad. In another, the students were required to deploy a dot matrix printer into a tactile graphic output for visually challenged patrons. In one instance, the students were asked how they could launch a game loan section in a library and what would be the design parameters. During the current revision, LIS students are being given a course in library facility design and energy planning. The librarians are advised repeatedly that a library would thrive as long as it serves a purpose in building communities.

The Next 20 Years I have been involved in information industry for the past 20 years and yet the speed of technical developments has been breathtaking. Forty years ago we needed Iranian television to see the first moon landing. Today, I am doing a video-conference from my iPhone half-way around the globe. My identity has turned into a colony of identities as I explore virtual domains over the Net. Thirty years ago, my family library covered half of our house. Now on my desk I have a RAID system that not only has 12,000 ebooks, but also contains almost 3 terrabytes of my film library as well as my music collection.

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I am reluctant to make any forecast regarding library technology in Iranian libraries. This is doubly so given the fact that any technical progress is largely dependent on the state of international affairs. However, given the emerging technologies, I am almost certain that by 2030, a number of Iranian libraries will deploy augmented reality as well as ambient intelligence in their collection. Traditional collections will be enriched by the interaction that they engender from the patrons. The patterns of these interactions can be stored and retrieved. Creative Common will play a role as the act of creating new sense from old meanings becomes perpetuated by using web intelligence for knowledge discovery (Naghshineh 2008). Digital Rights and Copyright management will become automated and prices will become more realistic. Wealth will be generated by and dependent on social networks. Libraries will be using collaborative software for knowledge harvesting. Libraries will be using their collaborative networks for grid storage and retrieval as well as e-science. Archeoinformatics will become an educational recreation for knowledge workers, ensuring that they will still be able to work information within various environments (Naghshineh 2009). In 20 years’ time, libraries will provide a place of solitude free from digital onslaught for their patrons to enjoy the simple pleasure of leafing through a book.

References dictionary.reference.com/browse/blog (accessed 2010). Antoneli, Monila. Green Libraries. 2007. http://www.greenlibraries.org/ (accessed 2010). Ebooknews. 2008. Librarian Plight Forgotten under pile of books. ebooknews.adishict.com/ print.aspx?infoid=3240 (accessed April 2010). “Farhangi.” 2009. JameJam Online. www.jamejamonline.ir/newstext.aspx?newsnum= 100922962923 (accessed April 2010). Garcia, June, and Christopher Chia. 2003. “Personalisierung von Services. Herausforderungen fuer oeffentliche Biblioteken.” GOEDOC. webdoc.dwdg.de/ebook/aw/bertelsmann/ personalisierung.pdf (accessed March 2010). Hafezi, Mehdi A. 2008. “Interoperability between library software: A solution for Iranian Libraries.” The electronic Library (Emerald) 26(5): 726–734. Hakimzadeh Moghadam, Akram, and Parisa Assar. 2008. “The relationship Between National Culture and E-Adoption: A Case Study of Iran.” American Journal of Applied Sciences 5(4): 369–377. Hayati, Zohair, and Rahmatullah Fattahi. 2005. “Ecucation of Librarianship in Iran before 1979 Islamic Revolution:.” Library Review (MCB) 54(5): 316–327. Information Studies Lab. 2009. Comparison of Selectory Internet Content Algorithms: case study of Iran and China. Internal, Library and Information Science, University of Tehran, Tehran: ISL: 20. Internet World Stats. 2009. Usage and Population Statistics.www.internetworldstats.com/ middle.htm#ir (accessed April2010). Iran Software and Hardware Company. 2008.“Simorgh Digital Library.” NOSA.WWW. NOSA.COM/nosasoft/WebUI/DigitalLibrary.apx (accessed April2010). IRNA. “IRNA.” Islamic Republic News Agency. September 2009. www.irna.ir/view/FullStory/ ? newsId=661021 (accessed February 2010).

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Kamel Boulous, Margaret N, and Steve Wheeler. 2007. “The emerging Web 2.0 Social Software: An Enabling suite of Sociable Technologies in health and health education.” Health Information and Libraries Journal (Wiley Interscience) 24(1): 2–23. KavoshSoft Co. 2006. “Kavosh Library Research Software.” Kavosh.www.kavosh.info (accessed March 2010). Lankes, David R, Joanne Silverstien, Scott Nicholson, and Todd Marshall. 2007. “Participatory networks: The Library as Conversation.” Sixth International Conference on Conceptions of Library and Information Science. Syracuse: Informationresearch. Library and Information Technology Association. 2006. “LITA Guides.” Library and Information Technology Association. http://www.lita.org/ala/mgrps/divs/lita/currentlitapubs/ currentlitapublications.cfm (accessed 2010). Maleki, Elaheh, and Nader Naghshineh. 2006. “Graduate IT Orientation Courses in LIS.” ITALICS 5(4): 165–173. Mates, Barbara S. “Computer Technologies to Aid Special Audiences.“ May/June 2004. http://www.nbcls.org/files/LTR_Index_1995-2010.pdf (accessed 2010). Naghshineh, Nader. 2009. “Archeomatics: Towards a new discipline of digital preservation.” World Library and Information Congress. Milan: IFLA. — “HUMINT or WEBINT? Concept Study on Possible Routes for Improving Knowledge Discovery within Organizations.” May 2008: 37–50. Naghshineh, Nader. 1998. “The force of Change: libraries as a social change instrument.” Library Review (MCB UP Ltd) 27(4): 225–229. Naghshineh, Nader. 1998. “The force of change: libraries as a social instrument: a concise case study of Iran.” Library review (MCB UP Ltd) 47(4): 225–229. NLAI. 2008. “National library and archives of Iran.” NLAI. www.nlai.ir (accessed 10 April 2010). NPLE. 2007. Interim Program for improving and exapnding NPLE. www.iranpl.ir (accessed 4 April 2010). PoorSalehi, Nastaran, and Fahimnia Fatima. 2006. “Point Exercise in Methodological Study of Sustainable Development of Primary School Libraries.” World Library and Information Conference. Seoul: IFLA. Rose, Ellen. 2003. User Error: Resisting Computer Culture. Between the lines. Sheikh Shoaie, Fatima, and Tahereh Oloumi. 2006. “Factors Impacting on Technology Acceptance by librarians at Engineering faculties of State Universities In Tehran.” IATUL Annual Conference. Porto: IATUL. Terdiman, Daniel. “Folksonomies Tap People Power.” Wired.Com. Wired. 1 February, 2006. wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2005/02/66466 (accessed March 2010). Zanjani, B. 1989. “Public Libraries in Iran and Their Development.” International Library Review 21(3): 347–353.

2.10 Iraq Libraries and Librarianship in Iraqi Kurdistan Shler Salih Faraj Introduction

Figure 1: Flag of Kurdistan

The Kurdistan Region of Iraq is an autonomous region in federal Iraq. It borders Syria to the west, Iran to the east and Turkey to the north, where the fertile plains meet the Zagros Mountains, while the rivers of the Tigris, Great Zab, and Little Zab traverse the region, an area of 40,643 square kilometers. Its population is 3,757,058 persons whose languages include Kurdish, Turkmen, and Arabic, with Armenian and Assyrian found in other areas. Administration of this region falls under the Kurdistan Regional Government (hereafter referred to as KRG).1

Figure 2: Kurdistan Regional Government emblem

1

A standard textbook for the history and current situation of the Kurds can be found in David McDowell, A Modern History of the Kurds (London: I.B. Tauris, 2004).

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This chapter will first discuss the historical libraries that are associated with Kurdish history in general, before examining modern libraries that have developed within the modern state of Iraq as far as the Kurdish governorates are concerned. More specific advances under the KRG will be mentioned as appropriate.

Pre-Modern History Nuzi Library In the course of ancient Mesopotamian archaeology, one of the oldest libraries affiliated to Kurdish history was the library in the Hurrian town of Nuzi (known today as Yorghan Tepe), just south of what is modern-day Kirkuk. Going back to the middle of the second millennium BC, the library at Nuzi contained some 6,000 cuneiform tablets covering various aspects of life, including law, personal status and marriage, agriculture, labor records, street names, etc. Another important library found in Nuzi was a personal library of two brothers (Tekhib-tilla and Shuki) which held 1,000 cuneiform tablets.2

Kurdish Libraries During the Islamic Era Diyarbakir and Farqin Libraries There were two great public libraries during the Islamic era, between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. The first was Diyarbakir library that included 1,000,040 an almost imaginary number. The second was Farqin Library in the city of Farqin, the capital of Dostaki Kurdish state that ruled that area from the tenth to the eleventh century. This Dostaki state gave importance to many aspects of culture and civilized life, particularly books and libraries. Ahmad ibn Yusuf al-Minazi (d. 1045 AD), a well known scholar, poet, and state scribe, donated a great number of books to this Library. A contemporary of al-Mizani’s Ahmad Yusif al-Fariqi (1176–1216), described these two libraries in his work Tarikh al-Fariqi, stating that al-Minazi had collected many books and donated them to these libraries. Later years of war and plunder destroyed these libraries, with some authors opining that their contents were taken to Egypt.3

2 3

Rafaˆ’ıˆl Babuˆ Ishaˆq, Madaˆris al-‘Iraˆq qabla al-Islaˆm. (Baghdad, 1955): 33–34. Rubak Ghafuˆr Sa‘ıˆd, “Meˆjuˆy Hendeˆk le Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdıˆ legeł bełgey be Dest Nuˆsıˆn”. Berew kiteˆbxaney serdemyane: Konrifansıˆ yekemıˆ zanistıˆ kiteˆbxane w zanyariyekan – Kurdistan (Hawler, 2006): 402–403.

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Qartmin Monestary Library (Fifteeenth Century) Most of the Christian monasteries, especially the big ones, had their own libraries. Among these was the library of Qartmin Monastery in the town of Tur ‘Abdin in the province of Mardin, which is now part of present-day Syria. The library was established in 1020 AD under the supervision of the priest Mor Shelmon al-Sibrini who was sent to the village of Sbrin near Tur Abdin. When the Patriarch Yohanna the Fourth visited and saw the successful method of managing the books within, he paid more attention to the library. The priest’s nephew, Emanuel, who was a calligrapher, bequeathed all the books he had written on leather, which were 70 in all, to the library. The fall of the Dostaki State was a misfortune for the Christians as a period of plunder and oppression started by the Saljuks began; the Qartmin Monastary Library was destroyed in 1100.4

Hassankef Emirate Libraries The ancient town of Hasankeyf, situated on the southern bank of the Tigris in the province of Martin now part of Turkey. The Kurdish founders of the Ayyubid Dynasty ruled Hassankef as an emirate from 1232 to 1524. This Kurdish emirate had a prominent role in promoting science and learning in the area, with a number of libraries being established to support the promotion of knowledge.5

Library of Badlis Emirate One of the greatest medieval libraries of Kurdistan was found in the Badlis Emirate during the fifteenth century, which was located some twenty kilometers south-west of Lake Van in what is now present-day Turkey. Historian Evliya C¸elebi (d. late seventeenth century) described this library in detail in his history Seyahatname, when he visited the prince of Badlis, ‘Abd alKhan Ziya al-Din, himself a polymath and prolific author of more than seventy books. By the time the Badlis Emirate ended in the early nineteenth century, the library had been plundered and its treasures destroyed or scattered to other places.

4 5

Sa‘ıˆd, “Meˆjuˆy Hendeˆk le Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdıˆ legeł bełgey be Dest Nuˆsıˆn,” 406–409. Sa’ıˆd Ahmad Sulaymaˆn, Taˆrıˆkh al-Duwal al-Islaˆmıˆah wa-mu’jam al-usar al-haˆkimah (al˙ Qaˆhirah: Daˆr al-Ma’rif, 1972): 150–151.

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Library of Badinan Emirate The Badinan Emirate (1376–1843) was one of the most powerful Kurdish principalities, located in what is now known as the Dohuk province of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq and Hakkari province in Turkey. The library of Qubehan Quban (School) was the greatest library of this emirate, whose collection was largely contributed to by the Mufti Amedi. It contained a great number of rare books and manuscripts on all fields of knowledge, reflecting the importance Badinan amirs’ placed on learning. The school and its library attracted students and scholars from all around. The Badinian Emirate was eventually overthrown by the Ottomans in 1842. On 6 July, 1919, British soldiers set fire to the library, with most of its collection lost in the blaze. Some 400 manuscripts were rescued, and would later become holdings of the Museum Library of Baghdad.6

Baban Emirate Library Baban was an emirate and family which ruled during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It was originally located in Qala Chwalan and later transferred to in the newly-established city of Suleimani. The emirs gave great importance to books in different fields of knowledge, and their library grew to more than 6,000 manuscripts, in all fields of science and knowledge such as grammar, morphology, logic, rhetoric, jurisprudence, theology, Islamic philosophy, astronomy, etc. In 1784, when the Emir Ibrahim Pasha transferred the seat of the emirate to Suleimani, he also transferred the library to the Great Mosque. In 1919, when British troops invaded Suleimani during the Battle of Darband, they removed the books from the mosque and burned them. All were lost with the exception of 400 books which were hidden in the mosque’s dome.7 Some of these surviving books with Ibrahim Pasha’s seal in them can be found in Suleimani’s Ministry of Religious Endowments Library.

Academic Libraries There are seven universities in the Kurdistan Region, the three largest are Salaheddin University in Arbil, the University of Suleimani, and the University of

6 7

For Baldis and Badinan libraries, see Sa‘ıˆd, “Meˆjuˆy Hendeˆk le Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdıˆ legeł bełgey be Dest Nuˆsıˆn,”: 414–415. Muhammad Khaˆl, Zindagıˆnaˆmah-i Shaykh Ma’ruˆf Nudahıˆ Barzanjıˆ (Tihran: Nashr-i Ihsaˆn, 1998): 85–86.

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Dohuk. They offer studies in various subjects leading to specialized diplomas, bachelors and masters degrees, and doctorates. Two more recently established institutions are the University of Koya and the Hawler Medical University. There are also two newer universities that teach exclusively in English, the first being the University of KurdistanHawler (Arbil) which started in 2006 and the American University of Iraq, in Sulaimani. Each of these universities has their own libraries, starting with a central library, along with specialized libraries affiliated with individual colleges within the university. Central libraries are generally separate from the college libraries for administrative purposes.8

Sulaimani University Library

Figure 3: The University of Sulaimani-Central Library (Courtesy of Sulaimani University Central Library)

8

Further background information on the development of higher education in the Kurdish region can be found in Hikumetıˆ Hereˆmıˆ Kurdistan, Wezeretıˆ Xweˆndinıˆ Bała. Deskewtekanıˆ Wezeret le Kabıˆney Peˆncemıˆ Hikumetıˆ Hereˆmıˆ Kurdistan, 2006–2009. (Hawler, 2006): 4–5.

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The University of Sulaimani is one of the most important universities in the Kurdistan Region. Founded in 1968, it is the oldest university in Kurdistan proper and therefore has its own significance in the history of Kurdistan. Sulaimani University consists of 26 different colleges. As well as the Central Library, each college has its own library, each of which maintains a collection of books, periodicals, and materials to support the courses taught in that college. In addition to books and periodicals, college libraries have audiovisual materials, especially in the schools of language and medicine. In spite of employing 38 staff, only three librarians in the Central Library have a library science degree. Some of them have been trained in Lund, Amman, and Cairo. The Central Library’s collection consists of over 40,000 volumes, 15,000 thesis and doctoral dissertations, nearly 3,000 research papers, and 1,500 periodical titles. Internet access for both employees and students is available through 48 computer workstations throughout the library. From there, students have access to the Iraqi Virtual Science Library, a set of electronic database resources made possible through the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation in 2006. In January 2009 the library began working on ways to provide services to disabled students. Plans are currently underway to develop a “talking library” for the blind.

University of Kurdistan, Hawler (Erbil) The University of Kurdistan, Hawler (Erbil) (UKH) was founded in 2006 with the aim of providing new opportunities for higher education in the KRG. With the language of instruction being English, UKH offers several degree programs focusing on social sciences and technology. As such, the Library of UKH, in comparison to other universities in the region, made itself “e-oriented” from the start. While its print collection comprises just less than 10,000 items, the library maintains subscriptions to online commercial resources such as the EBSCO and JSTOR databases. It also maintains a MARC21-based automated library system and subscribes to OCLC cataloging services. Its director (who holds a MLIS degree from the United States) and staff have participated in training librarians throughout the region.

School Libraries There are many school libraries in the Kurdish Region; this section gives a brief overview of the situation in the Sulaimani governorate as typical of those found in the other Kurdish governorates.

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School libraries are located on-site within the school buildings, so getting users into the library is easy. In the city of Sulaimani itself, there are 201 school libraries, with 101 libraries located in primary schools, 36 in secondary schools, 30 in upper-secondary, and 33 in preparatory schools. In the outlying villages and towns of Sulaimani governorate, there are 340 school libraries, including Halabje (80), Ranyeh and Qaladzeye (80) Sharbajer (50), Dokan (50), Chemchemal (35), Seyid-Sadiq (28), and Qeredagh (17). There are 128 employees appointed to work in school libraries. In many cases, teachers will also conduct library duties or assume the responsibility of the director, leaving certain duties to clerical workers. Out of the 128 appointed persons in the position of school librarians, only 12 are certified librarians. The school library law mandates school libraries to collect library resources for pupils and teachers and provide all matter of library services to them. The libraries house many educational resources including books, audio-visual materials and CD-ROMs to support the curriculum.9

Public Libraries Table 1: The first public libraries in the Kurdistan region City Arbil (Hawleˆr) Koysanjaq Suleimani Kirkuk

Date established 1943 1950 1944 1937

Number of volumes 6,314 3,040 8,448 10,542

After the First World War, the number of libraries increased in Iraq and could be found in every city and town. By 1960, there were 65 libraries, all of which were funded and administered by the Ministry of Education. The exception to this was the Central Public Library in Baghdad, which was in fact directly connected to the Ministry of Education building.10 Before 1960, only four public libraries existed in the major urban centers of the Kurdish provinces. With the creation of the northern no-fly zone

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Information obtained from Author’s phone calls to director of libraries, KRG Ministry of Education, and director of Suleimani Governorate Public Education Department, February 18, 2010. Mahmuˆd Fahmıˆ Darwıˆsh, Mustafa´ Jawaˆd and Ahmad Suˆsah. Dalıˆl al-Jumhuˆrıˆyah al-‘Iraˆqıˆyah li-Sanat 1960: Daˆ’irat Ma‘aˆrif ‘Ilmıˆyah. (Baghdaˆd: Wizaˆrat al-Irshaˆd, 1960): 536.

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following the First Gulf War in 1991 and the establishment of the KRG, public libraries in the Kurdish governorates alone have reached 62 in number. These libraries fall under the administration of the General Director of Public Libraries in Arbil. Two examples of these libraries are seen below.

Zaytun Library

Figure 4: Zaytun Public Library in Erbil (courtesy of Zaytun Public Library)

A recent development has been the refurbishing of the Zaytun Library, which started off as the Arbil Public Library in 1943. Its name – Zaytun – refers to the name Korean “Zaytun” military division which funded its refurbishment, in collaboration with former KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and Arbil Governor Nawzad Hadi. Zaytun Library consists of two study halls, seminar and conference rooms, as well as computer and Internet laboratories. It also boasts a film and stageperformance hall with seating for 350 persons, and hosts live performances on a regular basis.11

11

“The Zaytun Library.” Kurdish Globe, February 13, 2010: 10.

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Its collections are enhanced by the presence of both Korean and American “corners”, with relevant materials on these countries’ histories and cultures, along with a large reading room which also serves as an archive of all magazines and newspapers published in the region, in addition to a children’s section with suitable reading material.

Halabja Martyrs Public Library Halabja is a town located in the Kurdish Region some 240km north-east of Baghdad. It is the site of the notorious Halabja poison gas attack, a massacre which took place between March 16–17, 1988 in the final days of the Iran-Iraq War. The attack quickly killed thousands of people and animals (around 5,000 people died) and injured around 10,000, most of them civilians. Thousands more died of complications, diseases, and birth defects in the years following the attack. What happened at Halabja is something that will never be forgotten by the Kurdish people. Halabja was home to one of the older public libraries in Iraq, founded in 1954. It housed many rare books and manuscripts, numbering 13,000 in all. Following the massacres, its contents were plundered and the building itself lay abandoned. In 2002, Mr. Mohamed Bamoky volunteered to build a new public library, called the Halabja Martyrs Public Library. With his support and that from others in the community, he was able to build a collection of 9,000 Kurdish books, 6,000 Arabic, and 230 resources in English, 126 books in Persian, there are also 700 Kurdish pamphlets, with 248 pamphlets in Arabic, with many Kurdish and Arabic periodicals. There are only three computers and Internet access is not available yet. It has a staff of 38 employees, but only three are considered to be certified librarians. The KRG Ministry of Culture is expected to provide the library with some funding to assist in meeting its needs.12 The library has been met with great acceptance by the community. It is a testament to the endurance of the people of Halabja and a memorial to the horrific period of time they endured. Out of the 1,026 employees working in public libraries throughout the KRG, very few have degrees in librarianship, and fewer still have been able to receive training abroad. In recent years, some 26 librarians were sent abroad to be trained in technical services, technical procedures and topics related to building “e-libraries”. In 2004, some librarians were sent to participate in the Frankfurt International Book Fair. A protocol exists between Sweden and the KRG to develop public libraries.

12

Qadir, Enwer Ehmed. “Kiteˆbxaney lekon u Nweˆda” Mergest (2, 2006): 6–7.

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Other Libraries in the Kurdistan Region Kurdish National Archive Literally millions of government documents from foreign governments dealing with the Kurdistan Region are scattered throughout the national archives of countries like Great Britain, the United States, and Germany. Within the Kurdistan Region, the Kurdish National Archive (KNA) was established in 1997 in Sulaimani,13 due to the efforts of then KRG Minister of Culture, Mamosta Jamal Abul. The purpose of the KNA is to preserve Kurdish culture and history through these archival documents which, in many cases, have been rescued from deliberate destruction. One of the first persons to recognize the necessity of preserving these documents was Abd al-Rapiq Yusif, who prevented many boxes of documents from being disposed of. He kept this initial collection in the basements of Sulaimani University and the Ministry of Culture, until the present building was completed. Both Sulaimani University and the Ministry of Culture continue to be branch sites of the KNA. The KNA collection comprises millions of archive materials and manuscripts from government and non-government organizations alike. It also includes things like rare stamps and statues. It also holds rare materials such as documents going back to the early nineteenth century. The collections of the KNA are divided into six sections, as follows. 1. Court documents from Sulaimani and Koya courts, which include the documents authorizing the foundation of Sulaimani University and a local cement company, as well as court documents involving agriculture reform, transportation, and insurance. 2. Holdings of national and local newspapers such as Nweˆ Kurdistan, alThawra, Xebat, Jıˆn, al-Iraq, al-Nahdhah, al-Jumhuriyah, and Hawlati. 3. Academic journals, mostly in Kurdish. 4. Books concerned with Kurdish history and literature. 5. Photographs of important Kurdish leaders and personalities, along with examples of Kurdish traditional costumes found among different parts of the world inhabited by Kurds. 6. A stamp collection belonging to King Mahmud Barzanji, during the time of the Kingdom of Kurdistan (1921–1924). The KNA has computers, a scanner and digital camera, and photocopiers for protecting and preserving archival documents. The most important documents are cleaned and restored, after which they are digitized and saved on CD-ROM.

13

Author’s interview with the library director, February 4, 2010.

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As with other countries’ archives, the documents themselves cannot be lent, but after permission, users may borrow a copy of the CD-ROM. There are 12 persons working at the KNA, yet none of them are formally trained archivists. They hope one day for an opportunity to visit the national archives of other countries where they can see how international standards and practices have been put into place.

Museum Library in Sulaimani

Figure 5: Museum Library Card catalogue (courtesy of the Museum Library in Sulaimania)

Situated in Sulaimani, this library was founded in 1967, and is attached to the main museum building. It houses many valuable resources such as manuscripts, books, and periodicals, totaling 14,731 items, of which 38% are in Arabic, 26% in Kurdish, 31% in English, and 5% in other languages. There are also 157 serial titles in Kurdish, 67 in Arabic, with 16 newspapers in Kurdish and 14 in Arabic. While there does not exist a formal collection development policy, the deputy director purchases materials for the library locally at bookshops or book fairs, depending on user needs. The Library employs a staff of 15, out of which only one has a degree in library science.14

14

Author’s interview with the library director, February 4, 2010.

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Ministry of Religious Endowments Library, Sulaimani Established in 1978, the core collection of this library goes back to the Baban Emirate library collection when the seat of the emirate transferred to Sulaimani in 1784. In establishing the new capital, a number of new buildings were created including the Great Mosque where the collection of 6,000 valuable books was housed. Following the near-total destruction of this collection by the British in 1919, the remaining 400 books were protected by relatives of the library’s original curator to keep them safe. In 1945, Shaykh Muhammadi Khal began creating a handlist for these materials. In 1978, the Ministry of Religious Endowments (Awqaˆf) assumed responsibility for the collection, which in addition to 27,000 books also holds a number of important and rare manuscripts.15

Church and Monastery Libraries in Dohuk Table 2: Church and Monastery Libraries in Dohuk Name of Library Church library of St. Ithalaha Church library of St. Girgius Library of the Chaldean Archbishop Virgin Mary Church Library

Date founded 1992 1996 1992 1983

Convent Library

2002

Number of volumes (books and serials) 195 416 1931 817 500

In light of the Qartmin Monastery library it is worth noting that Christian libraries are very much in existence in present-day Kurdistan Regional Government. While Christian libraries flourished in Baghdad and Mosul over the past century, the newer Christian libraries in Kurdish provinces were founded in the 1980s and 1990s, a time when security and stability in the region was practically non-existent. Taking Dohuk province as an example, one can find several Christian libraries. As expected, the libraries’ main activities are to provide cultural and social enlightenment to the youth in particular, support curriculum of Christian education in the province, provide public space for member of their community to enjoy, and serve as a center for the study of church history and culture. To that end, despite their newer age, these libraries contain a combined wealth of rare

15

Information gathered from Author’s site visit, February 17, 2010, also see Muhammad Ahmad Mahmuˆd, Fihrist Makhtuˆtaˆt Maktabat al-Awqaˆf al-Markazıˆyah fıˆ al-Sulaymaˆnıˆyah. ˙ (Baghdad: Wizaˆrat al-Awqaˆf wa-al-Shu’u ˆ n al-Dıˆnıˆyah, 1982): 3–5.

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materials not otherwise collected by public or academic libraries, as well as newer and modern publications of special interest to the community. However, like many libraries in the region, these Christian libraries suffer from not being able to offer a sufficient level of services to its procedures, while library procedures and even collections are still wanting due to lack of funds and technology. Further compounding this is the fact that several of these libraries are found in remote villages rather than in more populated parts of the province.16

Library Science Education The history of library science education for Iraq in general and in the Kurdistan Region in particular goes back to 1953, when UNESCO sent a British expert to the University of Baghdad to give training courses to library employees at the College of Arts and Sciences. In 1958, UNESCO sent an Australian expert to give training courses of college, public, and school libraries. In 1970 a library science department opened in Al-Mustansariya University. Many Kurdish students studied here, and in later years the addition of library science programs to the universities of Basra and Mosul allowed for different choices. However, Saddam Hussein’s sanctions against the Kurdistan Region from 1992–2003 meant that Kurds were no longer allowed to study at these universities; resulting in the loss of an entire generation of Kurdish library school graduates. Teaching library science and information in KRG started at the beginning of the twenty-first century, when three technical institutes in Erbil, Sulaimani and Dohuk began offering diplomas in library science.

Library Associations There are two library associations in the KRG.17 One is the Library Informatics Association (Komałey Kiteˆbxane w Zanyariyekanıˆ Kurdistan), founded in 1999 in Arbil. Its members conduct training courses, participate in the annual book fairs, visit other towns to promote librarianship and have held two conferences. They have also published two books on librarianship in

16 17

General information for this section was adopted from Nusturus Sabah Shawil, “Waqi’ Maktabat al-Adıˆrah wa-al-Kanaˆ’is fıˆ Muhaˆfizat Dohuk”. Berew kiteˆbxaney serdemyane: Konrifansıˆ yekemıˆ zanistıˆ kiteˆbxane w zanyariyekan – Kurdistan (Hawler, 2006): 231–251. Information obtained by Author through phone calls with association presidents, January 20, 2010.

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Kurdish. They have a protocol with the Kurdish Library in Stockholm, Sweden, to exchange publications, expertise and general support. The second library association is called the Kurdistan Librarians Association (Komałey Karmendanıˆ Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdistan), founded in Sulaimani in 2006. Its main activities have been to provide training for library staff in Sulaimani. The association has published one introductory book on library science, four issues of the quarterly journal Dijinbisht, and a monthly newspaper, Asoy Kitebxana. Recently the two associations have discussed the idea of joining together to form one association for the Kurdistan Region. By leveraging one another’s strengths, they hope to improve the status and situation of libraries and librarians through the Kurdistan Region, and begin to participate at the international level with the IFLA, ALA, and other international library associations and activities.

General Problems Facing Libraries in the Kurdistan Region Despite its rich and rather diverse history, libraries in the Kurdistan Region are comparatively worse than many other libraries throughout Iraq or in neighboring countries. There is the general neglect and outright hostility which the Kurdish population faced, particularly during the time of the Ba’ath Party in general and under Saddam Hussein in particular. The 20 years of sanctions against Iraq left librarians cut off until recently from new developments in the field which other parts of the world have been experiencing.18 Right from the top, library staff are not especially well-trained to understand the work they must do. All libraries have issues with a lack of an operating budget and budgets to acquire collections and library materials. A particularly crushing issue has been the weakness of information technology to appear in the libraries. Despite varying degrees of Internet access, the libraries themselves lack local IT staff and resources. Automated library systems are the product of computer science departments, or reliance on non-scalable “free” software packages provided by international development organizations. There exists no union catalog or other regional networks which would otherwise link libraries together to develop resource sharing. Subscriptions to commercial databases are nearly non-existent. Many libraries rely on the services of the Iraq Virtual Science Library, but subscriptions to more important resources are generally out of the budgets of these libraries. Attempts to foster cooperation among libraries of all kinds have been slow to progress. This has, in turn, made it difficult to create relationships with 18

Based on the author’s experience with libraries in the region throughout her career.

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libraries outside the region. While KRG libraries have benefited from the assistance of outside organizations for materials, such as those provided by the Sabre Foundation, making long-terms links between partners abroad in ways that benefit the library have been very difficult and slow to move. With this short overview on the past and current situation of libraries within the Kurdistan Region, the author hopes that this will raise some awareness in the greater library community worldwide to seek partnerships and assistance with Kurdish libraries where possible.

References Babuˆ Ishaˆq, Rafaˆ’ıˆl. 1955. Madaˆris al-‘Iraˆq qabla al-Islaˆm. Baghdad. Barsoum, A. I. 2005. The Scattered Pearls: a History of Syriac Literature and Sciences. Piscaway, NJ: Georgias Press. Darwıˆsh, Mahmuˆd Fahmıˆ, Mustafa´ Jawaˆd, Ahmad Suˆsah. 1960. Dalıˆl al-Jumhuˆrıˆyah al-‘Iraˆqıˆyah li-Sanat 1960: Daˆ’irat Ma‘aˆrif ‘Ilmıˆyah. Baghdaˆd: Wizaˆrat al-Irshaˆd. “Derbarey Kemıˆ Xweˆndinewe w Duˆrkewtnewe le Kiteˆb.” Heftename (no. 82, February 2010). Fayiq, Rizgar. “Ers¸ˆıfıˆ Neteweyıˆ lebedwada c¸uneˆkıˆ Dokyomeˆntda, 12 karmend, Ers¸ivıˆ Neteweyek Depareˆzin.” Kurd Dikyoment (3, 2010): 3–7. Hikumetıˆ Hereˆmıˆ Kurdistan, Wezeretıˆ Xweˆndinıˆ Bała. 2006. Deskewtekanıˆ Wezeret le Kabıˆney Peˆncemıˆ Hikumetıˆ Hereˆmıˆ Kurdistan, 2006–2009. Hawler. Khaˆl, Muhammad. 1998. Zindagıˆnaˆmah-i Shaykh Ma’ruˆf Nudahıˆ Barzanjıˆ. Tihran: Nashr-i Ihsaˆn. Komełey Karmendanıˆ Kurdistan. 2006. Beyrrewıˆ Nawxoy Karmendanıˆ Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdistan 2006. Sileˆmanıˆ. Mahmuˆd, Muhammad Ahmad. 1982. Fihrist Makhtuˆtaˆt Maktabat al-Awqaˆf al-Markazıˆyah ˙ˆ f wa-al-Shu’uˆn al-Dıˆnıˆyah. fıˆ al-Sulaymaˆnıˆyah. Baghdad: Wizaˆrat al-Awqa McDowell, David. 2004. A Modern History of the Kurds. London: I.B. Tauris. Mıˆrıˆ Futuˆhıˆ. 1986. Maktabaˆt al-‘Iraˆq: Diraˆsaˆt Taˆrikhıˆyah li-Nushuˆ’ al-Maktabah waTatawwuruhaˆ. Baghdaˆd: Daˆ’irat al-Shu’uˆn al-Thaqaˆfıˆyah wa-al-Nashr. Qadir, Enwer Ehmed. 2006. “Kiteˆbxaney lekon u Nweˆda.” Mergest (2): 6–7. Sabah Shawil Nusturus. 2006. “Waqi’ Maktabat al-Adıˆrah wa-al-Kanaˆ’is fıˆ Muhaˆfizat Dohuk.” Berew kiteˆbxaney serdemyane: Konrifansıˆ yekemıˆ zanistıˆ kiteˆbxane w zanyariyekan – Kurdistan. Hawler: 231–251. Sa‘ıˆd, Rubak Ghafuˆr. 2006. “Meˆjuˆy Hendeˆk le Kiteˆbxanekanıˆ Kurdıˆ legeł bełgey be Dest Nuˆsıˆn.” Berew kiteˆbxaney serdemyane: Konrifansıˆ yekemıˆ zanistıˆ kiteˆbxane w zanyariyekan – Kurdistan. Hawler: 23–25. Sulaymaˆn, Sa’ıˆd Ahmad. 1972. Taˆrıˆkh al-Duwal al-Islaˆmıˆah wa-mu’jam al-usar al-haˆki˙ mah. al-Qaˆhirah: Daˆr al-Ma’rif. “The Zaytun Library.” Kurdish Globe (February 13, 2010): 10.

2.11 Israel The Library for the E´cole Biblique et Arche´ologique Franc¸aise de Je´rusalem Pawel Trzopek and Amy Phillips Preface: Generalities of Libraries in Israel In the English language, the literature on Israeli libraries has been primarily through the contributions of Shmuel Sever, now Emeritus Library Director for the University of Haifa. Professor Sever has not only documented the history of Israeli libraries and the state of library education in Israel but has also been seminal in forming and developing these fields.1 The authors owe him and his colleague, Inbal Shtuhl, also at the University of Haifa, a debt of gratitude for their scholarship and willingness to share with us their ongoing research. Since Sever’s synopsis of Israel in the third edition of The World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science (published 1993), the libraries in Israel, as globally, have suffered from budget cuts. Moreover, one major library school in the country closed (namely The Hebrew University); though other colleges in Israel offer library courses these courses do not demand any liberal arts background. Finally, information is more and more sought through the Internet thus putting a high demand on libraries to offer more online resources.

Public Libraries Between 1960 and1975 the Director of the Department of Public Libraries at the Ministry of Education and Culture increased the national budget for public libraries. However, in 1975 a library law was passed which led to a division of resources among more libraries thus causing an overall scarcity.2 Since 2000, funds for libraries were also allocated to political interest groups, especially to Jewish Orthodox communities and settlers in the West Bank, thus causing a diminishment in funds that would otherwise go to libraries. The National Library of Israel3 was the largest public library in Israel and has the finest collection of Judaica and Islamic studies in the world. In 2008, 1 2 3

Cf. our bibliography for Shmuel Sever at end. Personal email with Shmuel Sever, Jan. 22, 2012. Cf. http://web.nli.org.il/sites/NLI/English/Pages/default.aspx

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the National Library began contributing records to OCLC, a major contribution to cataloging operations world wide.4 Since closing to the public, the National Library has been able to increase its resources.5 Other library resources that have been established since 1967 include many public and university libraries opened in the West Bank as well as East Jerusalem: an example of a few such libraries created are the Arabic public library of East Jerusalem, part of the public library of Jerusalem, the Al Quds University library, and the Beit Lehem library.6 Other public libraries instituted include those on kibbutzim. University libraries “adopt public libraries in their region and advise them on the organization of collections, provide bibliographic services, and donate books to them.”7 This “adoption” has been done by the Ben Gurion University as well as by the Haifa University. Resource and information sharing is largely coordinated through the Center of Book and Library (formerly Center for Public Libraries). Besides providing the principal cataloging utility (much like OCLC), there is centralized book acquisition and processing for public libraries.8 Sever and Shtuhl estimate that there are presently 850 public libraries in Israel.9

University Libraries University libraries’ overall budgets have also decreased since 2000. Sever notes that there has been a significant decline in the acquisitions budget at the University of Haifa.10 The role of a university library director has increasingly become more administrative and less academic, or scholarly, unlike the early years of the Hebrew University Library where the librarians were primarily subject specialists, often without formal library training.11 As a result of increased use and demand for electronic resources for research in higher education a divide between the humanities and the sciences

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Cf. http://www.oclc.org/news/releases/200848.htm. Special thanks to the editor, Ravi Sharma, for bringing this to our attention; personal email, Feb. 2, 2012. Personal email with Shmuel Sever, Jan. 14, 2012. Ibid. Sever, S. and Inbal Shtuhl The Heritage of Cultures. forthcoming: 48. Ibid: 48–49. Personal email with Iban Shtuhl, Jan. 29, 2012. Personal email with Shmuel Sever, Dec. 24, 2011. “… Bergmann also invited scholars of stature to join the staff of JNUL [between 1920– 1935], despite the fact that they had no formal training in librarianship. In this way the libraries received the benefit of high-level subject expertise, but at the expense of alibrary eduction tradition.” Sever, S. “Library Education in Israel” in Journal of Education for Librarianship21(3) (Winter 1981): 213.

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and professional disciplines has happened. That is, electronic resources profit the social sciences, science, and professional studies but are costly. Financial priority is given to the demand for up-to-date electronic resources in these fields. This means, however, that the humanities have less financial means to purchase or subscribe to electronic resources for support in its areas of research. This diminishment of online resources, or the funding to carry out initiatives to create new electronic resources for the humanities could result in a decline in scholarship and reduced opportunities to engage and interest students to this area of study. Since the education of librarians takes place at university level it is worth noting here that there are currently three schools that offer post-graduate training in librarianship: 1) Haifa University Department of Library and Information Science (founded 1972), which offers an IFLA professional certificate, 2) Bar-Ilan Information School, granting a Master of Arts degree, and 3) the David Yalin, offering a Masters in Education. Five other institutions offer library training at an undergraduate level: Glil Ma’aravi, Ornaim, Beit Berl. An information diploma is another educational opportunity offered at the Open University and the Technion. As noted earlier, The Library School at Hebrew University closed in 2005.12

Special Libraries Since our article will focus exclusively on the E´cole biblique et arche´ologique franc¸aise de Je´rusalem (hereafter EBAF), a special library that receives no funding from the Ministry of Education and Culture of Israel, it is worth noting its geo-political milieu. EBAF is located in East Jerusalem which is considered “occupied territory” by Palestinians and the international law. After the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 the area belonged to the Kingdom of Jordan. During the Six Day War in 1967, Israel conquered the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Since then, and also as a result of an attack by the Jordanian Army on the Jewish part of Jerusalem, the eastern part of the city of Jerusalem has been occupied by Israel. Many small and specialized libraries, particularly in East Jerusalem, were founded by organizations with religious connections or affiliations and were established before the State of Israel and thus before current political conflicts between Israel and the Palestinians. Religious libraries in occupied East Jerusalem besides EBAF are the Calouste Gulbenkian Library of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Studium Biblicum Franciscum, to name

12

Sever, S. and Inbal Shtuhl The Heritage of Cultures. forthcoming: 53–54. Personal email with Inbal Shtuhl, Jan. 29,2012, who also noted that there was a closing party attended by graduate alumnae from the previous five years.

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only a two. Examples of libraries in the area founded by academic or scholarly institutions are the Kenyon Institute (of the British Academy) and the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research (affiliate of the American Schools of Oriental Research). It is also worth noting the special library, Pontifical Biblical Institute (directed by the Jesuits), which is located in West Jerusalem. All of the above mentioned libraries are independent and thus struggle with funding from within their respective communities, often those outside Israel and Palestine. All of the above mentioned libraries’ user communities come from all parts of Israel and Palestine and from all over the world. The complex political, religious, and social situation marks the conditions of living and development of the libraries in the country.

History and Foundation of the Library for EBAF Our essay begins with the founding of the library for EBAF. Two major holdings within the library will be briefly noted: the Photo and the Cartographic libraries. The implementation and use of technologies will also be outlined. The library’s present concerns and issues are addressed as well as our future hopes for collaborative expansion and opportunities. This is the first essay to appear in any published work devoted exclusively to the library for EBAF. EBAF is a Dominican school awarding, with the authorization of the Apostolic See, the Vatican, post-graduate degrees in biblical and archeological studies. It is located in East Jerusalem, just outside of the Old City, some 150 meters north from the Damascus Gate. It was founded in 1890 by and remains under the direction of the Order of Preachers, also known as Dominicans, a Roman Catholic religious order dating back to the thirteenth century. It is noteworthy that EBAF could not and cannot exist without the library, nor could the library ever be a single entity without the purpose of serving the needs of the school. There is a paucity of information on the library itself but that does not indicate its level of importance or centrality within the school’s mission or community. Some of the earliest volumes about EBAF were those produced by the school itself, namely, the serial publication Revue Biblique, which began in 1890 and continues today. Moreover, the teachers, students, and scholars who have been a part of the school’s mission have contributed innumerable volumes of monographs, photographs, and cartographic materials to the library’s collection as will be noted. Even at the present time, the library is the heart of the school. Marie-Joseph Lagrange, OP was the founder of EBAF. From the very beginning he envisioned that there would be close proximity between the library and the church, the laboratory and the oratory. This proximity is

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still of the greatest importance because study and prayer go hand in hand in the life of the Dominican community. While they are not the same, their end is the same: to meditate on and understand the message of good news found in Scripture. While this unique perspective might make the Dominican way of life differ from other communities of faith, it is not meant to isolate it from other individuals or communities involved in the study of sacred texts and the material culture of Palestine or the Middle East. Fr. Lagrange always intended for the school and its library to remain open to anyone interested in the disciplines of biblical and archeological studies. Fr. Lagrange records a letter, dated August 16, 1890, from his informal instructor in Scripture, Fr. Thomas: … [A] house in Jerusalem capable of directing scientific excursions and centralizing information would render valuable service. Then I heard what the zealots had to say, and I thought to myself (in secret): That’s marvelous, but it would never work. They won’t have resources to create a study center equipped with the necessary tools; by that I mean a library.13

Nonetheless it was Fr. Marie-Joseph Lagrange’s assignment to develop and direct this school, as difficult a task as it seemed. He arrived in Jerusalem in November of 1890. Fr. Montagnes reports: “In November of 1890, there was nothing in the hall of the old slaughterhouse to encourage Father [Lagrange] … Still embedded in its walls were the rings where animals awaiting slaughter had been tethered.”14 In light of the unusual architectural environs and the lack of resources, Fr. Lagrange, in his inaugural address for the opening of the school, humbly and perhaps humorously claims: It was in no way necessary that this project be Domincan … and I admit without false modesty, that it could have been entrusted to worthier hands … This is a common work for all the Catholic communities of Jerusalem. All of them have contributed to it … Messieurs, all of you have encouraged this work which we have humbly, weakly; above all poorly begun, with only a table, blackboard, and a map for school equipment.15

With these glimpses into the conditions of the founding of EBAF, we see that the library had tenuous beginnings as well as slight holdings. Even looking back 25 years later Lagrange remembered the library’s humble beginning: the collection had “a few books – even a country Cure´ had more of them! – left behind by some missionary priests.”16 In his memorial essay about

13 14 15 16

Lagrange, Marie-Joseph. Pe`re Lagragne: Personal Reflection and Memoirs. trans. by Rev. Henry Wansbrough. (New York: Paulist Press, 1985): 22. Montagnes, Bernard The Story of Father Marie-Joseph Lagrange: Founder of Modern Catholic Bible Study. trans. by Benedict Viviano, OP. (New York: Paulist Press, 2006): 29. Ibid.: 29–30. Braun, Franc¸ois-Marie. The Work of Pe`re Lagragne. adapted from the French by Richard T. A. Murphy (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1963): 15, see esp. note 29.

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Fr. Lagrange, Richard T. A. Murphy, OP has a somewhat different account of condition of the library: “The library, he soon discovered, consisted of the two books he brought with him: the Bible and a guidebook of the Holy Land.”17 Between the time of the school’s founding and the establishment of Revue Biblique, Franc¸ois-Marie Braun, OP notes that the school and library had grown steadily in size. The library, he notes, had “first call” on all available funds.18 The next major milestone for the library of EBAF was the outbreak of the First World War. On December 14, 1914, Turkish police arrested all the French in Jerusalem and deported them, among them Fr. Lagrange and his Dominican brothers. Eventually they were brought to Rome on January 8, 1915. “During the war, the Spanish consul, as well as Father Doumeth, who was Lebanese, and the lay brothers, who were Swiss, protected St. Stephen priory in Jerusalem. Their presence had prevented the priory from being ransacked, and they were able to save the library.”19 In reality there was a point, as Fr. Lagrange reflected years later, when the library’s books were stolen. Of this Lagrange wrote emotively: “Unhappy magazines, unhappy books, unhappy library!”20 The stolen materials were returned, and they can still be identified with the stamp of the Ottoman empire.21 Lagrange and his Dominican brothers returned to the school in November of 1918, happy to resume teaching and research. The library is rarely mentioned after the First World War. By the midtwentieth century, the library was already considered an international resource for biblical and archeological studies. In the mid-50s a comprehensive card catalog was created and maintained by Fr. Rouse´e. He also prepared the classification system based on the Dewey classification, but adapted it to the need of the collection. This system is still in use today. The Dominican community appointed a “librarian” every time it was necessary. This office is necessary in every Dominican community and other communities generally appoint their librarians every three to five years. Rare are community libraries as large, or the workload as demanding than that of the librarian of EBAF. Jourdain-Marie Rouse´e, OP was the first long-term librarian and held the position of the librarian for four decades. During this period he was assisted by a Palestinian librarian Antoun (who died in 2009). In the period from the 1980s to the early 1990s, Fr. Anthony Ward, a British Marist and now a prelate in the Vatican, was the director of the Library. Even though he was not a member of

17 18 19 20 21

Murphy, Richard T.A. Pe`re Lagragne and the Scriptures. (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1946): 181. Braun: 22. Montagnes: 131. Braun: 97. Cf. ibid: notes 88–89.

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the Dominican order, he was appointed to this duty by the superiors of the house. After Fr. Ward finished his work, an American Kevin McCaffrey was appointed from 1993 to 2004. McCaffrey was followed by Marcel Sigrist, OP who was the librarian from 2004 to 2007. Pawel Trzopek, a Dominican from Poland began serving, as the assistant librarian under Fr. Sigrist, from 2004 to 2007. Fr. Trzopek was appointed head of the library in 2007 and continues to direct it to the present time. One of the most significant events in the history of the Library happened at the threshold of the new millennium. An Italian Dominican, Paolo Garuti, who was the prior from 1997 to 1999, succeeded in obtaining significant and sizable funds from the European Commission to completely refurbish the Library. The project consisted of extensive construction works, like reinforcing walls and replacing the old wooden and weak artificial ceiling (that divided the library into two levels) with a solid concrete ceiling made with earthquake-proof technology. To improve the conditions for research in the library, air conditioning was installed, as well as new lamps, furniture (56 tables and chairs), and compact shelving on the lower level. The physical upgrades begun in 1999 were completed in 2001. The main supervisor of this renovation from the part of the Dominican community was its bursar, Fr Krzysztof Modras. Fr. Modras must be further noted: beyond his role as the bursar, he took great care to manage the library’s first information system, LiberMedia. He also actively obtained training from the National Library of France to understand the MARC record so that he could help in database management and reconfiguration issues that arose throughout his years serving EBAF. A celebration of the completed renovation took place. The guests included Mr. Romano Prodi, who was then President of the European Commission, and the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Monsignor Michel Sabbah, as well as other numerous eminent guests who attended the inauguration ceremony on 18 November 2001.

Libraries Within the Library Within the library there are two significant subgroups, collections in their own right: the Photothe`que (Photo Library) and the Cartothe`que (Cartographic Library). The Photothe`que is presently under the direction of Jean-Michele de Tarragon, OP. His work in promoting and organizing the Photothe`que cannot be described as anything less than amazing. We will return to his work after briefly giving a diachronic description of the collection. Just as the foundation of the library collection grew out of Fr. Lagrange’s own books, the first photo was taken by him in 1890. The collection of glass negatives and slides has grown from there since that time. The photos were

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made during research excursions undertaken by the faculty of EBAF and document the significant topography of, to name a few: Jerusalem, Ottoman Palestine, British Palestine, Transjordan, North Arabia and Hijaz, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and Turkey. Paul-M. Se´journe´, OP was one of the most significant contributors to this collection as he conducted a significant number of archeological and topographic studies and explorations of the Middle East from 1890 to 1900. Other significant contributors to the photo collection were Antonin Jaussen, OP and his collaborator, M.-Raphae¨l Savignac, OP. They began their photographic career through their discoveries in 1900 and continued until well into the 1950s. Their early work is documented by Fr. de Tarragon on the Photothe`que: The library grew rapidly with the young religious [i.e., Frs Jaussen and Savignac]. They photographed in a more systematic way, with enthusiasm. The photographic subjects diversified, as much as the young school fit into Palestine, through excursions, reviews of rescue excavations, of archaeological looting, construction and arrangements, all opportunities to take pictures that are often, a century later, the only documentary evidence of any such monument or inscription of a rural or urban landscape.22

These resources now total over 20,000: 15,000 negative and 5000 positive. Two-thirds are of glass, either single or stereoscopic. “New technologies replaced the glass plate, the plan-film and band-negatives (sizes 6 x 6 x 24 and 36). Approximately 10,000 of these negatives are listed, numbered and stored in two big records written in ink, the remainder is still not surveyed.”23 Jean-Michel de Tarragon has been working on organizing, documenting, and digitizing the collection since 1980. He has contributed to many published catalogs featuring the collections as well as describing the curatorial work, including its preservation. He has been successful in seeking and obtaining funding. His role has made him one of the central historians of EBAF and its scholarly work in word and image. Noted below is the fact that the database containing written descriptions of the collection, created by Fr. de Tarragon, has not yet been integrated into the new library system, nor have the digital images of the photographs. In 2011 this integration has begun which will make the library catalog one of the most significant online integrated resources providing access to books, photographs, maps, and articles to researchers anywhere in the world. Such access would not have been possible or even imaginable a mere 20 years ago. While work toward an integration is taking place, a test version of the online Photo Library has been created and is available at http://photo.ebaf.edu:8088/ dlibra.

22 23

http://www.ebaf.info/?page_id=1150&lang=en&page=2. http://www.ebaf.info/?page_id=1150&lang=en&page=4.

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The Cartothe`que has existed alongside the monographic and photographic collections since the founding of the library. Again we call to mind the words of Lagrange at the school’s opening in 1890: “Messieurs, all of you have encouraged this work which we have humbly, weakly; above all poorly begun, with only a table, blackboard, and a map for school equipment.”24 (emphasis mine) The maps, drafts, and topographic sketches that were first part of the collection were contributions from the professors and students. One of the first and most prolific draftsmen and cartographers was Louis-Hugues Vincent, OP. In Fr. Lagrange’s own memoirs, he describes the early work of an important archaeological expedition where Fr. Vincent becomes the designated map maker: … a party from the School had visited Petra and spent three days in a vain search for a large inscription which we had been told existed there. At the very last minute P. Vincent, who had alone refused to give up the search, found the inscription a remote valley. The baggage was unpacked. A makeshift ladder was constructed, and an impression of the inscription was made. He later produced a copy of the inscription which was so perfect that from then onward he was the one of our number appointed to do this type of work, and also to draw up the maps.25

Fr. Vincent’s contributions to the Revue Biblique, the periodical produced by EBAF number 214 articles. Many of these articles contain his topographical sketches, many of the them the first documentation of areas in Jordan or even areas closer to home like the Mount of Olives. Since the time of Fr. Vincent’s work other scholars from EBAF have contributed to studies in Revue Biblique or have created cartographic materials accompanying scholarship in other publications. The library has always actively collected the best atlases or guides to the Middle East, the Holy Land, or geographic regions from antiquity important for the study of the Bible. Among the Cartothe`ques more important holdings are sheet maps made by Pierre Jacotin, Samuel Heinrich Keipert, Gottlieb Schumacher, Edward Robinson, the Palestine Exploration Fund, and the Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem. For the first time in 2007, the cartographic materials were cataloged into an online system, based on a unique classification system and a handwritten inventory made in the 1990s by one of the Dominican friars. Over half of the sheet maps in the collection still need to be cataloged into the online system. Eventually the sheet maps will be digitized and the digital surrogates will be linked to the bibliographic records. Other basic needs of the collection are cabinets for storage, acid free folders, and more table space for viewing sheet maps that might be more than five feet in length when completely laid out. Many of the maps are brittle

24 25

Montagnes: 29–30. Lagrange, Marie-Joseph: 53.

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and require basic surface cleaning and repairs to torn edges and entire sheets. Some maps will likely need a deacidification process.

The Progress of Technology The first catalog was a simple card catalog. The cards were beautifully handwritten by the librarian or by his assistants. It consisted of an author entry as well as a subject entry. Even very early on there were biblical pericopes (i.e., smaller parts of texts within the biblical corpus) among the subjects. In the 1950s the cards were typewritten and this system of cataloging was used till the end of the 1980s. As early as the 1970s, all the catalog cards were photographed and published in a limited number of monographic copies. Later printed editions of the card catalog in 1985 and 1992 were based on a very simple computerized database. New technology arrived in the library with the advent of LiberMedia information system in 1990. The library used LiberMedia’s cataloging and OPAC interface. The cataloging module employed MARC coding and fields but also had a cataloging interface that allowed those unfamiliar with UNIMARC and the professional guide Normes de catalogage publie´es par l’Association franc¸aise de normalization to create relatively complex bibliographic records. Four Palestinian women were employed to catalog this new system, making original computerized catalog records based on the pre-existing information from the card catalog and its subsequent publications. After 14 years there some 70% of the holdings were available in the LiberMedia. All the most important sections of the Library were cataloged in LiberMedia in the start: the Bible (Old and New Testament), archaeology of the Near East, languages, history, and the classics. Later on, due to the economic situation of the institution, the Palestinian catalogers were no longer able to continue their work. The library was forced to look for volunteers who were not necessarily trained to work with books or library information systems. That is not to say the volunteer contributions were not valuable. Indeed, the library continued to make available to scholars the information they most needed and desired. From a “professional” perspective, the inconsistencies in cataloging practice might be less than desirable, but from the perspective of the mission of the library for EBAF, the catalog remained the most useful and valuable tool for accessing information. With the development of the Internet, an idea of creating an internet based catalog started. The question was seriously studied as early as 2006. A competent and highly qualified IT person from the Dominican Province of Poland, Fr. Janusz Kaczmarek was asked to cooperate. Fr. Janusz studied different offers of freeware systems. KOHA, an open source integrated library system was the best choice and was installed in 2007. Fr. Kaczmarek successfully migrated

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the information in LiberMedia database to KOHA. He had to face such challenges as converting completely non-standarized codes for Greek and Hebrew characters to fixing a conversion table of fields to fit them to UNIMARC standard fields. A working prototype was inaugurated in summer 2008. The LiberMedia was eventually abandoned on 13 December 2008 and the Library switched completely to KOHA. Anne-Ce´cile Biboud, a librarian from France who worked at EBAF from 2007 to 2009, assisted Fr. Kaczmarek with the migration and other database management. Their painstaking work led to an outcome that ensures excellence for KOHA’s quality and usability. The work is not over, in a sense, because database management is an ongoing issue and, of course, no migration is perfect: tune-ups are necessary and information must sometimes be re-appropriated into a better form. The Library’s catalog can be consulted online at http://biblio.ebaf.edu. All users can search and browse the collections from their home computers. A WiFi network was installed in the Library in 2008 and is open for all users anywhere in the library.

Present Concerns and Issues The Library is facing different challenges due to the complex political, historical, and religious context of the region. One of the most important factors is a lack of qualified staff. The employment policy is still based on volunteers coming mainly from France. The change of the cataloging system forced the superiors of the priory to find qualified persons who were able to work according to the international standards. The recruitment process was launched by Fr Pawel Trzopek and Anne-Ce´cile Biboud. The result is the presence and efficient work of three qualified young French librarians and a Palestinian from Nazareth who completed his library training at the National Library of France. The recruitment will continue also in the future. As in every library, we at the library at EBAF feel a lack of material resources, especially that of money. Although an important part of our expenses is covered from different donations and subventions (e.g. grants from the Centre National du Livre in Paris), still some 60% of the acquisition budget must come from the budget of the Dominican community. With the growing prices of the publications and postage fees (and taxes imposed by the State of Israel) having enough to cover such costs becomes a heavy burden. New financial resources must be found also to develop other field of Library’s activity. The map collection waits for its turn to be fully integrated into the catalog. The photo library integration will commence in 2013. The rare books collection contains printed material from as early as 1519. Its core collection of over 800 volumes printed before 1789 is of considerable value and importance for researchers from various fields, not just limited to

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biblical and archaeological studies. Therefore it is necessary that a comprehensive evaluation be made of the state of these rare books so that the library can prepare a plan of conservation and preservation of these precious materials. The question of digitization as a means of preserving our rare materials is another issue that must be addressed. The library has always had a commitment to providing digital access, through allowing researchers access to materials for digital photography or scanning, condition of materials permitting. A full scale rare book digitization project, however, would take financial and personnel resources that would be well beyond those of the Library.

The Future The Library of EBAF in Jerusalem wants to continue its role as the premiere collection for all scholars and researchers who deal with the Bible and ancient Near East. Co-operations and collaborations with other libraries in Israel/ Palestine have been accomplished on an ad hoc basis but a clearly delineated consortium with local or even international libraries of a similar nature has yet to be developed. A movement away from the ad hoc to a more stable and organized project of cooperation between academic and religious libraries in the East Jerusalem was started in January 2010 with the creation of a website http://www. eastjerusalemlibraries.org/. A meeting of librarians who want to participate was held in May 2010. The development of the project, called simply “East Jerusalem Libraries,” will be communicated on its website. Given the explosion of social networking services like Facebook, Google+, and Twitter, information sharing becomes easier as does collaboration and collection promotion. Of course, the Library of EBAF has a Facebook page where updates on new collections, library hours, and events are posted.26 So having a website is no longer the only way for global recognition! As more social networking services become available and widespread, small libraries like EBAF will be able to take advantage of these for raising awareness of their unique resources. This of course means finding opportunities to enlist more support, moral and financial. Scanning software and hardware is also a key component in providing easy access to information. As these become more sophisticated and less costly, more of EBAF’s library collections, particularly the unique and special collections, can be made available to biblical scholars across the world.

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http://www.facebook.com/pages/EBAF-Library/117409251605945.

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References Braun, Franc¸ois-Marie. The Work of Pe`re Lagragne. Adapted from the French by Richard T. A. Murphy (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1963). de Tarragon, Jean-Michele. “Photothe`que” in website for EBAF (http://www.ebaf.info/). Lagrange, Marie-Joseph. Pe`re Lagragne: Personal Reflection and Memoirs. trans. by Rev. Henry Wansbrough (New York: Paulist Press, 1985). Montagnes, Bernard The Story of Father Marie-Joseph Lagrange: Founder of Modern Catholic Bible Study. Translated by Benedict Viviano, OP (New York: Paulist Press, 2006). Murphy, Richard T.A. Pe`re Lagragne and the Scriptures (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1946). Sever, Shmuel. “The Arab Library in Israel” in Library Quarterly, 49(2) (1979): 163–181. Sever, Shmuel. “Israel” in World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Services. 3rd edn. (Chicago: American Library Association, 1993): 396–400. Sever, Shmuel. “Library Education in Israel” in Journal of Education for Librarianship, vol. 21, no. 3 (Winter, 1981) p. 208–234. Sever, Shmuel. “The Melting Pot of Library Traditions: The Case of Israel” in The Journal of Library History (1974–1987), 20(3) (Summer, 1985): 253–266. Sever, Shmuel with Inbal Shtuhl. The Heritage of Cultures (forthcoming).

2.12 Italy Library Automation in Italy Towards the Digital Library Anna Maria Tammaro Background From the unification of the Kingdom of Italy in 1860 until this day, whenever Italians speak of libraries we speak about them as “treasures” thus recognizing the value of the collection which all libraries, even the smallest ones, possess as a heritage of the past. The bibliographical heritage preserved in libraries is that upon which the attention of politicians, the public, and librarians themselves in Italy is concentrated, with the consequence that the preservation of the collection is held to be the most important library function, together with its organization by means of catalogs and bibliographies. Very often however, for example in the case of many libraries with an ancient tradition, libraries have been turned into museums and have lost contact with the public for which they were constructed and their collection is the result of varied aggregations, as for example the libraries confiscated from suppressed monasteries and convents. Another characteristic of the Italian library system in many institutions is the fragmentation of responsibility for management without any coordination and there are great differences between the North and the South of Italy. National and state libraries are managed directly by the Direzione Generale per le Biblioteche, gli Istituti Culturali e il Diritto d’Autore (DGBID – General Direction for Library Heritage, Cultural Institutes and Copyright) of the Ministero per i Beni e le Attivita` Culturali (MIBAC – Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities); public and local government libraries are managed by the governments of local authorities; administrative and parliamentary libraries are managed by other institutions of the public administration, such as ministries and parliament; university and school libraries are managed by universities and schools. This situation, due to historical causes, has always weighed in a negative way upon service in Italian libraries, where efficient national services are lacking. Automation in Italian libraries began from this situation of the context, only briefly outlined here which can be studied exhaustively in the writings of various authors (Traniello 2005; Ammendola 1998; Guerrini and Frigimelica 2009). Although it began from these structural problems, library automation in Italy was put into practice very early on, beginning in the early 50s and

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pursued an ambitious aim in its development: stimulate cooperation of Italian libraries, creating a centrally coordinated “virtual” organization, which from the service point of view would guarantee the user a single access point to library services. Library automation was initially used in Italy for doing more efficiently what was already being done by hand. However, in a preservative prospect, automation has led librarians over time to change their procedures, up to the recent development of the digital library with the challenges that it brings about in library change. In this chapter we will try to outline the birth and growth of library automation in Italy in chronological order, evidencing four phases of development: 1. 1950–1970: the pioneers and the first projects of automation; 2. 1970–1990: the birth of library networks and the use of data banks; 3. 1990–2000: development of integrated systems of library management and of “networked discovery tools”; 4. 2000 to the present: birth and growth of the Digital Library. These phases correspond to different technological and organizational contexts. The initiatives developed for the education and training of librarians in automation, with the new technology competences which they need, will also be briefly described.

The First Twenty Years, 1950–1970 Special libraries were the pioneers of library automation in Italy. A strong stimulus for beginning library automation was the World Conference of the International Federation for Documentation (FID) held at Rome in 1951 with the active participation of the Center for Documentation of the Italian National Research Council (CNR). This Center, created in 1950 as the CNR service center and which became the Institute for Studies on Research and Scientific Documentation (ISRDS) and renamed research center in 1971, carried out a guiding role. The CNR center was perhaps the first in Italy to use the punched card for producing a catalog of periodicals, first the “Catalogo delle pubblicazioni periodiche possedute dalla Biblioteca” in 1963, and subsequently the catalog of Italian periodicals, now renamed ACNP (Italian National Periodicals Catalog). The CNR center closely collaborated with international organizations as ASLIB, UNESCO, IFLA e FID. Another pioneer institution for library automation was the National Central Library of Florence (BNCF), a role it continued for many decades. The procedures of automated registration and particularly the use of the MARC format were among the results of a collaborative relationship with the Library of Congress undertaken in 1968. The initial episode of this collaboration is formally covered by the seminar on the rationalization and automation of libraries,

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“Razionalizzazione ed automazione della Biblioteca”, held at Florence, organized by UNESCO and the Ministry of Public Education – General Direction of Academies and Libraries. Magnetic tape created by the BNCF was used on one hand for the photocomposition of printed issues and index cards for the Italian National Bibliography (BNI) and on the other for the exchange of data between libraries in MARC standard (ANNAMARC is the Italian version of MARC), in the perspective of the Universal Bibliographic Control program. The tapes of the BNI were used by other Italian libraries that had begun automation projects, such as the Chamber of Deputies and the Italian Supreme Court. From 1975 until 1984 the BNI used the ANNAMARC standard for the communication on magnetic tape of the bibliographical records. From 1986 the BNCF extended automation to all online operations of acquisitions, cataloging, and classification. In this first phase, automation in Italy was seen literally as the substitution of manual procedures with “automatisms”. The first library automation projects thus aimed at the rationalization of resources, that is to say, carrying out the same activities in a more efficient way, eliminating repetitive operations and reducing costs. The declared objectives were those of reducing staff time, automating back office procedures, such as acquisitions, cataloging and controlling periodicals. Above all, automation was used for the programming of magnetic tape for printing catalog and catalog cards, the list of new acquisitions, the Kwic and Kwoc indexes and also even the printing of the first union catalogs.

Standardization Of course, library automation in this first phase was an experiment using the available technology: in these pioneer applications the initial question was: “what will technology permit me to do?”. Besides this, we must consider the fact that Italian libraries in this period did not have their own computers, rather they had to make use and rely upon the computers of the institution with which they were affiliated (such as research institutes or Universities) or upon an external service. As an alternative, libraries had to form a consortium in order to have access to an automated system. This is the epoch of large computers such as IBM and Sperry UNIVAC and above all of operative systems and proprietary hardware with little or no integration between modules. The first consequence of this technology context was the early appearance of the problem of interoperability, that above all is understood as standardization. It is interesting to note that Italian librarians at that time hoped that the differences among computer systems would be resolved at the hardware and operating system level. In 1971 a significant conference of IFLA experts was held in Berlin to discuss MARC formats and data exchange, key topics of this period and the first draft of the UNIMARC format was developed. This was a significant development because the standards created meant that

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a bibliographic record could be read and transferred by computer between different library systems. The situation of library automation in Italy in these years was similar to that on the international level, particularly in the US, towards which Italy looked with much interest. OCLC, the On-line Computer Library Center began in 1967, chartered in the state of Ohio. UNISIST and FID had interests in common with the Committee and the IFLA began a special relationship with ISO TC 46, Automation in Documentation. The National Library of Florence (BNCF) was leading the standardization efforts in Italy participating in the international debate.

The Second Twenty Years, 1970–1990 The second phase of library automation in Italy concentrated on data banks and reference services. Whereas in the first phase library automation had concentrated on the back-office, in the second phase attention shifted to user services. The most important fact was the introduction of CD-ROMs in the late 80s which changed the way libraries operate. CD-ROMs were investigated by many Italian libraries as carriers for full text resources and for library catalogs. ESA-IRS (European Space Agency), the largest worldwide data bank, was opened at Frascati near Rome in 1975. In 1979 the Italian referral center for DIANE (Direct Information Access Network for Europe) was opened by CNR, with the task of providing orientation and instruction for accessing online information and with the national coordination of scientific communication activities. Beginning in 1975 numerous legal databases were born in Italy such as that of the Italian Supreme Court which gathers judges’ verdicts, and that of the Institute for Legal Documentation (IDG) of the CNR, which indexes legal periodicals. Beginning in 1980, the use of commercial systems for searching reference databases (such as DIALOG e MEDLINE) began. In this phase computers began to become smaller in size, the second generation of UNIX and DOS with “command driven” features started, and technology provided faster chips, additional RAM, and greater storage capacity. From 1970 the numbers of library automation projects increased, prompted by the diffusion of computers in all Italian public administrations. The example of international models, like OCLC, had a great impact in these years, together with the movement toward standardization. With the development and rapid proliferation of microcomputer terminals, the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) became the goal for many libraries. OPAC catalogs began to be used extensively in the 1980s. There was a first library revolution beginning in the 80s: the organizational innovation created by library automation became evident. The BNCF is an

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example of this change: in 1990 when the service “Users on line” (UOL) was opened, terminals for consulting the new catalog were made available to users. Libraries in Italy started to set up and purchase their own computer systems as well as connect with other established library networks. This meant all the records for a catalog needed to be in electronic form and many large-scale retrospective conversion projects were tackled.

Library Networks By the 1980s the reality of dissimilar systems gave rise to projects to overcome the differences through protocols and application software. The National Library Service (SBN), the most important national project, came into existence in this phase (Leombroni 2004). The SBN project was relatively late but it was able to link regions, ministry, and universities, in a new cooperative effort (Giordano 2002). In July 1985 the Central Institute for the Union Catalog of Italian Libraries and Bibliographic information (ICCU) entrusted the ITALSIEL (an agency created in 1968) with the task of compiling a feasibility study, starting from the needs defined by a study group. In 1985 the first local “poles”, formed by one or more libraries with different operative systems and with modules containing all the procedures of the library, were activated. The poles had to be linked to the central system called Index. In 1992, with the activation of the Central Indexing System, the Italian national network was completed by means of links between local poles and the central index. The index initially gathered only essential identification data of bibliographic records; starting from 1992, it also contained the complete description of bibliographic information. Another important Union Catalog for research libraries was the Italian Catalog of Periodicals (ACNP). This catalog originated in the Archivio Collettivo Nazionale dei Periodici (ACNP) andcame into being in the 70s as an initiative of ISRDS-CNR. The University of Bologna currently manages the ACNP, which contains bibliographic descriptions of the periodicals owned by a large number of university libraries, located throughout the Italian national territory and covering all fields of education. Moreover it gathers periodical citations from the following sources: ISI (a special contract has been signed), Economic and Social Science Periodicals (ESSPER), a collective data bank with the TOCs (tables of contents) of social science periodicals. Associated with the periodical catalog Network Inter-Library Document Exchange (NILDE) is a system that permits interlibrary loan and document delivery. Since 1999, another catalog for cumulative queries in Italian Internet library catalogs is MAI (MetaOPAC Azalai Italiano) for searching in about 250 online catalogs (SBN and other networks), with a focus in university and research libraries. These union catalogs are the result of a drive toward cooperation between libraries, stimulated by the application of automation technology to library services which has been

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supported by public financing both by the state and by the regions. The SBN which manages the OPAC SBN catalog is based on a cooperative organization and managed by the ICCU.

The Third Generation of Library Automation, 1990–2000 The 90s gave rise to yet another era in library automation in Italy: the Internet network and the Web. ARPANET, a network established by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in 1969 brought into existence the Internet and the use of e-mail, telnet, and ftp and, at the beginning of the 90s, the use of networks for e-mail, ftp, and telnet. The first library system to use the Internet for library services was CIB (Centro InterBibliotecario) of the University of Bologna with ALMAtel, the website of the university’s library providing a searchable catalog online. The Italian librarians list AIB-CUR was developed in these years. The World Wide Web which had its official start date as April of 1993 was becoming the fastest growing new provider of information. It was also possible to connect to international library systems and information through the Internet and with ever improving telecommunications. Client server architecture and access to bibliographic data in a network became a common infrastructure (Ridi 1996a; Ridi 1996b; Ridi 1998; De Robbio 2000). Expert systems and knowledge systems have become available in the 90s as both software and hardware capabilities have improved, but their application in Italian libraries has been limited. The most important characteristics of the new integrated systems of library automation were: the use of diffused operative systems like Windows and Unix (and in most recent times even Linux), the client/server architecture, the graphical interface, the integrated support in different MARC formats, and, more generally, the adoption of open architecture in line with the principal standards. In particular this is the epoch of the diffusion of open protocols and standards: the protocol of network TCP-IP, the use of relational database management systems (RDBMS) (such as Oracle, SQL, Informix etc.) started and was widely diffused, ISO10646 (Unicode) for character sets, ISO 10160–10161 for interlibrary loan, EDIFact for dialog with publishers (for example the publisher Casalini) and suppliers, Z39.50 which has been widely used by Italian libraries for information research and retrieval.

Integrated Library Systems In these years, connections to Italian commercial systems grew in libraries with integrated library management systems (ILMS) that used relational data bases

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and GUI interfaces such as TINLIB, SEBINA, ZETESIS, UNIBIBLIO. In this third phase, the important international names in software for library management available on the Italian market had a limited weight (Bertini 2004). One of the reasons for the uniqueness of the Italian situation, not very open to the international market, was the massive presence of SBN, that linked 50 poles with at least 1500 connected libraries. Even the diffusion of specific software for school libraries such as WinIride per le biblioteche e GOLD for creating a database of educational projects, both distributed by BDP/Indire should be evidenced. All the principal producers of Italian and international ILMS announced the adoption of new characteristics in favor of interoperability, but the distance was much further than it seemed at the beginning for several reasons. For example (Associazione italiana biblioteche 2001): – support for UNIMARC/MARC: few systems are able to handle the two formats, many cannot handle UNIMARC (perhaps only Aleph supports it completely). For the cataloging module this is a fundamental aspect for guaranteeing the compatibility with national standards and for generally favouring the procedures of derived cataloging; – integration with metadata, in particular Dublin Core (Scolari, Pepe et al. 2002; Manzi and Martellini 2003); – integration in the catalog/OPAC of even remote electronic resources (Scolari 2000; Guerrini 2002); – interoperability: integration between data of library, archival, and other cultural heritage institutions, functionality of meta research (significant examples are Nexus and Akros initiatives). Some innovative experiences, which involve an extension of the services of the bibliographical area and the areas of major participation of the libraries in the institution with which they are affiliated should be evidenced. The problem of user education became a central one, with courses of information literacy which from the 90s became more widespread, first in university and school libraries then in public libraries (Tammaro 1999). The Firenze University Press (FUP) offered an important early program in 1995 on electronic publishing (Fontana Aschero 1998; Santoro 2001; Pelizzari 2002; Gruppo di lavoro sull’editoria elettronica, Pepeu et al. 2005). In this period, Italian libraries were quantified by ICCU as being about 15,000. 82% of these were equipped with PCs, but 39% of these had only one according to a report written by AIB in collaboration with ISTAT. 21% had a web site. Among the regions that were less equipped with technology (PC, e-mail, web site) were Molise and Campania, among the most advanced was Tuscany, in which 43% had a web site (Metitieri 2003; Metitieri and Ridi 2003; Mazzocchi and Ridi 2006). An interesting project of the BNCF, called “Improvement of the Services offered by the Italian National Bibliography and internationalization of the Italian book” (ARSBNI), began at the end of the

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1990s, indicating the move toward the digital library. Financed in 1996 by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities, the BNCF proposed to link the bibliographical record to digitized images thus permitting consultation via the Internet. It is possible to turn the pages on line of about 70,000 volumes published in Italy after 1994. The digitization and optic recognition for research of the full texts of indexes, title pages and first pages of the records is described in the BNI. In addition, 5,000 digital copies will be produced, for a total of about 1,250,000 pages of lost volumes of the BNCF’s collection as a result of the 1966 flood. As of 2008 the title pages and indexes of about 40,000 volumes are accessible.

Digital Libraries in Italy: The Beginning of the Twenty-First Century At the beginning of the new century, the situation of library automation in Italian libraries wass characterized by a widespread presence of libraries on the Web, with repertoires of Italian digital resources (Boretti 2000; Morriello 2002; Mura 2003) such as SegnaWeb (www.segnaweb.it) updated daily by AIB (Italian Library Association) and CILEA (University Consortium). As of 31 December 2002 the number of Italian library catalogs available on the Internet was equal to 598 OPAC units, registering an increase of 32% as compared to 2001, particularly for the OPAC of public libraries, according to the AIB report on the Italian libraries (Associazione italiana biblioteche 2001). We can also witness a progressive increase in the Consortia and Library Systems, adding to the cooperative management of cataloging and loan procedures, the management of the acquisitions procedure and the negotiation of licenses for digital periodicals and books (Tammaro 1999; Giordano 2001). The major technological innovation of this period is determined by the adoption of the Open Archives Initiative (OAI) protocols for harvesting bibliographic data, and PLEIADI, an integrated discovery tool for university institutional repositories. OAI-PMH has even been used outside institutional repositories, for the interoperability of OPAC and data bases. Besides the diffusion of wireless communication for efficient management of tangible resources, research and progress in digital preservation, end user navigation of the electronic environment through portals applications and meta data options were started during this period. The most important organizational event to point out is that in 2003 the new version of the SBN Index was opened, with a major opening for systems other than SBN in the poles. Beginning with Aleph, the migration into the Index of many systems in use in the libraries was assured. A progressive awareness of the flow of scientific communication and the new role that university libraries with institutional deposits assume, above

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all in university library systems, becomes ever more important (Cirocchi 1999; Tammaro and De Gregori 2004; Bevilacqua 2005; Bevilacqua 2006; Bevilacqua 2008). The Rectors of Italian Universities signed the Declaration of Berlin at Messina in favor of Open Access in scientific communication (Sacchi 2005). In university libraries the migration of all scientific periodicals and of a large part of databases in digital format and with access to the Web takes place (Pettenati 1997; De Robbio 1998; Tammaro 1998; Tammaro 1998; De Robbio 2001; Tammaro 2002; Vedaldi 2002; Bevilacqua 2003). The service of the e-book in the library begins, although still in an experimental way (Bertolla, Garosci et al. 1999; Longo 2001; Roncaglia 2001). The first example is that of the public library of Cologno Monzese, to be followed by many other public libraries. Another interesting aspect relates to the evolution of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology, that promises to substitute the traditional bar codes with systems of “intelligent” labels with chips which can dialog at a distance with the control system and be modified without having to be physically substituted. In this period the promotion of library automation by the European Union continues, but at the beginning with scarce participation from Italian libraries. Indeed, some of the most important projects of this period which had Italian partners did not include any libraries. However, Project Delos, accompanying measures for Action Key III, coordinated by the Institute for Data Processing of the CNR, acts as laboratory and meeting place of initiatives about the digital library. EULER (European Libraries and Electronic Resources in Mathematical Sciences) is another project, which includes eight European partners and the University of Florence Library System, is trying to build an integrated discovery tool for different types of digital resources (databases, OPAC, e-journals, pre-print, and grey literature) together with a document delivery service. At the end of 1990 the professional literature starts focusing on the digital library (Basili and Pettenati 1994; Bardi, Ciano et al. 1997; Basili 1997; Bardi 1998; Malinconico 1998; Tammaro 1998; Bergamin 1999; Seta 1999; Bergamin 2002; Ridi 2004; Barucci 2005; Tammaro 2007). The first digital library projects are developed by academic and special libraries (De Robbio, Di Girolamo et al. 2000; Falchetta 2000; Miolo 2000; Farsetti 2001; Ciotti 2003; Lunghi 2003; Magliano 2003; Casati 2006). But the cooperative effort and above all the public finances supporting programs of cooperation seem to have come to a halt as regards digitization, most likely due to the difficulty in finding adequate financing for converting information about the vast collections possessed by the libraries into digital form. This situation changes in 2002 with the beginning of the Project Minerva (Minerva Project 2004) and followed by Project Michael which involved ICCU and which took on the function of coordinating authority and launched the Project of the Italian Digital Library in 2005 (Associazione italiana biblioteche 2005; Ponzani and Solimine 2006). The ICCU is responsible for the Biblioteca Digitale Italiana (BDI – Italian Digital Library) and for the Portale

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Internet Culturale (Internet Cultural Portal) and is the Italian representative for Europeana, together with the BNCF, which contributes with Italian digital resources. The BDI project centralized criteria for the selection of collections for digitizing and has formed a Guiding Committee for this task. The digitization of historical catalogs has been singled out, considering that Italy lacks bibliographical information in digital format relating to historical collections owned by State libraries. A register of the digital collections created by all Italian libraries has been prepared by the Michael Project, the multilingual inventory of cultural heritage in Europe.

Education and Training for Library Staff The training of staff in the pioneer phase could not have been carried out in schools or universities. The training of staff took place in daily practice, but international conferences and the publication of books, mostly translations of international publications, had an important impact in Italy. In 1948 IFLA and FID activated a joint committee concerning professional education and retraining and the coordinator, Madame Suzanne Briet, director of the National Library of France carried out the first worldwide survey, concerning documentation systems and the professional education of librarians, preparing a report for UNESCO that was published in 1957. In Italy Bruno Balbis, director of the Center for documentation of the CNR, taught a first course “Tecnica dell’informazione scientifica”, at the University of Rome during the academic years 1956–1957 and in 1957–1958. In 1973 Carosella and Valenti published a first “Progetti di automazione nelle biblioteche italiane” and in 1977 CNR ISRDS in collaboration with the Italian Library Association (AIB) translated Richard Kimber’s book “Automation in libraries”. In 1975 Schools of Library Science came into being in Italy. The motivating force was the birth of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, together with regional decentralization and the assignment of responsibility for public libraries to the regions. The new offer of courses provided for the module “Organizzazione informatica delle biblioteche” opened in all library schools. However, due to lack of teachers, the module was put into the hands of engineers, who taught general content and neglected a specific approach to professional problems. Of great importance for the training of staff continued to be participation in conferences and publication of books and articles. The book, “Telematica e basi di dati nei servizi bibliotecari. Introduzione all’uso dei servizi di informazione in linea”, written by T.M. Lazzari, a researcher at ISRDS and published by La Nuova Italia Scientifica (Lazzari 1982). In 1986 a training course organized in Milan by Editrice Bibliografica had a notable impact and the learning material was published as a book (Peruginelli and Pettenati 1987).

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At the end of the 90s the project “New Book Economy” saw the light, in Italy promoted by the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Environments – General Office for Book Heritage and Cultural Institutions and financed by the EC as a Community Initiative ADAPT (Sola 1999). It was aimed at the whole sector of books (libraries, publishers, and book sellers), to help it face the difficult transition to electronic publishing. The aim was to evaluate the impact of new technologies and their consequent development on the entire book publishing chain in order to define the educational needs for training the work force in the library and publishing field, by identifying new professional profiles and realizing specific educational courses. The CREMISI project is an ideal continuation of the preceding project “New Book Economy”, aimed as it is in particular at book publishing. The key words of CREMISI were “media library”, obviously without forgetting the “information society”. However, the ideal “library” considered must manage, make useful, and develop not only traditional but multimedia material and new names were adopted, such as the multimedia library and the Internet library. Perhaps since they aimed at the creation of new professional figures such as the contents coordinator, the person in charge of the multimedia area, the library web watcher, etc. these initiatives had a limited impact (Landucci 1998). After the year 2000 university reform, spurred by the Bologna Process, began and had a heavy impact on the Italian Schools of Library Science. For the first time Masters courses at a postgraduate level were activated; an increasing number of universities offered these courses, but the technological competences continued to be weak in the curriculum (Berger 2001). The University of Parma in collaboration with the University of Northumbria activated a distance learning Masters course for the management of the Hybrid Library, which aimed at the education of library directors who would be responsible for managing change and the migration toward digital libraries. In 2006 a new Masters at the University of Parma was activated, specifically dedicated to the Digital Library: DILL Digital Library Learning. It was financed by the Erasmus Mundus Programme and open to students of different nationalities. In other library science schools the topic of the digital library tends to be marginal and inserted into the traditional cultural store of knowledge. The lack of training of in-service staff soon became evident, as staff members in libraries became responsible for managing projects of digitization and managing the digital collection. In 2004 the ICCU instituted e-learning Centers which were oriented to this specific educational need seeking to train the professional figure of the Manager of the Digital Library and the Documentation Specialist. A second cycle of courses on the digital library was offered in 2010, while periodical courses on specific subjects connected with SBN continue to be offered.

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Conclusion About 50 years after the beginnings of library automation, we are able to make a first reflection on library automation in Italy, on the objectives that have been reached and on those not yet realized. The application of technology has definitely bettered user services just as it has also permitted the extension of library functionality to other areas, such as education and publishing. At present the patrimony of almost all Italian libraries is searchable online in the OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog) of the Servizio Bibliotecario Nazionale (SBN – National Library Service) with its online services linked to loan and interlibrary loan. Automation and the digital library have certainly sanctioned the success of cooperation, even if it is only virtual and not accompanied by a change in organizational structure. State of the art examples are the Library Systems and Library Consortia which have assumed a definite physiognomy, assuming the role of collection development and leaving decentralized services near the user. All Italian libraries are in the phase which is called “hybrid”, when libraries offer services based both on their hard copy collection and their digital one (Tammaro 2006). What can we foresee happening in the next 20 years for developing digital libraries in Italy? It is always difficult to risk this type of forecasting, especially because of the continuous change in technologies and the economic and organizational situation in the institutional context of Italy as a whole. However, the author wishes to affirm that Italian librarians do not seem to be prepared to manage the great change represented by the digital library. Dematerialization is not only a change of support, as many authors claim. How is it possible to integrate the digital collection that is dematerialized with the proprietary concept of the collection as a “treasure” which has until now distinguished the concept of the library itself in Italy? The users’ role is changing too, even if now this user is “remote”: many of the libraries’ OPACs and portals are static and designed to receive passive “visitors”. Thus there is yet no knowledge of the extent of change and in particular the current organization and existing infrastructure for information communication is not ready for the management of the digital collection and the services based upon it. To evidence this affirmation, we can take as an example two services which are considered essential for library functioning: preservation and the catalog. In a conference held in Turin in 2010 and organized by Telecom (the system of mobile and fixed telephones and telecommunications in Italy), titled “2060: What will be the Sources for the History of Our Times? Comparison of techniques, practices and social sciences”, the speakers, of whom only a small minority represented libraries, evidenced that the majority of digital publications, above all the new publications such as blogs, web sites and multimedial resources, are neither organized nor preserved for long periods of time. Even for the digital publications for which libraries continue to feel

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responsible, as for example those preserved in institutional repositories which many university libraries have added as an extension of their service, there is no security of a trustworthy preservation program. There is only one project in Italy which is studying the problem, not only from the technological point of view but also from organizational one, namely for identifying responsibilities, and this is “Magazzini digitali” (Digital repositories) promoted by the National Central Library of Florence (BNCF), which continues to play a key role in the transformation of traditional libraries into digital libraries, aided in this project by the Fondazione Rinascimento Digitale (Digital Renaissance Foundation), a private organization whose mission is to stimulate the change to digital. The conclusion of the Turin conference, in addition to leaving open major questions, has evidenced the individual researchers’ tendency to construct their own personal libraries for managing the data which interest them, a tendency which naturally cannot guarantee any preservation of digital resources over a long period of time. Even for library catalogs, change evidences the need for a reflection that is still lacking. What must be included in the catalog? While many Italian libraries tend to include only printed publications, some libraries have begun to also insert data of digital publications in their OPAC (Marchitelli and Piazzini 2008). Nevertheless in this second case, they are mainly included in the category of digital publications which have a publishing cycle and which often have corresponding print versions. Thus many of the current digital publications on the Web which are interactive, multimedial or collaborative are excluded (Metitieri 2009). The difficulty which seems to be still unresolved here is that of clarifying the difference between “possession” of the bibliographical patrimony, to which the concept of a catalog is linked, and “access” to information, which is instead the basis of service in the digital library. This difficulty also arises again in the union catalogs, such as the SBN catalog or the ACNP catalog of periodicals, which the previous generation of librarians successfully produced in Italy. The SBN catalog rarely links the citation of a publication that is also present in digital format with the localization of its paper version in partner libraries. The ACNP catalog has a useful correspondence with the Table of Contents (TOC) of some cataloged periodicals, but does not have the availability of the full text, when this is present. Finally there are many discussions which librarians have activated on social networks, but the service procedures still remain traditional, and the new instruments of user participation in this service often are held to be a trend which does not affect the structured organization of the library. To the first organizational and structural problems which obstructed without blocking library automation in Italy, has recently been added the problem of sustainable development of the digital library (Tammaro 2011). Also the continuous obsolescence of hardware and software which increases yet more the move toward the centralization of services and the structural

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infrastructures. It would thus seem that the next 20 years of library automation will be the most difficult to successfully overcome, even if many of the achievements reached with difficulty so far are called into question. What strategies can libraries use to orient themselves in this change? Internationalization has had a big impact and the author believes that it will continue to have an important role in Italy. Library automation from the beginning in Italy was supported by such international organizations as FID, IFLA, and UNESCO and are presently oriented by the European project Europeana. The European reference frame has become more important and structured, not limiting itself to technical indications of standard, as it was in the beginning, but orienting from the outside the development of the digital environment of libraries for global access to information. For achieving success, although there are so many obstacles, all the creativity and preparation of professionals will be necessary to point out the future of libraries in the years to come. Thus the education and training of library staff becomes more urgent than it ever has been.

References Ammendola, G. 1998. Automazione e multimedialita` in biblioteca. Milano, Bibliografica. Associazione italiana biblioteche. 2001. Opac punto e a capo: quali cataloghi per il recupero delle informazioni bibliografiche in linea, atti della sessione a cura della Commissione nazionale Universita` ricerca e della redazione di AIB-WEB. Bibliocom 2001, atti del 48. Congresso nazionale dell’Associazione italiana biblioteche, Roma, 3–5 ottobre 2001. Roma, Associazione italiana biblioteche: 62–91. Associazione italiana biblioteche. 2005. Manifesto per le biblioteche digitali: http://www. aib.it/aib/cg/gbdigd05a.htm3. Roma, AIB. Bardi, L. 1998. “Prende forma la digital library.” Biblioteche oggi 16(10): 6–12. Bardi, L., L. Ciano, et al., eds. 1997. From database networking to the digital library, atti degli incontri organizzati dal Centro di Ateneo per le biblioteche con il patrocinio dell’Universita` degli studi di Padova, Padova, 5–6 Marzo 1997. Padova, Universita` degli studi di Padova: centro di ateneo per le biblioteche – Unipress. Barucci, M. 2005. “Prospettive e problemi della catalogazione delle risorse elettroniche.” Biblioteche oggi 23(9): 7–19. Basili, C. 1997. “Dalla biblioteca meccanizzata alla biblioteca virtuale: un tentativo di periodizzazione.” Biblioteche oggi 15(8): 30–35. Basili, C. and C. Pettenati. 1994. La biblioteca virtuale. Milano, Bibliografica. Bergamin, G. 1999. Uno standard per il deposito legale delle pubblicazioni online. The digital library, challenges and solutions for the new millenium, Bologna. Bergamin, G. 2002. “Progetti di digitalizzazione: strumenti e obiettivi.” Archivi & computer 12(3): 58–66. Berger, F. 2001. “Europa ante portas: riflessioni sull’offerta formativa delle universita` italiane con la’vvio del sistema 3+2.” Bollettino AIB 41(4): 481–492. Bertini, V. 2004. Sistemi di automazione. Rapporto sul le biblioteche italiane 2001–2003. V. Ponzani. Roma, Associazione italiana biblioteche: 88–100. Bertolla, G., T. Garosci, et al. 1999. “Per prepararsi agli ebooks: un fenomeno in espansione con il quale anche i bibliotecari italiani devono cominciare a misurarsi.” Biblioteche oggi 17(10): 10–16.

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Bevilacqua, F. 2003. “Usabilita` e uso dei periodici elettronici.” Biblioteche oggi 21(3): 5–13. Bevilacqua, F. 2005. “Aspetti della preservazione digitale: il caso degli archivi istituzionali.” Biblioteche oggi(Aprile): 9–13. Bevilacqua, F. 2006. Deposito e trattamento delle tesi nelle biblioteche dell’Universita` di Parma. Bevilacqua, F. 2008. “L’organizzazione dei depositi istituzionali DSpace in Italia.” Biblioteche oggi 26(6): 17–25. Boretti, E. 2000. “Valutare Internet: la valutazione di fonti di documentazione web.” AIB-WEB Contributi(febbraio). Casati, S. 2006. La Biblioteca digitale dell’Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza di Firenze: il modello Bibliotheca Perspectivae – arte e scienza della rappresentazione. Fiesole, Casalini. Ciotti, F. 2003. Teoria, progetto e implementazione di una biblioteca digitale: testi italiani in linea. Informatica umanistica: dalla ricerca all’insegnamento, atti dei convegni “Computer, literature and philosophy”, Roma 1999 – Alicante 2000. D. Fiormonte and G. Buccini. Roma, Bulzoni. Cirocchi, G. 1999. “Conservazione di risorse digitali: quali sfide?” Bollettino AIB 39(3): 289–302. De Robbio, A. 1998. “I periodici elettronici in Internet: stato dell’arte e prospettive di sviluppo.” Biblioteche oggi 16(7): 40–56. De Robbio, A. 2000. Vincenti e perdenti nelle sfide del database networking: dalle antiche torri ai sistemi clienti/serventi. La biblioteca amichevole: nuove tecnologie per un servizio orientato all’utente, atti del convegno “Biblioteche oggi”, Milano, 11–12 marzo 1999. O. Foglieni. Milano, Editrice bibliografica: 195–220. De Robbio, A. 2001. “Periodici elettronici nel ciberspazio.” 4 (2001), n. 3, < >.” Bibliotime 4(3). De Robbio, A., M. Di Girolamo, et al. 2000. “Le risorse elettroniche nei cataloghi: una discussione telematica della redazione di “OPAC italiani”.” AIB-WEB Contributi. Falchetta, P. 2000. “Guida breve alla digitalizzazione in biblioteca.” Biblioteche oggi 18(9): 52–67. Farsetti, A. 2001. “La digitalizzazione retrospettiva dei periodici: progetti e prospettive.” Biblioteche oggi 19(1): 20–23. Fontana Aschero, A. I. 1998. “Editoria elettronica nazionale.” Biblioteche oggi 16(9): 76–77. Giordano, T. 2001. “Consorzi per la condivisione di risorse informative elettroniche.” Biblioteche oggi 19(7): 16–26. Giordano, T. 2002. “Library co-operation on ICT in Italy: an overview.” Program: Electronic Library & Information Systems 36(3): 144–151. Gruppo di lavoro sull’editoria elettronica, C. C. d. b., G. Pepeu, et al. 2005. “Lo stato dell’arte dell’editoria elettronica negli atenei italiani.” Rapporto tecnico http://eprints. unifi.it/archive/00000819/. Guerrini, M., ed. 2002. Le risorse elettroniche: definizione, selezione e catalogazione, atti del convegno internazionale, Roma, 26–28 novembre 2001, con la collaborazione di Stefano Gambari e Lucia Sardo. Milano, Editrice bibliografica. Guerrini, M. and G. Frigimelica. 2009. “Libraries in Italy: a brief overview.” IFLA journal 35(2): 94–116. Landucci, G. 1998. Dall’audiovisivo al multimediale: nuovi servizi e vecchi problemi. 9. Seminario Angela Vinay. Lazzari, T. M. 1982. Telematica e basi di dati nei servizi bibliotecari : introduzione all’uso dei servizi di informazione in linea. Roma, NIS, 1982. Leombroni, C. 2004. “Appunti per un’ontologia delle biblioteche digitali: considerazioni sulla Biblioteca digitale italiana.” Bollettino AIB 44(2): 115–131.

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Longo, B. 2001. “L’e-book in biblioteca e il modello netLibrary.” Biblioteche oggi 19(2): 34–42. Lunghi, M. 2003. Introduzione alla Firenze Agenda. Conferenza Internazionale. Futuro delle memorie digitali e patrimonio culturale, Firenze, 16–18 ottobre 2003, ICCU. Magliano, C. 2003. Metadati: il dibattito nazionale e internazionale. Conferenza Internazionale. Futuro delle memorie digitali e patrimonio culturale., Firenze, 16–17 ottobre 2003., ICCU. Malinconico, M. 1998. “Biblioteche digitali: prospettive e sviluppo.” Bollettino AIB 38(3): 275–301. Manzi, S. and E. Martellini. 2003. “Il catalogo e le risorse elettroniche in biblioteca: un’integrazione possibile.” Bollettino AIB 43(1): 7–28. Marchitelli, A. and T. Piazzini. 2008. “OPAC, SOPAC e social networking: cataloghi di biblioteca 2.0?”. Biblioteche oggi, 2: 89–92 Mazzocchi, J. and R. Ridi. 2006. Indagine sui servizi online delle biblioteche pubbliche lombarde. Milano, Regione Lombardia. Metitieri, F. 2003. Comunicazione personale e collaborazione in rete: vivere e lavorare tra email, chat, comunita` e groupware. Milano, Angeli. Metitieri, F. 2009. “L’OPAC collaborativo, tra folksonomia e socialita`”. Biblioteche oggi, 2: 7–12 Metitieri, F. and R. Ridi. 2003. Biblioteche in rete: istruzioni per l’uso. Roma – Bari, Laterza. Minerva Project. 2004. Manuale per la qualita` dei siti Web pubblici culturali. Roma, Ministero per i Beni e le Attivita` Culturali. Miolo, A. 2000. Digitalizzare l’antico: una rassegna di progetti. Un’esperienza di formazione nell’Universita` di Padova: i contributi finali del corso per responsabili di biblioteca, gennaio-giugno 1999. M. A. Romeo. Padova, Universita` degli studi di Padova: centro di ateneo per le biblioteche – Unipress: 193–215. Morriello, R. 2002. “Gestire le raccolte elettroniche in biblioteca: problemi e prospettive.” Bibliotime 5(3). Mura, G. 2003. “Conservazione vs fruizione? Dal supporto cartaceo al supporto digitale.” Biblioteche oggi 21(7): 33–37. Pelizzari, E. 2002. “Crisi dei periodici e modelli emergenti nella comunicazione scientifica: uno spazio d’azione per le biblioteche.” Biblioteche oggi 20(9): 46–56. Peruginelli, S. and C. Pettenati. 1987. L’automazione in biblioteca. Materiali per un corso. Milano, Bibliografica. Pettenati, C. 1987. OPAC: on line public (patron) access catalogue. L’automazione in biblioteca: materiali per un corso. S. Peruginelli and C. Pettenati. Milano, Editrice bibliografica: 54–61. Pettenati, C. 1997. Biblioteche virtuali: i giornali elettronici. Il futuro e` arrivato troppo presto? Internet, biblioteche ed accesso alle risorse informative, convegno di studi, Cagliari, 14–15 novembre 1996. P. Mascia and B. Orru`. Roma, Associazione italiana biblioteche: 58–62. Ponzani, V. and G. Solimine. 2006. Rapporto sulle biblioteche italiane 2005–2006. Roma, AIB. Ridi, R. 1996a. Internet in biblioteca. Milano, Bibliografica. Ridi, R. 1996b. “La biblioteca virtuale come ipertesto.” Biblioteche oggi 14(4): 10–20. Ridi, R. 1998. “Biblioteche in rete e biblioteche virtuali: un tentativo di sistemazione concettuale e terminologica.” Biblioteche oggi 16(8): 22–28. Ridi, R. 2004. “La biblioteca digitale: definizioni, ingredienti e problematiche.” Bollettino AIB 44(3): 273–344. Roncaglia, G. 2001. “Libri elettronici: problemi e prospettive.” Bollettino AIB 41(4): 409– 439.

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Sacchi, S. 2005. “L’open access negli atenei italiani.” Biblioteche oggi. Santoro, M. 2001. “Pubblicazioni cartacee e pubblicazioni digitali: quale futuro per la comunicazione scientifica?” Memoria e ricerca: rivista di storia contemporanea 8 n. s.: 207–218. Scolari, A. 2000. Efficacia vs facilita`? Linee di evoluzione degli OPAC. La biblioteca amichevole: nuove tecnologie per un servizio orientato all’utente, atti del convegno di “Biblioteche oggi”, Milano, 11–12 marzo 1999. O. Foglieni. Milano, Editrice bibliografica: 145–158. Scolari, A., M. Pepe, et al. 2002. Appunti per la definizione di un set di metadati gestionaliamministrativi e strutturali per le risorse digitali, preparati per il Gruppo di studio sugli standard e le applicazioni di metadati nei beni culturali promosso dall’ICCU. http:// www.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/progetti/mag/MetaAGVZintroduzione.PDF. Firenze, Biblioteca nazionale centrale. Seta, E. 1999. “Digitalizzazione e linguaggi di marcatura.” Bollettino AIB 39(1–2): 63–79. Sola, P. 1999. I progetti europei di formazione a distanza: i progetti New book economy e Cremisi http://www.cedoc.mo.it/seminario/frames/sola_i.htm. I servizi formativi e informativi in rete, Modena, 3–4 giugno. Tammaro, A. M. 1998. “Dall’accesso alla conservazione: un’infrastruttura nazionale per la gestione delle risorse elettroniche.” Biblioteche oggi 16(2): 72–75. Tammaro, A. M. 1998. “L’Accesso conviene: economia della biblioteca elettronica.” Biblioteche oggi 1998(7): 60–64. Tammaro, A. M. 1998. “Modelli economici per i periodici elettronici.” Biblioteche oggi(5): 58–63. Tammaro, A. M. 1999. “Apprendere ad apprendere.” Biblioteche oggi 17(10): 46–52. Tammaro, A. M. 1999. “La cooperazione non e` piu` un mito.” Biblioteche oggi 17(2). Tammaro, A. M. 2002. “Periodici elettronici: dai preprint ai portali.” Biblioteche oggi 20(10): 50–53. Tammaro A.M. 2006) Biblioteche digitali in Italia: Scenari, utenti, staff e sistemi informativi : Rapporto di sintesi del Progetto Digital Libraries Applications coordinato e curato da Anna Maria Tammaro in collaborazione con Stefano Casati e Damiana Luzzi , [Firenze] : Fondazione Rinascimento digitale Tammaro, A. M. 2007. “Concetti e modelli della biblioteca digitale: risultati di uno studio Delphi.” Digitalia 2(dicembre): 116–127. Tammaro, A.M. 2011. Quanto costa la biblioteca digitale? M. BELOTTI (a cura di) Verso un’economia della biblioteca Milano: Bibliografica. Tammaro, A. M. and T. De Gregori (2004. “Ruolo e funzione dei depositi istituzionali.” Biblioteche oggi 22(10): 7–19. Traniello, P. 2005. Biblioteche e societa`. Bologna, Mulino. Vedaldi, M. 2002. “Periodici elettronici: come collaborare tra sistemi bibliotecari?” Biblioteche oggi 20(9): 28–31.

2.13 Kenya The Development of Academic Libraries and Information Services in Kenya John K. Chepkwony Introduction The history of academic libraries in Kenya dates back to the time when the first academic institution was established in Kenya. The inception of the University of Nairobi is traced back to 1956, with the establishment of the Royal Technical College that was later transformed into the second University College in East Africa on June 25, 1961 (University of Nairobi: 16). In 1970, the University College Nairobi was transformed into the first national university in Kenya and was renamed the University of Nairobi. Academic institutions have expanded since then, and today we have seven public universities, namely; the University of Nairobi, Moi University, Kenyatta University, Egerton University, Maseno University, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, and Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology. There are over 20 private universities, over ten public constituent university colleges, four polytechnics and several Institutes of Science and Technology. All these academic institutions have academic libraries to serve the information needs of the institutions. New and emerging technologies have taken root in Kenya. Kenyan universities have fully fledged departments in charge of ICT infrastructure, procurement and applications. The libraries have not been left behind in adapting to new and emerging technologies. Most libraries have automated their processes including acquisitions, cataloging and lending. E-mail communication has been adopted in libraries, and in all departments of universities. Academic libraries cannot effectively prepare for the future or position themselves on campus until they understand their changing roles in the current learning and research environment, which is radically different from the environment a decade ago. There have been radical changes in the Kenyan higher education sector and which are expected to continue in the foreseeable future. These include a significant increase in student numbers, changes in student funding with a shift away from government funding to repayable loans and parental or self-sponsored contributions to fees, expansion of distance education, focus on teaching quality and the growth in the use of ICTs. There is no indication that private universities are financially deprived but they still face

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the challenge of maintaining high standards. The changes brought about by ICTs have greatly revolutionized the delivery of information services from traditional services to electronic services. This is further compounded by the fact that the user requirements have also changed. The emergence of continuing education in the form of self-sponsored programs has brought along users who study after working hours and during weekends and therefore require library services during these periods. In order to be compliant with ICT technologies and customer requirements, libraries have had to adjust, leading to new ways of delivering information services and the extension of opening hours. Government policies and strategies have been put in place to streamline and strengthen academic institutions. Vision 2030 states, under the education and training sector, Kenya will provide globally competitive and quality education, training, and research (Kenya Government 2007: 6). Kenya aims to be a regional centre of research and development in new technologies. In pursuit of the goal of performance improvement within the public sector, new public management emphasizes the adoption of private sector practices in public institutions. In pursuit of this goal, Kenya introduced performance contracting not only to improve service delivery, but also to refocus the mindset of public service, away from a culture of being inward looking towards a culture of a business focused on customer and results (Obong’o 2009: 14). These practices have also led to rapid results initiatives. All these issues are meant to trickle down to the smallest units of government institutions and state corporations, including universities. Academic libraries are expected to be compliant with these policies and strategies. The ultimate goal of this chapter is to facilitate an understanding of the development practices of academic libraries in Kenya, how and why libraries are changing, make recommendations, and outline future projections and innovative suggestions that will better position academic libraries in Kenya to meet the needs and expectations of universities and library users of future generations. Literature review, observation, interviews, online survey of websites for academic institutions, and libraries in Kenya have been used to achieve the goal. I strived to attain the following objectives: a. review literature on international trends on academic libraries development, and the impacts of changing times and emerging technologies. b. identify and discuss current development practices pertaining to academic libraries and information services in Kenya. c. outline future projections and innovative suggestions for the future development of academic libraries in Kenya.

Literature Review According to Aguolu’s study (as cited in Okon 2005: 15), academic libraries have been, from their inception, an integral part of institutions of higher

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learning, rather than an appendix or adjunct. The academic library, like any other formal establishment, is designed and run by people whose job is to combine and use organizational resources to achieve organizational objectives. Over the past 25 years, academic libraries have been affected by changes in ICT. The rate of change is still accelerating in this area. Trends in the use of various ICTs have led to reorganizations, changes in work patterns, demand for new skills’, job retraining, and reclassification of positions. Technological developments of the past 25 years, such as the Internet, the World Wide Web (Web), electronic databases, online services, CD-ROMs, and electronic communication, have radically transformed access to information. Information is at present believed to be a fifth factor of production, which is by no means inferior to land, labor, capital, and the entrepreneur (Nwalo 2000: 13). In fact, Brandin and Harrison’s study (as cited by Nwalo 2000: 13) observed that, “information wealth is now a new type of capital described as knowledge capital”. In the same vein, Drucker’s study (as cited by Nwalo 2000: 13) alerted us that the systematic and purposeful acquisition of information rather than science and technology is emerging as the new foundation for work, productivity, and effort throughout the world. In what sounds like a confirmation of Drucker’s prediction, Bergdahl’s study (as cited in Nwalo 2000: 13) posits that information has become such a precious resource that the fate of modern nations in all essentials is connected with their capacity to develop and exploit it. He further predicts that in future, countries that do not develop this capacity will be left behind in cultural, scientific, and economic development. Apart from suffering from dependence on others, such countries will neither be partners in the global production of information nor will they contribute meaningfully to the common future of civilization. Bergdahl’s future is already here with us. A report of a symposium by the Commission for Higher Education (2003: 2) indicates that in the last three decades, university student enrolment in Kenya has increased by leaps and bounds from 3,400 in 1970 to 73,000 in 2002 in both public and private universities. Over the same period, the number of universities increased from two (The University of Nairobi and the United States International University), to 23 universities (public and private). Currently, the university student population in Kenya stands at over 200,000. Literature on academic libraries has addressed the implications of rapidly changing technology ever since it emerged as an issue that cannot be ignored. It appeared at first that the new technologies would eliminate print resources altogether and there would be a paperless society. What has emerged is a situation somewhere in the middle of those two extremes, popularly known as ‘Hybrid Libraries’, where print and electronic services are offered simultaneously. Boone (2003: 1) explored the idea that we need to change the way we think about libraries. He spoke of a paradigm change whereby we cease to think of libraries, as we have for centuries, as ‘monastic repositories of

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materials,’ but begin rather to think of them as institutions that are offering services to satisfy the demands of users. He suggests that libraries are expanding the domains in which they operate and need to focus more on being responsive to the needs of the community. Boone believes that facility planning needs to consider the development of community space within the library. The latest literature has pointed out the emergence of information commons. According to Lippincott (2006: 8), the underlying philosophy of information commons is to provide users with a seamless work environment so that they may access, manage, and produce information at the same workstation. Some information commons have hundreds of computers configured with a rich application suite as well as space for laptops. In contrast, workstations in many traditional libraries limit what users can do, namely, check the library’s catalog or access licensed information products and Web resources. Another major difference between information commons and traditional libraries is the way in which they accommodate groups. Traditional libraries have focused on providing quiet space for individual study. Occasionally, a few group study rooms are available, but they are considered a peripheral feature of the library. In an information commons, much of the space is configured for use by small groups of students, reflecting students’ desire for collaborative learning and combining social interaction with work. The overall goal of information commons is to improve services to the campus community by offering a seamless environment that supports the way people work. The pressure to transform our institutions of learning continues. According to Norris et al. (2003: 12), virtually every enterprise and institution is grappling with the disruptions and opportunities caused by Web-enabled infrastructures and practices. New best practices, business models, innovations, and strategies are emerging including new ways to acquire, assimilate, and share knowledge. Using technologies that are already developed or that will be deployed over the next five years, best practices in knowledge sharing not only are diffusing rapidly but will be substantially reinvented in all settings: educational institutions, corporations, government organizations, associations, and nonprofits. But institutions of learning are in a unique position to benefit from an added opportunity: providing leadership in e-knowledge. Norris et al. (2003: 12) examined forecasts and future scenarios prepared by technology futurists in Europe, North America, and Australia. These projections suggest that by 2010, the patterns of interactivity and the very manner in which we experience knowledge will be enriched. At an accelerated, turbulent pace, everything about knowledge experience will change, including the places in which we can experience knowledge, the intensity of our engagement with knowledge sources, the time sequence for accessing knowledge, our expectations about knowledge, our reliance on intelligent agents, our ability to multitask knowledge streams, and the amenity of knowledge experience. These changes will accelerate the demand for e-knowledge and for reliance on knowledge networks in a variety of forms and formats.

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Development Practices of Academic Libraries in Kenya Current development practices in the Kenyan academic libraries vary, and include automation, development of websites, electronic resources services, digitization of information, and capacity building, among others. WordNet online dictionary defines development as act of improving by expanding or enlarging or refining. Sustainable development is defined as a process in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and institutional change are all in harmony, and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations (World Commission on Environment and Development: 17). We have discussed the development of academic libraries in Kenya in line with these definitions. “What is important in life is not so much where you are standing today, but in which direction you are moving towards the future.” Kenya’s academic libraries are no exception to this saying. What then is our direction towards the future?

Collection Development in Academic Libraries The goal of collection development in academic libraries is to ensure that users get the information they require. Academic libraries in Kenya undertake collection development by acquiring books and journals (print and electronic) that meet the needs of the users. Acquisition is done through purchases, subscription, exchange programmes, and donation (gifts). Academic libraries in Kenya through the Kenya Library and Information Services consortium (KLISC) that was established in 2002, in partnership with the Programme for Enhancement of Research Information (PERI), subscribes to over 30,000 electronic journals. These resources are available online in libraries and also in many computer networks of the academic institutions. It is estimated that 50% of users access electronic resources. It is important to add e-books in the collection to reach more students, faculty and other users in the twenty-first century.

Automation of Academic Libraries The status of automation of academic libraries in Kenya is varied but several attempts have been made to ensure that the day-to-day activities ranging from acquisitions, cataloging, and loans are automated The first system to be used in Kenya was UNESCO’s system which was distributed free of charge. Most libraries used this software in the 1990s to automate their catalog databases. The earlier versions of the software could not facilitate other activities such as the

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loans and Web OPAC. This led to a search for integrated systems that could handle all the library operations. Currently, libraries are using different systems including the following: CDS/ISIS, WebLIS, KOHA, Vubis, Unicorn, and Library Soft, among others. The KOHA library system has taken root in Kenya. It is an open source library integrated system. A society was formed in Kenya in 2007 to promote the implementation of Koha software (Koha Kenya Society: 7). Koha Kenya is an Association of information managers, librarians, and information technology specialists whose main goal is to foster the diffusion of open source technology in libraries and information centres across Kenya. Currently the following libraries are members of the society: Strathmore University, St. Paul’s University, Tangaza College, Great Lakes University, Shalom Institute, National Assembly, and Kenya Revenue Authority, among others. All these libraries are at various stages of implementing the Koha system. Vubis Smart Library System is being used at the University of Nairobi Library. Though this system is a commercial product of Geac, the University of Nairobi got it from the Free University of Brussels, who developed the system and later sold it to Geac. In 2000, the Library was lucky to be included in Phase II of the Flemish Interuniversity Council (Vlir) funded projects of the University of Nairobi. Through the Vlir project the Library received library software, Vubis Smart, which is fully integrated modular software consisting of appropriate functions to cater for all library operations. The Library Automation Project has transformed the Library into an electronic environment and greatly improved delivery of information services. The implementation of automation in academic libraries in Kenya has had several challenges such as power blackouts, insufficient Internet infrastructure, insufficient automation expertise, among others.

Development of Websites for Academic Libraries Academic libraries in Kenya have developed websites for their libraries, but are in different stages of development. In order to establish the libraries that have developed workable websites, a Google search was performed using the search term ‘university site:.ke and Kenya’ on April 28, 2010, and itbrought back 33,500 results. In order to access the uniform resource locators (URLs) of the libraries’ websites, the library links on the universities’ homepage sites were used. The intention was to establish the academic libraries that had workable websites, and identify services available from the websites, such as OPAC, electronic resources, and access to digitized information. The search revealed that there are just over ten libraries with their own websites. The other libraries did not have separate URLs, apart from the parent organizations’ URLs.

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The development of websites for academic libraries has faced various challenges, such as insufficient website developers, hosting of websites, and inadequate infrastructure, among others.

Digitization of Information in Academic Libraries Academic libraries in Kenya are at the initial stages of digitizing their information resources (Musoke 2007: 10). The materials being digitized include: research projects, dissertations, conference proceedings, inaugural lectures, rare materials, and examination papers, among others. The digitization systems that are being used in Kenyan academic libraries are: Dspace and Greenstone Digital Library Software, which are both open source. It is hoped that this technology will open up the enormous amount of information in libraries that is currently not visible to the outside world, and improve the performance of the academic institutions in the world rankings. Digitization leads to knowledge sharing. Knowledge can be regarded as the only unique resource that grows when shared, transferred, and managed skilfully. The challenges of digitization include dealing with copyright issues and acquisition of the right type of digitization equipment, among other issues.

Information Services in Academic Libraries There are a number of information services that are offered by academic libraries in Kenya, such as study space, lending services, electronic information access, searching requests, information literacy, and dissemination of information, among others. Information services rely on a knowledgeable workforce and availability of human resources. Without adequate supply of appropriately trained and skilled personnel, the ability to provide quality information services may be inhibited (Kavulya 2004: 4). Academic library users are able to access over 30,000 electronic journal titles from the following databases that the libraries have jointly subscribed to through INASP: African Journals Online (AJOL), American Institute of Physics, American Physics Society (APS), British Library Direct, Cambridge University Press, EBSCO Host, Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, Gale Cengage Learning, Institute of Electronic and Electrical Engineers (IEEE), JSTOR, Oxford Journals (OUP), Royal Society of Chemistry, Springer E-Journals, Wiley-Blackwell, and the World Bank, among others. In addition there are several open access resources (journals and books), such as, AGORA, African Digital Library, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), HINARI, OARE, and the Oxford English Dictionary.

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Academic libraries in Kenya are marketing information services in a number of ways. Key areas of marketing include Websites, helpdesks, workshops, exhibitions, trade fairs, and information literacy programmes, among others. Academic libraries in Kenya participate in several exhibitions in an endeavor to market their services. The exhibitions include international exhibitions, inter-university exhibitions, and university open days.

Management Aspects of Academic Libraries Managing academic libraries encompasses human resource management, collection development, which is currently ‘hybrid’, i.e. print and electronic resources, ensuring security of the library and its users, and the management of the technologies used. Staffing of libraries is a concern in universities in Kenya. In addition to having qualifications in librarianship, the personnel are expected to have sufficient knowledge on applications of ICTs. To be appointed a university librarian, one is required to be a PhD. holder in information science discipline. Library management takes into account the population of users as well as their changing needs. The emergence of self sponsored programmes in the late 1990s has seen an increase in the number of users increased by almost five times. Most of these users study after work and therefore require information services during these periods.

Capacity Building in Academic Libraries Training of library personnel in Kenya has been addressed to some extent. There are three universities offering degree courses in library and information science. A number of personnel are currently pursuing their PhD. degrees from Moi University and other universities outside the country, mainly in South Africa. In addition to the formal courses, there have been a number of workshops and seminars within and outside the country on library and information services. Professional librarians are the engine of the vehicle that has driven university libraries to the achievements so far registered (Musoke 2007: 10). International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) in partnership with the Kenya Library and Information Services Consortium (KLISC) has sponsored a number of workshops in the field of library and information services in Kenya. Others that have also sponsored workshops in the same field include UNESCO, Overseas Development Authority of Europe (ODA), International Development Research Centre of Canada (IDRC), Electronic Information for Libraries Network (eIFL.net) and Bioline International, among others. In-house seminars have been conducted by various academic libraries to apprise their personnel of emerging issues.

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Funding of Academic Libraries Academic libraries in Kenya have four main sources of income, the parent organization, user fees, donor funding, and income generation. Of these four funding sources, university libraries depend mainly on funds allocation from their parent organizations. There is evidence that while funding support for libraries in private universities has been consistently commendable, the situation of the public universities has not been favourable, therefore limiting their intended goals and objectives. The Government’s recent launch of Vision 2030 has highlighted the need to fund academic institutions in order to realize the human resource vision targets by 2030 (Kenya Government 2007: 6).

Alliances, Cooperation and Partnerships in Academic Libraries The role of partnerships and cooperation in the development of academic library services in Kenya has been evident. Local associations, societies, and consortia have had their input, which enriches regional and international partnerships. UNESCO, INASP (PERI), ODA, IDRC, eIFL.net, and Vlir, are among the international partners that have contributed to the development of academic libraries in Kenya. UNESCO has supported the implementation of the following library systems in Kenya: CDS/ISIS automation system and Greenstone digitization system. Nooijer and Okwach (2009: 11) show that Flemish Interuniversity Council (Vlir) partnerships in Kenya include the University of Nairobi (1898–2007) and Moi University (2007–2016). The cooperation contribution includes facilitation of ICT capacity building and library development, training, library automation, access to scientific information, and repositories of information. Kenya Education Network Trust (KENET) is a national research and education network that promotes the use of ICT in teaching, learning, and research in higher education institutions in Kenya (KENET: 5). KENET aims to interconnect all the universities, tertiary, and research institutions in Kenya by setting up a cost effective and sustainable private network with high-speed access to the global Internet. KENET also facilitates electronic communication among students and faculties in member institutions and shares learning and teaching resources by collaborating in research and development of educational content. PERI is a program that was developed through the initiative of International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP). PERI aims to support capacity building in research sectors especially in developing countries. It strengthens the production, access and dissemination of information and knowledge. As an information provider, PERI is coordinated by local organizations and guided by local demands. It brings together libraries,

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government, research institutions, academia, development agencies, commercial and non-commercial publishers, editors, trainers, and other information providers. PERI electronic journals and databases have an increased recognition for the vital role they play in promoting information and knowledge which impacts on social-economic and political development in a country and also for the potential of new ICTs within it. PERI provides electronic access to journals to Kenyan academic libraries through KLISC. KLISC has proved to be an extremely cost effective cooperative venture that provides prompt access to current quality information from electronic journal publishers such as Emerald, Oxford, Blackwell’s Synergy, African Journals Online, etc. Kenyan educational and research institutions have found the consortium to be particularly valuable as the KLISC initiative has addressed the information gap that was experienced for a long time in Kenyan educational institutions in terms of shortage of or lack of current journal literature to facilitate research and learning. Kenya Library Association (KLA) has continued to play an active role in the consortium since its inception, and encourages its members to enlist and pay up their subscriptions.

Future Projection and Innovative Suggestions for Academic Libraries Corporations must be able to adapt and evolve if they wish to survive. Innovation requires a change, i.e. change in the way we think and change in the way we act. These changes may be small or big. In life cycle management, the ambition is to make continuous improvements to existing products and services. Changes are incremental. As the times continue to change and new technologies emerge, customer requirements also change. libraries have to keep on adapting to new technologies in order to be relevant and useful to the next generation of users. Here we discuss projections and innovative suggestions that we see for Kenyan libraries in future. – Institutional repositories: for Kenyan academic libraries to be of use and relevant to a future generation of users, they must digitize the information resources within their boundaries and make them available on the Web. The open access initiative states that any work which results from public funded projects should be digitized and made available on the web, free of charge. We suggest that all academic libraries in Kenya devise ways of digitizing information within their domains. – User feedback: libraries should always get feedback from users in order to know their requirements. An electronic suggestion box to be located on libraries’ websites will enhance the feedback from users. This technology has been tried in other university libraries. Kenyan

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university libraries must embrace this technology in order to be abreast with the current user needs, and respond to user feedback. Library access: most academic libraries have extended their opening hours based on users‘ requirements. Some are operating on Saturdays and Sundays. Following international trends, it is projected that by the year 2025, all academic libraries in Kenya will be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Wireless access: the development of wireless communication is enabling technology-rich environments in which individuals can carry devices like notebook computers, PDAs, cellular phones, pagers and a myriad of converging tools that open new opportunities for communication and knowledge sharing. Academic libraries in Kenya need to take advantage of these technologies and develop services that can be accessed usingwireless technologies. All future mobile phones will be web-enabled, meaning that users can access information from wherever they are. Open access resources will therefore be handy. Information access: the future generation of users believes that all information is on the Web. If information is not on the Web, then it does not exist. Therefore there is a need, for all academic libraries in Kenya, to put in place the relevant infrastructure in order to exploit new information technologies effectively. The time is now ripe for academic libraries in the university environment to take the lead. Selective searching of information: Web searching technologies of the future will use intelligent search engines. The librarians will exploit the use of these technologies to selectively search for information of a given user profile. They anticipate an enhancement in dissemination and use of information. Information commons: the underlying philosophy of information commons is to provide users with a seamless work environment so that they may access, manage, and produce information at the same workstation. Most academic libraries in Kenya have not embraced this technology. We hope that the libraries will embark on this technology, as it is the trend internationally for future libraries. Information printouts: in future, patron requested copies will be in colour or, more frequently, on multi-media DVDs or the technology that supercedes them (Marcum 2003: 9). Articles, videos, audios, and ondemand printing of articles and pages of e-books will be commonplace. This is an area that Kenyan academic libraries can venture into to generate income. Organizational aspects: personnel positions in academic libraries will be reclassified to reflect the use of emerging technologies in the libraries in line with international trends. New positions, such as, Systems Librarian, Electronic Resources Librarian, Digitization Librarian and ICT technicians, among others, will be common.

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– Staff recognition awards: the goals of personnel management have changed over the last 20 years. In the past, people’s hearts were in the work. Good job performers were rewarded and advancement was possible. Employment benefits typically awarded included vacation time, health care, and sick leave. In the twenty-first century, employees want to be acknowledged in new ways; they need different benefits and rewards. They want to contribute and be acknowledged differently. In view of the above, one aspect of rewarding (motivating) library personnel is to give them awards on an annual basis and in different categories.

Conclusion Emerging technologies and changing user requirements shall determine how academic libraries in Kenya will be managed in order to cope and be relevant to future generations of users. A quotation by Amit E. (1980) states, If we refuse to learn from our past and ignore the lessons from our mistakes, we would erroneously brag about our ten years of working experience, when instead, we should actually be talking of one year experience repeated ten times. (Dr. Eric Amit, 1980 – Diploma Student Lecture at Coady International Institute, Canada)

This statement is applicable to academic librarians in Kenya, who are expected to learn from their mistakes and streamline the development of academic libraries. It is our hope that the parent organizations and government will continue to support the development of academic libraries. Librarians hope that partnerships and cooperation shall play their part in the development process. Librarians foresee all academic libraries in Kenya developing dynamic websites that facilitate online access to information. It has been said that: “Libraries are reservoirs of strength, grace and wit, reminders of order, calm and continuity, lakes of mental energy, neither warm nor cold, light nor dark. The pleasure they give is steady, unorgastic, reliable, deep and long-lasting.” by Germaine Greer (1939–), and, John F. Kennedy once said “Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource.” Librarians share these views in promoting the development of academic libraries in Kenya in line with the changing times and emerging technologies.

References Boone, M. D. 2003. “Monastery to marketplace: a paradigm shift”; at: http://www. emeraldinsight.com/Insight/, retrieved on March 13, 2009. Commission for Higher Education, Kenya (2003). Re-Engineering University Education for National Development : A Report of Symposium on University Education. Nairobi: CHE, 184 P.

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INASP. n.d. Programme for Enhancement of Research Information (PERI), at: http://www. inasp.info/, retrieved on May 17, 2010. Kavulya, J. M. 2004. University Libraries In Kenya : A Study of their Practices and Performance; at: http://edoc.hu-berlin.de/dissertationen/, retrieved on April 13, 2010. KENET. n.d. Kenya Education Network, at http://www.kenet.or.ke/, retrieved on May 17, 2010. Kenya Government. 2007. Kenya: Vision 2030: A Globally Competitive and Prosperous Kenya; at: http://www.safaricomfoundation.org/, retrieved on April 26, 2010 Koha Kenya Society. n.d. Review – Greatsa Koha Training Workshop; at: http://kohakenya. wordpress.com/, retrieved on April 9, 2010. Lippincott, J. K. 2006. “Linking the Information Commons to Learning”; at: http://net. educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/PUB7102g.pdf, retrieved on March 13, 2009. Marcum, J. W. 2003. Visions: The Academic Library in 2012; at: http://www.dlib.org/dlib/ may03/marcum/05marcum.html, retrieved on April 12, 2010. Musoke, M. G. N. 2007. Strategies for Addressing the University Library Users’ Changing Needs and Practices in Sub-Saharan Africa; at: http://archive.ifla.org/IV/ifla73/Sat1Musoke-en.pdf, retrieved on April 13, 2004. Nooijer, P and A. Okwach. 2009. Final Evaluation of IUC Partner Programme with the University of Nairobi, Kenya; at: http://www.vliruos.be/downloads/IUC_final_evaluation_ UoN.pdf, retrieved on April 14, 2010. Norris, D. M. et al. 2003. A Revolution in Knowledge Sharing; at: http://net.educause.edu/ ir/library/pdf/ERM0350.pdf, retrieved on March 25, 2009. Nwalo, K.I. N. 2000. Managing information for development in the 21st century: prospects for African libraries, challenges to the world, at: http://archive.ifla.org/IV/ifla66/ papers/012-114e.htm, retrieved on May 17, 2010. Obong’o, S. O. 2009. Implementation of Performance Contracting in Kenya; at: http:// www.idt.unisg.ch/org/idt/, retrieved on April 27, 2010. Okon, H. O. 2005. Effective Communication and Smooth Administration of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century: a New Paradigm in Nigeria, at: http://unllib.unl.edu/LPP/ okon.htm, retrieved on May 17, 2010. University of Nairobi. n.d. University of Nairobi: Background, history and settings; at: http://www.uonbi.ac.ke/about-us/?id=5, retrieved on May 13, 2010. World Commission on Environment and Development. n.d. Our Common Future: Towards Sustainable Development, at: http://www.un-documents.net/ocf-02.htm, retrieved on May 17, 2010.

2.14 Mexico Academic Libraries in Mexico with an Emphasis on the Use of Technology in Mexican State University Libraries Jesu´s Lau and Javier Tarango Introduction Mexico is the most populated nation in the Spanish speaking world and has the second largest economy in Latin America. It borders with the United States of America in the north, Belize and Guatemala in the south-east, the Gulf of Mexico in the east, and the Pacific Ocean in the south. Its population in July 2011 was 113,724,226 (Wikipedia and Wiki answers 2011). It is politically divided into 31 states and a federal district (Mexico City). The country has a presidential government with a constitutionally strong Congress and a Supreme Court. The President is elected by the citizens of Mexico for a non-renewable six year term. (Lau 2009). The literacy rate in Mexico at present is 93.4% (Wikipedia 2011) Libraries in the sense of the western world developed in Mexico after the Spanish conquest in 1519. The colonial libraries were basically for Spaniards. They developed at a slower pace after the independence of Mexico from Spain in 1810. The National Library was opened in 1867. Libraries were officially opened to the entire population during the regime of Porfirio Diaz from 1876– 1910 but the literacy rate at that time was only 10%. The decades from the 1920s to the 1960s were a formational period, with the creation of some basic library instructions including the first library school and the library association. The significant library development occurred after 1970 (Lau 2009). States provide some funding for education and libraries, as well as setting some of the educational requirements but policy making is generally centralized by the federal government. For example, the Ministry of Public Education provides funding and direction in different levels in to all types of libraries, except special libraries (Lau 2009). Academic libraries are the most developed. They hire the greatest number of liberty professionals, have the largest budgets and they acquire the latest technology. The medium and large academic libraries tend to have good facilities and services. The second group of libraries that runs well in Mexico is public libraries; in fact it is the largest library system in Latin America. The third type of libraries that also have achieved significant development are special libraries. They certainly are well organized, wellfunded, and provide some of the best information services. (Lee 2010) School libraries are the least developed, they hardly exist, and those that do have limited resources. There are approximately 5,000 school libraries in more than 120,000

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Jesu´s Lau and Javier Tarango schools. On a positive note, however, the Federal Government has had a reading program that has been quite successful in providing small library collectors to all schools in the country whether they are public or private. According to federal government statistics, the government has distributed more than 200 million books to schools in the last ten years. (Lee 2010)

General Background The structure of the Mexican academic libraries system is basically formed of four types: state university, technological institutions, teacher institutions and private university libraries. The first three groups, as may be expected, are financed by the government, either federal or state, and rarely by municipalities (counties). The total number of universities varies according to the source consulted. The National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions, or ANUIES (Asociacio´n Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior) which includes mainly state universities, some technological institutes and a few private ones, reports 127 public and 263 private higher education institutions (ANUIES 2011). However, the total for all types of institutions, small and large, is 1,482 according to statistics from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography, or INEGI (Instituto Nacional de Estadı´stica y Geografı´a 2005). The State universities include the best academic libraries. They belong to the 45 state higher education institutions that are normally the largest in every state (ANUIES 2011). There is one state university per state, except in seven, where there are two higher education institutions and Mexico City which has several (ANUIES 2011). All of them are autonomous; this means that they can take their own academic and organizational decisions, unlike other higher education institutions in other categories. State universities provide undergraduate education to 2,528,664, i.e., 36.9% (ANUIES 2008; INEGI 2005) of the national student population. Libraries in these institutions are affiliated under the National Council for Library Matters of Higher Education Institutions, or CONPAB-IES (Consejo Nacional para Asuntos Bibliotecarios de Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior) that includes as full members 41 (40 public and one private) and eight guest academic libraries whose parent organizations cannot be fully defined as universities (CONPAB-IES 2008). Besides their own institutional budgets, state university libraries are generally financed through the Integral Program for Institutional Support or PIFI (Programa Integral de Fortalecimiento Institucional) in addition to their own institutional budgets (COMPAB-IES 2008). The total of Technological institutes is 242, the first was founded in 1949, besides the National Polytechnic Institute or IPN (Instituto Polite´cnico Nacional 2007), located in Mexico City. IPN is to technological institutes as UNAM is to universities; it was the first and is the largest technological higher

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education institution in Mexico with 142,861 students. It has 72 libraries, including the specialized ones that serve faculties and research centers in its different campuses. There are, in addition, two types of technological universities: technological and polytechnic. Both are newcomers to the Mexican education scene. The first technological universities were founded in 1991 (Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica 2008a). Each of them receives joint funding from the state where it is located and from the federal government. The degrees are of a two-year college level, called “Te´cnico Superior Universitario”. The current number is 65 that are centrally coordinated from their headquarters in Mexico City. Their total enrollment was 66,660 students nationwide in 2006 (Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica 2008b), and several had fewer than a thousand students. The polytechnic universities, on the other hand, are a newer development within the national education system. In the case of the Teachers’ Institution Libraries, there are 457 teacher institutions, usually called Normales (Secertarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica 2008c). In addition, pedagogical and education studies are offered at state and private universities, but their library resources are included under the corresponding type of institution. Private university libraries vary dramatically according to the size of their parent institutions. According to the Ministry of Public Education, there are 667 institutions of this type. There are a handful of large private universities; over one hundred medium-sized, and over 500 small ones (Presidencia de la Repu´blica, Me´xico 2008). The large private institutions are generally excellent. Their libraries are well-funded and they provide excellent information services. An example is the Technology Institute of Monterrey (Tecnolo´gico de Monterrey). This institution is the largest private university with a national network of 33 campuses, each with a library. Other large private universities with excellent libraries include the Anahuac University (Universidad Anahuac) with 10 campuses, the University of Monterrey (Universidad de Monterrey), the Ibero-American University (Universidad Iberoamericana) with five campuses outside the capital of the country, plus other universities with outstanding library services, such as the University of the Americas (Universidad de las Americas, Puebla), Valle de Me´xico, the Technological Autonomous Institute of Mexico (Instituto Tecnolo´gico Auto´nomo de Me´xico), and Panamerican, among others. They are normally affiliated with the Federation of Private Mexican Institutions of Higher Education, or FIMPES (Federacio´n de Instituciones Mexicanas Particulares de Educacio´n Superior) (FIMPES 2008), a national association that includes 114 institutions. Out of more than an estimated 2,000 learning centers of all types, 1,482 have libraries. State university and large private universities provide the largest library budgets, a faster collection of information and offer the most innovative provision of services. They are also the main customers of international

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vendors, the leaders in acquisition of technological equipment and the libraries with the best Internet infrastructures among all types of academic libraries (Lau 2009).

Trends in Education and Technology Current education trends can be identified in multiple ways, but especially in the way that people teach and learn. According to Hammond (2008), two of the key elements in daily learning are in the way information is accessed, and in the way knowledge is acquired that, in turn are intrinsically related to the use of technology. Hammond believes that educational institutions at all levels, if they are to meet their mission, must develop activities that motivate faculty and students to increase use of information and technology, offering educational alternatives based on the Internet. Hence, educators and learners may have more opportunities to access the technological scaffold, structured-information databases, and web repertories, as well as strategies to promote computer/human productive interfaces. Hammond’s proposal (2008) definitely addresses the responsibility that institutions have to create information and technological environments with the underlying goal of providing an integrated learning experience to the student. The alternative, not discussed in this paper, is the individual‘s decision to access information and to use technology outside the educational setting. For instance, Attewell (2005) describes the spread of devices allowing free access to information as a recent phenomenon exponentially growing through the use of mobile phones, MP3 players and PCs, which are part of daily life, to a greater or lesser extent, for many students and educators. The discussed concepts assume the possibility of an educational change from a formal institutional perspective with the inclusion of technology as a key learning ingredient, but other experts’ perspectives stress the need to incorporate into the institutional pedagogical process the increasingly popular adoption of technological devices related to pop culture. Cox and Marshall (2007) give strong reasons to merge information and communication technologies (ICTs) and teaching-learning methodologies, as well as the inclusion of equipment and media products formerly considered as part of the entertainment industry into the formal education environment. They suggest the definition of government policies, redirection of education programs, development of a national curriculum, redesign of classroom dynamics, and analysis of education’s cost-benefits. The use of mobile technologies as teaching-learning tools has created a new concept “m-learning” or mobile learning researched by Herrington and Herrington (2004) and Bruns, Cobcroft, Smith, and Towers (2007), who believe that these types of technological alternatives ignite cognitive processes, similar to the ones in traditional educational methodologies in which constructivism,

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collaborative and cooperative, informal, and meaningful, lifelong learning approaches merge. This point is further explored by Herrington et al. (2009), Lefoe and Olney (2007) narrowing the concept to m-learning in higher education, where they also analyze its impact by considering how it may influence faculty and other forms of teaching-learning environments, such as adult education, environmental education, information literacy, virtual education, and the learning of specific subjects such as mathematics and physics. The formalization of educational processes using mobile technologies or performing any information search outside a formal context, such as the library, was studied by Patten, Arnedillo-Sa´nchez, and Tangney (2006), stating that these actions, using technology devices, lead the subject (user) to develop information management functions; as well as to develop reference skills by accessing electronic data, such as books, serials, websites, or just by simply responding to certain tasks through these interactive activities. As a theoretical conclusion, the library can justify its academic role in the midst of these technological changes, considering its role to incorporate technology to access information, to digitize collections, and to respond to users’ individual needs, thus enhancing remote information availability through the use of new technologies. The academic library needs to formalize the use of technologies that were formerly considered as mere entertainment tools, and turn them into direct access tools to available resources.

Research Objectives Due to the introduction of technology in Mexican libraries, it was decided to analyze the current status of the use of new technologies in library systems of all Mexican state universities, using quality measurements. Most Mexican libraries use such quality measurement standards to assess the use of physical documents and collection infrastructure but with less emphasis on service related to the use of information and communication technologies (Arriola Navarrete 2006). Moreover, libraries tend to focus on activities that take place within their facilities without formally considering what happens outside, especially in users‘ interaction with information technology media. The objective of this survey was to evaluate the adoption of new technologies by library systems of Mexican state universities in management functions and in the provision of information services, with the following specific objectives stated in the introduction of this chapter: a) identify library management software available either via in-house production or subscribtions to software companies; b) identify the use of software for virtual information services through search engines, virtual reference software, and digital repositories programs; c) evaluate number of computer staff available to perform information technology functions and number of computers for user services; d) identify the adoption and use of social networks or collaborative tools for the promotion of information services.

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Methodology The scope of the study was higher education libraries, and the population selected was state university library systems that are the most representative institutions in Mexico, because of their student population and the size of their library holdings; both are the major ones in the country. Among these cases were the university libraries of Mexico City, but they were excluded because of their macro characteristics which make them outliers in the selected population. The population of state universities shares similar legal, political, and academic features, with the exception of five libraries of research centers or schools that are not universities in the proper sense of the word. The library systems of these universities are members of the Consejo Nacional para Asuntos Bibliotecarios de las Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior (CONPAB-IES) (National Council for University Library Matters in Higher Education Institutions), founded in 1984. The library members who take part at the association are normally directors or deans of the state university library systems. Currently, there are 40 members (only one of them belongs, an additional exception, to a private institution) divided in seven geographical regions (CONPAB-IES 2009). Corte´s-Vera and Lo´pez-Ruelas (2011) state that CONPAB-IES’ mission is to promote the development of library systems in universities through the exchange of information resources and expertise, as well through the creation of guidelines to favor collaboration, the professional growth of personnel, and, most importantly, the quality of education at national universities. The Council’s strategic goals (CONPAB-IES 2005) are to a) make interlibrary cooperation a reality through a coordinated plan; b) unify, not uniform, the associates’ criteria on library science and the development of professional service concepts; and to c) promote the continuous assessment of user services quality. The population of academic libraries described was studied using an eleven-question survey (See Appendix 1: “Questionnaire: Use of Technology: State University Libraries”). Questions were divided into four categories, plus the demographic information section. Participating institutions had the choice to complete the questionnaire by themselves or answer it via a telephone interview. The phone interviews were done directly with the person in charge of the library system or someone specifically appointed to provide the requested information. Thanks to a telephone follow up the 40 CONPAB-IES members of the library systems and smaller libraries answered the questionnaire. 72.22% of the respondents were directors of the library network of their university; 22.22% were directors of library or information centers since they offer centralized services or from one central library; 5.55% were deputy directors or department managers within the library network (these were in the cases when the directors could not undertake the phone call).

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Findings Analysis It is important to mention before the questionnaire results are analyzed that participating universities significantly vary in size. Therefore, data analysis was mostly undertaken considering the institutions’ enrollment size, except for some variable results that were globally assessed, when it was felt that some information was better portrayed as a single data block. According to Galaz Fontes (2005), there is no classification system for universities in Mexico, but the main national organizations such as the Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica (SEP) (Public Education Ministry) and the Asociacio´n Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior (ANUIES) (National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions) handle universities’ information in different groupings that are assumed as classification systems, but there is no general agreement on these categories. Consequently, in this study, the framework of Galaz Fontes (2005) and Galaz Fontes and Garcı´a Sevilla’s proposal (2006) is used. It consists of grouping institutions according to their size, not only using enrollment but also including number of majors, and faculty. The criteria categorize state universities as (See Figure 1): a. small: institutions with few (less than 15% of total undergraduate enrollment) or no high school students; and between 75 and 100% of the students are in specialized undergraduate programs (4–5 years). They also lack or have just a few graduate programs, if they do, they focus on a few Master level degrees. In some institutions, graduate studies tend to be the major academic offer. b. medium: higher education institutions with more than 25% of their enrollment at high school level. They offer specialized undergraduate majors and graduate enrollment is small. c. large: these institutions enroll 40,000 or more students. 20 to 50% of the enrollment is at high school level. Specialized undergraduate programs represent more than 90% of the total enrollment. Graduate programs play an important role and research takes place at the institution’s own research centers and institutes. The classification of Mexican universities has different angles, therefore, in this study, the approach was to focus on the size criterion to categorize state universities, because there are other kinds of higher education institutions, with multiple types in between, such as the ones described by Lau (2009) who groups them by general subject and source of their income. Other categorizations include public versus private institution or state universities, institutes of technology, polytechnic universities, technological universities, and teacher schools. Public state-funded organizations, the ones that cater for most of the student population, have their income sources from the federal, state or

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municipal governments, but the majority of them have some funding from the Public Education Ministry. Based on the formerly described classification of state universities’ library systems, the surveyed population was 13.5% small, 64% medium, and 22% of large institutions. 60,000

55,948

Student Population

50,000

40,000

30,000 23,481 20,000 8,338

10,000

0 Small

Medium University Size

Large

Figure 1: Average student population by university size University Size Large 22%

Small 13.5%

Medium 64.5%

Figure 2: State university by enrollment size (%)

The results of the survey include the assessment of just 36 library systems and libraries, because four CONPAB-IES member institutions were left out of the study due to their small enrollment that distorted the study results. Three of them have fewer than 100 graduate students and one of them is basically a school with three undergraduate programs with an enrollment of approximately 500 students. These institutions, in general, focus on graduate studies or offer a

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limited number of programs and their conditions skewed the overall data analysis. The institutions that were excluded belong to the metropolitan area (two), one to the Northwestern region and one more to the Central-Western region of Mexico. The data gathered from the 36 participating universities showed that 83.7% have a library system with a central library and one or more departmental units (in some cases more than 50), usually one for each school or faculty, and 16.13% indicated they had one library because their parent institution normally has an administrative departmental model. Findings are arranged, and discussed in the following sections, in the four research axis: software, virtual information services, computer staff, and social networking tools, according to the overall objective and the specific goals previously outlined.

Software This category was devoted to studying the kind and capabilities of integral software used by each library system or library to manage their overall operation, identifying if they are developed in-house or commercially acquired from a vendor. The first survey question in regard to whether or not the library system (as mentioned before, this also includes institutions with just one library) had library management software, it was found that 100% of the participating institutions use one. This means that all libraries in the study have, or seem to have, automated operations in all their processes, from collection development and organization to the provision of information services. The result was the expected one because the use of integral software is a tool which has been gradually adopted since the 80s, when the first library automation projects, as well as the use of other computer technologies, began in Mexico (Silva Zamora 1989). Back then there was a glimpse of the positive substantial impact in the development of library services management (Suaiden 1990). The library systems in state Mexican universities follow international trends by installing commercial packages from specialized companies, 90.32%, followed by 9.67% who have chosen to develop and rely on their own software. The main library management systems, eight brands in total, are shown in Figure 3. Obviously, the local software packages have the advantage of providing a better response to the specific needs of the library, but have the disadvantage of generally lacking standardization and strength due to their limitation to one institution (Stallman 2004). Homemade systems are usually created at the university’s computer department and are not likely stick to international standards, such as the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules or MARC tags. Taking into account personal experience, although there is no study on the subject, such limitations reduce data transfer capacity with other systems.

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35.00 30.00 25.00 20.00 15.00 10.00 5.00

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Figure 3: Library management systems

Virtual Information Services Paredes and Caldera (2006) state that virtual information services are mainly linked to reference information systematization and digitization, availability to access new technological developments, website design, digital library projects, acquisition of electronic publications, availability of information services to support virtual services, and online public catalogs, just to mention the main services. However, in this study, virtual information services, the second component of the study, was narrowed to the availability of electronic information collections, reference information services, and search engines to locate and retrieve information by users, regardless of their geographic location. The following question was about the availability of search engines, defined as tools that do not have a database but use other databases’ functions to locate the information requested by the user in a federated search, that is, when the query may be done through a document’s table of contents or may be forwarded to an external content repository. The survey showed that only 32.25% of the library systems had access to such search engines, and the remaining 67.74% lacked them.

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The search engines used as information tools by the surveyed cases were: Metalib (used by 32.25%) and Single Search (used by 23.07%). 46.05% reported the use of search engines; however, they did not know their names, a fact that raised the question of whether these library systems really had a search engines or not. Taking into account all responses, including the doubted ones, the results were low, confirming that there is a potential loss of the databases’ access, and therefore, a loss of money invested in electronic resources subscriptions at these universities, because usually users do not bother to go beyond two or three databases to find what they are looking for OCLC (2009). 50

46.15

45 40 35 30.76 %

30 23.07

25 20 15 10 5 0 Metalib

Singlesearch

Did not know the name

Search engines

Figure 4: Search engines

In regard to the use of electronic resource management software (i.e. tools that enable the search for electronic periodicals and e-books) and after providing them some software examples, such as OpenURL Linker, Single Search (SIRSI), OCLC Link Manager and ExLibris SFX; 35.48% of the institutions claimed to have these tools, whereas 64.51% reported not having them. Findings were fairly similar to search engine results. This leads to the conclusion that the same universities may likely have both software resources as part of their virtual library services. A question that was not asked, but it was assumed to be the case, is that most library systems do subscribe to journals and other type of periodicals. The most common electronic resource management software used were: ExLibris SFX, OCLC, and DSpace, even though DSpace does not comply with this category because it is a repository management software. Each of the four options, correct or not, were reported to be used by three library systems. Nine other systems (23.07%), in addition, reported also using this kind of

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software; nevertheless, six of them (15.38%) did not recall their names. Once more, the lack of information about the name of the electronic resource management software raised the question of whether or not these systems are really used or have simply been mistaken for other software. Virtual reference service software is another essential component of virtual libraries to provide tutoring, coaching, and information to users, regardless of the physical distance between them and the library. This software was absent in 64.51% of the state Mexican universities in the survey, with only 35.48% confirming the use of this kind of service. The virtual reference software reported were: in-house software, online reference Kenvo Module, QuestionPoint (the most frequent at 7.69%); plus Linker, Ariel Interlibrary Loan Software, Macromedia DreamWeaver, Macromedia Flash, Filezilla and simply through on-line free commercial chatting services. A simple analysis of the answers showed errors in relation to Ariel Interlibrary Loan Software, Macromedia DreamWeaver, Macromedia Flash, and Filezilla software, because they are not designed for virtual references services. Ariel Interlibrary Loan Software has been designed to digitally transmit documents, and Macromedia DreamWeaver and Macromedia Flash are webpage design programs. Once more, findings were low, similar to search engine availability. CONPAB-IES members are, in general, the largest universities in the country, with the exception of Mexico City’s, and only 26.92% of these institutions offer the virtual reference services. The question of whether or not the assessed library systems pay software maintenance showed that 70.96% of the cases budget a payment for this service; on the other hand, the remaining 29.02 % did not have this expenditure. The results support the answers to question one on “General management library software systems”, where most institutions reported that they contracted such systems from a supplier. Likewise, organizations allotting financial resources on software maintenance reported an average expenditure of $10,650.00 dollars, $1,953.00 dollarsbeing the lowest, at a small university, and $23,437.00 dollars the highest at one of the largest universities. Another surveyed variable was digital document repositories. According to Azorı´n, Jorba, and Piera (2006), these kinds of repositories have become more popular at university libraries because it allows them to preserve and distribute research and academic materials produced in digital and paper formats. Material categories may vary according to content (theses, academic projects, manuscripts, and all type of materials) and its user focus is to provide access to in-house produced documents, as well as to generate a document backup protection. Based on the answers provided by library systems in state Mexican universities, 25% had developed digital document repositories and 75% did not have these repositories. The operation of the repositories is done by using either free, open source or commercial software. The names reported were DSpace, Aleph ADMA, Phronesis and El Dorado (The last two created in Mexico). Again, the answers to this question showed confusion. Responses

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provided names of digital collections, for instance, Infoteca, Coleccio´n Yucateca, and ANUIES Sur-Sureste. Results on the use of digital repository software showed, once more, that the largest university library systems in the country, with the exception of Mexico City, need to adopt this technology, at least to provide access to their own library generated documents. Data on whether or not the repository is for general university use was not inquired; however, it is possible that these digital repositories are mainly for internal library systems’ use.

Computer Staff Few library systems in state Mexican universities hire staff with university library degrees and/or professional library training. Some libraries even do not have library professionals at all. However, for computer and technological applications, they do hire computer staff with the proper degrees capable of providing service to their ever-increasing computer and information technology infrastructure. The advantage of this second field is that there is a good pool of computer professionals, unlike librarians who are scarce, because library schools or programs number just 10 in the country and some of them are fairly new. In regard to this matter, the survey question about the availability of personnel to take care of the needs of computer and technology services yielded that 93.54% of the population gave a positive answer, and only 6.45% did not have computer staff. This shows a highly positive result, because it is an indicator that surveyed university libraries have the staff to benefit from their computer and technology investments. Table 1: Computer Library Staff

University size

Average student population*

Small Medium Large

8,338 23,481 55,948

Average number of personnel appointed to serve computer and technology needs 4.07 3.33 6.66

Average student population by computer and technology staff 2,048 7,044 5,391

*Numbers provided by ANUIES (2002), ANUIES (2008)

The number of employees appointed to serve computers and technology services in the library systems of state Mexican universities, on the other hand, did not seem to correlate with the number of students enrolled by these institutions. Table 1 shows the relation between the average student population by university and the computer/technology staff by institution, where small universities have an average of four computer employees, medium-size

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institutions have more than three employees, and large universities have almost seven members per library system. In other words, some small universities appoint more employees to this purpose compared to large university; nevertheless, student population varies between two and five thousand students per computer hired staff, a high enrollment variation. Yet, results contrast even more among medium-size universities because they have the lowest staff average, just over three members per seven thousand students. A plausible explanation for these results would be that the same number of employees may be able to implement, use, and provide maintenance for the required equipment and software regardless of the institution size. The number of computers assigned exclusively for users, an additional question in the survey, showed similar results to the ones in the number of computer staff as it is shown in Table 2. The results showed that small institutions have an average of 166 computers in libraries, with average of one computer for every 50 users. Medium-size universities had fewer with an average of 105 computers per library, that is one per 223 students, and large universities had the largest offer with 591 PCs in libraries, having one computer for every 94 students. In other words, users in large universities have better access to computers, followed by small institutions. Finally, medium-size universities have the more limited access with almost four times fewer computers than smaller institutions. Table 2: Computers Exclusive for Library System Users University size Small Medium Large

Average computer number for exclusive use of library users 166 105 591

Average student population* 8,338 23,481 55,948

Average number of students per computer 50.22 223.62 94.44

*Numbers provided by ANUIES (2002), ANUIES (2008)

In other words, computer distribution in relation to number of potential library users does not indicate a normal pattern in relation to equipment assigned to the student population in these institutions. Even though the numbers of computers available to users shown by the three types of universities according to their size may not be enough to meet their students’ demands, the lowest levels continued to appear in medium-size institutions. A further literature analysis of small institutions indicate that their high results may be due to their academic characteristics, they are, in general, research centers that have grown to offer graduate programs and have been able to attract more funding that correlate to their academic excellence (Galaz Fontes 2005). It must be mentioned that the survey did not inquire about other computer services such as printers, scanners, audio, and recording equipment, among other types of hardware.

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Social Networks Sanz Mene´ndez (2003) defines social networks as measurement and analysis tools of social structures emerging from relationships among diverse social actors (individuals, organizations, nations, etc.). Although the origins of social networks go back to origins of sociology, this study focuses only on group structure elements based on the use of technology, because in the past, there were social clubs or “invisible colleges” in the academic realm that somehow included the sharing of knowledge, news and facts but did not necessarily depend on technological tools. In this survey, social networks are defined as communication and collaborative tools. The findings showed low positive answers if all results are lumped together, where globally 61.29% of libraries use at least one social network tool. On opposite side of the results spectrum were 38.70% of the cases that did not use any kind of social tools. A percentage that was high, meaning that nearly 40% are out of the new communication technology realm that, in many cases, users have already implemented as part of their daily life. An analysis by each type of tool indicates that the use of these tools is abysmally low in the surveyed university libraries (excluding, as stated, the macro universities of Mexico City), which are the largest, and have the most resources in country. Figure 5 includes a summary of these results, where Facebook appears as the most used choice among the eight social network tool options (good for generic text communication, and photos, and video sharing), but the number is still low with only 22%, followed by blogs with almost 20%, and listservs, including Twitter (micro notepads/blogs), and discussion forums with only 12% and 15% respectively. The use of these tools is low, perhaps due to lack of awareness of their benefits to communicate and promote information resources with users, but this in turn may be caused by the lack of technology staff training and passive library management. Wiki (shared text software) is used in 10% of cases, and YouTube (video uploading) and Flickr (photo album sharing) was reported in only 4.87% of the cases. Findings are rather low for most social network tools, taking into account that they are free and popular among university students from the lower middle class and upwards who typically attend state universities and are therefore users of academic libraries in Mexico. Perhaps state university library personnel need, as stated, training in the use of these new technologies and they may require, as well, more motivation to update their skills because it is assumed that they do not adopt social network tools even for personal use, but these topics require a separate study.

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25 21.95 19.51

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Figure 5: Social network tools

The use of social networks as collaborative tools did not show a significant pattern in relation to participating universities’ size and preference for a particular type. Data indicated that large universities reported the use of all types of social networks (Table 3), but the frequencies are minimal, in fact, most could be considered irrelevant, because values oscillated between 8% in five tools and 16% (Facebook and Wiki) and 27% (blog). Medium-size cases stated to use only Listservs (33%) and Discussion Forums (13.33%), Twitter (13.33%), blog (13.33%) and Facebook (27%). Small universities reported, on the other hand, the use of Facebook (20%), blog (40%), Wiki (27%) and discussion forums (27%). The results are, again, in general, low, a clear indicator that adoption of new social networking technologies is taking time to adopt. This may mean, also, that they might not be reaching the new university entrants, because according to Facebook chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg (2010) only 11% of teens email each day. Moreover, the size of the higher education institutions did not seem to play any impact in these results.

University size Small Medium Large

Social network as collaborative tool (%) Listservs Twitter Blog Facebook 0.0 0.0 40.0 20.0 33.0 13.3 13.3 27.0 8.0 8.0 27.0 16.0

Table 3: Distribution of social networks as collaborative tools by university size Youtube 0.0 0.0 8.0

Flickr 0.0 0.0 8.0

Wiki 27.0 0.0 16.00

Discussion forums 27.0 13.3 8.0

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Conclusions Before discussing the overall results of the data collected through the survey answered by the 40 members of CONPAB-IES on the adoption of technology in library systems in state Mexican universities and smaller colleges (technical and graduate research-oriented schools), it is important to indicate two subjective aspects identified in the survey process that need to be taken into account for the validity of the study. One was the lack of knowledge, by some of the interviewed library officials, about names and functions of different technologies used in their institutions (search engines, electronic resources and virtual reference services software). In several cases, examples of names and explanation of technology tool functions had to be provided during the phone calls, but from those who chose to answer the questionnaire by themselves there were several mistaken names of technologies. Second, respondents in general did not have the requested information at hand, as one would expect, because in most cases the required data was just the name of the technological tool. Several of them referred to the officials or departments within the institutions to respond to the inquiry. These two facts were subjective indicators, because they were not included in the survey of the unawareness of the technology used in the libraries by library officials that can be interpreted as having no exposure to use such tools or simply that they are not involved in such management processes. In brief, results indicate that several library heads and directors seem to be not familiar with software tools. Even though the analysis of the results was done in relation to the enrollment size of state Mexican universities as a fixed variable, it must be said that this measure is not a precise one. Student population size is usually considered a common reference to classify higher education institutions; however, this is not the only parameter because there are also other important aspects such as the strength of postgraduate programs and academic performance, thus making it hard for a study of this type to set a precise parameter to group universities. The enrollment size indicator proved inadequate because, hypothetically, their size influences their access and adoption of technologies; nevertheless, the correlation was not clear. Large universities did have more use of technology tools followed by small institutions, but medium-size ones were the exception, a contrasting result, taking into account that they were the majority of the cases. Results, in addition, might be biased by the fact that CONPAB-IES small institutions are not universities in the full meaning of the word. They are considered more as research centers offering postgraduate programs than universities. This gives them the advantage of having more access to resources, including funding to acquire technology. Moreover, they may be more dynamic on the decision-making processes in regard to technology. The general conclusion is that there is an overall implementation of general library management system software in almost every library system. Another trend is that, in the majority of the cases, they acquire their software from specialized vendors. This is considered a positive aspect especially for national inter-institutional cooperation, as well as when library systems grow

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and require migrating information to stronger systems. A minority of the cases who chose the development of their own internal systems that may lack the standard-compliance for data migration, as they might have been developed by personnel from their computer systems department without the presence and involvement of specialized library personnel, because most library systems lack enough library graduates in their staff. If automation of information management services has reached an adequate level in terms of its adoption, it is not the case of virtual information services implementation, where statistics were low. Search engines, virtual repositories were available in less than 40% of the cases. Virtual reference services (36%), perhaps the simplest and less expensive, is a technology that has been available for about ten years, and it is certainly a basic development to be adopted by state university libraries, if they are to meet the current distance information demand of their academic communities. Computer and technology staff, on the other hand had a positive result, because most institutions have personnel devoted to this important task. However, it must be said that there was no even distribution according to the institution size, where small institutions had good number of staff. The last survey component related to social network tools yielded emerging trends. The results were low in most technology options; the most commonly adopted tool was Facebook, with only 22%, a figure that is still low for academic institutions with the largest library systems in the country. The other cited tools were blogs, with 20%, followed by listservs (15%); this last one that has been available for more than two decades still share a low rate adoption. Twitter, the most popular tool worldwide, alongside discussion forums barely reached 12%. Other tools that showed insignificant use were Wiki, YouTube and Flickr with less than 10% of adoption. These results showed that Mexican state university libraries have the great opportunity to incorporate the latest and most popular social networking tools into their user communication schemes. As a general conclusion, library systems in Mexican state universities need to catch up with information technology if they are to play an active role in education. They need to set action plans to train their staff and invest in this field. CONPAB-IES, the main association of state university library directors, also needs to have a strategy to create synergies in the adoption of new technologies, otherwise, library systems will remain outside the technology antennae of users, who are quickly making these tools part of their everyday life, especially in the middle class population strata, from which most state universities in Mexico get their readers. Library demand is growing in Mexico due to the expansion of education over the past few decades and due to the growth of internet access in urban settings. Internet access and use is expected to increase during the next 15 years (Lee 2010). Mexican libraries will be affected by new technological developments especially the expansion of internet services. The increasing availability of Mexican information sources on the internet also fuels this demand. Libraries and librarians will have to adapt to the increased demand for web based information. The greatest opportunity for all types of libraries is to adopt a new teaching

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role that society demands of them.(Lee2010). It will help academic libraries and librarians to ride on the super highway of technology in the twenty-first century. Acknowledgements: The authors would like to thank student assistants Artutro Ivan Ruiz-Dominguez, and Sergio Gomez-Vinales for their help.

References Asociacio´n Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior, ANUIES. 2002. Anuario Estadı´stico 2002: Poblacio´n escolar de licenciatura, poblacio´n escolar de licenciatura por entidad, institucio´n y carrera. (Online). Retrieved April, 1, 2010, from: http://www.anuies.mx/servicios/e_educacion/docs/Licenciatura02.PDF ANUIES. 2008. Estadı´sticas de la Educacio´n Superior. (Online). Retrieved April, 1, 2010, from: http://www.anuies.mx/servicios/e_educacion/index2.php ANUIES. 2011. Lista de IES y/o unidades desconcentradas por orden alfabe´tico: Directorio Nacional de Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from: http://www.anuies.mx/la_anuies/diries/ Arriola Navarrete, O. 2006. Evaluacio´n de bibliotecas: un modelo desde la o´ptica de los sistemas de gestio´n de calidad. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Colegio Nacional de Bibliotecarios: Library Outsourcing: Alfagrama. Attewell, J. 2005. Mobile technologies and learning: A technology update and m-learning project summary, Technology Enhanced Learning Research Centre, Learning and Skills Development Agency. (Online). Retrieved April 1, 2010, from: http://www. lsda.org.uk/files/PDF/041923RS.pdf Azorı´n, C., Jorba, F., y Pier, B. 2006. Repositorio digital de documentos: ¿diferente?, ¿definido?, ¿desafı´o? Barcelona, Espan˜a: Universitat Auto´noma de Barcelona. Bruns, A., Cobcroft, R., Smith, J., Towers, S. 2007. Mobile Learning Technologies and the Move towards ‘User-Led Education’. In: Proceedings Mobile Media, Sydney, Australia. Comite´s Interinstitucionales para la Evaluacio´n de la Educacio´n Superior (CIEES). 2008. Informe final: Evaluacio´n de consistencia, resultados y de disen˜o 2007. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from: http://www.sep.gob.mx/wb/sep1/fondo_de_ modernizacion_para_educacion_superior Consejo Nacional para Asuntos Bibliotecarios de las Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior, CONPAB-IES 2005. Normas para bibliotecas de instituciones de educacio´n superior e investigacio´n. Guadalajara, Me´xico: CONPAB-IES. CONPAB-IES. 2008. Miembros. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from: http://www. conpab.uaslp.mx/conpabies/integrantes.html Corte´s-Vera, J., Lo´pez-Ruelas, S. 2011. Las normas para bibliotecas universitarias de CONPAB-IES: su estructura e intenciones. In: Satisfaccio´n de usuarios: Evaluacio´n integral de bibliotecas/ comp. Jesu´s Lau. Xalapa, Me´xico: Universidad Veracruzana; Me´xico, D.F.: Library Outosourcing Services; Buenos Aires, Arg.: Alfagrama: 293–306. Cox, M. J., Marshall, G. 2007. Effects of ICT: Do we know what we should know? Education and Information Technologies, 12 (2): 59–70. Federacio´n de Instituciones Mexicanas Particulares de Educacio´n Superior, A.C. (FIMPES). (2008). Miembros Afiliados Acreditados, 2008. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from: http://www.fimpes.org.mx/instituciones_maa.html Galaz Fontes, J. F. 2005. Sobre la clasificacio´n de las instituciones mexicanas de educacio´n superior. (Online). Retrieved, February 10, 2010, from: www.anuies.mx/servicios/p_ anuies/publicaciones/…/txt92.htm Galaz Fontes, J. F. and Sevilla Garcı´a, J. J. 2006. La estructura del sistema de educacio´n superior. Revista de Educacio´n Superior, Vol. 25, No. 140: 103–116.

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Hammond, O. W. 2008. Pacific Megatrends in Education. (Online). Retrieved April 1, 2010, from: http://www.prel.org/products/Products/pacific-megatrends.htm Herrington, A., Herrington, J. 2004. Authentic mobile learning in higher education. (Online). Retrieved, April 1, 2010, from: http://www.aare.edu.au/07pap/her07131.pdf Herrington, J., et al., editors. 2009. new technologies, new pedagogies: Mobile learning in higher education. Australia: University of Wollongong, Faculty of Education. Instituto Nacional de Estadı´stica Geografı´a e Informacio´n (INEGI) 2005. Educacio´n. In Anuario Estadı´stico de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos 2005. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from http://www.inegi.gob.mx/prod_serv/contenidos/espanol/bvinegi/ productos/integracion/pais/aeeum/2007/Aeeum071.pdf Instituto Polite´cnico Nacional, Secretarı´a Te´cnica, Direccio´n de Evaluacio´n. 2008. Estadı´stica Institucional 2007. (Online). Retrieved September 6, 2011 from: http://148.204. 103.12/documentos/estadistica_2007.pdf Lau, J. 2009. Mexican libraries, archives and museums: a snapshot. In: Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. (3rd edn.). New York, NY: Marcel Dekker. Lee, Janet 2010.Libraries in Mexico: Context and collaboration. An Interview with Dr. Jesu’s Lau, President, Mexican Library Association. Collaborative Librarianship, Vol.2, Issue 2: 96–101. Lefoe, G., Olney, I. 2007. New Technologies, New Pedagogies: Using Scenarios for Staff Development with Mobile Technologies. 6th International Conference on Mobile Learning: Making the connections (m-Learn 2007), Melbourne, 16–19 October 2007. Me´xico. Presidencia de la Repu´blica. 2008. Directorio de Instituciones de Educacio´n Superior. Me´xico, D.F.: Presidencia de la Repu´blica. OCLC. 2003. Ana´lisis del entorno 2003 por OCLC: Reconocimiento de patrones, resumen para ejecutivos. Dublı´n, Ohio: OCLC. OCLC. 2009. Lo que quieren los usuarios y los bibliotecarios: Informe de OCLC, sinopsis. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC. Paredes, A.J., Caldera, E. 2006. Servicios virtuales de informacio´n. Revista Venezolana de Informacio´n, Tecnologı´a y Conocimiento, An˜o 3, No. 1, January–April: 77–88. Patten, B., Arnedillo Sanchez, I., Tangney, B. 2006. Designing collaborative, constructionist and contextual applications for handheld devices. Computers in Education, 46: 294–308. Sandberg, S. 2010. Email is probably going away. Business Insider. (Online). Retrieved June 17, 2010, from: http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-coo-email-is-probablygoing-away-2010-6 Sanz Mene´ndez, L. 2003. Ana´lisis de redes sociales: o co´mo representar las estructuras sociales subyacentes. Apuntes de Ciencia y Tecnologı´a, Nº 7, June: 21–29. Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica, Coordinacio´n General de Universidades Te´cnicas. 2008ª. Capitulo 2: Universidad Tecnolo´gica por an˜o de Creacio´n. 15 An˜os 1991–2006 Universidades Tecnolo´gicas, impulsando el desarrollo de Me´xico. Mexico, D.F.: SEP. Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica, Coordinacio´n General de Universidades Te´cnicas. 2008b. Estadı´sticas. Mexico, D.F.: SEP. Secretarı´a de Educacio´n Pu´blica, Subsecretarı´a de Educacio´n Ba´sica y Normal, Direccio´n General de Normatividad. Red Normalista. 2008c. Red normalista. Me´xico, D.F.: SEP. Silva Zamora, O.M. 1989. La automatizacio´n de bibliotecas en Me´xico: las posibilidades y planteamiento del proyecto de automatizacio´n. (Thesis in Library Science) – Me´xico, D.F.: UNAM. Stallman, R. 2004. Software libre para una sociedad libre. Madrid, Espan˜a: Traficantes de Suen˜os. Suaiden, E. J. 1990. Novas tecnologı´as em bibliotecas. R. Bibliotecon. Brasilia, 18(2), jul/ dez: 115–125. Wikianswers 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011 from: www.wikianswers.com Wikipedia 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2011 from: www.wikipedia.com

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Appendix QUESTIONNAIRE Use of Technology by Mexican State University Libraries Dear Librarian, We would like to request ten minutes of your time to answer eleven questions that will allow us to explore the adoption/use of new technology by library systems of state university libraries. Findings will be used (subject to privacy) to publish a book chapter on this topic. If requested, we can send you a summary of the results. We appreciate your time and cooperation. Jesús Lau, [email protected], USBI VER/DGB, Universidad Veracruzana Javier Tarango, [email protected], Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua _______________________________________________________________ A. General Name of person who responds the survey: ____________________________ Name of the director of the library system: ____________________________ University:______________________________________________________ City and state____________________________________________________ Do your answers cover all the library system? Yes □ No □ Mention which library(ies) ______________________________________________________ B. Software 1. Do you have a general library management software?

□ No □ Yes, Provide name and supplier: _____________________________________ 2. Is the software commercial? □ Yes _______________________

□ No, who developed it?

3. If the answer to the previous question was negative, mark the functions your software provides: □ Acquisitions □ Technical processes □ Public services □ Periodicals □ Others, indicate them __________________________________________________________

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C. Virtual Information Services 4 Do you have a search engine for federated information search?

□ Yes, which one?______________________________

□ No

5. Do you have electronic resources management software (Open URL Linker, e.g. OCLC Link Manager, SFX de Ex Libris)? □ Yes, which one? ______________________________ □ No 6. Do you have software for virtual reference services?

□ Yes, which one? ______________________________

□ No

7. Do you have access to software maintenance?

□ Yes, about how much do you pay for it? _____________

□ No

8. Does the library have a digital document repository?

□ No □ Yes, which software do you use? (e.g. Fedora Commons, Dspace, Greenstone, Etc. ) __________________________________________________________ D. Computer Staff 9. Do you hire computer and technology staff?

□ Yes, how many employees? __________________ □ No, who provides this service? ______________________________ 10. How many personal computers are provided for exclusive use of your readers? (If you are unaware of the exact number, provide an approximation) __________________________________________________________ E. Social Networks 11. Does your library use social networks or collaborative tools? □ Yes □ No If your answer is yes, mark the ones you use: □ Listservs □ Twitter □ Blog □ Facebook □ YouTube □ Flickr □ Wiki □ Discussion forums □ Others, which ones? __________________________________________________________ Thanks for your time!

2.15 Netherlands Libraries in the Netherlands Marian Koren The Netherlands is part of Europe and has been a member of the European Union since the beginning in 1958. It has an area of 41,543km2, and a population of 6,847,007. Many ethnic groups have migrated to the country and they form about 20% of the diverse population of the country. In the densely populated western part, a large number of nationalities and cultures can be found. As an international trade and immigrant country this diversity in the population has a long history. The Netherlands, being a place where promotion of freedom of expression has gone hand in hand with entrepreneurship, has developed a large variety of book- and media related industries and library- and information services, ranging from school and public libraries to specialised libraries and the National Library. The main actors in the Dutch library landscape are presented here in a developmental context. As the Dutch cherish their freedom and independence, one may be astonished about the number of organisations, institutions and groupings working in the information and library field, causing an abundance of abbreviations, about which I can only warn the international reader.

Academic Libraries, UKB Dutch universities have a long academic tradition. The first Dutch university was founded in Leiden in 1575 by William of Orange. Today the Netherlands has 14 research universities, all of which offer high-standard education and research. There are three universities of technology, in Delft, Eindhoven and Twente, and one university which focuses on agriculture and life sciences: Wageningen. The remaining ten research universities are broad-based. There are also eight university medical centres. The universities serve both education and research for around 230,000 students enrolled for an academic bachelor course (430) or master study (890). The number of students has doubled since 1980. Every year around 50,000 new students enter the universities. In contrast to many other European countries, there is still population growth in the Netherlands, giving rise to an estimated increase in the student population by 2020– 2021 of 36%. The13 universities plus the Open University fear the coming decade regarding financial support: government investment and annual subsidy

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per student has decreased from €18,000 (until 2001) to 14,000 (in 2009). Academic staff numbers have not increased at the same pace, save for PhD staff, and numbers of support staff have decreased (total full time staff: 40,000). University libraries are financed in different ways. The traditional situation was a strong link between faculty and its faculty library, where the faculty library was under faculty management, received its budget from the faculty and reported to faculty management. Central libraries had the difficult task of maintaining some kind of overall library service, receiving a budget from university management or ‘collecting’ its budget from faculties in annual negotiations. In recent years in many universities libraries have been centralised, and budgets are a mix for facilities provided centrally and for resources (acquisition, databases, media) provided by faculties. Innovation started early with the proposal of the Tilburg University to build a new high tech library, acknowledging the importance of electronic information and IT technology for delivering services, and which opened its doors in 1992. The cooperation of the library and the computer centre in Utrecht resulted in the Electronic Library project (1995–1998). Increasing cooperation among university libraries in this field led to a steering group for innovative projects, later integrated in SURF. The 13 university libraries are working together in an informal consortium, called UKB, which also includes the Koninklijke Bibliotheek (KB, the National Library) in The Hague. Associate members are the Open University Netherlands, The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and the Working Group of Special Academic Libraries (WSWB). Nineteen research institutes are connected to the KNAW. The consortium is not formalised. Although negotiations take place on behalf of the consortium, no one can commit or sign on behalf of the entire consortium. Apart from more traditional subjects (cataloguing, interlibrary loan, collection management), other items such as licensing policies, e-learning and innovation in the Digital Library are discussed in committees and working groups. The UKB launched its first plan in 2007–2010. It was ambitious with a strong emphasis on improvement of quality regarding delivery of scientific information, a national information infrastructure and innovation of services. Professionalisation of work process (e.g. shared acquisition) and cooperation was the focus, especially in the field of delivery of content, a publication infrastructure for the scientific output of the institutions, and the promotion of open access. It also worked for an efficient, integrated infrastructure for discovery and access, including both open and restricted information resources, and it wished to develop facilities for e-learning and for e-science. The major results from this period included steps towards implementation of open access. In general the Dutch library and research community has been active in promoting open access and Dutch libraries have been at the forefront of signing the Berlin Declaration. Specific open access initiatives include the Dutch higher education sector declaring 2009 to be ‘Open Access Year’, with the aim of

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boosting the concept; the development of repositories, such as the scientific portal, NARCIS and a knowledge bank with teachers’ contributions for higher education. A recent debate with the minister resulted in agreement on the principle that all research financed with public funds should be publicly available for everyone. But a national policy on open access has not yet materialised. UKB supports open access and has managed to make agreements with major publishers: a new licensing model with Springer and a pilot with Elsevier for ‘delayed open access’: medical articles of Dutch researchers will be in open access after 12 months. UKB also showed its teeth in 2011 when Elsevier changed its policy. UKB gave a Statement of Concern about Elsevier’s Open Access Policy: “UKB, the consortium of the thirteen Dutch university libraries and the Koninklijke Bibliotheek, is deeply concerned about the fact that Elsevier has recently adapted its Open Access policy such that it prevents the growth of the digital availability of the international scientific output of scholars in The Netherlands. It is the view of UKB that an author should in principle have the right to deposit his own article, preferably in the version produced by the publisher but in any case in the final author’s version, a right which should not become dependent on (subsequent) agreements with publishers. UKB is particularly concerned about the fact that publishers may overrule agreements made between authors and funding bodies by means of this policy.” In 2009 all universities agreed on open access via the green road: including an obligation to archiving, deposit for every institute, enlarging the content accessibility of repositories, storage and accessibility of research data, cooperation in publishing of open access journals. The UKB actively seeks co-operation with other stakeholders in the scientific information network (such as the SURF foundation, university staff and students, other organizations in higher education, other library sectors), as well as information and systems vendors. UKB also actively takes part in international developments. One of them is the cooperation in Knowledge Exchange, which resulted in testing a national license for three databases, making them available to all library users. Another successful project was UKB’s High Potentials programme which aimed at extending management and leadership skills of library workers. Sixteen young potentials participated, and its positive evaluation has resulted in executing the programme in international setting through LIBER, the cooperation of European academic libraries. Important steps have to be taken towards an outstanding national infrastructure for Dutch education and research. At the same time the university libraries are confronted with the demands of the parent organisation, their university and faculties. In its newest policy plan 2011–2015 UKB emphasises that cooperation remains crucial for libraries, but also that globalisation of availability of services requires up scaling and participation of libraries in an international information infrastructure. Modernisation and connection to the international context are important.

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Being aware of budget cuts, UKB focuses on efficiency and reduction of costs. It will work for a national repository infrastructure for electronic materials in open access; digitisation of collections is coordinated, and will possibly take place with some commercial partners. Together with the national library, UKB works for acquisition of E-content, including E-books, and use of the E-deposit in the National Library. The embedded library is an answer to the need for data-intensive research and education, and for optimal integration of the workflow for researchers, teachers and students. Students can benefit from the UKB’s ‘central service for academic skills courses’, and an academic writing workshop. UKB works with SURF on projects regarding library services for virtual work and learning environments. UKB has developed a practical benchmark, as a strong management tool. It will be extended with a model for impact measurement. A main focus of the university libraries is working for Digital Collections, which requires negotiations with publishers on the prices for the increasingly e-format of sources. The battle on prices for scholarly journals resulted in big deals, but means at the same time that a large part of library budgets is ‘fixed’ in these deals, leaving less to negotiate and innovate. In 2008 UKB took the initiative to form a consortium with larger public libraries with some academic collections and function, under the name of Common Information Infrastructure (GII). It aims at cooperation of the back office of the digital library: loans, interlibrary loan, document delivery, acquisition and licensing, including identity management. The ideal situation for the near future is joint use of systems in the cloud, based on international standards and with international connections. An integrated, shared infrastructure will allow libraries to deliver tailor-made local information services which enable the universities to excel in research and education. Vast resources are needed to implement such an infrastructure and these can no longer be generated by individual institutions. Cooperation in the field of digitisation of collections and sustainable access to collections are other concerns of UKB. Libratory is a mega digitisation plan designed by the KB and university libraries, UKB. The vision: to digitise all special collections from Middle Age manuscripts to printed materials until 1840: 44 million pages, 220,000 titles. The total costs are estimated 75 million euro. Unfortunately, no government budget has been made available, but public money is needed: what is in the public domain should remain free and accessible, always and everywhere, is the vision. Early Dutch Books Online was a preparation to Libratory and still received public funds. Pragmatism may lead to public-private partnerships. Following the report by the European Comite´ des Sages, The New Renaissance, by the end of 2016 all European member states must have delivered their major works to Europeana. Data management of primary research data is another issue for UKB, as a number of libraries are offering services in this field. Several projects have

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been undertaken to which UKB libraries are connected. NARCIS – National Academic Research and Collaborations Information System provides access to scientific information, including (open access) publications from the repositories of all the Dutch universities, KNAW, NWO (Netherlands Organisations for Scientic Resarch) a number of research institutes, DANS (Data Archiving and Networked Services) datasets as well as descriptions of research projects, researchers and research institutes. At the national level, however, there are plans to incorporate the publication data from the academic Metis systems in NARCIS. By doing so, it will become possible to create much more complete publication lists of researchers. NARCIS has been part of DANS since 2011. DANS promotes sustained access to digital research data and is an institute of KNAW and NOW. NWO funds thousands of top researchers at universities and institutes and steers the course of Dutch science by means of subsidies and research programmes. It is also supporting open access in its funding and research policies. UKB’s working groups on innovation, Licensing, Collection Management, Open Access and other cooperation around the policy issues mentioned above, are fruitful, but UKB has a number of main concerns. Among them is the continuing pressure from budget cuts in higher education: more students, at least until 2020, but fewer staff and less budget for innovation facilities, which also affects the libraries. Increasingly, decentralised library locations have been closed, whereas ‘central’ university library buildings with modern equipment are becoming ever more popular with students. Good IT facilities, good physical facilities such as chairs and a restaurant are valued highly. Since the introduction of the bachelor/masters system there is also an increasing need for group work places. Recently, new university library buildings have been constructed in Utrecht and Wageningen, and drastic renovations have taken place in Amsterdam, Maastricht and Nijmegen. The average number of opening hours is about 80 a week. There is an increasing call for the extension of facilities as well as opening hours in most places. Customer relations become more important. Increasingly mobile services are developed for information about opening hours, free learning seats etc. Regarding reducing costs: licensing requires permanent monitoring of prices, and the UKB has therefore attracted specialists in working for ‘big deals’. UKB participates in FOBID Netherlands Library Forum, especially in the Legal Committee, working as a watchdog on copyright and other legal matters, from the point of view of libraries and their users. UKB reflects on the role of libraries, which wish to profile themselves stronger as supporters of education and research, and therefore contribute in improvement of academic skills and help through library learning centres. Increasingly libraries have to operate in an international world, and have to maintain their networks and knowledge sharing in this field. Also the implementation of metadata and cataloguing according to new international standards requires frequent updates of knowledge and contacts, for which UKB groups provide the framework.

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Higher Education: Universities of Applied Sciences The last decade a concentration of higher education institutes has taken place, the merger also included name changes into Universities of Applied Sciences. There are about 65 other higher education libraries, of which 29 form a part of the SHB (Samenwerkingsverband Hogeschool Bibliotheken), the cooperative body of higher education libraries in the Netherlands. Following the good example of UKB, the SHB has set up a similar benchmark, in which 18 HE libraries cooperate. Trends in the latest Benchmark 2009 (2010) are the decrease of government funding for libraries in the long term (from 1.97% in 2007 to 1.73% of funding in 2009). On average HE spends €83 per student on the library for collection and staff costs. The decrease is caused by budget cuts for libraries in larger HE institutes. A budget increase for research facilities is not expected. As expected, the number of book loans decreases (from 5.1 per student in 2007 to 4.45 in 2009). Digital media are more heavily used, but cannot easily be demonstrated due to the wide variety in the composition of the collections. On average 35% of media budget is spent on digital media, but the extremes (20 to 69%) indicate strong divergent policies. Another feature of cooperation is the HE Knowledge Bank, providing access to knowledge products of 20 HE institutes: 17,000 papers by students and publications by lecturers, sorted by current HE themes like health, education, IT and media. It attracts around 40,000 unique visitors a months, and is easily found through Google search. SURF Foundation aims through its programme SURFshare to realise a common infrastructure for enhancing access and exchange of research information through interoperable repositories. Apart from the Knowledge Bank, another portal has been created: LOREnet a portal to provide easier access to teaching aids at research universities and universities of applied sciences. Table 1: Online portals for academic resources

Universities of Applied Sciences Research universities

Graduation papers Knowledge Bank for Universities of Applied Sciences

Publications Knowledge Bank for Universities of Applied Sciences

Educational resources LOREnet Knowledge Bank for Universities of Applied Sciences

–

NARCIS

LOREnet

SHAREkit is a repository service for universities of applied sciences that do not have their own institutional repository. Once a repository has been installed, the universities of applied sciences find themselves faced by a whole range of strategic, organisational, practical, and copyright matters in

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facilitating access to their knowledge products. SURFshare collaborates with the institutions to create procedures, solutions, and awareness programs. SHB has shown interest in participating in FOBID committee activities such as professional education and international statistics.

National Library: Koninklijke Bibliotheek, a Broader Vision The Koninklijke Bibliotheek, the National Library of the Netherlands was founded in 1798, starting with the decision of the parliament of the Republic (!) to turn the collection of the fled Governor, Stadhouder Willem V, into a national library. As the wall decoration in the KB says: the royal sound has its roots in the revolution! The first 5,500 items have grown into six million. The title National Library was only legally attributed in 1982, when the KB moved to its current premises next to the Central Railway Station in The Hague. Another peculiar feature is that the systematic acquisition of all Dutch titles only started in 1974, and that there is no legal deposit, but publishers deliver these items on a voluntary basis. Now, the KB is the central deposit library for all printed and some electronic publications produced in the Netherlands, and also serves as an international deposit library for e-journals. It is responsible for the coordination of national preservation and digitisation projects. The library furthermore compiles a variety of national special collections in the humanities and social sciences, and research collections related to culture, history and language. Ever since the introduction of new information technology, the KB has been at the forefront of acquiring funds to innovate services and to implement it for safeguarding cultural heritage through digitisation. In a good Dutch tradition, international cooperation was sought and initiated through various EU-funded projects, in which the KB often took leadership. Various earlier versions of what now is known as the European Library and Europeana were discussed and elaborated with the KB as a solid partner. The results of all these efforts can still be seen today, as many of these international collaboration initiatives and networks have their offices in the KB. The necessary makeover for the KB has become visible with the Strategic Plan 2010–2013. It offers a clear and bold vision: “KB will work intensively in the coming four years to realise a digital library that will offer everyone access to all digital and printed publications that appear in the Netherlands. As the national library of the Netherlands the KB its task is also to foster the establishment of a new (digital) information infrastructure. Close cooperation between the KB, scientific and public libraries is essential to grant everyone in the Netherlands access to scientific information. In order to realise this vision the KB has established five strategic priorities.” They are formulated in the modern management style of concrete promises to stakeholders:

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1. We offer everyone access to everything published in and about the Netherlands. 2. We improve the national information infrastructure. 3. We guarantee long-term storage of digital information. 4. We maintain, present and strengthen our collections. 5. We develop the KB into a challenging organisation and an attractive employer. So, the main activities of the KB are as follows. – Preservation, management, documentation and accessibility of the national cultural heritage. – Deposit library for Dutch printed and electronic publications and the national bibliography. – Research library for the history, language and culture of the Netherlands. – Stimulating and coordinating a common information infrastructure for Dutch libraries. – Centre of expertise for digitisation, preservation and digital preservation. The implementation of the plan means a restructuring of the organisation and services with a strong focus on the Digital Library. It also intends, as in many other library organisations, to build capacity and train staff for new tasks requiring new skills for the KBand there is a redeployment of staff of 20%. The new plan acknowledges the enormous growth of digital information, stronger than that of print, the expectations and the impatience of the newer generation of students and researchers; in short: the user-focus leads to priorities and investments in the digital library. Around 90 projects are coordinated in the Digital Library programme. The strategic collection development plan 2010–2013 includes the acquisitions policies for both print and digital collections in three shifts: firstly, from print to digital: the digital collection will grow fast in relation to the printed collection. Secondly, the focus on Dutch history, culture and society, already initiated in the previous strategic period, will be strengthened. Thirdly, the inclusion of doubles in the collection will be reduced as much as possible: of each publication only one copy will be acquired, preferably the digital version. The Annual Report 2010 gives the first results of this strategy. The KB continues to acquire precious prints and rare books, and special collections such as the Biblioteca Philosophica Hermetica. KB has also started to make use of ‘flipbooks’, opening up important and valuable books to the general public. Since 1995 born digital publications (publications which are only published in digital form, such as websites, digital periodicals, e-books, etc.) have been collected. The E-deposit has reached the limit of 15 million articles. It has also started web archiving: a selection of Dutch websites that will be important for future research and will be harvested for sustainable preservation. Major digitisation projects have been prepared by signing contracts with Google and Proquest, to take place in 2011: Google will scan out of copyright

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books in the KB collection dating 1700–1870, around 160,000 books; Proquest will digitise old prints until 1700, around 28,500 books. Newspapers is another focus of the KB’s ambitions. Agreements with the collective societies Lira (authors) and Pictoright (illustrators) have been signed to assure permission to publish text and images by freelancers in newspapers on the Internet. The agreements save time which otherwise had to be spent to ask each individual creator for permission. Access to historical newspapers is safeguarded through a new website which includes 1 million pages and 400 years of newspapers. (Historical Newspapers website, http://kranten.kb. nl/). The addition of a large collection of newspapers published during the war 1940–1945, including ‘wrong’ newspapers to the website roused a debate around the freedom of access to information, which the KB defended with success. Together with the National Archive of Suriname, digitisation of 34 Surname newspapers will be undertaken and added to the website. An important six year long digitisation project has been finished: 200 years of Parliamentary Records were collected at the site Staten-Generaal Digitaal and all documents 1814–1995 are easily searchable for further research and interest, thanks to cooperation with the Dutch Second Chamber. Metamorfoze is the title of a larger programme, which has now started with a selection of periodicals to be digitised. Early Dutch Books Online is a collaboration project with the university libraries of Leiden and Amsterdam on books from the end of the eighteenth century. Apart from digitisation of printed material, the KB will undertake collaboration for multiple collections with other institutes: the Rijksmuseum and the Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid (Netherlands Institute for Image and Sound) to explore how the Netherlands paper and digital library, museum and audiovisual collections can be made searchable in their entirety. A comparable initiative is being undertaken between the National Archives (NA) and the KB, adding to the existing cooperation in the programme, website and exhibition the Memory of the Netherlands. The view of the KB on its encouraging role in achieving collaboration finds its background in its conviction that the national information infrastructure needs improvement and that fragmentation of services is no longer explainable to modern users and stakeholders. Therefore the KB “wishes to foster the establishment of a joint, national information infrastructure that exploits the possibilities of the digital world optimally.” A true customer focus requires a quick and relevant service, difficult to achieve within a fragmented system. In order to realise a one stop service which makes the collections of all libraries in the Netherlands searchable and available to all customers a close cooperation between the KB, SURF (the service organisation for science and higher education), university libraries and public libraries is necessary. In 2010 the formation of the Shared Information Infrastructure Consortium (Consortium Gemeenschappelijke Informatie-Infrastructuur, GII) consisting of

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the university libraries, the regional libraries (Plusbiblioteken), the Netherlands Public Library Association and the KB made a new step towards the establishment of a central point of direction regarding digital information provision. A vision document was drafted and circulated, to which most library organisations responded. The main elements are to make the total of library offers accessible for consultation via one desk; and also to provide regulation for service from discovery to delivery: a central regulation to organise access to the materials found, an integrated nationwide request and transaction system, a single sign-on for library users, based on a national library card. The idea is to make information available for all and especially target groups in the general audience with services for information which it is difficult to get access to. The vision includes also a central database for metadata for digital content. The latter was already proposed and explored in the Panorama research project focusing on a search system for certified information, in order to provide users with the best, cheapest and easiest way to get full text documents (Sieverts 2009). In the follow-up, it showed that a pragmatic approach prevails. Building an Open Index will make use of existing instruments such as the Joint Cataloguing system (GGC). In order to meet the requirement of open standards, and avoid vendor lock in, library organisations will discuss with OCLC how to arrange for this openness, so other systems can participate. With a view to the national information infrastructure, the national library plays an important role in bringing various types of libraries and networks together. Especially the relationship to the public library network has been strengthened through various pilot projects. The aim is to make all acquired and licensed sources accessible and available to a larger audience. One of the pilots gives public library users of the regional library of Middelburg access to KB-licensed material. Possibly this will soon be followed for other provinces. Another pilot makes quality articles from Elsevier publishers available at low costs for non-scholars, via their own local library. The largest project includes the cooperation of the KB in building a national catalogue with holdings of all libraries (NBC) which will overcome the partly separate systems of the public libraries on one hand, and the research and university libraries and KB on the other. Another catalogue will be built for all digital information. KB and Foundation Bibliotheek.nl (developer of public library digital services and infrastructure) have granted a research assignment about the way in which to deal with metadata. In this way, the national information infrastructure will help to realize the aim that all users should have optimal access to all publications in all Dutch libraries. In early 2012 the KB launched its platform: Ebook Library, making 180,000 international scientific e-books accessible to its members. The e-books are downloadable for one week, have full text search and can be annotated and added to a personal reading list. The 10,000 electronic journals are presented via the Digital Library and EBSCO service (full text search).

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The electronic sources are an increasing part of the KB collections (six million items). With a budget of around 50 million euro, a staff of 270 FTE, and 50 opening hours a week, apart from online services, the KB is well into the requirements of the twenty-first century. The previous section outlined the development of one digital library for the Netherlands, to which every Dutch citizen has access, either from home or from work, albeit under varying conditions. Realising such a joint information infrastructure requires an effort on the part of all parties involved (public libraries, academic libraries, the KB) with regard to expertise, content (including cultural heritage), technology and administration. Some type of management structure will have to be designed for the joint infrastructure. This does not, however, mean that we are heading for a system in which every user gets identical services. Libraries will have to take into account the fact that there are different user communities, such as: – scholars, differentiated by discipline – students and lecturers, differentiated by education level and branch of studies – professionals, such as doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, management – consultants – interest groups, such as patients’ associations and political groups – local communities, such as community committees. The services and activities of the libraries may well differ. Academic and public libraries may present themselves by adjusting their services to specific target groups: by offering additional content that is relevant exclusively to these groups (for instance semi-finished products), by offering their own presentation of the content (depending on the online behaviour of the target group) and by adapting their services to the wishes and working processes of the target group. In addition, some activities will be location-based, aimed at the institution’s own target groups. Successful examples include the Amsterdam Public Library, with its wealth of cultural activities, and the Utrecht University Library at the Uithof, which has developed into a cultural centre on the campus. It is evident that the KB is well placed to play a coordinating and facilitating role, and in doing so may carry out an essential part of its task under the law: “As the national library, the Koninklijke Bibliotheek is active in the areas of the library system and information provision … At any rate … it promotes the materialization and maintenance of national facilities in the areas mentioned above” (Article 1.5 of the Higher Education and Research Act). By means of its digital repository, the KB may play an important role in the national infrastructure. It does not however, imply that every citizen should approach the KB to find the information he or she requires. Local libraries have their own target groups, and the members of these target groups will have easier access to their own libraries. Therefore, the digital repository of

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the KB is part of the common back office and every library may serve as a front office to its own target group. Public libraries may serve as help desks, making research information accessible to their members. Of course, they have to work on their local position as well by offering differentiated services and location-based activities to their specific target groups. The integration of services concerning education and research processes sets an important challenge for academic libraries. Since the differences between these disciplines are more substantial than the differences between individual institutions, a more discipline oriented cooperation between the library institutions is required. They may present themselves by means of additional services for their local target groups, whether location-based or not. At the moment, the quality of a library is determined to a large extent by the content made available and by the infrastructure of its services. Since these elements are shared ever more, content and infrastructure will hardly be discriminating factors in the future. The manner in which libraries will succeed in targeting services to their own groups will be of vital importance. In the future, the quality of the library staff and the facilities will determine the quality differences, and libraries will have to stress their distinctive features in this respect. But this is not all. As a consequence of developments in the areas of information and communication technology, many traditional boundaries will disappear or blur. This applies, for instance, to the traditional demarcation lines in the information chain, such as those between libraries and publishers. The same applies to the relationships among libraries, and between libraries and other institutions in the cultural sector. All over the sector, the boundaries between the active institutions will fade, and cooperation within the network becomes essential (Raad voor Cultuur 2010). The identity and the significance of an institution will be determined less and less by its mission alone, as long as this mission is restricted to the institution’s core business and focuses on its own identity. Increasingly, an institution’s identity within a network of relevant institutions will come into play through the number and type of partners to which it is connected (Savenije 2011).

Intensify Existing Cooperation: Merging with National Archive The latest news is that Koninklijke Bibliotheek, the National Library of the Netherlands, and the National Archives (NA) will be integrated into one organization by July 2013, on the decision of the government, in line with its policy on compactness. Both institutions already work together in a number of areas, such as preservation and conservation, for instance, the joint program ‘Metamorfoze’ for the preservation of paper heritage, and conservation research. In 2005 the Prince of Orange opened the exhibition space ‘The Legacy of the Netherlands’ where both institutions share exhibitions of their treasures. The merging

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of the neighbouring institutions in interconnected buildings in The Hague offers advantages of scale and help to face the challenges of the digital era. The administrative integration into one autonomous administrative authority (ZBO) will mean a change for the NA, as this is a ministerial agency. Amendments to the Public Records Act and the Higher Education and Research Act (WHW) are required.

FOBID Netherlands Library Forum Set up in 1974, FOBID serves as the umbrella organisation of the national library organisations. It includes VOB, KB, UKB and the Dutch Association for Information professionals, NVB. Its main activities are cooperation in the field of advocacy on balanced copyright and international representation, advocacy and exchange. Other committees focus on library education and cataloguing/metadata. The legal committee has also links with the European (EBLIDA) and international (IFLA) counterparts. FOBID serves as an international office, a one stop shop for information and visits to the libraries in the Netherlands, maintains contacts with the Dutch Caribbean Libraries, and provides information on international library issues. Other organisations such as SIOB, OCLC and SURF support some aspects of FOBID’s activities. Its office is in the National Library, close to EBLIDA and IFLA. That is why it took the initiative to seek cooperation with the Hague municipality and established a network under the title The Hague – World Library Capital, as many internationally focused library organisations are based in the Hague.

Public Libraries Public libraries were introduced around 1900, on the initiative of well to do liberals, church groups and the labour organisations. This diversity in the roots of the public library service disappeared in the 1950s when all libraries became truly public without denomination professionally run libraries and members of the Netherlands Public Library Association (VOB). The public library network in the Netherlands comprises approximately 170 public library organisations and 11 provincial library service organisations with a total of 900 branches and 550 service points. One characteristic did not disappear: most public service organisations are not a department of the public administration but kept their original legal entity as association or nowadays foundation. This library foundation has a board of private persons; the foundation receives the public subsidy for the running of the public library. The library still has to cover around 15–19% of its own income. Therefore, almost all public libraries work on subscription fees from the users.

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Regarding the public library system and administration, currently, there is no extensive library legislation. The Public Library Act 1975 introduced a three-layered library system and fee-free services for children up to 18 years of age. Decentralisation legislation in the 1980s hasbrought the libraries under municipal responsibility. The three government levels: national, provincial and municipal are obliged to cooperate on library infrastructure and services. The provinces subsidise provincial service organisations which support municipal libraries in the field of e.g. management and training, finances, ITnetworks and innovation, collection and service development, outreach services etc. Provincial subsidies may also include additional academic literature service in some larger public libraries (Plusbibliotheken). At the national level, the government has assigned a number of national tasks (with funding) to the sector institute for public libraries (SIOB). This Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries has its origins in the Netherlands Public Library Association. Initiated by the legislature this was split in 2010 into three organisations. Besides the Institute (SIOB), these are the professional association, the Netherlands Public Library Association (VOB) and the project organisation: Bibliotheek.nl (digital library products and services organisation). The reason for dividing the original association – which performed advocacy, developmental and governmental tasks – was that responsibility for the network as a whole does not always run along parallel lines with the representative functions of the professional organisation. This change at the national level was the outcome of a process of reorientation in which the central government decided after a period (until 2000) of increased absence – due to decentralisation – to encourage innovation in public libraries. A process of upscaling was started to create larger and stronger library organisations. So the number of legal bodies for libraries, non profit foundations, has decreased in the period 2000–2010 from 542 to 166. The Sector Institute was set up to create a strong network of public libraries. As digital developments have given customers new expectations of libraries, their needs are different from those of previous generations. The library sector has to respond to these needs if they wish to continue attracting visitors. A national strategy is necessary for coherence and to avoid that every library is choosing its own method for change. Commissioned by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries (SIOB) coordinates all plans aimed at renewing and strengthening the library sector. It performs the following network tasks: (inter)national promotion and representation; information, reflection, debate and education; harmonization and coordination and includes also services for adapted reading for the blind and visually impaired. The Institute distinguishes seven programmes in carrying out these tasks: Representation and cohesion includes the main tasks of maintaining (inter) national contacts, library advocacy, contributing to cooperation within the library network and with related sectors, as well as promoting innovative networking. In addition the Institute advises the Ministry on the subject of new

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library legislation and investigates the effects of this legislation on the sector and the way it functions. The Institute also runs a research and knowledge programme, mapping the position of the library sector in total, with its strengths and weaknesses, its threats and opportunities. This analysis forms the basis on which the other programmes are formulated. Digital innovation is vital for all libraries. The programme works for relevant content which should be accessible in the simplest possible way for as large an audience as possible. For that reason the BNL Foundation (Bibliotheek.nl) works on creating a national digital infrastructure for all libraries which will also include a National Library Catalogue. The Institute supervises and monitors Bibliotheek.nl. The role of libraries in society is a programme working on relevant and intense relationships of libraries in the municipalities, making use of opportunities in the local communities. Cooperation with schools is particularly promising. Libraries need to stake a claim in contributing towards reading promotion, computer literacy and lifelong learning. An extensive development and service package supports libraries, especially in the field of reading promotion. This is done in cooperation with Foundation Reading (Stichting Lezen). Library education needs much attention, as in the coming years an estimated 40% of the existing staff will leave due to retirement. An important challenge for the sector is to find the necessary new staff, and also to reflect on what competences are required of new employees. SIOB developed a competence index and looks for accredited education approaches, on both graduate and undergraduate level, and for library technicians. The certification programme aims at guaranteeing the quality of library services. Standards have been laid down by the Netherlands Public Library Association (VOB) and the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG). The separate Netherlands Institute for Public Library Certification is responsible for the assessments. SIOB supports the Certification Institute by carrying out the actual work. Public libraries are committed to a certification scheme. The first round of certification took place in the period 2006–2009. A separate foundation, Stichting Certificering Openbare Bibliotheken has been set up to organise and coordinate the audits and certification process. As many as 350 public libraries are assessed on the standards agreed upon by the public library sector and the government. Public libraries have also agreed to use the INK Management model as the umbrella instrument for quality care. This means that libraries are supposed to implement quality care according to this model. In the same way, libraries have committed themselves to executing a position check and a customer satisfaction survey. The position check reveals strong aspects as well as points for improvement.The aim is to work on these improvement points according to an improvement plan.

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Although quality care and certification are regarded as separate subjects they are closely related. Quality care could be considered a means to achieve the aim of certification. In the year 2012, not only will new standards for public libraries be adopted, but also work will start on the possible certification of the Provincial Service Organisations. Strengthening the library infrastructure since 2000 has also had its impact on adapted reading services. It made SIOB responsible for the overall integrated services, and created a one stop service for users: Loket Aangepast Lezen, leaving the special production for print-disabled people to organisation Dedicon. The library service for the blind and the visually impaired is now fully embedded in the public library service. The underlying thought being, that with an aging population there will be more people with visual disabilities who need to be served adequately. The Institute ensures a good collection for the blind and visually impaired, contributes to the promotion of the collection and stimulate innovation, such as streaming of audio books. In order to stimulate new target groups such as dyslectics, a sample ‘DAISY book on CD’ has been developed, especially for those who have to wait for confirmation from an insurance company before having a DAISY player of their own. They can borrow the DAISY books at the library. Many public libraries have a DAISY player and lend them out, but the table models are gradually becoming outdated and dyslexics prefer pocket models with an SD card. Dyslexic children can borrow them for six weeks and try out the DAISY books, which are ordered through the Adapted Reading Desk. The project will last threeyears. An other adapted initiative is the Easy-to-Read Square, which provides support, advice and materials on display in libraries, for easy accessible materials for different age groups with reading handicaps.

Music Service: Centrale Discotheek Rotterdam (CDR) Music library services are provided by the unique CDR in Rotterdam, a dedicated music library, innovative in customer service to music lovers, in online and streaming services, and music education. It is located in the Municipal Library in Rotterdam. In its 50 years of service the CDR has become an innovative music library service. All software is developed in house. Starting with a collection of 1,200 mainly classical music LPs, it has now completely turned to the digital age. Connection with bibliotheek.nl has been made. The widget allows end users to make use of all functionalities of Music Web, the great service of the Centrale Discotheek, which has a music collection of 450,000 CDs and 15,000 music DVDs. (www.muziekweb.nl) In fact, the CDR serves as a national library for music. It buys every CD published in the Netherlands. The digital

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services include: Digilstream, Leendirect and Musicweb. CDR was the first to present an internet catalogue, Musicweb, which developed into an educational, interactive music information site. The newest service is Muziekwebluister which is a streaming service for 4.5 million tracks, to be listened to anywhere in the library, in the listening corner, in the lounge. Searches for titles are done at wifi-stations with PCs, no longer in the rows with CD-boxes. Online reservation and prompt delivery are quality marks. Music and information about music are integrated. A pilot project for local libraries with ‘listencolumns’ envisaged to keep music in the local library service is another innovation. And more is to come, as CDR is now cooperating with the Netherlands Institute for Vision and Sound, which has the broadcast heritage as its core collection.

VOB The Netherlands Public Library Association was established in 1908 and all public libraries are still members. It is an association which merged in 2010 with the Employers Association for Public Libraries. It means that the focus of the association – which has no individual professionals as members – is on employment issues, leadership and entrepreneurship for the benefit of libraries as organisation. Professional issues – if not of importance for advocacy – are mainly left to the individual libraries, provincial service organisations and the sector institute. VOB has an office of around 11 full time staff. The Association has only income from membership fees. The annual membership fees (around 46 € per 1,000 inhabitants of the service area/municipality) and additional contributions are used for advocacy and library promotion campaigns, the library portal bibliotheek.nl and a basic digital content package. A number of committees are active for strategy and advocacy, for interests in building up digital services, corporate marketing and branding of the library (De bibliotheek) and consortium tasks for buying digital content. An e-book service is still under development. An agreement with the publishers association has been made, that publishers will be approached individually and asked to make their e-books available for services through libraries.

NBD/Biblion NBD/Biblion is the central library supplier for all public libraries and provides all buying, binding and supply services necessary for libraries. It was set up in 1970 by the associations of publishers, booksellers and public libraries, to provide an efficient and cost effective library service. It delivers three million media annually, based on in house developed machinery and innovation of production processes to make media ‘library ready’.

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Bibliotheek NL For setting up and maintaining the digital library services a special and separate development foundation was established in 2010: Foundation BibliotheekNL. Its main tasks are to work for and contribute to the national information infrastructure (GII), which also includes the National Library (KB) and university libraries, which form a cooperation for licensing and access to scientific research sources (UKB). The KB has set the tone in its main strategy: digitisation of all Dutch sources, one common infrastructure and general access for all users. Instead of developing local websites one national white label website is being developed. It offers local libraries the opportunity to have a professional national website with all nationally organised services, which enlarges the local library offers. It also makes it possible to develop websites and digital services with other partners. The Digital Content Repository is decentralised place for gathered content, which is then used for websites, apps and widgets. Content connections have been made with the Central Discotheek in Rotterdam, the National Library (KB) and the Digital Library for Dutch Literature via the website www.bibliotheek.nl. They only need one single log in. The portal gives access to the National Library Catalogue and to digital dossiers. Widgets for these KB-dossiers, and for Literature Plaza and Reading Plaza are available. Content is enriched with other sources, for example from public broadcasting. In cooperation with the National Library, the foundation develops the National Library Catalogue, to combine the holdings of (eventually all) libraries in one national catalogue. The ambition of Foundation BibliotheekNL is to connect all public library organisations to the new infrastructure and services by 12 December 2012. Contracts have been signed with OCLC to connect the Public Library collections – which are in a separate database – to the general catalogue system, as the basis for the National Library Catalogue including collections from all publicly funded libraries. Other elements of the new digital library bibliotheek.nl are a widget store, digital show cases, a mobile website for demonstrations etc. The long tradition of public libraries to provide services to schools is now supported by the digital school library and projects with the national broadcasting service (NOS). Back office services developed by BibliotheekNL include a data warehouse, marketing tools and a pilot for new ways of distribution of library materials.

Finances The three levels of government are all involved in subsidizing the public libraries. The organisations themselves get around 15% of income through membership fees, borrowing fees and late fees.

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The general structure is as follows. The public library sector has been decentralised since 1987. It means that the municipalities have the main responsibility for their public library services. In 2010 municipalities paid around 457 million euro, provincial/regional subsidies around 53 million euro and national subsidy around 24 million euro. The provincial subsidy consist of 40 million for the provincial service organisations (PSO) and 13 million euro for the Plus libraries, these are municipal public libraries with a special task to deliver services including the level of higher education and first years of university studies. They form a go between the general level of public libraries and the university libraries. A survey ranging from 1999 to 2009 shows an increase of municipal and provincial subsidies of around 50%. But of course, difference in gross and net subsidies are somewhat blurring the picture. What is the national contribution? The national government has started to give a strong impulse for innovation in the public library sector. In 2012 around 6.1 million euro is for the Sector Institute. It fulfils tasks for the whole of the public library system: cooperation and coordination; education, information and reflection, and (inter) national representation and promotion of the sector. The Sector Institute has developed programmes around representation and coherence; research and knowledge sharing, digital innovation, societal relation, education and certification. Separate tasks are SIOB’s task to maintain the service for people with a print or reading disability: a subsidy of 11.3 million euro, reduced to 10.5 million in 2013. The national government continues its impulse for innovation. For 2012 17.4 million euro has been set aside for a special task: digital innovation. (In 2013 this will be 17.1 million euro.) A special organisation: Foundation Bibliotheek NL, received this innovation subsidy directly until 2012, now it has to work through the Sector Institute (SIOB). Municipalities and some provinces announced budget cuts in 2010;some have been realised in 2011. It is unclear how the years 2012 and 2013 will show the effects of the financial crises affecting libraries. In fact, a severe general cutting policy of around 20 % for the whole art and culture sector is affecting all cultural institutions. The Sector Institute, which has barely started its work, faces a budget cut of 50%, leaving a subsidy of three million euro for 2013. The national government, the ministry for Education, Culture and Science has committed itself to work for digital innovation, and to be responsible for the infrastructure. The libraries themselves are buying digital content together. They pay an extra fee to the VOB, Netherlands Public Library Association, to buy content: In 2011 and 2012 this extra payment is 0.20 cents per inhabitant, meaning a sum of 3.2 million euro.

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In order to make the organisation of the digital library more efficient, the national government has proposed (in agreement with the Association of Dutch Municipalities,VNG) to take 15–25 million euro out of the Municipal Fund in order to safeguard digital infrastructure and content.

Reading, Literacy and Lifelong Learning The service offered from the beginning of public libraries in the Netherlands has had a social-pedagogical aim: to provide less well-to-do groups in society with books and reading materials, to improve their general level of knowledge and understanding, and to facilitate various forms of learning, in order to create better educated work force and citizens. This aim has been more and less visible in the library programmes and activities since then, following trends and political fashion as the case maybe. The 70s, for example, focused much on personal development and expression, improving oneself as an individual, apart from democratic notions as a citizen. No official figures are available to indicate the number of libraries available in the approximately 3,500 primary schools in the Netherlands. It is, however, estimated that about 80% of the 650 secondary education schools have some form of service that can be classified as a library. Public libraries in the Netherlands have followed the newer notions of lifelong learning and its formulations by UNESCO, IFLA, EBLIDA and in the PUBLICA project, from 2000 onwards. Research institutes have been contacted to describe the libraries’ educational role and also the role of lifelong learning for librarians themselves: libraries as learning organisations. Round tables with researchers have been held to get a better understanding of particular groups and their needs for all kinds of literacy. The most recent research (Kasperkovitz 2010) gives an overview of the library role in education. Its findings are summarized here to give an overall picture oflibrary services. ‘Lifelong learning’ is one of the core activities of public libraries. This study was commissioned to gain a up-to-date and comprehensive overview of the role libraries play in education. The study consisted of a quantitative part – an online survey addressed to all 162 library organisations – and a qualitative part – nine interviews with libraries that had either developed a special approach to learning or a project that promoted learning. Over half (56%) of the libraries participated in the study. The elements of the educational role have been defined as: learning facilities, educational programmes and educational partners.

Facilities The study examined the extent to which libraries have facilities that can be used to shape education. Almost 80% of the libraries have quiet areas with

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PCs for individuals at all or at least a few of their branches. On the other hand, 50% of the libraries stated that they do not have special study and educational areas at any of their branches. Twenty five per cent of the libraries indicated that they do not have a separate training room or reception area for groups at any of their branches. Although this is more often the case for smaller libraries (60%), 20% of the large to very large libraries stated that they do not have such rooms or areas at any of their branches either. And finally, it is worth noting that 35% of the libraries believe that none of their branches have facilities that stimulate adults to further educate or develop themselves. Thus, a large number of library branches in the Netherlands do not have facilities that promote education. The study also examined the availability of digital information. This item scored a lot better. Some 90% of the libraries provide access to the internet, to the library’s own collection, to the collections of other libraries and to national databanks at all of their branches. International databases on the other hand, cannot be accessed at any of the libraries’ branches. Educational programmes offered by libraries were also assessed. A distinction was made between a general programme and a programme for special target groups. Almost all of the libraries offer reading groups, writers evenings, poetry evenings and theme meetings at one or more of their branches. About half of the libraries offer Internet training at all or at least a few of their branches. Noteworthy is that 75% of the libraries do not offer language courses at any of their branches. In addition to general education programmes, this study looked at programmes for special target groups, consisting of people with a reading disability (dyslexia), non-native speakers, illiterate people and seniors. Seventy five per cent of the libraries offer a programme for seniors at all or a few of their branches. Seventy per cent also offer a programme for people with a reading disability. Slightly more than half of the libraries offer a special programme for illiterate people, and 40% of the libraries offer a programme for non-native speakers at all or a few of their branches. Twenty five per cent of the libraries do not offer a programme for non-native speakers at any of their branches. Libraries actively promote reading. Seventy to eighty per cent of the libraries promote reading in a variety of ways at a few or all of their branches.

Education Partners The libraries were asked to state the education partners they work with and to describe what the collaboration consists of. The focus was on collaboration with schools and other educational establishments, healthcare and welfare organizations, cultural organizations and a number of other organizations. More than 80% of the libraries work with primary schools at all of their branches. In many

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cases, at least one of the branches works with a lower secondary professional school (VMBO), a higher general secondary/pre-university school (HAVO/ VWO) and a regional education centre for basic and adult education (ROC). None of the libraries’ branches support vocational courses for intermediate vocational (MBO) and ROC students. In 75% of libraries, none of the branches work with higher vocational schools (HBO), and in 90% of libraries, none of the branches work with universities. The collaboration with other educational establishments was also examined. Of all of the education partners, libraries work most with art centres and special schools and least with adult education centres and language schools. The collaboration with healthcare and welfare organizations was also put into perspective. Striking is that the libraries collaborate more with these organizations than with educational establishments. A number of the libraries’ branches, and in some cases all of a library’s branches, work with playgroups, daycare centres and clinics. The libraries and their branches collaborate significantly less with youth care offices, youth and family centres and youth information points. In 40% of libraries, some or all of the branches work with museums, local history centres, centres for cultural history, and theatres, and in 30% of libraries, one of the branches works with such organizations. Some 30% of libraries do not work with any of these cultural organizations at any of their branches. Fifty per cent of libraries do not work with music podiums at any of their branches. Finally, the study also examined the collaboration with three very different organizations: UWV Werkbedrijf (Dutch Jobcentre Plus), independent job counsellors and (children’s) bookstores. The libraries work with bookstores on a large scale, and considerably less with Jobcentre Plus and job counsellors. There are clear differences in the way the provinces, the regional level, shape the libraries’ educational function in terms of the facilities, the programmes offered (especially for the special target groups) and the collaboration partners. Regarding the qualitative part of the study, nine interviews were conducted with representatives of various libraries. The Netherlands Public Library Association recommended these libraries be invited for an interview because they had either developed a special approach to learning or a project that promoted learning. The interviews produced a number of good examples of educational collaboration. The factors that make such projects a success and the things that are needed to roll out such projects across the country were also examined.

Conclusions and Recommendations of the Study In terms of the facilities, many of libraries’ branches are not laid out in a way that stimulates learning. Libraries already offer special programmes for seniors

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and people with a reading disability (dyslexia) in many places in the Netherlands. This applies less to programmes for illiterate people and non-native speakers. Libraries work closely with a variety of local partners and are thus well-established in the community. There is a lot of collaboration with primary schools, playgroups, daycare centres and clinics. The collaboration consists mainly of promoting reading and pre- and early-school education based on nationally available, well-developed programmes. There is a lot less collaboration with other educational establishments, and in particular with higher education and universities. There is also very little collaboration with language schools and adult education centres (which mainly offer language courses). A lot of libraries also work with various cultural organizations, although the offer is often less extensive and only available at one branch. Few libraries work with independent job counsellors and Jobcentre Plus. The results are good in the areas in which there is such collaboration. It is obvious that the provinces made different choice when they decided which educational aspects to focus on. Some of the special target groups can find what they need in more libraries in one province than in another. The availability of educational facilities also varies significantly between the provinces. Finally, there are a lot of creative forms of educational collaboration in many areas in the Netherlands that could be rolled out to other parts of the country. Many libraries offer a reading hotline for children and youths. This, combined with their low threshold, puts public libraries in an excellent position to promote reading and fight language deficiency and illiteracy. Because adults can also be illiterate, and development and education take place throughout a person’s life, it is important that libraries offer an education hotline for all age groups. A programme that is more targeted at adults and non-native speakers and that stimulates literacy, the naturalization process and being part of a community. Public libraries are so well established in the local community that they are perfect candidates for this role. Libraries can also play a meaningful role for people who want to develop further at some stage in their life. Based on the results of this study, the following recommendations were made to further strengthen the libraries’ educational function. – When setting up special areas and collections, libraries need to focus on ways of stimulating visitors to further develop or educate themselves. – Expand and improve the (national) programme for non-native speakers. – Collaborate more and better with language schools and adult education centres (Volksuniversiteit).

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– Stimulate collaboration with higher educationand universities, for example, in the area of internships and innovation. – Further roll-out of the WerkZat (jobcounselling) project, which has proven to deliver good results. – Link the programmes for the different target groups, for example, for secondary education students and WerkZat and for non-native speakers/ future citizens and WerkZat. This will enable libraries to provide good information and assistance to people who want to enter a different phase of their life. – The nationwide development of special programmes and material tailored to the different target groups (e.g. for secondary education, adults and non-native speakers) and adapted to the different levels of learning (similar to existing programmes for primary school and pre- and early-school education). – Each province needs to catch up in the areas in which they have fewer programmes for specific target groups. – Fight illiteracy not through individual projects but by developing a new type of activity and making it one of the libraries’ regular tasks, including a well-developed national offer of special materials. – Use structural funding to bring the libraries’ educational function (especially in the area of illiteracy and non-native speakers) up to the same level and anchor it in the local community

New Developments: Libraries’ Contributions to Formal and Informal Learning In the Netherlands, there is clearly strong support for formal education by public libraries; especially to the 6–12 year old age range. A new programme has been implemented in the library sector with a broad spectrum of digital services integrated in the traditional book and reading projects (Boek1boek, BiebsearchJunior, Kunst van Lezen [Art of Reading]). The Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries (SIOB) is developing a business case for public libraries for buying the package from the national service Bibliotheek.nl. The libraries can sell the complete package with programme support to the primary schools. This entrepreneurial approach is definitely a new phenomenon in the library sector. The pilot project managers are working hard to integrate three main assets in the package: the model of the physical children’s library in the school, with public library staff support included. Nowadays, this option is used as a solution to the budget cuts on a local level and replacement of some small branch libraries. One example is the public library in Den Bosch. Secondly, the package realizes not only the transfer to a multimedia library collection but aims at full integration in the digital infrastructure of the schools

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(Intranet). Children and teachers can put their loans independently on the net, and receive books or materials at school. Thirdly, the package offers digital arrangements by a look-and-find service, completely digitized, but also integrated in the e-learning environment in school classes and compatible to the (digital) curricula programmes used in class. Another new concept in the library service is the ‘ongoing’ reading path: the timetable for a coherent library support and package from 0–4, from 4–12 (primary school) and 12 years up. In the pre-school service we still see the more traditional approach of reading promotion and information about books for the very small, but there is more interest now in training of pre-school professionals. The target group 12+, however, is less well served in formal education, although there are facilities for children with low reading skills. For middle vocational training there is a similar digital support product on offer, Biebsearch; like the Biebsearch in primary school and Schoolbieb.nl for lookand-find and digital arrangements in an attractive internet display. Higher vocational training is hardly served by public libraries (Kasperkovitz 2010). The support of non-formal education in the Netherlands by public libraries is mainly understood as supporting the lifelong learning process of individuals after the formal training period has come to an end or as a safety net for a broken-off, non-successful school career. In past years focus has been on supporting integration projects for immigrants to facilitate participation in Dutch society, improving literacy skills and access to jobs. The Act on Integration makes an integration certificate obligatory and public libraries support programmes of the local council in cooperation with educational institutes. We see that 45% of public libraries in the Netherlands work with the regional training centres for Adult Education(ROC) (Kasperkovitz 2010). Recent research suggests that public libraries have a challenge to do more than the traditional service of collection and special information points (NL plein) (Research voor Beleid 2011). This research not only recommends new programming, but cooperation with new partners: e.g. with private language schools and interested companies and factories on a cost effective base.

Educational Mission of Public Libraries There is a discussion in the Netherlands about clear definitions of the task of the educational institute and public library service. A hot topic is the role of the librarian. Many librarians feel not at ease in a role as a teacher in a group of adults or have a lack of confidence and knowledge. In practice a solution is found in a good cooperation with the teacher of the educational institute and working together more closely in projects, classes and preparation of lessons. The Public Library in the city of Rotterdam has build

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up so much experience and confidence, that they pitched for a contract at the local council for educational projects on literacy, job skills and participation for adults. They won the pitch and offer their packages in 2010–2011 on the subjects mentioned above. Public libraries in the Netherlands reviewed their mission, vision and policy in the last decade. The five key functions identified include ‘education and learning’ in the broad sense. Apart from the well established working relations with primary education, secondary education partnerships have been forged with adult education, public broadcasting and employment organisations. ‘Lifelong learning’ was officially adopted as a general policy aim a decade ago, when the knowledge economy emerged as a political aim. In 2005, still in a positive political climate, with the help of the reformulated guidelines for public libraries, local libraries have been encouraged to discuss a local library agenda with their municipalities. In this way, local policy and relationships in the educational field have been connected. However, after initial studies, declarations and pilots, both in society at large and in the library sector, references to lifelong learning have become scarce. So, indeed, educational aims and functions by public libraries have to be programmed for long term purposes. This is all the more difficult when the political context for lifelong learning fades away. It will only be sustainable if it now can be connected to the more popular aim of innovation. For making educational activities of public libraries more ‘sustainable’ there was an analysis done in the Netherlands on literacy activities. (Research voor Beleid 2011). From 2006–2010 there was a national programme for improving literacy. As 60% of the public libraries offer support in literacy training, the Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries (SIOB) wanted to analyse how sustainable library programmes could be. In the Research voor Beleid investigation (2011) it was found that the national policies on Integration, Adult education and Participation are meaningful factors. Changes in policies and budgeting of these national programmes have an effect on the long term planning of libraries and on a coherent library policy for the coming years. Working in a more entrepreneurial manner is a minor solution, and not a good answer to how the public library could be a prominent player in the educational field. To measure the effects and validation of the library role in this respect has proven to be difficult until now although local governments often request these figures. A broader research project is planned at the National Institute in the coming years. In certain services for the primary schools an instrument is integrated for measuring effects of the programme on reading and school success. But in general, instruments for measuring effects of lifelong learning activities are hardly found.

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Expansion of Libraries’ Educational Role The main aspect to keep in mind is that public libraries offer an inspiring learning environment apart from the facilities for spending time, including computers, seats and study rooms. The combination of all these functions together with the media, counselling or unexpected meetings contribute to a positive learning situation or attitude. Indeed, in public libraries work for the traditional children’s service in public libraries has been taken over by a specific educational package. It also makes library workers confident to approach educational institutes or initiatives for adults. On certain topics, there is a broad cooperation and programming with all kinds of social, cultural and educational institutes. The local governments in the Netherlands have introduced for monitoring and policy development an instrument called the Participation Ladder. On different steps of the ladder, the participating status of an individual can be depicted. This simple but useful instrument is used by a number of public libraries to describe where their courses, workshops and educational products that fit ondifferent stages of the ladder. Public libraries have understood that they must follow the school curriculum very closely in order to offer relevant services, in adequate formats. It is noticed that libraries know little about learning theories and didactics. Some libraries have trained staff to present library services in a modern way in schools, broadening their competencies in the field of marketing, customer relations and presentation styles. As examples of libraries as learning organisations may serve the following: some libraries have also made a shift in their own development, and moved from training to practice learning in a social network meeting online and live (De Werkgemeenschap). Another group is working on new forms of a Library School, in cooperation with the Open University, and its research department for learning (methods, styles) and connecting to education curricula. In the field of reading and literacy, libraries have improved their educational offers by adding to the school curriculum. Media literacy is offered through Bieb search programmes. Coined ‘media wisdom’ by the national Council for Culture, indicating a new form of cultural citizenship, this national policy with project funding consist of a strategy of programmes, development of media coaches and targeted groups, with the aim of preventing a widening of the media and information gap. Some libraries have developed homework services and centres on their premises, with professional support. These policies and programmes are sometimes based on local political priorities (youth, education, employment), or part of a larger innovation strategy. A majority will still focus on literacy and library use, but most libraries know that their scope must become wider in order to demonstrate their values in the twenty-first century.

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Certainly, it should be made clear that public libraries can do more to support the demands of lifelong learning. It is in fact necessary to do so especially in looking for a new way to ‘stay alive’ in a political climate of cultural budget cuts. Where the public library has contacts and support activities for educational institutes, a serious attempt could be made by the public library to activate individuals in participatign in the curricula of the institutions. In the public libraries in the Flevoland province a project called ‘Ik leef & leer nu’ (I live & learn now) is a successful example. A very attractive campaign in the public library was a visual challenge to participate in a meeting with a coach and hear what possibilities the regional educational institute could offer the personal learning demands of the visitor. In a couple of months 500 persons signed up for a beginners course to develop learning interests. There is a general tendency to see aspects of society as just being instrumental for one thing: economic development. The voices of caring for next generations, creating sustainable awareness are less heard. In this respect, libraries have mostly followed the political fashion, but kept to the idea that libraries and education serve two aspects of people: personal development and their life as citizen. Both are supported by offering a social environment where meeting and exchange is possible. The first goal is still important as it relates to the potential of human beings, to their interests and uniqueness. The second one relates to citizenship, responsible life in society, and social integration. Public libraries offer a variety of sources and activities, and leave it to the users themselves to qualify them as leisure, cultural participation, education or otherwise. In societies where labour and private life become intertwined, libraries should even more abstain from a judgement on the character of information use by their users. In the Netherlands this is even more so, while a complete system of educational qualifications for professions and employment does not exist. Libraries have discovered that the informal and non formal learning processes which often take place in a library or through library materials and services have not always been recognised by politicians. When information skills became very important in the official discourse on the information society, libraries have embraced this for putting forward their role in this respect and many others for the benefit of the economy, social integration etc. There is, however, a big risk in stressing the instrumental role of libraries, as they may lose their intrinsic value. So, libraries are aware that the educational role goes beyond mere acquisition of skills for the labour market. They continue to support other types of learning and education. Learning and education are not neutral activities. The outcome leads to action or non-action by the learner, affects his/her thoughts and feelings, perspectives and opinions. But learning through the library should be an independent place with a variety of materials to choose from. Libraries support independent learning; they must make sure to be independent themselves as

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much as possible – in that sense they are not apolitical; they wish not to be a political aim of a single party, but the concern of the government and all parties. Among the social-liberal democratic founding ideas of libraries is the principle of non-partiality and pluralism; nowadays also including multiculturalism. New elements of library ethics include the participation of users in their services. This is especially welcomed by children and young people. Their rights to information and to participation are part of their right to all forms of education. Furthermore libraries are increasingly community based; it means they have strong connections with the communities they are serving. They support initiatives, local dialogues, learning to live together. One example are the media workshops in neighbourhood libraries in The Hague. Inhabitants of the neighbourhood are invited to make use of modern media equipment to show what is going on: a subject they are interested in, or how they live and work. Children and young people make use of it as well and make films, which are later shown as news on the library webpage. Learning by doing, information and social skills go hand in hand in a library setting.

New Approaches: Application of Retail Concepts A major discussion among Dutch public libraries has taken place (and continues) regarding the best way to ensure access to information, regardless of the format in with information is presented, and to maintain the principles of public service (non discrimination, democracy, transparency) and professional quality in services, collections and management, while likewise to provide evidence to (political) stakeholders of relevant service to citizens of all ages and walks of life. Studies in other branches: bookshops, restaurants, banks, retail in general, have led to the development of a new library service concept based on retail applications. The national model includes applications of the new common public library logo in a wide variety of objects and materials, but has more to offer: a thorough study of current and potential users in the catchments area is fundamental to the type of services offered, the style of services and staff activities. The first library to present the new logo and retail concept was in a new branch of Zwolle; which proved to be successful from the beginning: enthusiastic comment from the increasing group of visitors and members; better display of titles, increasing loans, larger variety of requests. A separate order organisation (Biblionet) has been set up, supported by some provincial library service organisations (Groningen, Overijssel), to roll out the concept and sell it to all libraries. Most libraries are open to the concept but some keep their own house style on some communication forms, as they are part of the municipal administration or a cooperative multifunctional unit, e.g. a cultural centre or kulturhus.

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Many libraries have no money for a new building, but welcome the retail concept, as it proves to be a very attractive alternative for makeover and innovation. One of the examples of a new library building and services(but without applying the common public library logo) is Almere, a new town project which started some decades ago, with the aim of providing housing for a lot of people from Amsterdam. Created in the manmade province of Flevoland (a former sea, Zuiderzee, now IJsselmeer), Almere is intended to grow to 180,000 inhabitants. The new library (which opened in March 2010) is a lively part of the inner city, a meeting place for multicultural Almere. Books and media are ranged according to themes, and have frontal presentations; easily accessible for reading on the spot, at home, for group work etc. A news cafe´, a game circle for playing on the Wii or play station are other facilities. Rooms for teaching, lectures and theatre are available. Films are shown three times a week, alternating with theatre, debate or comedy. The example of Almere shows how successful a new building and service concept can be: loans are up 25%, visitors are up 50%; 15 months after the opening the one millionth visitor was welcomed! As most libraries are facing budget cuts announced since 2010, there is an extra challenge to come with innovative concepts. In spite of the economic crisis, some libraries manage to grow, not necessarily only in loans or members, but also in networking, service cooperation and local position. The Library Journal analysed best practices and their critical factors. (Bibliotheekblad 3 2012). It shows that focus on network, digital innovation, presence of theatres and reading cafe´s, new (multifunctional) accommodation, retail concepts and a mix of small and large scale development or even changes in the lending rules can help a library to grow.

National Library Strategy Since the decentralisation of primary responsibility for public libraries to the municipal level, libraries have developed in various directions. Now that changes in society, technology and economy are challenging libraries, it becomes important again to work according to a shared mission and common concept, using a common strategic agenda. Ultimately one may formulate this as reinventing the library, integrating the digital revolution, demonstrating the societal (added) value of libraries. During 2010–2011 several attempts and studies passed before the urgency was felt in the whole library community. Simply stated: this new agenda needs one recognisable library, one trade mark, one library pass, one catalogue, one infrastructure and one centre of expertise. It will require the commitment of all stakeholders to contribute to its realisation in the Netherlands.

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References CBS: Statistics. http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?DM=SLNL&PA=70763ned&D1= a&D2=a&HDR=T&STB=G1&VW=T. Kasperkovitz, J.. 2010. De Leerfunctie van bibliotheken in beeld. The Hague: SIOB. The Educational Function of Libraries in Focus, Report 2009. Carried out on behalf of the Netherlands Public Library Association by: Kasperkovitz beleidsonderzoek en advies and IVA beleidsonderzoek en advies. Published by the Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries (SIOB), 2010. Koren, M. 2010. New Library Buildings in the Netherlands, 5. VOB/Biblion: Leidschendam. Koren, M. 2009. Public Libraries, In: Abdullahi, I., (ed.), Global Library and Information Science. A Handbook for Students and Educators, Saur, Mu¨nchen, (IFLA Publications 136–137): 311–328. Raad voor Cultuur. 1998. Advies over de bestuurlijke organisatie van het openbare bibliotheekwerk. The Hague: Raad voor Cultuur. Research voor Beleid. 2011. “Aanpak van laaggeletterdheid door bibliotheken; kansen en mogelijkheden voor de toekomst”. The Hague: SIOB. Approach policy to low-literacy by libraries: chances and possibilities for the future, by Research for Beleid, Published by the Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries (SIOB), 2011. Savenije, B. 2011. Libraries in the information society: cooperation and identity. In: Libraries and Society: Role, responsibility and future in an age of change. David Baker and Wendy Evans (eds.). Oxford: Chandos Publishing: 203–218. Savenije, B. 2009. Digital Library Economics: The Dutch Perspective. In: Digital Library Economics. An Academic Perspective. David Baker and Wendy Evans (eds.). Oxford: Chandos Publishing: 145–159. Sieverts, E. et al. 2009. Panorama. Den Haag: FOBID Netherlands Library Forum. Simons, E. 2010. The New Learning Environment: Impact on Staff and Students. Liber Quarterly 20(2): 258–269. http://www.shb-online.nl/dmdocuments/xplora_ellen_simons_liber_quarterly.pdf. Vallet, N. 2011. Openbare bibliotheken: strategische partners in stadsontwikkeling. VTOM 2: 4–13.

Links Bibliotheek.nl: http://www.stichtingbibliotheek.nl/ CDR music library services: http://www.muziekweb.nl/ EBLIDA: http://www.eblida.org/ FOBID Netherlands Library Forum: http://www.fobid.nl/ Koninklijke Bibliotheek, National Library: http://www.kb.nl/ LIBER: http://www.libereurope.eu/ Ministry of Education, Culture and Science: http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/ministeries/ocw NAPLE: http://www.naple.info/ NARCIS scientific portal: http://www.narcis.nl/ Netherlands Institute for Public Libraries: http://www.siob.nl/ Netherlands Public Library Association: http://www.debibliotheken.nl/ Reading Foundation: http://www.lezen.nl/ SHB libraries in Universities of Applied Sciences: http://www.shb-online.nl/ SURF: http://www.surf.nl/ UKB cooperation of Academic libraries: http://www.ukb.nl/

2.16 Pakistan Libraries and Impact of Information and Communication Developments in Pakistan: An Overview Kanwal Ameen Introduction The chapter intends to give a brief overview of the development of various types of libraries in Pakistan and the impact of evolving digital paradigm on them. It also provides a short note on the learning culture of the land from ancient to modern times. The content is based on the available literature, personal communications with peers, and the writer’s 25 years‘ experience, observation and research in the field of librarianship in Pakistan.

Learning Legacy: A Historical Snapshot Pakistan came into being as an independent country on 14 August 1947 after the end of the British colonialism and partition of India in the south Asian subcontinent. The land now constituting Pakistan, a country of 174 million people, had been a home to one of the oldest human civilizations, the Indus Valley Civilization. It was a Bronze Age civilization which began around 3300 BC. The inhabitants of the Indus Valley, the Harappans, developed new techniques in metallurgy, and produced copper, bronze, lead, and tin. Its mature period (2600–1900 BC) flourished around the Indus river basin. The complex production processes and extensive trading between Indus and Mesopotamian civilization demonstrates the fact that there must have been instruments for accumulating and transferring knowledge through generations; which has been the function of a library. The ancient history of libraries in the land is similar to other ancient civilizations. Archives were maintained by creating records for the regular use of Hindu and Buddhist monasteries, government officials and public use. Ashoka, who ruled ancient India (269–232 BC), is considered the pioneer for using written records for official purposes. “The Ashokan inscriptions of the third century BC provide us a landmark in the origin and growth of library system” (Panda 1992: 6). Another historical development was the foundation of the

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oldest center of advanced learning (6BC to 4AD) in Taxila, India (now in Pakistan) . It is considered as the first university of the world. It was the intellectual capital of Buddhist higher education and had an excellent library with works on religion, political science, literature, medicine, philosophy, and so forth. Later, book-loving Muslim rulers established royal libraries and also encouraged the establishment of madrassas (schools mostly attached to mosques). During the Muslim period a lot of personal, royal, and madrassa libraries were established, however, the production of books remained very limited even after the invention of printing. This was primarily due to the late introduction of the printing press in India. The Muslim rulers were orthodox in this regard and preferred using calligraphy instead of the printing press. They considered that printing books was disrespectful to knowledge, particularly sacred knowledge. After the end of the Mughal dynasty in India in 1857,the British began ruling India. During the late nineteenth century, they started establishing contemporary public and university libraries with a small collection of books and limited services. Pakistan inherited one university and one significant public library outside those in Lahore at the time of independence in 1947.

Developments of Libraries: Post Independence The country faced numerous challenges to its survival in the early years after its creation in1947. The state infrastructure of the new country was badly affected by the large migration of non-Muslim administrative and civil officers from Pakistan to India. Although it has become an atomic power now, the state of public education and libraries is still poor. Following is an overview of the various types of libraries in the country showing the overall growth trends.

National Library of Pakistan (NLP) The National Library of Pakistan was founded in 1949 and was a part of the Liaqat Memorial Library in Karachi from 1954 to 1968. Between 1968 and 1988 the library was shifted to various buildings in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi. In 1993, eventually it became open to the public when it got its own building in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan (Ahmad 2008). The NLP is administered by the Department of Libraries of the Directorate of Libraries and Archives under the Ministry of Education. The Library serves as depository library under the copyright act, maintains and preserves them, and publishes the Pakistan National Bibliography annually. In addition, it also functions as the National ISBN Agency for indigenous publications. Moreover, it has maintained a good collection and offers traditional library services to the local community. The collection of library encompasses publications about

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Pakistan, its culture, people, and books authored by overseas Pakistanis. Its web OPAC is also available. A significant part of its collection consists of manuscripts and rare books. The library is a depository for some international organizations like the Asian Development Bank, the International Labor Organization, and the US Department of Publications etc., and is an active member of different national and international library associations (National Library of Pakistan 2010). The NLP also established a children library in 1991. (http:// www.nlp.gov.pk/children_library.html).

Public Libraries Public libraries were established by: (i) the provincial government of cities, towns, and rural areas; (ii) some posh housing societies in big cities; and (iii) philanthropists’ trusts. An up-to-date number of all these libraries is unknown. The following section throws a light on the overall state of libraries run by provincial governments (the others are neither a significant number nor serve a wider community). The only significant government public library in 1947 was the Punjab Public Library, established in 1883 in Lahore. After that, both the government and the library associations made efforts in their own ways to develop a public library infrastructure. The government commissioned foreign experts to suggest plans for establishing a public library infrastructure (Key 1956; Donovan 1984). Library associations organized seminars and conferences to reinforce the need to do so by the government, and gave recommendations in this regard. Khurshid (2000), Anwar (1983) and Haider (1998) wrote in detail about the various development plans made by the government and the reasons for their failures in meeting the set goals. Even the public libraries established as an outcome of these efforts were neither sufficient in number nor had the much needed services. Unfortunately, the libraries that were established have suffered a lot due to many reasons such as: low priority given to libraries by the successive government regimes, low literacy rate, the lack of delegation of authority on the part of librarians, their poor service structure, and the scarcity of library funds. Public libraries drastically regressed under the regime of last dictatorship (2001– 2008), as a totally new system of local government was introduced, and it created a big mess for public services institutions. The confusion of power delegation between different government departments has left many small libraries in very bad shape and has turned them into pitiable or extinct creatures (Umera Shah, personal communication, April 14, 2009). Nonetheless, the libraries in big cities and elite housing societies are in somewhat better position in meeting educational and some of the cultural needs of the community. Some have developed their websites and OPACs. An overall landscape of the public library system in the country presents a dismal picture of libraries unable to meet even the minimum service standards.

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University Libraries (UL) Pakistan inherited two universities i.e. the University of the Punjab (PU), Lahore and the University of Sindh. The University of the Punjab, Lahore was established in 1882, whereas the University of Sind, Jamshoro was chartered in April, 1947. The University of Sindh was still being organized when Pakistan came into existence. Hence, the University of the Punjab, Lahore set the model for the establishment of new universities in the country. The library of PU was also established in 1882. Previously, the growth of universities and their libraries had been very slow, but since the dawn of the twenty-first century the growth rate is comparatively higher. Currently, the total number of HEC recognized universities or degree awarding institutions of higher education has reached 132, consisting of 73 institutions in the public sector and 59 in the private sector (Higher Education Commission of Pakistan 2010a).

Structure of University Libraries Universities in Pakistan have administratively different library structures such as: (i) a central library plus independent subject libraries attached to the departments, institutes, and colleges on campus; (ii) a central library with small seminar or reference libraries in departments and institutes; and (iii) only a central library. Therefore, both centralized and decentralized UL structures exists in Pakistan. The doctoral study by this author (Ameen 2005) discovered that in most of the cases, the authority regarding financial grants, administrative, and policy decisions in relation to the running of the central library system lies in the hierarchy of the syndicate, academic council, and library committee. A library committee usually consists of a chief librarian (secretary/ex-officio member) and nominees from the syndicate, academic council, faculty, and administration. The internal management is the responsibility of the chief librarian. However, none of the universities have formed a library committee. These libraries have had collections based mainly on books and then serial publications like newspapers, magazines, and journals. Nonetheless, the scenario has changed recently with the establishment of the Programme for the Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) in 2004 by the HEC with the help of International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP), Oxford. The ultimate goal of INASP is to provide assistance to the developing and transitional countries in information production, access, and dissemination by using information and communication technologies (ICTs). Its objectives include to facilitate the acquisition of international information and knowledge, provide training in the use of ICTs, and also to improve the production and dissemination of national and regional research (Said 2006).

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HEC-National Digital Library Programme (HEC-NDL) is the showcase of PERI application by HEC in the country. The salient features of HEC-NDL (Higher Education Commission of Pakistan 2010b) are described as the following: – A programme to provide researchers within public and private universities in Pakistan and non-profit research and development organizations, an access to international scholarly literature based on electronic (online) delivery, also to provide an access to high quality, peerreviewed journals, databases, articles and e-books across a wide range of disciplines. – Availability of over 30 databases providing access to over 20,000 full text journals from the world’s leading publishers. – DL accessible by approximately 250 institutions (public universities, private institutions, research and development organizations) – One million articles downloaded in 2005. – Access to a collection of over 150 million items available through the British Library Document Delivery Service. – Open access to a selection of over 10,000 e-books available for researchers. The application of PERI in terms of HEC-NDL has helped the scholarly community of the country tremendously in producing quality research. Previously, maintaining an expensive, foreign research journals collection was a big problem for ULs. End users’ desktop access to full-text quality journals and other resources has significantly enhanced the research output and is considered a big support to research programs of all universities. Besides, libraries have been developing digital content at the local level as well. The growth of well-maintained websites is on the rise, but most of them only have a basic introduction to the library on university’s home page. A number of them are striving hard to create web OPACs (Mahmood 2008). ULs have been comparatively better in meeting standards of professional, financial, knowledge, and other material resources. The status has further improved after the active role of HEC in providing grants for ICT-based infrastructure development in universities. It appears that the future of ULs is bright if higher authorities keep supporting them. The young university library professionals have been also working hard for their own continuing professional growth to meet the challenges of the digital era.

College Libraries According to the Pakistan Education Statistics 2007–2008 (Pakistan Ministry of Education 2009), there were 1,202 public sector degree colleges in Pakistan in 2007–2008. In addition, there has been a significant growth in private

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colleges during the recent years. Colleges in the public sector mostly have libraries, though they vary much in size of building and reading material; consisting from merely a few cupboards of books to a good enough library building with thousands of books. Colleges in big cities have much better facilities than smaller ones. The overall policy of college libraries is still collection-focused instead of user-focused. These libraries do not play the role of supporting students’ learning outside classrooms in the desired manner. They are mostly there as a mandatory part of an educational institution as per the rules and regulations. The lack of service culture has its own reasons, such as the dissatisfactory social and financial status of college librarians, lack of write-off policies, a ‘book and black-board-based’ education system to mention just a few. The adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) is very slow in college libraries, and that is because of little availability of the needed resources, librarians’ low level of satisfaction regarding carrier growth opportunities, and their lack of commitment for service and self professional development. It appears that college libraries’ status quo will not change in the near future, with a few exceptions.

School Libraries School libraries, unfortunately, are the most neglected libraries in Pakistan. There are broadly three types of schools, categorized accordding to ownership (public, semi-public, and private). Schools are generally categorized according to three grade levels: primary (1–5), middle (1–8) secondary (1–10). Again, their size and facilities depend on the type of ownership, city they are situated in, and the commitment of the higher administration. The Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) Act of 1975 suggests that an institution seeking affiliation with the Board should have a well-stocked library. In the case of new schools a sum of Rs.25,000 must be spent on the library in the first year and a provision to the extent of Rs. 5,000 must be made in every year’s budget thereafter. Adequate numbers of newspapers and periodicals must be provided in the reading room. The school should have a Library Assistant who must have obtained a certificate/diploma in library science (Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education 2010). This Act is hardly followed in letter or spirit by either government or public schools. There have been many plans on paper by the government to improve the standards of schools, but are hardly acted upon. International donor agencies such as UNESCO, the World Bank, and developed countries have given grants to the government, private sector and NGOs to provide better facilities to the public schools, but then again little could be achieved as compared to the plans. It may be added that corruption at all levels is one of the causes of this failure.

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The exact number of school libraries is currently unknown. According to a survey conducted in the 1990s, out of 171,000 schools only 481 public schools had libraries containing a total of 980,800 volumes and only 30 libraries had librarians (Ramzan 2005). The National Education Policy 1998–2010 targeted the establishing and strengthening of one library in each school by the year 2010. It also planned the provision of adequate funds, buildings, library periods, etc. to maximize the use of school libraries in the country but hardly any significant achievement has been made in this direction due to a lot of reasons. The Pakistan Education Statistics 2007–2008 (Ministry of Education 2009) report provides detailed and up-to-date statistics on education facilities and enrollments in all provinces of Pakistan, particularly in the public sector. This report reveals that under the headings of ‘physical facilities’, there is no mention of libraries. It provides data on the school buildings, water, electricity, toilets facilities, etc. It was astonishing to see that a significant number of schools lacked even these basic facilities for children. Hence, asking for a library seems a luxury in those cases. However, expensive private sector schools and selected public schools do have some kind of library and professional librarians. But at large, the majority of public school children are deprived of this ‘luxury’. They get education based on books and black boards. Ramzan (2005: 21) summarizes the dilemma of school libraries by saying, “Education Sector Reforms, annual development budget for education, and other school education planning and development budgets have ignored the establishment and up-gradation of school libraries. The reason for this seems to be ignorance of the important role libraries play in school level education. It is also due to the lack of knowledge and skills to initiate and implement school library development projects”.

Special Libraries There are different types of special libraries attached to public, private, corporate institutions, NGOs, research institutions, banks, etc. After ULs, these libraries are equipped mostly with better human and material resources. Obviously their services are limited to internal, specified users but have a comparatively much more user-oriented approach. Along with managing good collections of books, grey literature and digital access they facilitate users by playing an active role in meeting their information and research needs. Not much research has been conducted on these libraries though they are known for better, more tailored services to the community. Many of them are using ICTs to organize and deliver services in quite a sophisticated manner.

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Personal Libraries There are many bibliomaniacs in Pakistan who have maintained rich collections, specifically in different areas of humanities and social sciences. The owners mostly provide access only to researchers and close friends. A number of such collections have been acquired by different ULs via donation or by purchase from the descendants of the owners.

Overall Impact of Digital Paradigm and Future of Librarianship During recent years, Pakistan has witnessed a significant expansion of ICT infrastructure. The total teledensity (fixed + WLL + mobile) reached 61.9% in 2008–2009. Wireless Local Loop (WLL) services are becoming increasingly popular both for the rural and low population density areas. WLL subscribers stood at 2.6 million in January 2010 (Pakistan Telecommunication Authority 2009). Several indicators reveal that Pakistan is going through the digital transformation. A study by Shafique and Mahmood (2008: 76) revealed that “An information society is emerging at a very fast pace in Pakistan”. The study established that information society applications such as e-learning, computer supported political participation, e-government initiatives, telemedicine, information and communication technologies (ICTs), cellular phones, satellite dishes, the Internet, and so on show a significant growth. The Internet has become an essential tool for scholarly and business communication in Pakistan. In March 2009, there were 3.7 million Internet users using dial-up Internet services and 272,626 DSL users in Pakistan (Pakistan Telecommunication Authority 2010). Broadband services have emerged and the Internet has become a tool for entrepreneurial and academic businesses (Ameen and Rafiq 2009). Libraries have been significantly affected by these ICT developments. Since the dawn of the twenty-first century, there is a gradual but visible change from basic infrastructure to collections to services to needed human resources. Libraries have been adopting digital technologies to provide desktop access to in-house and remote collections. They are developing websites, web OPACs, internet labs and other public services. Redesigning library and information services using digital technologies is on the rise, but is still not significant enough to cope with the challenges of the emerging digital paradigm. Libraries are still, in general, missing integrated library management systems, sophisticated digital library applications, and the vision required for transformation of a traditional library into the digital library. There are some digital library initiatives but they are being hindered by issues that prevent their significant development or expansion (Ameen

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and Rafiq 2009). The majority of libraries are still in the process of automation, and the use of free or open source software is on rise (Rafiq and Ameen 2009). Nevertheless, there are a few competitive libraries which are fully automated, offer access to local and remote digital collections, and ready to use social networks to reach clients. The level of adopting the digital paradigm in Pakistan depends on the availability of needed infrastructure, human and financial resources, and the support of higher authorities. Mostly, university and special libraries are chasing the technological developments at relatively better pace while public and college libraries are far behind in meeting these challenges. Ongoing developments mean the future appears much brighter – though adoption will vary for different types and sizes of libraries. It may be safely stated that the development of libraries, especially in terms of ICT applications, will be faster in coming years. As the library schools incorporate ICT oriented courses into the curriculum to meet the demands of the digital paradigm, the library associations are aggressively engaged in arranging training workshops, lectures, etc. The aim is to enhance library professionals’ skills in order to enable them to successfully cope with the demands of the digital paradigm. The government of Pakistan is also supportive in the growth of digital applications. It is assumed that more and more libraries will be automated, and will provide services in a sophisticated manner using ICTs. University libraries will be at the vanguard of this growth. It is further anticipated that the application of Library 2.0 will be popular in coming decade. Of course much will depend on the overall political stability, economic development, and rulers’ focus on the education sector. Last but not the least, depicting the future precisely is very difficult with ICT developments taking place on an almost daily basis.

References Ahmad, P. 2008. The National Library of Pakistan: An overview. IFLA Journal 34(1): 90–98. Ameen, K. 2005. Philosophy and framework of collection management and its application in university libraries of Pakistan: An appraisal. PhD dissertation. Lahore: University of the Punjab. Ameen, K. and M. Rafiq. 2009. Development of digital libraries in Pakistan. In: Yin-Leng Theng, S. Foo, D. Goh and Jin-Cheon Na (eds.). Handbook of research on digital libraries: Design, development, and impact: 482–491. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. Rafiq, M. and K. Ameen. 2009. Issues and lessons learned in open source software adoption in Pakistani libraries. The Electronic Library 27(4): 601–610. Anwar, M. A. 1983. Urban public libraries: A national survey. Lahore: Publishers United. Donovan, D. G. 1984. Pakistan public libraries: Observations and recommendations (Report submitted to the Ministry of Local, Self- and Rural Development, Government of Pakistan, 1984).

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Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Islamabad. 2010. Academic and examination rules. http://www.fbise.edu.pk/Regulations.aspx (accessed February 10, 2010). Haider, S.J. 1998. Public libraries and development planning in pakistan: A review of past efforts and future needs. Asian Libraries 7(2): 47–57. Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. 2010a. Our institutions. http://www.hec.gov.pk/ OurInstitutes/Pages/Default.aspx (accessed March 12, 2010). Higher Education Commission of Pakistan. 2010b. National Digital Library. http://www. hec.gov.pk/ereforms/digitallibrary/Pages/welcome.aspx (accessed March 12, 2010). Key, L.C. 1956. Report and proposals on the establishment and improvement of libraries in Pakistan. Karachi: Ministry of Education. Khurshid, A. 2000. Planning and management of library and information services in Pakistan. Karachi: Library and Information Services Group. Mahmood, K. 2008. Library web OPACs in Pakistan: An overview. Program: Electronic Library and Information Systems 42(2): 137–149. National Library of Pakistan. 2010. Vision. http://nlp.gov.pk/ (accessed February 14, 2010). Pakistan Telecommunication Authority. 2010. Telecom indicators. http://www.pta.gov.pk/ index.php?option=com_contenttask=viewid=269Itemid=599 (accessed March 11, 2010). Pakistan Ministry of Education. 2009. Pakistan education statistics 2007–2008. Islamabad: Academy of Educational Planning and Management, National Educational Management Information System (AEPM/NEMIS). http://www.moe.gov.pk/educationalstatistics.htm (accessed February 10, 2010). Panda, B.D. 1992. The Growth of Academic Library System. New Delhi: Anmol Publications. Ramzan, M. 2005. Status of school library development in Pakistan. Sri Lanka Journal of Librarianship Information Management 1(1): 20–24. Said, A. 2006. Accessing electronic information: A study of Pakistan’s Digital Library. Oxford: INASP. Shafique, F. and K. Mahmood. 2008. Indicators of the emerging information society in Pakistan. Information Development 24(1): 66–78.

2.17 Palestinian Territory, Occupied Challenges and Obstacles in Palestinian Libraries Majed Khader Introduction This chapter provides readers with an understanding of the current situation of libraries in Palestine. It offers an overview of the challenges and obstacles facing Palestinian libraries in this information age of the twenty-first century. It deals with general barriers inhibiting libraries from flourishing and functioning like peer libraries elsewhere. Difficulties were encountered during the research process of this article. One of these was the lack of published literature on the topic of research. LefebvreDanset, in her article about Palestinian libraries, noted that the sources of information are scarce.1 In several cases, the author had to use and cite material written about the governing bodies or about parent institutions of these libraries. It is obvious that when parent organizations were facing difficulties, libraries serving the populations of these institutions or organizations were also affected. For Palestinian libraries, parent institutions/governing bodies include universities, city administrations, as well as international and local organizations. Input from Palestinian librarians and library administrators in the West Bank and Gaza Strip for this article was sparse. Several emails were sent, but unfortunately not a single response was received. A major factor that helped contribute to this difficulty in communication was a direct result of the unstable situation in the area and the unfortunate internal dispute between the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Despite all of the barriers, the author was able to collect some data to use. Several databases with scholarly articles available via some of the common gateways such as EBSCOhost and LexisNexis were utilized in the research process. Information from authentic websites such as the CIA’s The World Factbook, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Palestinian Authority website, and selected books and encyclopedias with information relating directly or indirectly to the subject of this article were also utilized. In addition to that, the author recently had the opportunity to visit some of the area’s libraries. The

1

Francolse Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine,” IFLA Journal 35(4) (2009): 323.

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collections, services, technology, equipment, and facilities were among the things that were observed during the author’s visit. To acquaint or educate the novice reader of this article about Palestine, the article will start with brief background information on the geography, languages, religions, and historical qualities of the area, followed by a presentation of introductory data on Palestinian libraries. The next section will explain obstacles and challenges facing these libraries and will end with recommendations and suggestions on what the world community (especially library organizations), librarians, and information specialists may do to help improve the current status of the Palestinian libraries. The main goal of this chapter is to present to readers, and those interested in international librarianship, information on the state of Palestinian libraries located in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

The Land Palestine, a geographical name of rather loose application,2 is a strip of land located to the east of the Mediterranean Sea. Ancient Greek, Latin, and Byzantine writers used Palaestina, Palaestina Prima to refer to the providence west of the Jordan Valley stretching from Mount Carmel in the north to Gaza in the south.3 This earliest name and geographic border still vastly applies to the area known now as Palestine. Thus, Palestine essentially has natural borders that include the Mediterranean Sea from the West, the Dead Sea and the Jordan River from the east, the Egyptian Sinai dessert and the Red Sea from the south, and the Syrian Golan Heights and the southern hills of Lebanon from the north. Palestine today consists of three entities: the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and Israel. The West Bank is about 5,860 sq. km, the Gaza Strip is approximately 360 sq. km, and Israel is about 22,072 sq. km.4

Language Two official languages, Arabic and Hebrew, and several other world languages including English and French are used for daily correspondence in this area. In

2 3 4

Robert A. Macalister, “Palestine,” Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th edn.: 600. Ilene Beatty, “The Land of Canaan,” From Haven to Conquest: Reading in Zionism and the Palestine Problem Until 1948, ed. Walid Khalidi (Beirut: The Institute for Palestinian Studies, 1971): 3. U. S. Government, The World Factbook, https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/theworld-factbook/.

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the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Arabic is the official language. It is also the common day-to-day language for correspondence and communication at the official and street levels. In 1967 when Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israeli military forces were in charge of the occupied territories until the signing of the 1993 OSLOW Accord between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The Hebrew language was introduced in the occupied territories to carry out tasks that required military approval. In addition, Hebrew is the official language of Jewish settlers who live in the occupied territories. Several other popular world languages, mainly English and French, are spoken by many Palestinians, especially educated and business people. English, for example, is commonly spoken and taught in schools from elementary classes in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.5

Religion Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are the three dominant religions practiced in Palestine. Eighty-seven percent of population in the West Bank and Gaza Strip is Muslims. Christianity is practiced by 8.7% of the total population.6 Judaism is the religion practiced by the Jewish settlers who moved to live in the West Bank settlements. It is the official religion of West Bank Jewish settlers.

Brief History Palestine is an historic area also known as the Holy Land. It is the Promised Land for the Jews, the birth place of Jesus Christ for Christians, and one of the holy sites for Muslims. It has a very rich and long history. It is known as one of the world’s cradles of civilization.7 Archeological records date human remains found in the area to ca. 600,000–3,000 BC to the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Chalcolithic Periods.8 In addition, ancient Palestine was looked at as a passageway, corridor, and the sea outlet9 to the surrounding people, nations, and tribes including numerous Arabian nomadic tribes and tribesmen who were dwelling towards the Palestine east line. Several members of these Arabian tribes chose to settle and stay in Palestine.

5 6 7 8 9

Ibid. Ibid. Philip K. Hitti, History of Syria (New York: Macmillan Company, 1971): 3. Walid Khalidi, All that Remains: The Palestinian Villages Occupied and Depopulated by Israel in 1948 (Washington D.C.: Institute for Palestinian Studies, 1992): 571. Beatty, “The Land of Canaan,”: 3.

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It is believed that in the early Bronze Age, 3,000–2,000 BC, the Canaanites were the first people to arrive, settle, and set up their own independent government in Palestine.10 Later on from 2,000 BC – the birth of the Christian era, several other old nations, civilizations, governments, and tribes conquered and settled in Palestine, including the Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Ptolemies, Seleucids, Maccabees, and the Roman Empire emerged.11 New inhabitants, and other nations and tribes continued to move in, invade, or conquer Palestine or part of it after the birth of the Christian era. Among the most influential powers that were part of Palestine’s history were the Byzantine Empire, the Islamic State, and the Crusaders. However, the majority of the estimated 600,000 inhabitants were Arabs, either Muslims or Christians.12

An Overview of Palestinian Libraries and Archival Centers Based on the data and reports published by the Palestinian Authority and independent researchers and scholars, approximately three hundred libraries were identified in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The known categories of these libraries are as follows.

Academic Libraries Between the years 1930–2004, 49 academic institutions of higher education were founded in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.13 These institutions are categorized as: Traditional Universities, Open Education Universities, University Colleges, and Community Colleges. In terms of affiliation and financial support, these institutions were categorized as public, governmental, private, and UNRWA (United Nations).14 Many academic institutions were developed and upgraded from two year colleges to university status. Obviously, libraries are among the most important components of these institutions. The building size and condition, collections, and services provided by these libraries vary from one library to another. Affiliation, category, and institutional history are

10 Khalidi, All that Remains, 574. Beatty, “The Land of Canaan,”: 4. 11 Khalidi, All that Remains: 571. 12 Ian J. Bickerton, “Palestine,” The New Encyclopedia Britannica 15 (1902): 605. 13 Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education, http://www.mohe.gov.ps/Uploads/ admin/Matweyeh2010.pdf (accessed May 12, 2009). 14 United Nations, Human Rights Council, “Human Rights in Palestine and Other Occupied Arab Territories: Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict,” http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/FactFindingMission.htm (accessed November 21, 2009).

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some of the major factors that affect these institutions, followed by minor factors such as size, services, and the general condition of the institutional libraries. Among the oldest and largest academic libraries in Palestine are Birzeit University Library, Al-Najah University Library in the West Bank, and the Islamic University Library and Al-Aqsa University Library in the Gaza Strip. The Al-Quds Open University was founded in 1991. This institution has the highest enrollment in comparison to other traditional institutions. The most recent report by the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education indicates that Al-Quds Open University’s enrollment has more than half of the total enrollment of all traditional universities combined. The Al-Quds Open University has small remote libraries linked to its regional campuses located at various sites in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. For a complete list of Palestinian Higher Education Institutions, please see http://www.mohe. gov.ps/Uploads/admin/Matweyeh2010.pdf.

Public Libraries Public libraries are not new in the Palestinian territories. Historic and large Palestinian cities such as Jerusalem and Nablus were known for their public libraries even before the Israeli occupation in 1967. In a recent report, 119 municipalities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip reported having public libraries.15 Besides Jerusalem and Nablus, many other Palestinian municipalities including Hebron, Gaza City, Jenin, Jericho, Qalqila, Rafah, Ramallah, and Tulkarm16 have public libraries. In terms of support, finance, and affiliation, Palestinian public libraries can be categorized as municipalities’ public libraries or NGO supported public libraries. Municipalities’ public libraries are mainly funded by their local city tax funds, donations, grants, and some governmental assistance. The NGOsupported public libraries are functioning and operating from funds and materials donated from local as well as worldwide governmental charitable organizations (NGOs).

Private Libraries As in some other parts of the world, a number of prominent Palestinian individuals and families started their own personal or family libraries. Initially, access to the collections of these kinds of libraries was restricted to family 15 16

Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 323. Erling Bergan, “Libraries in the West Bank and Gaza: Obstacles and Possibilities,” IFLA Council and General Conference: Conference Proceedings, 2000, ERIC ED 450734, http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla66/papers/170-172e.htm: 5–7.

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members, friends, neighbors, and visiting scholars. It wasn’t until later that these libraries opened their doors to the general public. The Khalidi Family Library and the Ansari Public Library, both located in Jerusalem, are classic examples of private libraries in Palestine. The Khalidi Public Family Library was opened in 1900. The Ansari Public Library history goes back to 1959, but it was opened to the public in 1985.17

School Libraries Palestine schools are categorized as public, private, and schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). Ideally, libraries should be among the essential resources for each school. Unfortunately, this is not the case for the 2,276 schools in Palestine. It was reported that less than 40% of the governmental schools (public schools) have libraries.18 Private schools as well as UN supported schools (UNRWA) may be better off in regards to library services.19 This doesn’t mean that these schools have perfect library resources, but at least students may have better access to library resources than their counterparts enrolled at public schools. For more information about Palestinian schools, please visit http://www.mohe.gov.ps/ShowArticle.aspx?ID=335.

Special Libraries Bergan cited a survey that reports that there are more than 100 special libraries in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.20 Lefebvre-Danset added that Palestinian special libraries are mostly very small religious or thematic units.21 Palestinian special libraries may fall into one of the following three categories based on support, association, and affiliation. One category is associated with local organizations, foundations, and civic services or political institutions such as AlHaq Human Rights Organization Library, Women Studies Center Library, and the Arab Studies Society Library. The second category is affiliated with governmental or semi-governmental offices such as the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics Library. The third category of Palestinian special libraries is the one that has connections or affiliations with religious establishments such as mosques and churches. Examples of this third category of special libraries are Al-Aqsa Mosque Library and Bethlehem Bible College Library. 17 18 19 20 21

Bergan, “Libraries in the West Bank and Gaza”: 4. Ibid.: 12. Ibid.: 13. Ibid.: 8. Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 323.

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Other Types of Libraries The phrase “other types of libraries” may be misleading. These kinds of libraries could be added to the lists of public, school, private, or special libraries due to the nature of their collection and function. Such libraries include the Palestinian National Library, the Palestinian Digital Library, and the United Nations Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) Libraries.

Problems and Challenges Facing Palestinian Libraries Due to the complicated, unstable, unresolved, and long-lasting Israeli/Palestinian conflict, Palestinians as well as service oriented organizations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have been suffering. Palestinian libraries and archival institutions have been struggling the most to meet their clients’ information needs. Most libraries have not developed much to improve their conditions and services from the short honeymoon period after the signing of the OSLO Accord in 1993. Palestinian librarians along with professional librarians from the international community who visited area libraries and assessed Palestinian libraries’ current situation reported disappointing news and data on the conditions of these libraries. Mr. Sami Batrawi, Head of the library directorate in Palestine, summarized the overall situation of Palestinian libraries by stating that “most of these libraries lack resources and facilities.”22 An American Library Association (ALA) delegation that visited the area on November 1997 reported that, “an inspection of several libraries revealed sparsely stocked collections, cramped reading rooms, woefully outdated reference books and few – and in some cases no – periodicals and microfilm readers.”23 Hamilton and Bakken reported under-developed library infrastructure and other serious problems.24 Lefebvre-Danset reported that very few Palestinian libraries meet international standards, most often suffering from the lack of dedicated buildings, equipment, professional skills, and especially funding.25 Palestinian libraries are still in a dire and depressing situation. Based on the published literature, some of the major problems and obstacles facing Palestinian libraries include the following.

22 23 24 25

Sami Batrawi, “Libraries in Palestine: The Library Directorate and its Role in Developing the Palestinian Libraries,” 2007, http://librarians.ning.co m/forum/topics/649152:Topic: 4243 (accessed April 15, 2009): 2. Ron Chepesiuk, “Field Trip to Palestinian Libraries Yields Audience with Arafat,” American Libraries 29(1) (1998): 42. Stuart Hamilton and Frode Bakken, “Preliminary Report and Recommendations Form an IFLA / FAIFE-Mission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” Library Times International (October 2007): 15. Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 323.

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Lack of security and protection for libraries, archives, and archaeological and cultural heritage centers. This is one of the major problems that has been facing Palestinian libraries. Several reports were published documenting the security and protection issues. Julien Anfruns, President of The International Committee of the Blue Shield (ICBS) reported information on the recent destruction and damages that occurred in the Gaza Strip during the January 2009 Israeli attack. Anfruns26 wrote that two municipal libraries in Amoghazi and in Juhur-el-Deek were completely destroyed and that the libraries of Islamic University and the Tal el-Hawa branch of the Al-Agsa University were severely damaged. Al-Houdalieh27 reported looting of artifacts in the Safa village, 22 km northwest of Jerusalem. The International Responsibilities Task Force of the American Library Association’s Social Responsibility Round Table published a report that includes a list of 33 facilities including university libraries, cultural centers, municipal libraries, government archival offices, human rights organization libraries, public institutions, cultural centers, etc. which were damaged or were target of destruction, looting, or vandalism.28 Twiss indicated that this report does not pretend to be comprehensive.29 Reported damage includes confiscation of computers, damage to windows and doors, destruction of books, CDs, tapes, equipment, and other educational materials, looting several libraries‘ contents, defacing maps of the Middle East, graffiti, and other forms of destruction.30 Lack of an adequate number of professional staffing. Numbers of librarians with a professional library degree (MLS) or its equivalent are very limited in the country. During the past ten to 15 years, several reports on the status of Palestinian libraries pointed out this problem. Batrawi, for example, reported from a study carried out by a group of Palestinian librarians on the status of all Palestinian libraries (school, public, and university) serving the general public. The study shows that only 7% of those surveyed had an academic qualification.31 Bergan added that none of those answering to this study had a PhD in Library and Information Science.32 In support of the finding of this study, an ALA delegation which visited the area on November 1997 observed and

26

Julien Anfruns, “Cultural Heritage in Gaza Damaged in Great Danger,” Blue Shield Organization, http://www.ecovast.ru/images/ICBS_Gaza.pdf (accessed April 18, 2009). 27 Saleh Al-Houdalieh, “The Destruction of Palestinian Archeological Heritage: Saffa Village as a Model,” Near Eastern Archeology 69 (2006): 103. 28 Tom Twiss, “Damage to Palestinian Libraries and Archives During the Spring of 2002,” International Responsibilities Task Force of the American Library Association’s Social Responsibilities Roundtable, http://www.pitt.edu/~ttwiss/irtf/palestinlibsdmg.html (accessed April 21, 2009): 1–17. 29 Ibid.: 1. 30 Ibid.: 1–17. 31 Batrawi, “Libraries in Palestine”: 2–13. 32 Bergan, “Libraries in the West Bank and Gaza”: 13.

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reported that the Islamic University in Gaza at time of the delegation visit had only three professional librarians to serve 6,000 students.33 Lack of training and continuing education opportunities for professional librarians as well as for the support staff. Batrawi reported this deficiency in staff training. He also added that only 28% of the staff of the surveyed libraries had attended training courses in librarianship.34 Lack of trained personnel in IT. Trained technicians help in all aspects of library technology including setting up computers, systems, equipment, and Teci rooms. Trained IT persons also help in the installation and running of databases and Internet services, fix minor equipment malfunctioning, and perform other tasks related to technology in libraries. But there are not many trained professionals in information technology in the country and it is affecting the progress of libraries. Lack of current technology in libraries. Batrawi35 reported undeveloped IT systems and almost non-existent use of IT in information centers. The IFLA/ FAIFE World Report also mentioned this deficiency and indicated that Internet access for school and public libraries is below 20%.36 In addition, Burgan’s article on Palestinian libraries cited the 1996 study on Palestinian libraries that reported less than 4% of the responding libraries used a computer to handle their circulation, cataloging or searching.37 Poor, out-of-date, and inadequate library resources. Lack of current and adequate library resources that serve users’ information needs had been observed and reported in several reports. Batrawi indicated in his survey of all libraries serving the public library resources that were poor and inadequate.38 Others such as the ALA delegation which visited the Palestinian territories reported that some of the reference books in one of the visited libraries were 20 to 30 years old and no recent editions or titles were available.39 Weak and poor infrastructure of library association.40 A strong and wellstructured national library organization provides guidance, leadership, expertise on several vital issues of concern to the profession, to professional librarians, and to libraries in general. In addition, a national library organization could help with initiating policies, codes of ethics, standards, professional meetings, etc. The Palestinian Library Association is very young, established in 1995, and still in the structuring process. But due to restrictions on assembly

33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

R. N. Sharma, “American Librarians Visit Gaza Strip,” ACRL News 59, number 1 ( January 1998): 27. Batrawi, “Libraries in Palestine”: 2. Ibid.: 2. IFLA / FAIRE World Report 2007, “Palestine,” http://archive.ifla.org/faife/report/98% 20IFLA-FAIFE%202007%20CR%20-%20Palestine.pdf: 303. Bergan, “Libraries in the West Bank and Palestine”: 13. Batrawi, “Libraries in Palestine”: 2. Sharma, “American librarians visit Gaza Strip”: 27. IFLA / FAIRE World Report 2007: 303.

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and movement imposed by Israel, it is difficult for this association to flourish and play a major role in the development of libraries.41 Insufficient, small buildings or inadequate facilities. The ALA delegation of the American librarians which visited libraries under the jurisdictions of the Palestinian Authority in 1998 reported that none of the institutions (libraries) have adequate library facilities.42 In addition, a 1996 study on Palestinian libraries indicated that more than half of the libraries had less than fifty square meters to spread their activities.43 A majority of the libraries have seen no major upgrades to buildings and facilities since these two reports. LefebvreDanset added that renovation and modification of libraries, especially the one within East Jerusalem, is prohibited.44 Lack of freedom of movement between cities and districts in the area. This might sound like a political issue, but it has a major impact on library services and functionality. Lefebvre-Danset commented on this matter of the freedom of movement by indicating that Palestine is a territory, or more exactly three territories – the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem but isolated from each other and encircled by high walls and impassable barriers.45 Therefore, students, library employers, and citizens cannot move freely from one area to another due to many obstacles. In addition, the Gaza Strip has been isolated from the rest of the Palestinian Authority’s territories and under siege from the rest of the world for more than three years now. Interlibrary loan service, training, using library resources for research projects and class assignments, circulation of materials, and other library services and functionality have been affected by such lack of freedom to travel around the area. Daoud Zatari, President of the Palestine Polytechnic University (PPU), and Aiman Soltan wrote, “Since 28 September 2000, comprehensive and internal closure and siege has been progressively imposed by Israel on the Palestinian territories. This isolates Palestinian cities from each other, and restricts the movement of students, staff and others. This creates serious obstacles for universities and their management, limiting academic development and hindering the exchange of resources between local higher education institutions.”46 In addition to the report by Zatari and Soltan, Bergan wrote, “that the restrictions and checkpoints introduced since Oslo-process started are more numerous than ever.”47 No one can leave or enter the Strip (some exceptions may apply to diplomatic envoys). The Chronicle of Higher Education published several

41 42 43 44 45 46 47

Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 323. Sharma, “American librarians visit Gaza Strip”: 27. Bergan, “Libraries in the West Bank and Palestine”: 50. Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 324. Ibid.: 322. Daoud Zatari and Aiman Soltan, “Challenges Facing Higher Education Development in Palestine,” http://www.eaie.org/pdf/F4//art5.pdf (accessed June 5, 2009). Bergan, “Libraries in Palestine”: 9.

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reports on such restrictions including the report on the blocking of hundreds of students from traveling to foreign universities,48 an article titled “Report Assails Israeli Policy That Keeps Palestinian Students From Leaving Gaza,”49 and a report about a deportation of a student because she was from the Gaza Strip.50 Lack of access to essential library materials, including books and journals due to censorship. Bergan testifies to this by stating, “Through the years, many Israeli Military Orders banning specific book titles have been issued. The list reached at one point Kafkaesque proportions, when titles like George Orwell’s 1984 appeared on one of the sixty lists of prohibited books that included more than 1,600 titles.”51 Bergan added that there have been many reports on breaches of human rights, censorship by closing down newspapers, radio stations, and TV-stations that are too critical.52 In addition, before and after the Oslo Accord, any materials or goods including books, coming in or going out of the West Bank have to go first through Israeli checkpoints. Outdated and under-funded library education, and a lack of knowledge of current library practices elsewhere in the world.53 Definitely, the lack of sufficient budgets for libraries and restriction on the freedom of movement in and out of the Palestinians territories are the main causes of this problem. Insufficient/reduced budget. Two factors affecting budget shortage in Palestine in general and libraries in particular are world financial crises and the hold on Palestinian tax revenue by the Israeli government. International aid and international donors including world government and non-governmental donors are the backbone of the Palestinian budget. The economy worldwide is not in good shape due to recession and inflation. Thus, donors have been postponing or decreasing their commitment of support to the Palestinian Authority as well as to civic service agencies. In addition, Israel holds hundreds of millions of dollars of Palestinian tax revenues.54 Palestinian libraries, like other government and service oriented institutions, are suffering. Therefore, there is not enough money to pay for new materials, journal subscriptions, new equipment, or to rebuild destroyed libraries.

48 49 50 51 52 53

The Chronicle of Higher Education, October 22, 2009. The Chronicle of Higher Education, June 29, 2009. The Chronicle of Higher Education, October 29, 2009. Bergan, “Libraries in Palestine”: 10. Ibid.: 10. Hamilton and Bakken, “Preliminary Report and Recommendations from an IFLA / FAIFEMission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”: 15. 54 Isabel Kershner, “Israel to Transfer Funds from Taxes to Aid Abbas,” New York Times, June 25, 2007: 9+, 62, EBSCOhost (accessed June 24, 2009), http://search.ebscohost.com/login. aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=28207330&site=ehost-live.

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Recommendations Previously cited obstacles blocking the way of progress for Palestinian libraries and archival centers will not be resolved overnight. A number of relief ideas, including notions that were proposed by several professionals who visited devastated Palestinian libraries could be taken into consideration. It is very important and urgent to ease travel restrictions in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. It will help students, employees, and citizens to travel freely to libraries for their research needs. At present, the restrictions on travel in the West Bank and the closure of the Gaza Strip are hurting libraries and their users badly. Students are not able to use the library faculties and services to fulfill their educational requirements. Libraries need new books, journals, multimedia, and computers for access to databases. Many library buildings need to be renovated to accommodate new technology. Lifting travel restrictions will certainly help to move forward. Hamilton and Bakken also brought up the factor of restriction in an article by indicating that communication between library professionals in the West Bank and Gaza is extremely restricted, limited only to telephone and email, and communication between library professionals in the West Bank is profoundly affected by restrictions on freedom of movement.55 It was reported in the literature that in one year only, 33 libraries and archival centers were targets of damage, destruction, or the ransacking of building holdings.56 During the most recent war on Gaza, the library on the main campus of Al-Aqsa University in Gaza City was badly damaged by Israeli tank fire.57 This type of activity is very harmful to the students, faculty, and other users. There are international laws safeguarding properties, belongings of libraries and archaeological sites which have not been implemented in Palestine. Al-Houdalieh made reference to the local and international laws that should be enforced including, “the Hague Convention of 1954 and the UNISCO/ICOMS conventions and principals.”58 Destruction, looting, and vandalism by Israel military forces and settlers in the Palestinian territories “to force Palestinians out of home land documents”59 is not new. Amit added “looting was common both during and following the 1948 war and is mentioned frequently in the contemporary documents.”60 It is important to safeguard all archives and libraries for future generations.

55 56 57 58 59 60

Hamilton and Bakken, “Preliminary Report and Recommendations from an IFLA / FAIFEMission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”: 15. Twiss, “Damage to Palestinian Libraries and Archives During the Spring of 2002”: 1–17. Matthew Kalman, “Colleges in Gaza Reopen but Face more Than $20 Million in Repairs”: 2. Ibid.: 103. Ruether, “Destruction of hope goal of Israeli rampage: Vandalism part of systematic effort to force Palestinians out of homelands”: 16. Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 325.

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In the age of information of the twenty-first century, it is important to build internal professional networks because it will benefit local libraries in many ways including resource sharing and links with international professional and intercultural networks.61 Palestine is a very poor country and money is needed to rebuild destroyed libraries, maintain existing buildings, replace stolen or confiscated materials, purchase new materials, pay for new services, and even employee salaries. The world community is very helpful and donates money but it is not enough and more financial help is needed to improve libraries. The Palestinian Library and Information Association and the Palestinian Library and Information Consortium are functioning but more international community financial support is needed to uplift them. These organizations will serve as the backbone for all Palestinian libraries. Financial help and professional guidance from leading library associations and rich countries will help the library associations of Palestine to conduct seminars, workshops, training, and buy equipment for all libraries. The Palestinian National Library and the Palestinian Digital Library, two newly born entities need guidance and directions from their counterparts such as the Library of Congress, the British Library and OCLC. These two institutions also need financial support to buy materials, and equipment and even pay the salaries of their staff. It is important for students of library and information science in Palestine to study abroad to learn the latest library techniques and approaches.62 Joint efforts will bring hope to professionals and library users.63 Such team spirit will bring hope to professionals and their clients. Despite all the challenges and calamities that the Palestinians have been facing, professional human resources are one of their greatest strengths. In his statement to the Delegation of American Librarians, President Arafat stated that, “We are the highest educated people in the Arab world…. out of 1, 000 people eighteen have Master’s and or Ph.D. degrees.”64 Opportunities and support are what professional Palestinians need to be among the world’s main contributors to the well of humanities. Some world libraries have already started helping and guiding libraries in Palestine but more help is needed. For example, Birzeit University Library in Palestine and Tromsø University and Telemark College Libraries in Norway have decided to work together on an Open Repository Project. This partnership, “will give global access to doctoral and master thesis and scientific

61 62 63 64

Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 325. Hamilton and Bakken, “Preliminary Report and Recommendations from an IFLA / FAIFEMission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”: 15. Lefebvre-Danset, “Libraries in Palestine”: 331. Sharma, “American Librarians Visit Gaza Strip”: 28.

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publications produced at Birzeit.”65 This unique project should help all parties involved. Birzeit would have its own Master’s Thesis and doctoral dissertation database. Norwegian students would be able to broaden their research resources by accessing research related to their area of specialty and conducted by their peers from the international community. Exchange of librarians will give an opportunity to Palestine libraries to work and learn from foreign librarians to improve services, collections, and technology in their libraries and foreign librarians will learn more about libraries in Palestine. Elturk, a U.S. librarian who visited the region, proposed considering an adoption and the establishing of brother and sister libraries.66 Adoption is different than an exchange program. It is a commitment from one party towards the other who is in need of such support. In the United States and in many other countries, librarians evaluate their library collection periodically. Due to the evaluation process, many useful weeded resources could be recycled and used by libraries in the developing nations including Palestine. In fact, the enrichment of Palestinian library resources was called for by many professional experts who visited Palestinian libraries and testified to the need for improvements to meet minimum standards. Sharma, Chair of the ALA delegation who visited the Palestinian territories wrote, “the delegation firmly believes that Gaza Strip/West Bank institutions need books, journals, technology, and proper guidance to develop their libraries.”67 Sharma added that some of the reference materials are 30– 40 years old and no recent additions or titles are available.68 Other international librarians including Elturk, Bergan, and this author have noticed this terrible condition of Palestinian library collections. To meet accreditation and international standards, Palestinian libraries are in desperate need of new publications and new library technology. Recycled materials will enrich the collections. Supporting Palestinian libraries, especially academic libraries, with newer publications, or by granting them access to scholarly databases and journal subscriptions will definitely improve services. An upgrade to these libraries’ computers and systems is also needed. Such an upgrade will improve services for the benefit of all. When the main library at Birzeit University switched to a freely available Open Source Software (OSS), their old computers as well as the new computers started to perform. This upgrade brought a new lease of life to the library and created a

65 66 67 68

EIFLE.net, “Open Repository in Birzeit University: Palestine-Norway Partnership,” http:// www.eifl.net/cps/sections/services/eifl-oa/oa-news/2008_09_11_open-repository-in (accessed July 7, 2009): 1. Ghada Elturk, “Palestinian Libraries: Little Pieces of Heaven in Hell,” Progressive Librarian 21 (2003): 1–5, http://libr.org/pl/21_Elturk.html (accessed April 15, 2009). Sharma, “American Librarians Visit Gaza Strip”: 28. Ibid.: 27.

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high-speed network that pleased staff and astonished students.69 Dr. Ghanem, Head of the Electrical and Computer System Engineering department at Birzeit University testified to this fact by saying, “OSS stimulates local innovation and transfer of knowledge by providing Palestinian software developers with the opportunity to contribute to the global OSS community, as well as OSS systems and applications.”70 Dr. Moain Sadeq, Director of the Department of Palestinian Antiquities of Gaza, issued an appeal a few years ago for the establishment of a library or library collections on ancient Near Eastern studies to serve the information needs of archeological studies students at the local universities. In his appeal, Dr. Sadeq indicated that creating such collections, “would greatly advance the intellectual life of both students and scholars living and working in Gaza.”71 This type of initiative from foreign librarians will certainly help libraries in Palestine to grow and improve. The country needs more library schools to train professional librarians with first-hand knowledge and experience in information technology database structure, digitization, technical services, acquisitions, library management, and reference.72 It will help Palestinian libraries to hire professional librarians with proper academic credentials. Elturk is of the view that it is important to have a good list of professional contacts in the country to move forward, plan and implement the suggested path to improve libraries and librarianship. She wrote, “Establishing contacts with the Palestinian libraries and communicate via these contacts when opportunities arise to help.”73 Such contacts will facilitate communication, convey and report on accomplishments and needs, and serve as area resource persons. To overcome the closure, roadblocks, siege, and the rigorous movement restrictions frequently imposed by Israel on Palestinians of the occupied territories and the Gaza Strip, e-learning is an alternative. Libraries of all kinds, including academic libraries could be the ideal institutions to take leadership in this area. Several articles on e-learning in Palestine including the ones by Abuziz on “Needs and Context of ODL at the Palestinian Institutions,”74 and Shraim and Khlaif on “An E-Learning Approach to Secondary Education

69

IFAP, “IFAP Success Stories: Open Source Software Brings a New Lease of Life to Libraries in Palestine,” http://www.unesco-ci.org/cgi-in/ifapstories/page.cgi?g=Detailed% 2F22html;d=1 (accessed July 22, 2009): 1. 70 Ibid.: 1. 71 Moain Sadeq, “An Appeal to Establish a Library for Ancient and Near Eastern Studies in Gaza,” American Schools of Oriental Research Newsletter 54(1) (Spring 2004): 13. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 29, 2009). 72 Hamilton and Bakken, “Preliminary Report and Recommendations from an IFLA / FAIFEMission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”: 16. 73 Elturk, “Palestinian Libraries”: 4. 74 Abuzir, Yousef. Needs and context of ODL at the Palestinian institutions. Quarterly Review of Distance Education; Winter2010, 11(4).

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in Palestine: Opportunities and Challenges,”75 addressed e-learning in the Palestinian territories with emphasis on challenges and opportunities. It is an opportunity for libraries to take the lead in this area and accept the responsibilities to operate such a service because it will help to communicate better with library users and help them in their research needs.

Conclusion It is the responsibility of all who believe in social justice for everyone to stand with the rights of the Palestinian people to receive what citizens from the neighboring countries are receiving with regard to library services. Many of the more than ten million Palestinians, half of whom are within what was known as Historic Palestine, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and inside Israel76 cannot wait to see their rights, including the freedom to read, reinstated. Dina Matar’s book “What it Means to be a Palestinian,” and Ata Qaymari’s article on the terrible condition of education in East Jerusalem,77 are a few from the thousands of resources that describes the crucial situation of libraries in the Palestinian Territories. The Palestinian library community, librarians, staff, and library users are always appreciative of individuals, organizations, or government entities who understand their legitimate information needs. The list of these valid needs is always on the rise due to the depressed political and economic situation in the Palestinian territories. Some of these needs include: protecting and upgrading library buildings and facilities, availability of up-to-date technological equipment, staff training, collection development, and library services in the twentyfirst century. The Palestinian library community and even the general Palestinian public are optimistic about a bright future for their libraries in the information age with the support from the world library community.

References Abuzir, Yousef. 2010. “Needs and context of ODL at the Palestinian institutions. Quarterly Review of Distance Education11( 4): 243–255. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=aph&AN=60145267&site=ehost-live (accessed December 20, 2011). Adas, Jane. 2000. “In the 60 percent of the West Bank under full Israeli occupation, Palestinian evictions continue.” Washington Report on Middle East Affairs 19(2) http://web.

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Shraim and Khlaif on An E-Learning Approach To Secondary Education In Palestine: Opportunities and Challenges. Information Technology for Development 16(3) (2010). Matar, Dina. What It Means to be Palestinian, xii, 2011. Qaymari, Ata. “Education In East Jerusalem.” Palestine-Israel Journal Of Politics, Economics & Culture 17.1/2 (2011).

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ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=107&sid=7db58444-aabd-41f9-8c9f-eef6a48 c51af%40sessionmgr104&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN= 2782526 (accessed July 22, 2009). Amit, Gish. 2011. “Salvage or Plunder? The Post-1948 “Collection” of Palestinian Libraries in West Jerusalem. Journal of Palestine Studies 40(4): 6–17. http://www.palestinestudies.org/journals.aspx?id=11072&jid=1&href=fulltext. Anfruns, Julien. “Cultural heritage in Gaza damaged and in great danger.” Blue Shield Organization. http://www.ecovast.ru/images/ICBS_Gaza.pdf (accessed April 18, 2009). Al-Houdalieh, Salah H. 2006. “The Destruction of Palestinian Archaeological Heritage: Saffa Village as a Model.” Near Eastern Archaeology 69(2): 102–112. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 29, 2009). Batrawi, Sami. 2007. Libraries in Palestine: The Library Directorate & its role in developing the Palestinian libraries. http://librarians.ning.com/forum/topics/649152:Topic:4243 (accessed April 15, 2009). Beatty, Ilene. 1971. “The Land of Canaan.” In: Walid Khalidi (ed.) From Haven to Conquest: Reading in Zionism and the Palestine Problem Until 1948. Beirut, Lebanon: The Institute For Palestine Studies. Bergan, Erling. 2000. Libraries in the West Bank and Gaza: Obstacles and possibilities. http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla66/papers/170-172e.htm (accessed April 15, 2009). Bickerton, Ian J. 1902. “Palestine.” The new Encyclopedia Britannica 15: 407–425. Blue Shield Organization. Palestinian Libraries: The losses of the Library of the Faculty of Agriculture and Environment Al Azhar University / Beit Hanoun. http://www.ancbs. org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=89:palestine-libraries&catid=14: past-news&itemid=29 (accessed April 14, 2009). Central Intelligence Agency. 2008. The 2008 World Factbook. Washington, D.C.: Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/ (accessed April 18, 2009). Chepesiuk, Ron. 1998. “Field Trip to Palestinian Libraries Yields Audience with Arafat.” American Libraries 29(1): 40–42. CHEQ. CHEQ: Higher Education in Palestine. http://www.cheq-edu.org/hepalestine-eng. htm (accessed May 17, 2009). Del Castillo, Daniel, and Beth McMurtrie. 2002. “Turmoil and Violence on the West Bank Shuts Palestinian Universities.” The Chronicle of Higher Educationhttp://chronicle. com/article/TurmoilViolence-on-the/17588/ (accessed November 11, 2009). EIFL.net. n.d. Open repository in Birzeit university: Palestine-Norway Partnership. http:// www.eifl.net/cps/sections/services/eifl-oa/oa-news/2008_09_11_open-repository-in (accessed July 7, 2009). Elturk, Ghada. 2003. “Palestinian Libraries Little Pieces of Heaven in Hell.” Progressive Librarian 21: 1–5 http://libr.org/pl/21_Elturk.html (accessed April 15, 2009). Lefebvre-Danset, Francolse. 2009. “Libraries in Palestine.” IFLA Journal 35(4): 297–378. http://www.ifla.org/files/hq/publications/ifla-journal/ifla-journal-35-4_2009.pdf (accessed December 23, 2009). Hamilton, Stuart, and Frode Bakken. 2007. “Preliminary Report and Recommendations from an IFLA/FAIFE-Mission to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.” Library Times International October 2007: 15–17. Hitti, Philip K. 1951. History of Syria. New York: The Macmillan Company. Hitti, Philip K. 1961. The Near East in History. Princeton, N.J.: D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc. Horton, Matt. 2008. “This Holiday Season: Buy Palestinian!” Washington Report on Middle East Affairs 27(8): 62. EBSCOhost. Web. 24 June 2009. http://search.ebscohost.com/ login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=34655836&site=ehost-live.

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IFLA. 2007. IFLA/FAIFE World Report 2007. Country Reports. Palestine. http://archive. ifla.org/faife/report/98%20IFLA-FAIFE%202007%20CR%20-%20Palestine.pdf (accessed May 20, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2009. “Colleges in Gaza Reopen but Face More Than $20-Million in Repairs.” The Chronicle of Higher Education: 1–3. http://chronicle.com/article/ Colleges-in-Gaza-Report-but/1508/ (accessed May 13, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2009. “For College Students in Gaza, Choices Are Few: Israeli security measures have isolated Palestinians there from outside higher-education.” The Chronicle of Higher Education 53(35): 1–4. http://chronicle.com/weekly/v53/i35/35a04701. htm (accessed May 12, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2009. “Gaza’s Damaged Universities Still Await Repairs.” The Chronicle of Higher Education: 1–2. http://chronicle.com/article/Gazas-DamagedUniversities/47974/print (accessed August 10, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2008. “Israeli Court Asks Army to Let Gazan Students Travel.” The Chronicle of Higher Education. http://chronicle.com/weekly/v54/i40/40a03001.htm (accessed June 24, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2009. “Israeli High Court Rejects Appeal of Deported Palestinian Student.” The Chronicle of Higher Education (Dec. 9, 2009) http://chronicle.com/article/ Israeli-High-Court-Rejects/49436/?sid=at&utm_source=at&u. (accessed December 12, 2009). Kalman, Matthew. 2009. “Israel Deports a Bethlehem U. Student Because She Is From Gaza.” The Chronicle of Higher Education : 1–2. http://chronicle.com/article/IsraelDeport-a-Bethlehm-U/48965/ (accessed October 29, 2009). Khalidi, Rashid. 2006. The Iron Cage: The Story of the Palestinian Struggle for Statehood. Boston: Beacon Press. Khalidi, Rashid. 1997. Palestinian Identity. The Construction of Modern National Consciousness. New York: Colombia University Press. Khalidi, Walid. 1992. All that remains: the Palestinian villages occupied and depopulated by Israel in 1948. Washington, D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies. Khalidi, Walid. 1994. Before Their Diaspora. A Photographic History of the Palestinians 1876–1948. Washington, D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies. Khalidi, Walid. 1971. From Haven to Conquest; readings in Zionism and the Palestine problem until 1948. Beirut: Institute for Palestine Studies. Khalidi, Walid. 1960. Why did the Palestinians leave? An examination of the Zionist version of the exodus of 1948. London: Arab Information Centre. Kershner, Isabel. 2007. “Israel to Transfer Funds From Taxes to Aid Abbas.” New York Times 25 June 2007: 9+ 62. EBSCOhost. Web. 24 June 2009. http://search.ebscohost. com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=28207330&site=ehost-live. Khouri, Fred J. 1985. The Arab-Israeli Dilemma. 3rd edn. New York: Syracuse University Press. Libraries in Palestine. http://home.birzeit.edu/library/pal-libs.htm (accessed April 15, 2009). Miles, William. 2009. An Unquiet Sabbatical. http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i20/ 20b02401.htm (accessed May 15, 2009). Macalister, Robert A. 1911. “Palestine.” The Encyclopedia Britannica. 11th edn. Vol. XX, 600–626 Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, . Matar, Dina. 2011. What It Means to be Palestinian. New York: I.B. Tauris & Company. Montague, Brendan. 2002. “ ‘A rocket in a university library is more of a threat to academic freedom than a couple of lecturers being sacked from a small translation journal’.” Times Higher Education Supplement 1548: 18. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 29, 2009).

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Organizations which Provide Aid to Palestinian Libraries. http://www.pitt.edu/~ttwiss/irtf/ palestinianlibsaid.html (accessed April 21, 2009). Palestine Digital Library (PDL) won The Pan Arab Web Awards 2005. http://www. palestinelibrary.ps/english.php (accessed April 15, 2009). Peace Programme. Higher Education in Palestine. http://www.peace-programme.org/ content/section/4/6/ (accessed May 19, 2009). Qaymari, Ata. 2011. “Education In East Jerusalem.” Palestine-Israel Journal Of Politics, Economics & Culture 17(1/2): 83–87. Academic Search Premier. http://search. ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=57630735&site=ehost-live (accessed January 14, 2012). Resolution on the Destruction of Palestinian Libraries, Archives, and Other Cultural Resources. http://www.pitt.edu/~ttwiss/irtf/resolutions.palestinanlibs.html (accessed May 21, 2009). Ruether, Rosemary Radford. 2002. “Destruction of hope goal of Israeli rampage: Vandalism part of systematic effort to force Palestinians out of homelands.” National Catholic Reporter 38(27). Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 29, 2009). Sadeq, Moain. 2004. “An Appeal to Establish a Library for Ancient Near Eastern Studies in Gaza.” American Schools of Oriental Research Newsletter 54,(1): 13–13. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 29, 2009). Santistevan, Alan. Palestine Library Progress Report. http://www.al-awda.org/alertlibrary2.html (accessed April 15, 2009). Sharma, R.N. 1998. “American Librarians Visit Gaza Strip.” College & Research Libraries News 59(1): 27. Sharma, Ravindra N. and Ron J. Chepesiuk. 1999. Libraries and Education in Palestine: A Field Report. Chicago: NESA/ IRC / American Library Association. Shraim, Khitam, and Zuheir Khlaif. 2010. “An E-Learning Approach To Secondary Education In Palestine: Opportunities And Challenges.” Information Technology For Development 16 (3): 159–173. Academic Search Premier. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct= true&db=aph&AN=52356143&site=ehost-live (accessed December 12, 2012). Sullivan, Antony T. 1991. “Palestine Universities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.” Minerva 29. Netherlands: Springers. http://www.springerlink.com/content/nn3604014q633976 (accessed May 18, 2009). “Terrorists Strike Libraries in Gaza and Jerusalem.” American Libraries 39(4) (April 2008): 25–26. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed May 2, 2009). The Palestinian Institute for Arid Land and Environmental Studies (PIALES). Palestine: Country Report to the FAO International Technical Conference on Plant Genetic Resources. http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/agps/pgrfa/pdf/palestin.pdf. Twiss, Tom. “Damage to Palestinian Libraries and Archives during the Spring of 2002.” ALA/SRRT/IRTF. http://www.pitt.edu/~ttwiss/irtf/palestinbsdmg.html (accessed April 20, 2009). United Nations Human Rights Council. 2009. Human Rights in Palestine and other occupied Arab Territories. Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict. http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/FactFinding Mission.htm (accessed November 21, 2009). UNESCO. IFAP Success Stories: Open Source Software brings a new lease of life to libraries in Palestine. http://www.unisco-ci.org/cgi-bin/ifapstories/page.cgi?g=Detailed %F22.htm1;d=1 (accessed July 22, 2009). Watzman, Haim. 1996. Peace Process Fails to Aid Universities in West Bank. http:// chronicle.com/che-data/articles.dir/art-43.dir/issue-04.dir/04a04901.htm (accessed June 24, 2009).

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Watzman, Herbert M. 1993. High Hopes at Palestinan Universities. http://chronicle.com/ che-data/articles.dir/articles-40.dir.issue-07.dir.07a04301.htm (accessed June 26, 2009). Zatari, Daoud, and Aiman Soltan. Challenges facing higher education development in Palestine. http://www.eaie.org/pdf/f41art5.pdf (accessed June 5, 2009). Zelikovich, Yaheli. 2009. “Gaza students stuck in Strip: Palestinians say hundreds of scholarship recipients unable to leave due to Israeli siege.” Ynetnews. http://www.ynetnews. com/articles/0,7340,L-3793623,00.html (accessed October 21, 2009).

2.18 Russia Inspection of the Book-Repositories of Russian Libraries T.D. Velikova, S.A. Dobrusina and A.G. Goryaeva More than two billion documents are held in 130 thousand Russian libraries, including 78 regional libraries. Serious analysis of the preservation of book collections, especially of their most valuable part, which includes manuscripts, rare books, local-history documents, graphic material, maps, old photographs, etc., started by the initiative of the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation in 1994, showed that the situation is critical. The proper storage condition of documents is not ensured even at the largest libraries, and more than half of all rare and valuable editions need urgent conservation measures. Archival documents and editions of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries printed on acid paper are also of great concern. Undoubtedly, individual book conservation projects were realized. But even the actions of libraries belonging to the same department were separate, not always professional, and often ineffective. Results of the questionnaire designed for federal libraries and central libraries of the subjects of Russian Federation carried out by the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation showed that it was impossible to solve the problem of ensuring of the preservation of book collections as a whole, concentrating instead on some individual aspects of it. All the directions of the work in the field of conservation are closely bound with each other in a single whole. It was necessary to combine efforts of all interested professionals and organizations. By the beginning of 1998, the leading libraries of the country, under the aegis of the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation, developed a number of documents that determined the strategy of action on the preservation of library collections of Russia for the next five years. Thus, the National Program for the preservation of library collections in Russia, adopted in 2000, was born. Seven main subprograms constituting the National Program corresponded to the most important directions of library activity, on which document preservation directly depends: 1. 2. 3. 4.

conservation of library collections; creation of the insurance fund of library documents; book monuments of Russian Federation; safety of library collections;

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5. preservation of library collections in process of use; 6. registration of library collections; 7. staffing of collection preservation processes. Multiple aspects of the problem of collection preservation were disclosed by various subjects in training seminars, which in turn were determined by the preliminary training level of the audience, including the disinfection treatment of documents, storage conditions, principles of conservation, and binding. Over the course of time, interest widened and the subjects of seminars ceased to be restricted to conservation only but came to be determined also by the direction of realizable programs, such as book monuments, preservation of documents in process of use, preservation of documents on non-paper media, activity in emergency and post-emergency situations, and document stabilization technologies. The Federal Document Conservation Center of the National Library of Russia has carried out 25 training seminars in St. Petersburg and 43 at various libraries in Russia during this time. A total of 93 individuals from the libraries of various departments, archives, and museums of the country worked at the Federal Document Conservation Center as trainees on various directions of ensuring the library collection preservation.1 Simultaneously, in accordance with the subprogram “Document Conservation” of the National Program for preservation of the library collections of Russian Federation, the Federal Document Conservation Center carries out yearly comprehensive inspections and expert examinations of document storage conditions in the libraries of Russia. It was the purpose of inspections to organize systematic activity on preservation of library collections and to realize necessary and scheduled work on collection conservation.2 Between 2001 and 2009, 118 inspections of book collection and repository condition were carried out in 102 libraries in 62 cities (Figure 1). Inspection was carried out twice in 16 libraries for various reasons. In some libraries samples for analysis were taken and measurements were repeated during seminars at the request of curators in order to determine to what extent the conditions of document storage had changed in the previous two or three years. During the last six to seven years more comprehensive inspections were carried with a new comprehensive scheme with new equipment.

1

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Dobrusina, S.A. “Federalnyi tsentr konservatsii bibliotechnykh fondov i realizatsiya Natsionalnoi programmy sokhrareniya bibliotechnykh fondov Rossii” (Federal Document Conservation Center and Realization of the National Program for Preservation of the Library Collections of Russia) / Natsionalnaya programma sokhrareniya bibliotechnykh fondov Rossii. Podprogramma: Konservatsiya bibliotechnych fondov (National Program for Preservation of the Library Collections of Russia. Subprogram “Conservation of Library Collections” 2001– 2008. – Moscow: Mezhregionalnyi Tsenter bibliotechnogo sotrudnichestva. 2008: 14–22. Natsionalnaya programma sokhraneniya bibliotechnykh fondov Rossiiskoi Federatsii (National Program for Preservation of the Library Collections of Russian Federation). Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation. Moscow, 2000.

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Figure 1: 62 cities with libraries where inspections were carried out

Regional libraries, amounting to a total of 58, certainly represented the largest fraction among the inspected ones; moreover, 14 museum libraries, eight university ones, 12 specialized ones, three archives, and the libraries of other departments were inspected. Figure 2 shows the number of cities in which the inspection was carried out each year, and the number of libraries and archives in which the inspection was carried out; the quantity of libraries of St.Petersburg are indicated separately. Inspection was conducted in accordance with the requirements of Russian Standard GOST 7.50–2002 “Document Conservation. General Requirements”. This standard was developed jointly by the conservation services of two leading libraries of Russia – the Federal Document Conservation Center (at the National Library of Russia) and the Research Document Conservation Center (at the Russian State Library). Documents and their storage conditions were analyzed using techniques developed at the Federal Document Conservation Center and modern analytical instruments. The most attention was given to rare collections and collections of local studies. The main purpose of inspection was to reveal common and particular problems, and to give advice on their elimination.3

3

Velikova, T.D. Obsledovanie knigokhranilisch bibliotek Rossii (Inspection of the Book-Repositories of Russian Libraries) / Natsionalnaya programma sokhrareniya bibliotechnykh fondov Rossii. Podprogramma: Konservatsiya bibliotechnych fondov (National Program for Preservation of the Library Collections of Russia. Subprogram “Conservation of Library Collections” 2001–2008. – Moscow: Mezhregionalnyi Tsenter bibliotechnogo sotrudnichestva. 2008: 33–43.

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Quantity of cities and libraries

18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 2001

2002

Cities

2003

2004

2005 Years

Libraries in regions

2006

2007

2008

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Libraries in St.Perersburg

Figure 2: Quantity of cities and libraries where inspection was carried out from 2001 to 2009

In order to provide a simple description and allow further analysis of data obtained, a unified scheme for the inspection of collections and book repositories was introduced; it was elaborated only due to the accumulated experience and numerous data on the condition of rooms and collections of various libraries. The forms used for inspection attracted curators because of their convenience and obviousness, and so they asked us to make these forms available to them in order to use these forms in their work. Thus, the guide “Integrated Inspection of Book-Repositories” has been written and issued. This guide contains the methods of analysis for inspection as completely as possible and the conclusions that should be drawn on the basis of the results of inspection. Provided in the guide are specially made forms for recording data and various supplements and notes, which can be used by the librarians and curators in order to evaluate the condition of book collections and the condition of their storage in the library. An analysis of the condition of document storage in libraries began with the detailed description of the condition of buildings and book-repositories: structural units and equipment, floors, ceilings, coatings of walls, shelving, all active water pipeline systems, heating, ventilation, and detection of any damage which can result in emergency situations.4 Sometimes, inspection

4

Goryaeva, A.G. “Usloviya khraneniya fondov” (Conditions of Book-Collection Storage) / Kompleksnoye obsledovanie knigokhranilisch (Integrated Inspection of Book-Repositories). A Methodical Aid. St.Petersburg, 2007: 19–28.

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allowed the detection if latent consequences of emergencies which occurred long ago and resulted in considerable damage which was not noticed in time (for example, of shelving, bookcases, linoleum flooring, walls or other coverings; Figure 3).

Figure 3: Consequences of the emergency which was not detected in time

A most common problem faced in book-repositories, especially on ground floors, is the high humidity of walls and correspondingly high infection rate of microorganisms potentially dangerous for documents. The main reason for such damage is the high humidity of intra-wall material (the high humidity of walls is the major cause of their biodeterioration and the high quantity of microorganisms in air and on documents follows thence). At present, the Federal Document Conservation Center has two “Vlagomer-MG4” electronic measuring instruments with which wall humidity and the direction of water movement inside walls is determined. It has been revealed that content of moisture in structural units of many libraries exceeded required standards.5 Usually, maximal number of samples to determine the humidity of materials (both library and constructional ones), air and document condition were taken in such rooms. As usual, libraries and archives measure relative humidity only. The data on absolute humidity of paper is important especially in

5

Nikolaev, S.V. Vozdeistvie vlagi na stroitelnye materialy (Effect of Moisture on Construction Materials). Construction. St.Petersburg. Information-Construction Portal. STROIT.ru. http://www.library.stroit.ru/articles/vozdejstvie/index.html (24 Feb. 2010).

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inadequate depositories or in the case of emergency. Taking into account the necessity to determine absolute humidity of library materials, one of the “Vlagomer-MG4” instruments is standardized and programmed to determine the absolute humidity of newspaper (Figure 4).6

Figure 4: Determination of absolute humidity of newspapers

The scheme of inspection provides compulsory determination of light flux and ultraviolet radiation level in book-repositories. Both illumination and exposure of documents to ultraviolet radiation on upper and middle shelves exceeded permissible values in all libraries where fluorescent lamps were used. Document illumination conditions are represented as an example (Figure 5a): for example, total light background (TLB) and ultraviolet radiation intensity on measuring these parameters on various shelves. Indications for fluorescent lamps with lampshades and for unshaded ones on the ingress of light and ultraviolet radiation on book backs (sensors in vertical position) and on top edges (sensors in horizontal position) were compared. Permissible maximum values are marked with a vertical dotted line in Figure 5a – illumination of a 75 lux and in Figure 5b – zero-ultraviolet component

6

Khazova, S.S. “Postroenie kalibrovochnoi krivoi zavisimosti pokazanii pribora VlagomerMG 4U ot absolutnoi vlazhnosti bumagi” (Construction of Calibration Curve of Dependence of the Indications of Instrument Vlagomer-MG 4U on Absolute Humidity of Paper) / Kompleksnoye obsledovanie knigokhranilisch (Integrated Inspection of Book-Repositories). A Methodical Aid. St.Petersburg, 2007: 216–25.

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condition. Total light background on upper shelves usually is higher than 1000 lux even with lampshades. Ultraviolet radiation level of 300–400 mW/ m2 registered in some book-repositories is absolutely inadmissible; fluorescent lamps did not possess any covering in those cases. Lampshades in the National Library of Komi Republic, at first glance not differing from general ones, practically removed ultraviolet radiation (instruments showed 0–2 mW/m2). Cellular windowpanes (sash windows with many small glass pieces) extant in some libraries protects properly from increased illumination and ultraviolet radiation, and yet the light getting into a book-repository through those windows is quite enough. However, ventilation is hindered in this case, which results in the formation of areas with stagnant air.

the highest

middle

the lowest 0

500

1000 Totoal light, lux

1500

2000

Figure 5a: Illumination of documents using lamps with shade and using unshaded lamps on various shelves: on vertical measurement (V) and on horizontal measurement (H)

When determining climatic parameters of air in the rooms, the temperature and relative humidity of air within documents using thermo hygrometers with a probe (Figure 6) were simultaneously measured. A single measurement of temperature and relative humidity on inspection cannot be representative. Only data monitoring obtained by the curators is informative in this case. If measurements are carried out regularly according to Russian Standard GOST 7.50–2002, one can determine seasonal and – in rare cases – a diurnal tendency of climatic parameter change. It turned out to be useful to compare the indications of thermo hygrometers used in the libraries with the indications of instruments, the standardization of which are periodically carried out in a laboratory of the Federal Document Conservation Center. The measurement of temperature and relative humidity inside blocks of documents usually served as additional indirect information: differences

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between those indicated values and the indications of outside air of 2–3% evidences considerable seasonal drifts.

Shelves

the highest

middle

the lowest 0

10

20

30 40 UV (mW/m2)

50

= unshaded lamps

= unshaded lamps

= lamps with shade

= lamps with shade

60

70

Figure 5b: Ultraviolet radiation from lamps with shade and unshaded lamps measured in various shelves: on vertical measurement (V) and on horizontal measurement (H)

Determination of absolute humidity of document paper using the “VlagomerMG4” instrument especially in book-repositories with inadequate storage conditions was very important since the threat of biodamage becomes very real when the absolute humidity of paper is above 8%.7 Considerable temperature and humidity change, which is inadmissible, is usually the result of long ventilation. Decreases of relative air humidity by 10% and more was observed in winter in cities with an acutely continental climate as a result of irrational ventilation of book-repositories (without taking the absolute humidity of outdoor and indoor air into consideration). In winter, during the heating season, library collections greatly suffer from low air humidity in all libraries. Short-term room ventilation recommended by the Russian Standard GOST 7.50–2002 even in adverse weather conditions do

7

Nyuksha, Yu.P. Biopovrezhdenie bumagi i knig (Biodeterioration of Paper and Books) St. Petersburg, 1994: 233.

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not result in abrupt fluctuations of air temperature and relative humidity (Figure 7).8

Figure 6: Measurement of relative humidity within a document using thermohygrometer with probe

Hygiene and sanitary conditions of documents and book-repositories were examined comprehensively in view of the fact that few libraries can use techniques requiring special equipment or a special laboratory. The Federal Document Conservation Center investigates influence of air composition (microbiological and chemical) on the infectiousness and contamination of documents. The following parameters were determined for complex analysis of hygiene and sanitary condition of libraries: the concentration of dust, microorganisms, and harmful impurities in air of book-repositories, as well as the amount of dust, and microorganisms on the document surface.

8

Velikova, T.D., and N.Yu. Mamaeva. “Zaschita dokumentov ot rezkikh kolebanii temperatury i otnositelnoi vlazhnosti vozdukha posredstvom zaklyucheniya ikh v mikroklimaticheskie konteinery” (Protection of Documents from Acute Fluctuations in Air Temperature and Relative Humidity by Enclosing Them in Microclimatic Containers) / Materialy nauchnoissledovatelskoi konferentsii: Sokhranenie kulturnogo naslediya bibliotek, arkhivov i museev (Materials of Research Conference: Preservation of Cultural Heritage of Libraries, Archives, and Museums) (St.Petersburg, February 14–15, 2003) St.Petersburg, Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 2003: 147–51.

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45

RH

40 35 window closed

RH,%; t,°C

30 window opened

25

t

20 15 10 5 0 0

2

4

6

Cities

8

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12 14 16 Time, min In a box

18

In a box

20

24

26

29

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In air

Figure 7: Change of temperature and relative humidity during short-time room ventilation (outdoors condition: RH = 89%, T = +5C)

The chemical composition of air in book repositories was estimated by the quantitative content of chemical substances harmful to the documents. A concentration of 15 components were identified in book-depositories air using a universal gas analyzer GANK-4 (made in Russia): dust, soot, and gases – ozone, chlorine, oxides of sulfur, nitrogen, and carbon, amyl alcohol, propyl alcohol, acetaldehyde, benzaldehyde, formaldehyde, butyl acetate, toluene, and ethylbenzene.9 Unfortunately, it was impossible to bring the instrument to all the libraries for technical restrictions imposed by air transport. The content of sulfur dioxide in air of almost all inspected book-repositories was rather high; in some cases it exceeded maximum permissible concentration and was higher than outdoors. It is probably connected with evolution of SO2 from leather and parchment of bindings, casein and bone

9

9. Velikova, T.D., T.B. Lisitskaya, A.G. Goryaeva, P.V. Grigorieva. “Issledovanie khimikobiologicheskogo sostava vozdukha” (Examination of Chemical-Biological Composition of Air) /1 mezhdunarodnaya nauchno-issledovatelskaya konferentsiya: Issledovaniya, konservatsiya i restavratsiya rukopisnykh i pechatnykh pamyatnikov vostoka (1st International Research Conference: “Examination, Conservation, and Restoration of the Manuscript and Printed Monuments of the East”) April 17–19, 2007. Moscow, “Rudomino”, 2007: 34–38.

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glue, and others in process of their natural ageing.10 Increased concentration of formaldehyde and chlorine was detected in the rooms with a great deal of synthetic material. Ozone, a strong oxidant for paper cellulose and leather collagen, is either contained in library air as traces, or not determined at all. The amount of soot and dust is larger in the repositories located on first floors and with windows without protection and that face the carriageway. Exceeding maximum permissible concentration of dust is registered several times, for carbon oxide it is not registered. Regularities of presence of the rest of substances in inspected book-repositories were not detected. Examination of the quality of shelving covering using methyl ethyl ketone11 with recommendations in the case of positive test is a technique recently introduced. In postiive cases more air samples were taken for the evaluation of gas quantity in those repositories because unsatisfactory shelving covering could emit harmful impurities. Several simple methods applicable solely to the analysis of documents, including the evaluation of surface infectiousness with cotton swabs that do not damage documents and the evaluation of dustiness by direct weighing were developed at the FDCC. Obtained data showed that, on average, 12.2 μg of dust/cm2 can accumulate on document parts prominent from the shelves (“open” parts) in a library repository for 12 months; it is three times as much as on the documents stored on the shelves (“closed” parts), which is, on average, about 4.3 μg of dust/cm2.12 According to our data, maximum dust quantity collected from 1 cm2 of documents was 54 μg per year. On the basis of the large body of data, the following assessment criteria for the dustiness degree of documents and shelves are adopted: a value below 40 μg/cm2 is satisfactory; a value above 60 μg/cm2 needs hygienic treatment; and a value above 80 μg/cm2 is inadmissible. Average dustiness of documents was below 40 μg/cm2 in three libraries only; it was below 45 μg/cm2 in three other libraries. The amount of dust on various areas of documents differed significantly. On average, 140 μg/cm2 of dust was detected on book backs where dust constantly accumulated from air; the amount of dust did not exceed 120 μg/cm2 on

10 11 12

Hallebeek, P.B. “Nepravilnoe ispolzovanie materialov v khranilische” (Improper Use of Materials in a Repository) / St.Petersburg Restorers’ Guild (Northeast Document Conservation Center). St.Petersburg: European University at St.Petersburg Publishers. 1997: 97–103. Preservation of Library and Archival Materials: A Manual. Edited by Sherelyn Ogden, Director of Book Conservation Northeast Document Conservation Center, Andover, Massachusetts. 1992: 257. Velikova, T.D., and N.Yu. Mamaeva. “Dust on Paper as Micromycete Nutrient Medium” / Actes des Troisie`mes Journe´es Internationales d’e´tudes de l’ARSAG. Paris. La conservation a` l’e`re du nume´rique. 27–30 Mai 2002. 150–60.

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side edges even of dirty documents; and, it reached 600 μg/cm2 on top edges. Average dustiness of top edges taken from 590 documents from the repositories of 28 libraries is shown below. Table 1: Comparison of the quantity of libraries by the index of the dustiness of documents Average dustiness of documents, μg/cm2 Quantity of libraries, %

< 50 19

50–100 27

100–200 47

> 200 7

A quantitative method of the evaluation of dustiness is quite simple, but needs balance with an accuracy of up to +0.00001 g for weighing. At present, sampling and control swabs are weighed at the FDCC for the libraries, which aim to evaluate the degree of dustiness of book collection or control the quality of dust-removal. Curators take samples in their libraries using sampling swabs and then send them to Federal Document Conservation Center where the dustiness of documents is determined according to the above technique;13 results are processed and sent to the libraries by e-mail. The purpose of the investigation of air microbiota in libraries is to detect species of microorganisms hazardous to documents because they are able to damage paper and leather of documents with high activity, as well as for species which are potentially hazardous to personnel. In order to determine the degree of air infectiousness in repositories the traditional method of sedimentation and sampling devices was used: PU-1B (universal sampler provided for by sanitary regulations in Russia), HiMedia (India), and MAS 100 (Germany). Processing the results of analysis for all libraries investigated was conditionally arranged in five regions: Northwestern, Central which is represented by the most number of cities, Southern, Western, Ural, Siberian, and Far-Eastern (Figure 1). The occurrence of individual species of fungi in these regions and in each city differed, though overall one can speak about the predominance of individual species: Penicillium (41–74%), Aspergillus (13–56%), Cladosporium (13–63%), Mucor (5–11%), Alternaria (2–10%), Trichoderma (2–8%).14 More than 1,500 air samples were taken; an average comparison calculated on the basis of data from the analysis of 745 samples from 51 libraries is represented below. Table 2: Comparison of the quantity of libraries by the index of air infection rate Air infection rate, CFU*/hour Quantity of libraries, %

< 10 54

10–20 22

> 20 24

*CFU (colony forming units) is the quantity of microorganism cells in air or on the surface which is determined by the quantity of colonies grown out of one cell

13 14

Ibid. Velikova, T.D., E.A. Popikhina, A.G. Goryaeva, and E.S. Trepova. “Air Microflora of Libraries in Russia”. 15th Congress of European Mycologists. St.Petersburg, Russia, September 16–21, 2007. Abstracts. – St.Petersburg: TREEART LLC, 2007: 106–7.

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Generally, air infection rate in the libraries did not exceed the standard value of 8-10 CFU/hour, but the concentration of microorganisms in some repositories was very high – from 100 to 350 CFU/hour, which naturally became the reason of high infection rate of documents. In seven libraries of Northwestern, Central, Siberian, and Far-Eastern regions of Russia the quantity of micromycetes in air did not exceed 4 CFU/hour that indicates very good hygienic conditions of library stacks. The microbiological condition of documents in the inspection was determined by various parallel methods. A quantitative estimation of the infection rate of document surface using techniques safe for paper including method of evaluation of the quantity of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) in living cells of fungi. The Federal Document Conservation Center has used this method since 1992, whereas earlier infection rate was determined only qualitatively, i.e. one could determine whether living fungi were present on documents or not. Express method for identification of the presence of living microorganisms on the book surface in ultraviolet light (Figure 8) is especially convenient. Using this method, one can detect the very beginning of the fungus development, actively growing mycelium which is invisible with the naked eye.15 In cases when intensive green luminescence is detected on the book surface, the disinfection treatment of documents is compulsory. After taking a course of our seminars, curators in many Russian libraries which have not got a special laboratory have found a way to evaluate the infection rate of air and documents. They use modern materials for single application and invite university students to carry out graduation works on the subject matter. In some cases the same practice as on the analysis of document dustiness is used: we give materials for single application to our trainees from other Russian cities learning at the Federal Document Conservation Center, they return home, take samples at their libraries, and then they send those samples to us to determine the quantitative characteristics of infectiousness. The results of analysis which they obtained at their libraries we discuss by e-mail: trainees send the photos of microorganisms grown by them using special methods to our Center and the microbiologists of our Center evaluate the quantity of microorganism colonies. Sometimes the quantitative estimation of air or document infectiousness is quite enough to make a decision on the necessity of disinfection treatment.

15

Trepova, E.S., and T.D. Velikova. “Ekspress-metod opredeleniya zarazhennosti dokumentov s pomoschyu ultrafioletovoi lampy” (Express-Technique for Identification of Document Infectiousness with Ultraviolet Lamp) / Kompleksnoye obsledovanie knigokhranilisch (Integrated Inspection of Book-Repositories). A Methodical Aid. St.Petersburg, 2007: 161–66.

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Figure 8: Express-technique for identification of the presence of living microorganisms on the book surface

The method of the disinfection treatment of documents accessible to libraries was developed,and a guide has been written and an instructional film (Figure 9) made at the FDCC. More than two million documents were treated at the National Library of Russia using this method.16 The determination of acidity of paper documents was a necessary part of the inspection, as many books of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are printed on paper with high acidity. Reason for this lies in raw material of poor quality which began to be used in connection with the rapid development of pulp and paper industry. Acid products accumulating in paper during storage and use are one of the main reasons of damage and destruction of document paper. The pH value of document paper is a parameter which to a certain extent characterizes its durability. The method of water extraction according to GOST 12523–6717 gives the pH value of paper, but it is not applicable to documents since it is necessary to grind a paper sample for the extraction

16 17

16. Dobrusina, S., and T. Velikova. Mass Disinfection of Documents Affected by Microorganisms: One Practical Experience / 65th IFLA Council and General Conference, August 20–28, 1999. Bangkok. 1999. Russian Standard GOST 12523–77. Tsellyuloza, bumaga i karton. Metod opredeleniya velichiny pH vodnoi vytyazhki (Cellulose, Paper, and Cardboard. Method of Determination of pH Value of Aqueous Extract). Moscow: Publishing House for Standards, 1980.

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itself. Therefore, the pH values of paper and leather of documents are determined by contact method. Dependence between pH values obtained using two methods – according to GOST and by contact method – is determined at the FDCC and a formula of recalculation is derived18.

Figure 9: Instructional film “Liquidation of Emergency Situation Consequences”

If high acidity is identified as a problem in many document, it is recommended that they be brought to the FDCC for mass neutralization. Equipment for the mass neutralization of paper acidity using the technique “CSC Book Saver” began operating at the National Library of Russia within the bounds of a Russian-German project. The purposes of the inspection of the sampled libraries were to: – establish the multilevel professional interchange of experience between conservators; – give an estimate of specific situation in each library; – identify the principal common problems regarding the the preservation of book collections;

18

Mamaeva, N.Yu., and T.D. Velikova. “Issledovanie zavisimosti znachenii pH bumagi ot uslovii izmereniya” (Examination of Dependence of pH Values of Paper on Measurement Conditions) / Sbornik nauchnykh trudov: Teoriya i praktika sokhraneniya pamyatnikov kultury (Collection of Research Works: Theory and Practice of Preservation of the Monuments of Culture). 2003. Issue 21: 60–69.

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– identify the most serious violations of the conditions of document storage; – obtain a set of statistical data characterizing the condition of the storage rooms, air, and the very book collections; – recommend the urgent work on the conservation of book collections; – develop a unified scheme of the inspection of repositories; – propose accessible methods and instruments for analysis of the condition of documents and repositories; and – give the libraries the necessary information on the condition of their book collections and give them the recommendations on the organization of regular activity on their preservation. The inspection of libraries during the 10 years within the bounds of implementation of the National Program for preservation of the library collections of the Russian Federation enabled us to get the results evidencing the new approach of librarians and curators to the problem of conservation of library collections. Conclusions on the causes of document damageissued to the libraries after the inspection helped them to get financing for renovating. In the absence of air-conditioning systems in the libraries, curators make calculations after which they carry can out efficient ventilation of book-repositories and maintain the standard level of relative air humidity. New Russian standards regulating activity in the field of document preservation were also developed. Up-to-date equipment, materials, and methods of inspection accessible to any library are recommended. Control of hygiene and sanitary condition of books is carried out, owing to the rapidly developed methods for determining the infection rate and dustiness of documents. The control is an integral stage of the document condition evaluation before restoration. Use of nondestructive method for the determination of paper acidity enables us to discover documents with low pH value. More than 40,000 documents from the collections of the National Library of Russia and four regional libraries of Russia were treated over three years. Monitoring of the condition of documents subjected to mass neutralization of paper acidity is also carried out. Positive reports received by the Federal Document Conservation Center from regional libraries indicate that librarians have learned to act competently under unfavorable conditions, and books were salvaged on time thanks to the training seminars on the liquidation of emergency situation consequences. An educational film “Liquidation of Emergency Situation Consequences” made at our Center, which allowed the training of curators of many libraries in our country, has played an important role, too. In conclusion it should be noted that the Centers for library collections’ preservation are organized in 20 cities of Russia. Thectivities of these centers coordinated by the Federal Document Conservation Center are directed towards the preservation of the most valuable documents held at the Russian libraries.

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The National Program for the preservation of library collections in Russia was realized between 2000 and 2010, at present the second stage of the program for the period 2011–2020 is being developed. At present, 102 libraries have already been inspected, it is proposed to continue this work in three directions in the following years: to inspect libraries which were not inspected previously; to inspect libraries following the requests of libraries that have already got our recommendations, taken them into account, and realized radical changes; and to visit libraries in case of emergency. It is obvious that our activity in this field will substantially change in the future; inspections will be carried out for rendering specific assistance or in case of an emergency situation. It is also connected with the fact that the storage conditions and state of documents improve every year: documents are restored, bound, neutralized, placed in containers made of acid-free cardboard, etc. At the same time another direction – the training of librarians from the remote Russian libraries – will expand. The standard of knowledge in the field of conservation has substantially increased in recent years, and training will take place at a qualitatively new level, it will include familiarization with new materials and new technologies.

2.19 Senegal The Development of Libraries in Sub-Saharan Francophone West Africa with a Focus on the Senegalese Situation Bernard Dione Introduction It is very difficult to discuss the development of libraries in Francophone Africa. First, the concept of Francophone Africa can be defined in various ways. For instance, it can be used for each French-speaking African state. In that sense, Francophone Africa includes eight West African states (Benin, Burkina Faso, Coˆte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo), eight states in Central and Southern Africa (Burundi, Cameroun, Gabon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Rwanda, Chad) and four countries in East Africa (Comoros, Djibouti, Madagascar, Seychelles). Some North African countries (Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia) have important French-speaking populations as well. Francophone Africa can also refer to all African states that are members of the International Francophone Organization (OIF). The French-speaking African population is estimated at approximately seventy nine million. Francophone Africa can also be referred to as the former French colonial Empire in Africa. Here, we will use the concept to refer to the countries of the former French colonial Empire in Africa, South of Sahara. Regardless, it is still extremely difficult to find comprehensive comparative studies on the situation of libraries in that area. Despite the fact that all countries considered have the same development level and that the history and the evolution of the library profession is very similar we will primarily focus on the Senegalese situation in this paper.

Libraries in Francophone Africa: An Historical Overview Libraries have played a key role in education, culture, and democracy, but in Africa the development of significant library movement is very weak. Some scholars describe the difficulties posed in supplying the information needs of sub-Saharan Africa as a failure of conventional librarianship (Sturges and Neill 1998). In addition, the development of libraries in Africa, primarily in

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Francophone sub-Saharan Africa, is minimal. To understand the movement of libraries on the continent, it is important to revisit the history of African libraries. The history of African libraries can be divided into three periods. The first period can be traced back to Old Egyptian librarians (Samb 2006; Richardson 1964). During the Pharaonic era, scribes preserved the hierai anagraphai, famous sacred annals listing all the significant events of the kingdom. In essence, all of the important temples maintained a library within their surroundings. This custom continued until the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Moreover, Richardson (1964: 1) mentioned that “the schools of ancient Egypt were libraryuniversities in the sense that they were held in libraries by librarians”. The second period covers the expansion of “The Religions of the Book” on the continent. These religions left a significant mark in Africa very early in their development and set up libraries in synagogues, monasteries, and madersas. The history of teaching tradition in ancient cities as strongly Islamized as Jenne, Timbuktu and Gao leads us to believe that the scholars had important collections of documents in Arabic languages (Samb 2006; Diakite´ 1999). The Sankore mosque was also a location for teaching Islamic texts, though individual scholars also taught their students in, or near, their own homes. It was in these homes of scholars that the establishment of libraries took place. Some of these personal libraries were evidently quite large. Timbuktu’s most celebrated scholar, Ahmad Baba (1564–1627) claimed that his library contained 1,600 volumes, and that it was the smallest library of any of his family […]. (Hunwick 1996: 3) The last period covers libraries under their current shape. Modern libraries in Senegal, as on the rest of the African continent, constitute a colonial legacy. In Senegal, the history of libraries date as far back as 1803, which was also the same period as the creation of the first library in Saint Louis, capital of the colony of Senegal (Maack 1981). Libraries implemented during this period essentially served the needs of the colonists: The libraries and archives established in Senegal during the nineteenth century were designed to serve the interests of the tiny group of French colonists. Important to certain members of the European community, these small collections were seldom used by Africans, most of whom came from cultures without a written literature. (Maack 1981: 9) The small number of African natives who came to utilize these libraries often consisted of state employees of the colonial administration, followed by pupils and primary school teachers (Diakite´ 1999; Se`ne 1992). In essence, the library and its apparent essential values could not be solidified as originally intended for the African population. In fact, the colonial origin of African modern libraries and librarians, the legitimacy, and the perception were probably negatively affected: … book, reading, libraries, and formal education were introduced into Africa by the colonizer for reasons which included the following: as tool for

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Christianizing […], as means for educating the target people in order to achieve the social, political, and economic objectives of the colony, and to acculturate or brainwash the natives into European ways. Both libraries and educational institutions, seen against this background, became weapons for the entrenchment and institutionalization of the Western tradition. (Amadi 1981: 61) When the French rule ended in the 1960s, most of the new independent Francophone states began to set up new educational and cultural policies. One of the main priorities of the governments of the French-speaking countries of sub-Saharan Africa was the implementation of a successful educational system, with an emphasis on the production and the distribution of schoolbooks; however, public libraries were not given such importance, reading was perceived only as a support for literacy or as a leisure activity (Sagna 1996). In time, a different perspective was considered in relation to books, academics, and with reading in general, as it finally became an integral part of the human, economic, and cultural development across Africa. As a result of this changed perception, in the 1970s important resources were brought out at the national level within the framework of the bilateral cooperation and of the multilateral cooperation to increase public reading through the implementation of national networks of public libraries in both urban and rural areas.

Libraries, Democracy, and Information Access in Emerging Nations In the early 1970s, the Senegalese government developed a comprehensive legal framework for the promotion of reading and physical libraries. This also provided opportunity for providing official legislation regarding the infrastructure for several important policies (Dione and Diouf 2010). The library profession in Senegal was given a legal existence by Decree n˚69–257, on March 17, 1969, which essentially established the status of civil servants who worked in libraries as well as in archives (Lajeunesse and Se`ne 2004). Between 1975 and 1977 much of the Senegalese legislation regarding library and documentation services were signed into law by the first Senegalese president, Leopold Sedar Senghor. In 1976, the Senegalese government decided to create and organize a national public library network by Decree n˚76–29, on April 9, 1976. To manage that network, the Office for Public libraries was created by Decree 76–1021, on October 14, 1976. This public library network was a very ambitious project. Unfortunately, since 1980, Senegalese libraries have suffered from lack of funding due to economic structural adjustments imposed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Most of the professional librarians employed in the public library network left for alternative

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positions, leaving the small library units to be run by non-librarians. This situation still exists today. Academic libraries, however, had a better development. The first academic library was opened in 1950 with the creation of the Institute of the High Studies of Dakar, which later became known as The University of Dakar (Maack 1981). Today, Senegal has two main universities and three regional universities. The network of libraries within The University Cheikh Anta Diop of Dakar, which is the oldest and the most prominent by its size, contains a central library and 16 libraries of faculty and institutes. The University Gaston Berger of Saint Louis Library includes a central library and four branch libraries. Regional Universities (Bambey, Thies, and Ziguinchor) and private universities (Suffolk University-Dakar Campus) each contain their own library. In addition, the libraries of several higher education and research institutes can be included (Centre Africain d’e´tudes en gestion, Conseil pour le de´veloppement de la recherche´ en sciences sociales en Afrique, etc.) (Diouf 2008). Similarly to Senegal, in Mali, the public reading operation (Ope´ration de Lecture) publique was launched in 1977 in cooperation with France (Cartellier and Delcarmine 2009; Diakite´ 1999). In the 1980s, a lot of projects were implemented to develop library networks in Francophone Africa, including the Agency of Cultural and Technical Cooperation (ACCT) of the Francophone International Organization (OIF). The ACCT introduced the program of the Centers for Reading and Cultural activities (Centre de Lecture et d’animation culturel or CLAC) in 1986. The initial program involved nearly a dozen countries (Benin, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Niger, Congo, Gabon, Rwanda, Burundi, Mauritius and Comoros) and then expanded into Guinea, Togo, Chad, and the Central African Republic, with the intent to open libraries in rural African areas. The vocation of the CLACs was to serve as a support mechanism regarding the development of actions taken in those countries and to assist with problem solving concerning extended learning and as well as the shortage of books in rural areas. It is important to note, however, that the CLAC also experienced the lack of professional librarians, inadequate in buildings and equipment, and outdated library collections, etc. In a nutshell, the public library movement in Africa and especially in subSaharan Francophone Africa is very weak, with numerous problems, including the lack of adaptation to African cultures that has condemned the institutional library to a status of an “alien implant” (Sturges and Neill 1998), financial constraints, lack of human resources, outdated materials, poor use (Issak 2000), and most importantly, lack of public policies supported by governments and agencies. Amadi (1981: 49) has summarized the major problems common to the most West African libraries: 1. high rate of illiteracy 2. strong oral traditions 3. lack of governmental support

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4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

primitive nature of book publishing industry apathy of the public scarcity of indigenously-produced literature shortage of personnel and pronounced lack of professional experience absence of library tradition insufficient number of libraries, against a massive contingent of book-hungry Africans 10. limited collections 11. lack of access to materials and service in rural areas. Significant changes have not been realized in the last 30 years in the library sector in Francophone sub-Saharan Africa. Sharma clearly noted, Libraries are key players to educate citizens of the country and to introduce them to the hidden treasures of the world through their materials including technology. But as mentioned earlier, progress of the development of libraries in Africa including introduction of technology has been very slow due to many factors including a high rate of illiteracy and poor facilities (Sharma 2008: 16).

ICTs in African Libraries: Promises and Reality The adoption and use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in African libraries began in the early 1980s. The available literature indicates that developments were mainly confined to the university and research library sectors (Chisenga 2004; INASP 2004). However, even in academic and research libraries, it is apparent that the situation is very variable across different countries. All the Senegalese academic and research libraries use modern ICTs. The two main Senegalese academic libraries, Cheikh Anta Diop University Central Library and Gaston Berger University central library use commercially available integrated library management systems and their OPACs are available on the Internet. A study conducted by Jean Pierre Diouf (2008) in two academic libraries and five research libraries shows that all libraries investigated use ICT. Diouf (2008) mentioned that the libraries investigated are well equipped to be able to deliver very good information services and succeed in satisfying the needs of their users. The less well equipped libraries possess only fourcomputers. The study shows that three institutions use commercially available software and fouruse open source software. Most of them are using the free CDS/ ISIS bibliographic database management software designed by UNESCO. The situation of academic libraries in Mali is quite different. In Mali, academic libraries are characterized by a situation of dramatic documentary shortage. There is not a budget for any library. The entire print collection is estimated to be approximately 60,000 documents for about 28,000 students.

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This indicates a ratio that is lower than two documents per student (Cartellier and Delcarmine 2009). In discussing the ICT implementation at Bamako University academic library, Cartellier and Delcarminenoted: The level of computerization is problematic in spite of the significant effort done by the university. Connections are very random and make frequently impossible the Internet search. The equipment in data-processing stations is extremely weak. No library can place computers at the free disposal of the public. The under-equipped professional librarians, themselves, are at the mercy of the recurring breakdowns of their material, which is not replaced. Such a report is particularly alarming in a context of absolute shortage of printed materials … The library catalogues are not computerized. For the theses and dissertations, some librarians have elaborated catalogues on CDS-ISIS software. (Cartellier and Delcarmine 2009: 79) For public libraries, however, the implementation of ICTs is very slow. In African public libraries, the automation of library functions and the provision of digital information services are very limited in most libraries. As mentioned by Chisenga (2004) for the Anglophone part of Africa, public libraries in most Francophone countries didn’t have computers. For example, there are not any Senegalese public libraries that offer services on the Internet. Only the CLACs offer Internet access and are used mostly by schoolboys to send emails. The survey conducted by Chisenga (2004) in Anglophone countries shows that the introduction and effective use of ICTs in public library services is being hampered by a number of factors including: lack of adequate funding, lack of commitment from the parent organization, inadequacy in existing ICT resources, out-of-date ICT policies, etc. These findings can be extended to the Francophone countries as well. In some countries like Senegal, there is now global public policy on ICTs including libraries. Senegal has one of the best telecommunications infrastructures in Africa and has established and focused its policy on initiatives to significantly improve its capacities to benefit from opportunities offered by the information society (Sagna 2008). But the digital divide is always analyzed in terms of technical infrastructure (Sagna 2006). The modernization of public administration through ICTs is always taken into consideration in terms of stimulating the use of ICTs by civil servants and the business world. Libraries are not seen as a key point of access to technologies and information; thus, the general population is neglected. Public libraries are generally poorly funded and as a result a large number depend on external assistance and funding for their ICT projects. Libraries who can’t hire professional librarians cannot afford to employ ICT qualified staff as well. The lack of library tradition, the weakness of library institutions, and the failure of professional librarians to legitimatize the library institution by developing flexible and relevant information services for the general public in Francophone Africa is a significant challenge for access to knowledge and technology. Furthermore, the introduction and effective use of ICTs in libraries

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in Francophone Africa has been hampered by a number of barriers including: illiteracy, lack of budgets, software, training, etc. If these barriers are removed, librarians will be able to meet the challenges of technology in this information age. It is important to note that efforts are minimal to improve library and information services in most of the West African Francophone countries. Such efforts are usually supported by bilateral and multilateral cooperations. However, in today’s globalized world, things are evolving very fast and libraries will make progress in the Francophone countries in the next fifteen years from 2010–2025. On the social and political level, the entire African continent is undergoing a strong demand for change and movement to a relatively open and free society, regardless of resistance from those who hold traditional values. With the development of education and literacy the demand for information resources will increase. Libraries will have to play an important role in building democratic and open societies. However, the evolution of the library sector will be constrained by several factors including: social and political systems, education and literacy development, infrastructures and technologies, and funding training of librarians. Libraries will need public and political support. Politicians must be convinced that libraries play a key role in building of citizenship and solid governance. There is also a need for patronage. Libraries in Francophone West Africa also need patrons who can make funds available to build, equip, and run efficient library services. Libraries must also be able to rely on materials relevant to the needs of the local population. Most of the material offered in libraries is produced outside the continent, and most of the time is irrelevant to local needs and cultures. The development of local publishing, including material for babies, toddlers, and young adults will increase reading habits and contribute to the development of adapted library services. These materials must also take into account the strong oral tradition and the multicultural structure of African societies. Some of those who are not literate in Western languages may read in Arabic or in local languages (Wolof, Polar, Serer, Mandingue, Jola, etc.). Libraries must be able to offer additional materials and services in these languages as well. Lastly, for those who can neither read nor write, libraries should offer audio collections in their own local languages and literacy services to benefit the illiterate. The development of ICT offers very strong opportunities to libraries as well, but the adoption of ICT in Africa is significantly suffering due to false implications, assumptions, and misguidance. For example, regarding the options offered by ICT, some pundits are suggesting that Africa can leapfrog “traditional libraries” towards electronic libraries services based on computers, digital media, and mobile phones. However, in most of these countries, the telecommunications infrastructure and IT hardware is still very poor; more importantly, the general population cannot pay for these expensive services.

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Libraries will remain as institutions that offer democratic and free access to material, information technology, and information literacy training for all populations. Librarians must be well trained to be able to decipher and offer culturally relevant library services to populations. For these reasons, there is a strong necessity for regional and international cooperation in developing library sectors. Western foundations engaged in developing democracy and open and enlightened societies must assist with building real library institutions that are able to offer relevant services in oral and printed materials. Finally, the entire library professional community must help the Francophone librarians to integrate international librarianship standards and values and be able to adapt them to their local communities. The language barriers will inevitably disappear with the improvement of information technologies (translation tools, visualization software, etc.). so that a better cooperation for the development of information access will be possible and libraries will remain a key tool in disseminating information to society.

References Abadi, M. 1992. Vie et destin de l’ancienne bibliothe`que d’Alexandrie. Paris: Unesco. Amadi, A. O. 1981. African libraries: western tradition and colonial brainwashing. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. Amaeshi, B. (ed.) 2003. Classical Readings in African Library Development. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. Cartellier, D. and N. Delcarmine. 2009. “La politique documentaire de l’universite´ de Bamako, entre modernisation et professionnalisation: quelques re´flexions a` l’occasion d’un partenariat.” Bulletin des Bibliothe`ques de France, 54(2): 77–83. Chisenga, J. 2004. The use of ICTs in African Public Library services: a survey of ten countries in Anglophone Africa. Oxford: INASP. Danset, F. 2003. Public Reading in French-Speaking Africa. In: Amaeshi, Basil (ed.), Classical Readings in African Library Development: 256–260 Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. Diakite´, F. 1999. Les Services des bibliothe`ques et la lecture au Mali. Paper presented at the 65th IFLA Council and General Conference, Bangkok, Thailand, August 20 – August 28, 1999. http://ifla.queenslibrary.org/IV/ifla65/papers/133-85f.htm (4 Feb. 2010). Dione, B. 2004. Les bibliothe`ques se´ne´galaises a` l’aˆge de la socie´te´ de l’information: les mots et les choses. In Goethe-Institut. Les bibliothe`ques a` l’aˆge de la socie´te´ de l’information: The`ses pour ouvrir un de´bat. Dakar: Goethe-Institut. Dione, B. and Diouf, D. 2010. Senegal: Libraries, Archives and Museums. Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, 3rd edn., 1(1): 4687–4695. Diouf, J. P. 2008. Les bibliothe`ques africaines en mutation; nouvelles approches de gestion. In: Dione, B. and Savard, R. (eds.). Managing Technologies in Developing countries: Open source Vs Commercial options: Proceedings of the IFLA Pre-Conference Satellite Meeting = Le Management des technologies et des syste`mes automatise´s de bibliothe`ques dans les pays en de´veloppement: logiciels libres Vs options commerciales, 126–141. Munchen: Saur. Hunwick, J. 2006. The Islamic Manuscript Heritage of Timbuktu. htttp://www.sum.uio.no/ research/mali/timbuktu/research/articles/manuscript%20heritage%20timbuk.pdf (10 Feb. 2010).

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Ibet, S. 1981. Les bibliothe`ques des pays du Sahel. Paris: L’Harmattan. INASP. 2004. “The Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in African Public Library Services.” INASP infobrief 3, July 2004. http://www.inasp.info/ uploaded/documents/infobrief3-ICTs%20in%20african%20libraries-english.pdf (5 Jan. 2010). Issak, A. 2000. Public Libraries in Africa: A report and Annotated bibliography. Oxford: INASP. Lajeunesse, M. and Sene, H. 2004. “Legislation for library and Information services in French-Speaking Africa Revisted.” The Inter-national Information and Library Review. 36(4): 367–380. Maack, M. N. 1981. Libraries in Senegal: Continuity and Change in an Emerging Nation. Chicago: ALA. Richardson, E. C. 1964. Some Old Egyptian Librarians. Berkeley: Peacock Press. Sagna, O. 2008. “Le Se´ne´gal dans l’e`re de l’information: (1996–2006).” Networks and Communication Studies, NETCOM, 22(1–2) & NETSUDS, 3: 13–36. Sagna, O. 2006. “La lutte contre la fracture nume´rique en Afrique: aller au-dela` de l’acce`s aux infrastructures.” HERME`S, 45: 15–24. Sagna, R. 1996. La Lecture publique en Afrique subsaharienne francophone. In: Ndiaye, E. W. and Fall Corree´a, A. (eds.) La Diffusion de l’information dans les communaute´s rurales en Afrique: proceedings of the IFLA-ALP seminar held in Gaborone, Botswana, 22–25 June 1994, 21–25. Dakar: BLD. Samb, D. 2006. L’Universite´, la Recherche et la Renaissance africaine: les de´fies des bibliothe`ques au XXIe s. In: Diop, M. D., Zidouemba, D. and Sene, H. (eds.) Les consortia de bibliothe`ques: actes de la Confe´rence de SCAULWA 2005. Dakar: Confe´rence permanente des bibliothe`ques universitaires africaines, Zone occidentale = Standing Conference of African University Libraries, Western Area. Se`ne, H. 1992. “Les bibliothe`ques en Afrique Occidentale Franc¸aise: 1800–1958.” Libri, 48 (4): 306–329. Sharma, R. N. 2008. Can librarians manage technology in developing nations?: A library administrator’s view. In: Dione, B. and Savard, R. (eds.) Managing Technologies in Developing countries: Open source Vs Commercial options: Proceedings of the IFLA Pre-Conference Satellite Meeting = Le Management des technologies et des syste`mes automatise´s de bibliothe`ques dans les pays en de´veloppement: logiciels libres Vs options commerciales: 11–32. Munchen: Saur. Sitzman, Glenn L. 1988. African libraries. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. Sturges, Paul and Richard Neill. 1998. The Quiet Struggle: information and libraries for the People of Africa. 2nd edn. London: Mansell.

2.20 Switzerland Libraries in Switzerland1 Gabi Schneider Looking Back in Time A timeline of Swiss librarianship might include instances such as the evidence of a separate library room in the plan of the Abbey of St. Gall (820), Conrad Gesner’s project of a universal bibliography, the ‘Bibliotheca Universalis’ (1545– 1555), Johann Heinrich Hottinger’s ‘Bibliothecarius quadripartitus’ (1664), an instruction to librarians, Philipp Albert Stapfer’s project for a national library system (1800), the foundation of the national library association (1897) or the invention of the World Wide Web by Tim Berners Lee at CERN (ca. 1990). For a long time, as was the case elsewhere, libraries on Swiss territory were the business of the Church and some wealthy private collectors. Early examples are the library of the Abbey of St. Gall (the monastery was founded in 612), today a UNESCO World Heritage Site, or the Middle High German lyrics collected in the thirteenth century by the Zurich patrician family Manesse, the source for the famous ‘Codex Manesse’. In the upheavals of the Reformation, which split Swiss territory into Protestant and Catholic regions, many collections were destroyed or lost, but the Reformation and the invention of print certainly made books more available. School and town libraries, open to the clergy and to educated citizens, were founded in the reformed cities such as Zurich (around 1525), Berne (1528), Lausanne (1537) or Geneva (1559), and the seventeenth century saw a series of libraries founded by citizens. Collections were fed by gifts, often by renowned members of the community. Starting in 1536, the university library of Basel received free copies of the Basel print production on an agreement basis. From the second half of the seveneenth century onwards, the Age of Enlightenment bridged the religious denominations by making education a responsibility of the state. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, reading societies and commercial lending libraries responded to the rising need for

1

This chapter focuses on the development from 1980 to the present, with a glimpse into the future. For a more general presentation see: Jauslin, Jean Fre´de´ric & Kellerhals, Andreas (2010). Switzerland: Libraries, Archives and Museums. In: Bates, Marcia J. & Maack, Mary Niles (eds.). Encyclopedia of library and information sciences. 3rd ed. Boca Raton FL, CRC Press: 5086–5095.

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public access to literature. Reading societies were also founded in smaller cities such as Lucerne (1786) or Wa¨denswil (1789). Private collections thrived in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. In the eighteenth century, the focus of private collecting changed from universal to specialist libraries. Many important collections eventually found their way into public libraries: the university library of Basel bought the Amerbach family collection of books and objects d’art (1661); the gift of the private library of Jacques Bongars (1632) doubled the collection of the library in Berne; in 1812, the gift of the library of the historian Josef Anton Felix Balthasar became the core of the rich historic collection of Swiss literature located in the library of Lucerne. Modern Switzerland is a product of the French revolution, the loose confederation of Swiss territories being forced into a central state by the French in 1798 and formed back into a confederacy, now of equal partners, by Napoleon’s Act of Mediation in 1803. Today’s balance of power between the sovereignty of the cantons and the central government was reached with the Swiss Federal Constitution of 1848. The libraries of the Swiss cantons, most university libraries and the libraries of the Confederation are part of the infrastructure of the new federal state built up in the course of the nineteenth century: along with developments such as secularization, free trade, the monetary union or the standardization of weight and time went the founding of schools, banks, the construction of railway lines, the postal system, and so on. With the exception of Basel (1416), all Swiss universities are foundations of the nineteenth and the twentieth centuries. The end of the nineteenth century (1895) saw the establishment of the Swiss National Library, destined to collect Swiss literary production from 1848 onward. Two years later, in 1897, the foundation of the Swiss library association2 marked the turn of a century in librarianship. At the birth of the modern state, inventories were needed. Growing collections demanded dedicated library buildings, printed catalogs and, eventually, library budgets. National library statistics had been available as early as 1868.3 In the nineteenth century, many libraries that so far had only been open to a privileged few became town libraries and part of the communal infrastructure. An increasing number of reading societies, commercial lending libraries and associations were providing books to various segments of the population. The century had seen a dramatic increase in libraries of all kinds. Now, with the twentieth century, the time had come for consolidation and coordination. At a local level, collections were consolidated by combining existing libraries into large central libraries and by making available central catalogs. 2 3

Vereinigung Schweizerischer Bibliothekare VSB / Association des Bibliothe´caires Suisses ABS / Associazione dei Bibliotecari Svizzeri ABS. ¨ ffentlichen Bibliotheken in der Schweiz im Jahre 1868 (1872). Nach dem von der Die O Schweizerischen Statistischen Gesellschaft gesammelten Material bearbeitet von Dr. Ernst Heitz. Basel, Schweighauserische Buchdruckerei. (German and French).

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The establishment of the Swiss Union Catalog of all foreign publications held by Swiss libraries in 1928 was a pre-requisite for a national inter-library lending system. Other instruments were the Swiss national bibliography (from 1901), an inventory of journals and series held by Swiss libraries (from 1928), and – most important – training for librarianship. In the 1960s, the library association also took up bibliographic work, and 1977 saw the publication of a unified set of Swiss cataloging rules. The twentieth century also saw the rise of public libraries modeled after the Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian open access libraries in the larger cities: in Geneva (1931), Lausanne (1934) or Berne (1947). Already in 1921, between the World Wars, the Swiss People’s Library4 – a central lending library – had been founded in order to compensate for the large difference in library services among the regions. Books were destined to further the education of the general public and to provide quality entertainment for a population, which, due to the regulation of working hours, increasingly enjoyed spare time.5

The Drivers of Change Let us begin with an overview of the major forces that have driven change in Swiss libraries in the last 30 years, from 1980 to today. First, the development of information technology provided Swiss libraries with new approaches to manage their collections, gradually making information services available and affordable online. Library data and services now being widely accessible via web sites and portals, the local card catalog has become the exception even in small libraries. In 2010, 85% of Swiss households had access to the Internet, with an average of 77% of over 14 year olds being regular users.6 Today, the larger libraries in Switzerland are concerned with putting an ever-increasing amount of digital content online, improving distance services and interactivity on behalf of their patrons. Information technology has also left its mark on the collaborative structures in the Swiss library sector. At the turn of the century, collaborative efforts at a national level such as the interlibrary loan system supported by the Swiss National Library or the cataloging standards maintained by the Swiss library association lost importance or were abandoned in favor of

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Schweizerische Volksbibliothek / Bibliothe`que populaire suisse / Biblioteca popolare Svizzera. Many facts in this chapter are taken from the history of Swiss libraries: Senser, Christine (1991). Die Bibliotheken in der Schweiz. Wiesbaden, Ludwig Reichert. Statistik Schweiz (2011). Informationsgesellschaft – Indikatoren. Haushalte und Bevo¨lkerung – Internetnutzung. Online: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/16/04/ key/approche_globale.html (30.11.2011). A regular user is defined as someone using the Internet several times a week.

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collaborations within the growing library network communities. Overall, the result has been a certain disintegration of efforts at the national level in favor of new interest groups: the large university libraries and their academic networks, the National Library and the libraries holding heritage collections, the public libraries, and the newly emerging libraries of the universities of applied sciences – each group combining efforts to meet their specific challenges. In this new landscape, for example, the libraries holding regional heritage collections welcomed the National Library taking the initiative in digital projects such as the preservation of Swiss websites or Swiss publications in digital form. Second, the impact of new public management in the 1990s, in combination with the emergence of a competitive environment in the information sector driven by companies such as Amazon and Google, strongly encouraged service orientation in Swiss libraries. Switzerland is a highly developed, prosperous, service-oriented country: today, the service sector is the largest employer by far, accounting for 71% of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP).7 Typically, the contracts of public servants on the Federal level and in the majority of Swiss cantons are in harmony with public employment laws – a development started by the canton of Grisons in 1990 and followed by the Confederation in 2002.8 To offer library services on a Sunday, for example, is much more likely to be a financial than an ethical or legal issue. Third, the foundation of universities of applied sciences in the 1990s and the subsequent Bologna process furthering coherent systems of higher education throughout Europe have opened up the Swiss academic sector to the professions and encouraged the idea of life-long-learning.9 The reform has spurred a new network of academic libraries and an increasing demand for library services such as the availability of learning spaces or 24/7 access to resources. The library profession itself was affected by the reform: training for professional librarianship, formerly in the hands of the national library association, moved under the auspices of the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET). Vocational education and training (VET Diploma) has been implemented at the upper-secondary level. On the tertiary level, a range of bachelor’s and master’s courses are now offered by both universities of applied sciences and universities. However: a significant portion of the public library sector is still in the hands of on-the-job-trained librarians and semi-professionals.

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Switzerland (2011) in: CIA, The World Fact Book. Updated 15 November. Online: https:// www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html (30.11.2011). United Nations (2006). Swiss Confederation – Public Administration – Country Profile, p. 12. Online: http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un/unpan023324.pdf (30.10.2011). The European Higher Education Area: The official Bologna Process website 2010–2012. Online: http://www.ehea.info (30.11.2011).

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Name changes often are an outward sign of transformation, new business models and the search for identity: the lending library for Swiss public libraries, the ‘Schweizerische Volksbibliothek’ (Swiss People’s Library) became ‘Bibliomedia’ in 2002. ‘Schweizerischer Bibliotheksdienst’ (Swiss Library Service), the cooperative selling ready-made collections and furniture to libraries, became ‘sbd.bibliotheksservice ag’ in 2001. The Swiss Library Association, which until 1998 used to be ‘Vereinigung Schweizerischer Bibliothekare’ (VSB), changed its name twice, becoming ‘Bibliothek Information Schweiz’ (BIS) in 2008, following the merger with the Swiss Documentalists’ Association (VSB/SVD). Last but not least, on January 2007 ‘Schweizerische Landesbibliothek’ became ‘Schweizerische Nationalbibliothek’ – the ‘Swiss National Library’ in all official languages, overcoming the reluctance to use the word ‘national’ in German that originated in the political struggles of the nineteenth century.

The Structure of the Swiss Library Sector Serving a Multicultural Confederation Located at the crossroads of the German, French, and Italian speaking areas in Europe, Switzerland is a multilingual and multicultural country. 64% of its population (to the north and at the center) are native German, 20% (to the west) native French, and 6% (to the south) native Italian speakers, and there are small Romansh speaking populations in the Alpine region to the southeast (0.5%). The Swiss broadcasting corporation (SRG SSR) provides public television and radio programs for all language regions. Switzerland is at the crossroads of the German, French, and Italian publishing markets. In 2010, the Swiss national bibliography registered a national production of 10,568 titles (55.9% German, 22.3% French, 2.8% Italian, 0.2% Romansh), plus 6,068 titles not controlled by commercial publishing (grey literature).10 Since 1980, Switzerland’s permanent resident population has increased from 6.3 million to 7.8 million in 2009, with the percentage of foreign residents growing from 15% to 22% in 2011. More than two thirds of foreign residents are of European origin, mainly from Italy, Germany, Portugal, and Serbia. The proportion of non-European nationals has doubled since 1980.11 As a consequence, public libraries increasingly add material in other

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Swiss National Library, 97th annual report 2010, appendix. Online: http://www.nb.admin. ch/org/01549/03761/index.html?lang=en (30.11.2011). Swiss Statistics (2011). Population. Online: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/ themen/01.html (30.11.2011).

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languages, and many of the national websites cited in this chapter offer at least part of their content in English as well. Switzerland is a federal democracy with law being enacted at three political levels: the commune, the canton and the Confederation. 2,551 communes (January 2011) are grouped into 26 cantons, which together form the Swiss Confederation. Legislation for libraries is enacted at the first, least regulated level: as a principle, libraries are under the responsibility of the communes or the institutions they serve. There is no national library law, and legislation at the cantonal level is rather the exception. Three important libraries – the Swiss National Library in Berne and the Libraries of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (Eidgeno¨ssische Technische Hochschule, ETH) and Lausanne (Ecole Polytechnique Fe´de´rale, EPFL) – are under the responsibility of the Confederation. In addition, federal funds flow into Bibliomedia, the foundation providing subsidiary collections for public libraries and schools in all language regions. More recently, the Confederation has provided start-up funding for the development of digital services in academic libraries by supporting initiatives such as the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries and the Swiss Electronic Library ‘e-lib.ch’. Each canton (with the exception of Schaffhausen) maintains a cantonal library responsible for the regional heritage collection. Due to the small size of Switzerland and due to historical reasons, joint-use libraries are well established: in the majority of the cantons maintaining a public university, the university library and the cantonal library are under one roof. The cantonal library may also serve as the town library. The Zurich Central Library (Zentralbibliothek Zu¨rich) is an example for the combination of all three functions: it is the library of the municipality, the canton and the university of Zurich. The university libraries are mainly frequented by students and faculty, but their collections and services are open to the general public. Although there is no national library legislation, there are some examples of cantonal legislation. Whereas the Confederation does not require a legal deposit at the national level – the National Library receives copies of publications on the grounds of an agreement with the publishers’ associations – legal deposit laws for the cantonal libraries are in force in Valais, Vaud, and Geneva. In 1991, the canton Ticino adopted a law explicitly stating the functions of public libraries, school libraries, special libraries and libraries holding heritage collections, and organizing them in a library network: the Sistema bibliotecario ticinese (Sbt).12 A law, however, is no guarantee for quality. In the public library sector, the guidelines of the Working Community of Swiss Public Libraries (SAB-CLP)13, an interest group of the Swiss library association

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Raccolta leggi del Cantone Ticino. 5.5.2.2. Legge delle biblioteche (dell’ 11 marzo 1991). Schweizerische Arbeitsgemeinschaft der allgemeinen o¨ffentlichen Bibliotheken SAB / Communaute´ de travail des bibliothe`ques suisses de lecture publique CLP.

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founded in 1972, have therefore proven to be a valuable instrument. The guidelines provide standards and work routines for collection building and library management in public and school libraries, often in the hands of non-professionals. In 1999, the SAB-CLP guidelines for community libraries were complemented with a structure plan (‘Bibliotheksplan 2000’), stating quantitative and qualitative goals for libraries according to the size of the population they serve. Today, many cantons create an incentive for progress by providing funds and assistance for libraries following SAB-CLP guidelines. An impressive example for development is Valais, a mountainous canton with French and German speaking areas: building on legislation introduced in the 1990s, a structure plan for the provision of library services throughout the canton was implemented in 2001. Today, the canton’s library network is closely knit, featuring a library passport (Bibliopass), an Internet portal (Bibliovalais.ch) and a quality management system (BiblioValais Excellence) in compliance with ISO norms 9001 and 14001. As a consequence of distributed responsibilities, Swiss librarianship as a whole is relying to a large extent on pragmatic cooperation. The availability and the quality of library services may differ a lot between one region and another. Yet it may be said that the need to cooperate has grown due to the increasing mobility of the population and the need to combine efforts and resources in order to tackle the digital age. On an international level, the library association, the National Library and a number of institutions traditionally link to IFLA, whereas the university libraries are more engaged in the Ligue des Bibliothe`ques Europe´ennes de Recherche (LIBER). Libraries and the information sciences departments of the universities of applied sciences are increasingly looking across the borders for conferences, cooperation, and projects. GASCO, the German, Austrian and Swiss Consortia Organisation, is an example of a joint initiative. Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, but bilateral agreements and the Bologna process have opened the borders for labor, research, and education.

Swiss Library Statistics The last inventory of libraries in Switzerland dates back to 1959/60 (!). For decades now, the number of libraries in Switzerland has been quoted to be ‘around 6,000’, including libraries of every type and size. Up to the turn of the century, the annual library statistics – a collaboration of the Swiss Library Association and the Federal Statistical Office – compiled data of a varying selection of libraries said to be the ‘most important public libraries’ in Switzerland. In 2004, statistics were set on new foundations, in line with international standards. From 2003 onward, data is available for the following segments:

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– libraries with a national mandate: Swiss National Library, Swiss National Sound Archives, Swiss Film Archive; – university libraries; – university library networks; – university of applied sciences library networks; – public (municipal) libraries: libraries in cities with a population of more than 10,000; – special libraries: an illustrious selection of special libraries open to the public such as the CERN Central Library, the info center of the Swiss Federal Railways’ info center or the library of the Abbey of St. Gall. With regard to academic libraries, the new structure mirrors a growing need to know more about the libraries within the university networks. It also makes it possible to observe the development of the library services of the eight universities of applied sciences, which were established in the second half of the 1990s. Following a new initiative, eight cantons agreed to deliver the complete cantonal statistics of their public and combined public and school libraries, starting in 2008. Due to federalism, the participation of the cantons is optional and must be gained. The aim is to integrate and harmonize locally available statistics, in order to obtain a more complete picture of the diverse Swiss library landscape. It is also a first step towards filling the statistical void regarding school libraries. Invisible as a group in the public library statistics is the segment of the libraries of the international organizations located in Geneva: the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) or the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). With AILIS (Association of International Librarians and Information Specialists), they have their own interest group. In collaboration with the National Library in Berne, the CERN Central Library in Geneva is host to the high-profile ‘Library Science Talks’. All together, the new road taken by the library statistics already allows considerably more meaningful and reliable analysis. Since 2004, Swiss library statistics are published on the website of the Federal Statistical Office.14

Library Automation and the Dawn of the Digital Age The Genesis of the Swiss Library Networks A comprehensive list of Swiss online catalogs is managed by SWITCH – the provider of information and communication technology for the Swiss 14

Statistik Schweiz (2011). Bibliotheken. Online: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/ index/themen/16/02/02.html (30.11.2011).

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universities.15 SWITCH was founded in 1987, ‘to create, promote and maintain information and communication technologies in Switzerland at the service of education and research’.16 The Swiss library networks were born at about the same time. Prominent developers of automated library systems were the main library of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich – the ETHZ-Library – with ETHICS, and the library of the Canton and the University of Lausanne, with SIBIL. Whereas the former was predestined for such development by the nature of its institution, the new university campus planned in Lausanne-Dorigny was the driver in the case of Lausanne. In 1985, SIBIL and ETHICS were both ready to launch their OPAC. SIBIL had already been adopted by other libraries. By 1985, SIBIL libraries in western Switzerland were ready to found the first Swiss library network, the “Re´seau Romand” (RERO). From 1988, ETHICS started to operate as a network. It was joined by the ETH research and faculty libraries and mainly by science and technology libraries. The progress of library automation in the 1990s was marked by the transition to commercial integrated library systems. In 1980, the library of the University of Zurich’s newly built natural sciences and medicine campus (Irchel Campus) had been first in Switzerland to introduce a commercial system (IBM’s DOBIS/LIBIS). In 1993, the Swiss National Library began automation introducing VTLS, a new player on the Swiss library automation market. Shortly afterwards, VTLS was also adopted by RERO. The networks in north and central Switzerland launched a joint evaluation process for a new library system and began to introduce ALEPH in 1998. Unfortunately, library automation in the 1990s was often a matter of competition. There was much political talk of harmonization, but little funding to provide an incentive for cooperation at a national level.17 Although SWITCH’s list of library catalogs mentioned above is long to look at, there clearly are two main players today: These days, RERO (now ‘Re´seau des Bibliothe`ques de Suisse Occidentale’) counts approximately 220 libraries, the majority of libraries of all types in the cantons of Geneva, Fribourg, Jura, Neuchaˆtel, Valais, and Vaud. RERO is the network of western (French speaking) Switzerland. At the heart of RERO are a union catalog and the integrated library system VTLS/Virtua. RERO is

15 16 17

SWITCH (2011). Swiss libraries. Online: http://www.switch.ch/edu (06.11.2011). SWITCH (2011). The SWITCH foundation and its special mission. Online: http://www. switch.ch/about/profile/foundation/ (30.11.2011). Barth, Robert & Schneider, Gabi (1995). ‘Die Zukunft hat noch nicht begonnen’ – Die Automatisierung der Hochschulbibliotheken in der Schweiz 1965 bis 1995. In: Fu¨r alle(s) ¨ ffentliche Bibliothek der Universita¨t offen. Bibliotheken auf neuen Wegen. Basel, O Basel: 26–37.

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complemented with a digital repository (RERO DOC) and a meta-catalog giving access to all resources.18 IDS (Informationsverbund Deutschschweiz), the network of German speaking Switzerland, is really a ‘network of library networks’, assembling five independent union catalogs with an approximate total of 450 participating libraries. Partners share services such as a common user file and technology – namely the integrated library system ALEPH – but maintain independent installations. Five associated partners spread the network to Italian speaking Switzerland, to the Principality of Liechtenstein and the National Library of Luxembourg.19 RERO and IDS focus on the academic sector, but because of the numerous joint-use libraries in Switzerland, the networks also embrace most of the important heritage libraries such as the University Library of Basel or – less conspicuously – the Lucerne Central Library. In between these networks, the Swiss National Library maintains an independent installation of VTLS/Virtua. Significantly, the National Library also has a seat in the Swiss University Libraries Conference (CBU/KUB), now the main coordinating body in Swiss academic librarianship.20

The Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries According to Swiss library statistics, university libraries spent almost a third (31%) of their acquisition budget on digital resources in 2010, thus almost doubling expenses since 2003 (17.5%), the year in which the new statistics began.21 In 1999, the members of the CBU/KUB founded the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries, in order to coordinate database and electronic journal licensing. Offices have since been located at the ETHZ-Library. In an initial phase (2000 to 2005), the Consortium received start-up financing from the Swiss Confederation to the amount of 14 million CHF, contributing 50% of license fees. The remaining 50% of fees were paid by the participating libraries. In its second phase (2006–2012), the Consortium is now fully financed by the library members. Altogether, from 2000 to 2010, about 80 million CHF were spent on licenses, about 10 million alone in 2010. The libraries of

18 19 20 21

RERO. Online: http://www.rero.ch (30.11.2011). Informationsverbund Deutschschweiz. Online: http://www.informationsverbund.ch (30.11.2011). Confe´rence des bibliothe`ques universitaires suisses / Konferenz der Universita¨tsbibliotheken der Schweiz (CBU/KUB). Online: http://www.kub-cbu.ch (30.11.2011). Statistik Schweiz: Bibliotheken (Detaillierte Daten, Universita¨tsbibliotheken). Online: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/16/02/02/data.html (30.11.2011).

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non-commercial institutions are eligible for participation. The Consortium is now also licensing e-books.22 Cantonal Universities ETH domain Universities of applied sciences Universities of Teacher Education Swiss National Library Secondary Consortium partners

Schaffhausen

Frauenfeld

Basel

St. Gallen

Liestal Delémont

Aarau

Zurich

Herisau Appenzell

Solothurn Zug Schwyz

Neuchatel

Luzern Sarnen

Glarus Stans Chur

Altdorf Fribourg

Sion

Bellinzona

Genève

Picture 1: Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries: 53 partner libraries in 2011 (http://lib. consortium.ch/html_wrapper.php?src=lib_map&dir=libraries&activeElement=5&lang=2) (22.09.2011).

Going Digital In addition to commercial databases and e-journals, heritage collections such as the Ryhiner historical maps collection at the University Library of Berne and dissertations were among the first documents freely available in digital form. Today, the Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR) lists twelve academic repositories in Switzerland, among them – widely known and highly ranked – the CERN document server. In 2010, the University of Zurich was awarded ‘Open Access Institute of the Year’ by BioMed Central for its open access policy, its repository, ZORA, and its institutional open access information website.23

22 23

For an overview of mission and history, and more details see the website: Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries. Online: http://www.lib.consortium.ch (30.11.2011). University of Zurich (2011). Open Access. Online: http://www.oai.uzh.ch/index.php?mos_ lng=en (30.11.2011).

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In 2007, the Library of the Canton and the University of Lausanne (BCU Lausanne) was the first French language library to join the Google Books project. Since then, 100,000 documents of the library’s heritage collection have been digitized by Google and are now accessible via the library catalog.24 In the twenty-first century, the catalog records of the Swiss library networks are increasingly being enriched with tables of contents, abstracts, covers, and links to additional information. Discovery layer interfaces such as the ETHZ-library’s Knowledge Portal25 or commercial products such as EBSCO Discovery Service (now in Beta at the library of the University of St. Gall) or Aleph Primo (‘NEBIS recherche’ for the IDS NEBIS network) provide integrated access to library resources. The transfer to the next generation of library management systems is well underway. In Swiss public libraries, Internet access is now widespread, but the age of digital information has only just begun. In contrast to the internationally-oriented collections of the academic libraries, the main part of public library materials is in the national languages. Yet, German, French, and Italian publishers are hesitant to supply their titles in digital form, and as a consequence, adequate offers for libraries are scarce. Swiss German public libraries are making first experiences with e-book-lending provided by DiViBib. The German provider is comparable to the U.S. provider OverDrive.26

Federal ‘Hubs’: the Swiss National Library and the Libraries of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology The Swiss National Library The delayed introduction of library automation cost the Swiss National Library much of its central status, which – as described at the beginning – must be founded on cooperation rather than law. After 1990, the library underwent major renovation of both organization and building and has been re-winning its position, step by step. Central services include the Swiss National Bibliography, the Swiss virtual reference desk ‘SwissInfoDesk’, the ISSN Centre Switzerland and the Swiss Gateway to Periodicals (SZP/PSP). The National Library is an active member of IFLA, the Conference of European National Librarians (CENL), and a founding member of ‘The European Library’. In 2009, the National Library completed a 1991 master plan for the renovation of the building by opening the second of two new underground storage

24 25 26

Bibliothe`que cantonale et universitaire Lausanne (2011). Livres nume´rise´s. Online: http:// www.unil.ch/bcu/page50690.html (30.11.2011). ETH-Bibliothek, Knowledge Portal. Online: http://www.library.ethz.ch/en (08.11.2011). Onleihe Schweiz. Online: http://www.onleihe.ch (30.11.2011).

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areas. The building, dating from 1930 and the only instance of the ‘Neues Bauen’ style in Switzerland, was carefully modernized. 11,900 square metres of new underground stacks are in line with the library’s high preservation standards. In 2001, mass deacidification of documents started in the federally owned deacidification plant in Wimmis (papersave swiss process). E-Helvetica, a project for the collection of Swiss e-born publications, digitized works, and websites, has re-invigorated the collaboration with the cantonal and university libraries. Since January 2006, the National Library is managed as an MPMGB institution (management by performance mandate and global budget), on a mandate by the Swiss Federal Council.

The ETHZ-Library: The Project Hub In 2005, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and its library celebrated their 150th anniversary. With 7,617 million documents (2010), the ETHZ-Library is the largest library in Switzerland. Subjects covered are architecture, construction, engineering and the natural sciences, mathematics, management, and social sciences. The library holds many special collections and an increasing amount of digital documents and journals are an essential part of the collection. In the twenty-first century, much effort has been put into collection management: the seamless integration of records and collections and their availability online. In 2010, the ETHZ went live with its Knowledge Portal, providing integrated access to all collections. The ‘about’ section of the Knowledge Portal gives testimony of an impressive amount of projects and partnerships.27 At the turn of the century, the university libraries chose the ETHZ-Library as the seat of the Swiss licensing consortium, because the library already had experience with collective licensing. More recently, it has been entrusted with the project management of e-lib.ch: the Swiss Electronic Library. The goal of this joint venture of academic libraries is to set up a national portal serving as the central point of access for the research of reliable scientific information. From 2008 to 2012, 22 sub-projects carried out by partners throughout Switzerland provide the building-blocks for content, technical infrastructure, services and quality standards of the portal. E-lib.ch-projects investigate digital content across the disciplines – e.g. maps, geodata, manuscripts, rare books, journals, or economic information – and developed solutions for procurement, search, usability, longterm preservation, information literacy, and marketing. The same funding model applies as to the initial phase of the Consortium: 50% (10 million CHF) is

27

ETH-Bibliothek. About us. Online: http://www.library.ethz.ch/en/About-us (30.11.2011).

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financed by the Confederation, the other 50% is contributed by the project partners.28

The EPFL-Library: The Rolex Learning Center 2010 saw the inauguration of the new library building of the Swiss Federal Institute for Technology in Lausanne (EPFL): the Rolex Learning Center.29 The new library was planned to be a flagship for the EPFL. ‘Learn, innovate, live’ is the motto of the building realized by SANAA architects from Japan and financed with the help of prestigious sponsors. Looking from above, the Rolex Learning Center looks like a slightly melted slice of Emmental cheese and quickly had a nickname: ‘the Swiss learning cheese’. It is, in fact, a fluid landscape of various habitats, with very few flat surfaces, spread over a space of 20,000 sq m. In its first year, the library counted one million visitors. The EPFL being less than half the size of the Zurich location, this is a smaller, but no less vibrant library and the cultural hub of the campus. The new building is a re-interpretation of library space in the digital age. Rather than shelf-space it offers room for study and real-life interaction, counterbalancing the digital world. The EPFL Library’s mission statement embraces both worlds: ‘Whether virtual or material, it is a place of work, study and privileged access to information’.30

(Re-) Building Libraries Looking back, the university campus projects of the 1980s marked the transition from closed stacks to open shelves in Swiss academic libraries: the Irchel campus of the University of Zurich (1980), and the new sites of the Universities of Lausanne (1982) and St. Gall (1989). The library at Lausanne-Dorigny is a standalone building embedded in a hillside, offering a wide range of working spaces overlooking Lake Geneva and a restaurant.31 It has aged well and the ‘Unithe`que’ is lovingly called ‘the banana’. The building up of new collections or – as was the case in Lausanne – the reorganization of a historical collection, introduced new perceptions of collection management. This is especially true for Lausanne, where the project eventually had an influence on overall collection management in the canton of Vaud. 28 29 30 31

E-lib.ch. Online: http://www.e-lib.ch/en (30.11.2011). Rolex Learning Center EPFL. Online: http://rolexlearningcenter.epfl.ch (30.11.2011). Bibliothe`que de l’EPFL. Mission. Online: http://library.epfl.ch/en/lib/?pg=mission (30.11.2011). Bibliothe`que cantonale et universitaire Lausanne. BCU Dorigny-Unithe`que. Online: http:// www.unil.ch/bcu/page17028.html (30.11.2011).

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Switzerland is too small a country for monumental architecture, but always good for unique and smart solutions: the Lucerne Town Library (1999) – situated in a modern building wrapped around the historical Bourbaki Panorama32 – the University of Zurich law faculty library (2004) – a woodlined cathedral by Santiago Calatrava33, the Cantonal Library of Basel-Country (2005) – a re-structured wineseller’s building sporting green color and compost toilets, or the library of the Werner Oechslin Foundation in Einsiedeln (2006) – the result of a friendship between a private collector and renowned architect Mario Botta.34 There are, of course, many more, less conspicuous examples.35 The re-definition of space, from open shelves to public ‘living rooms’, is continuing in both academic and public libraries. In public libraries, it is accompanied by the fight for more opening hours and political recognition of the crucial function of libraries in a digital world.

The Library Profession The introduction of universities of applied sciences in the 1990s has also transformed the library profession. Professional training for librarianship, which until the end of the twentieth century was provided by the Swiss Library Association, is now organized along the lines set by the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET): vocational education and training (VET, apprenticeship) following obligatory school education, bachelor’s and consecutive master’s studies (Bachelor and Master of Science BSc) offered by the University of Applied Sciences HTW Chur and the Geneva School of Business Administration, and masters of advanced studies programs offered by the mentioned schools plus the universities of Berne and Zurich. The bachelor programs are open to holders of a VET Diploma and a Federal Vocational Baccalaureate or by holders of a Swiss Baccalaureate with at least one year of work experience. The BSc may be complemented with a consecutive master’s degree (MSc). Holders of a bachelor’s degree in another discipline may join the profession via one of the master of advanced studies programs. Jobs are available for holders of diplomas/degrees of every level.

32 33 34 35

Bourbaki Panorama (2002). The renovation of the rotunda and the new building. Luzern. Online: http://www.bourbakipanorama.ch/pdf-en/The_renovation.pdf (30.11.2011). University of Zurich, Institute of Law. About the IL library. Online: http://www.rwi.uzh.ch/ bibliothek/allgemein_en.html (30.11.2011). Stiftung Werner Oechslin. About the Library. History of the collection, orientation, and architecture. Online: http://www.bibliothek-oechslin.ch/bibliothek-en?set_language=en (30.11.2011). See also: Barth, Robert & Kuppelwieser, Iris (2010). Bibliotheksbau in der Schweiz 1985– ¨ sthetik. Churer Schriften fu¨r Informationswissenschaft, 39. Chur, 2010. Planung, Nutzung, A HTW.

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It is a responsibility of the professional associations, in collaboration with the training institutions of an industry sector, to define the content of OPETcompliant apprenticeships. In the new system, the library association joined forces with the Association of Swiss archivists (VSA/AAS) and the former Swiss Association for Documentation (SVD/ASD): a VET Diploma (‘Fachmann/Fachfrau Information und Dokumentation’) qualifies for work in archives, libraries and documentation centers. The same is true for the bachelor’s and master’s degrees: the content of the programs are more accurately defined as studies in information science, with modules geared towards the various branches of the information industry. Each program or school has its specialties, allowing students a choice according to their professional goals: librarian, archivist, documentalist, records manager, researcher, and more. However, many of the small public libraries in Switzerland still do not employ professional librarians. Wages in these institutions are low, and quite often, voluntary work is involved. The SAB-CLP offers introductory and advanced training courses for staff and managers of such libraries, mostly women. In this environment, the larger metropolitan libraries play an important role as pivotal institutions for the professionalization of librarianship. They have come to realize that a professional staff is essential to keep up with modern service standards and meet the challenges of the information society.

The Fifteen Years to Come In 1990, the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (EDK) and the Federal Office of Culture (BAK) commissioned a working group to analyze the situation of libraries in Switzerland and propose a policy for library development. The working group’s 1993 report gave a detailed analysis of the Swiss library landscape and concluded with twelve recommendations aiming at more coordination at a national level.36 Seventeen years later, in 2010, the National Library Commission published the ‘Charter of Swiss Libraries’, stating the functions and services of libraries in the knowledge society.37 A key statement reads: ‘In a knowledge society, libraries are essential. Laws and sufficient funding enable them to fulfill their public mission’.38 In the course of its work, the commission went back

36 37 38

Bibliotheken in der Schweiz. Situation, Probleme und Bedu¨rfnisse der allgemeinen o¨ffentlichen Bibliotheken (1993). Bern, EDK/BAK. Swiss National Library. Charter of the Swiss libraries. Online: http://www.nb.admin.ch/org/ organisation/03172/03205/index.html?lang=en (30.11.2011). Translated from German: “Bibliotheken sind in der Informationsgesellschaft unverzichtbar. Damit sie ihre o¨ffentlichen Aufgaben erfu¨llen ko¨nnen, brauchen sie gesetzliche Grundlagen und ausreichende finanzielle Mittel.”

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to the 1993 report and discussed the impact it had made. In spite of progress, the overall picture was patchy, and the analysis basically the same as then: legislation and coordination at a national level is needed in order to bridge the gaps between academic and community libraries, between languages, regions, professional librarianship and volunteer initiatives. At the request of the commission, the EDK has now appointed a new working group, to investigate the options for a nationally coordinated library policy in the contemporary environment. Some of the challenges libraries are faced with are digital: in the next five to ten years, the academic library networks will have to be transferred to new systems and standards, the procurement of digital information and its longterm preservation need to be ensured, involving technical as well as legal issues. WLAN and mobile access to resources are becoming an issue for all types of libraries. Other challenges are very much related to the development of Swiss society as a whole. As shown in the “Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey” in 2006, 16% of 16 to 65 year olds in Switzerland are unable to work with a simple text, and 8% are unable to express themselves in the language of the place in which they live.39 Community libraries and institutions such as Bibliomedia have put much effort in improving services for schools, and libraries are in a very good position to offer advice and public space to tackle these issues. Also, following the pioneering work of the intercultural libraries in Switzerland40, multicultural collections are finding their way into public libraries. However, political initiatives regarding topics such as the information society or the introduction of media literacy into the school curriculum still have a tendency to be focused on IT. Swiss economy depends to a large extent on the country’s ability to remain competitive by ensuring high education and service standards as well as attractive living conditions in a peaceful society. In the years to come, politicians must be convinced to recognize libraries as essential partners and a good investment in the future.

39

40

Notter, Philippe (et al.) (2006). Lesen und Rechnen im Alltag. Grundkompetenzen von Erwachsenen in der Schweiz. Nationaler Bericht zur Erhebung‚ Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey. Neuchaˆtel, Bundesamt fu¨r Statistik. Online: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/ index/news/publikationen.html?publicationID=2261 (30.11.2011). Interbiblio. Intercultural libraries of Switzerland. Online: http://www.interbiblio.ch/en/ interbiblio.html (30.11.2011).

2.21 Taiwan, China Development of Libraries in Taiwan, China Chao-chen Chen Introduction The history of development of modern libraries in Taiwan, China goes back over one hundred years when the first collection was established by the Japanese in Tamsui, northern Taiwan, China, in January 1901. The history of library development in Taiwan, China can be divided into two essential periods: the Japanese occupation and the recovery of Taiwan, China after 1945. The era of library development since 1945 can be divided into three periods: the time of re-construction (1945–1952), the boom time (1953–1976), and the time of consolidation (1977–the present).1 In 2001, Taiwan, China passed the Library Law, creating a legal foundation for developing various kinds of libraries. In accordance with this law, libraries were categorized into five types: NCL libraries, academic libraries, public libraries, school libraries, and special libraries. The history of and the trends in the development of these five kinds of libraries and the problems they have faced over the years are discussed here.2

State-of-the-Art Libraries in Taiwan, China NCL Library The NCL Library is Taiwan, China’s leading library. NCL was established in Nanking in 1933; it was moved to Taiwan, China in 1949, re-opened to the public in 1954, and moved to a new building and re-opened again on September 27, 1986. To promote sinology and strengthen services to foreign and local sinologists, the Ministry of Education established the Chinese Studies Center in

1 2

Chen-Ku Wang, “One Hundred Years of the Librarianship in Taiwan,” (paper presented at the Proceedings of History of Librarianship and Library & Information Science Education, Taipei, Taiwan, May 2007): 1–12. Liu, Ophelia Chun-yin. Librarianship in Taiwan. NCL Library, Taipei, 2007.

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1981, with the NCL Library responsible for establishing a collection of research materials in Chinese studies, providing reader services, inviting foreign Sinologists to Taiwan, China for research purposes, publishing works and periodicals in Chinese studies, creating a catalog and index for publications, reporting on the developments in Chinese studies, holding international academic conferences, and participating in overseas book exhibitions to promote Chinese culture. In accordance with the Library Law, the NCL Library serves as the legal repository of all publications in Taiwan, China. More than 100,000 volumes are deposited each year with a total of 2,748,679 foreign and local books; 22,811 foreign and local periodicals and newspapers; 1,050,050 non-printed materials including CDs, records, and maps; and 369 electronic databases as of the present.3 Rare Chinese antiquarian books are the most important collection in the NCL Library, with around 12,300 works and close to 126,000 volumes. There are 153 Dunhuang scrolls, 175 Song-edition books, six Chin-edition books, 272 Yuan-edition books, over 6,000 Ming-edition books, close to 3,000 codices, and approximately 500 manuscripts and 500 marginalia and proofread works. These rare books have already been microfilmed for the benefit of users. In trying to promote the Digital Archives Program, the NCL Library has gradually scanned these rare books and digitally archived them. It has also collaborated with the American Library of Congress to store digital repositories among its collection of rare books. The NCL Library is also responsible for numbering books using the International Standard Book Numbering (ISBN) method, applying the International Standard Recording Code (ISRC), and Cataloguing in Publication (CIP) to the materials stored here. The NCL Library is the bibliographic center of Taiwan, China. It connects 77 academic libraries, public libraries, and special libraries in the country, and builds a union catalog termed the Bibliographic Information Network (NBINet), which contains over 6,130,000 books. With a view to providing better services, the NCL Library has established various kinds of information systems such as the ISBN Agency of Taiwan, China, Bibliographic Information Network (NBINet), Electronic Theses and Dissertation System, Index to Taiwan Periodical Literature System, Taiwan Memory, Taiwan Info, Contemporary Literature Digital Imaging System, and Government Gazette. The number of people using these systems each month exceeds 4,000,000.

3

NCL Library, “About collections” NCL Library, www.ncl.edu.tw/np.asp?ctNode=20&mp= 2 (8 Apr. 2010).

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

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Public Libraries Libraries are the best preservers and communicators of human knowledge, and public libraries are the institutions that disseminate this knowledge among people. The cooperation between officials and the public during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, China resulted in the creation of the first private–public library in Taiwan, China in January, 1901. Statistics reveal that there were 94 public libraries in Taiwan, China in 1943 and the total library collection was estimated at 320,000 volumes. Therefore, the history of development of public libraries can be considered to span over a hundred years. The development of public libraries in Taiwan, China spanning the past 60 years can be classified into three stages: the period of the establishment of the county/city level public library from 1945 to1976, the period of establishment of the county/city cultural centers from 1977 to 1998, and the period of transformation of the county/city bureaus of cultural affairs from 1999 to the present. There were many important developments at a variety of levels in the public library and information services during the above-mentioned stages, including the stipulation of public laws, formulation of library service standards, collection development plans, library automation, and reading-promotion activities.4 According to the statistics provided by the NCL, public libraries are classified as regional, provincial/municipal, county/city, town/city, and private sector. The sizes and services of public libraries differ to some degree according to their levels. As of 2010, there were 541 public libraries (branches included) and the total collections in the public libraries were estimated at 31.2 million in Taiwan.5 At 1:47 am on September 21, 1999, an enormous earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale struck Taiwan, China and resulted in serious casualties across the island, particularly in the central regions. The public libraries in central Taiwan, China suffered extensive damage. The 921 earthquake resulted in significant physical and psychological trauma for the residents of the central parts of the country. However, with help of the government and the people of Taiwan, China, the residents rediscovered value in the reconstructed community. They not only rebuilt the disaster areas in a very short time but also had the opportunity to redesign the old schools, libraries, and communities, imparting a modern look to these institutions.

4 5

Chien-Cheng Sung, “The History of Public Librarianship in Taiwan,” (paper presented at the Proceedings of History of Librarianship and Library & Information Science Education, Taipei, Taiwan, May 2007): 45–56. Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2010 Yearbook of Library in the Republic of China (Taipei: NCL Library, 2010): 74.

1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Taitung County

Tainan City

Tainan County

Yilan County

Hualien County

Jinmen County

Nantou County

1

1

Taipei County

1

Main

1

15

41

0

0

0

0

1

6

0

0

0

1

Branch

County/city libraries

Taichung County

1

2

Kaohsiung City

Taichung City

1

Branch

Main

Main

Branch

Provincial/ municipal libraries

NTL library/ Taichung library

Taipei City

County/City

Category

Table 1: Number of public libraries in Taiwan and their total collections

13

4

13

12

31

0

15

30

21

11

Main

2

0

0

5

0

0

1

51

8

2

Branch

Town/city libraries

1

Others (Provincial government libraries)

15

5

14

13

32

1

16

32

22

13

2

1

Main

Total

2

0

0

5

1

6

1

51

8

4

15

41

Branch

892,266

210,082

595,335

825,263

1,476,274

762,629

527,755

3,350,579

1,652,717

728,134

1,761,414

5,826,332

Number of volumes and nonprinted materials

494 Chao-chen Chen

–

–

–

–

–

–

Taichung Library

–

–

–

–

NTL Library

1

Hsinchu County

1

1

Hsinchu City

Penghu County

1

Yunlin County

1

1

Lienchiang County

Changhua County

1

Keelung City

1

1

Kaohsiung County

1

1

Taoyuan County

Jiayi County

1

Miaoli County

Jiayi City

1

Pingtung County

–

–

1

0

0

2

0

1

0

1

0

1

0

0

1

–

–

5

26

18

0

13

2

20

3

7

27

13

18

33

–

–

0

1

1

0

0

0

1

0

1

9

16

3

4

–

–

–

6

27

19

1

14

3

21

4

8

28

14

19

34

–

–

1

1

1

2

0

1

1

1

1

10

16

3

5

(Continued)

894,721

1,528,469

312,753

1,225,633

779,029

207,865

641,638

302,808

887,127

108,690

335,346

1,462,388

1,473,803

907,953

1,321,173

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

495

2

Total

3

56

–

23

–

Main

15

–

Branch

County/city libraries

335

–

Main

105

–

Branch

Town/city libraries

1

–

Others (Provincial government libraries)

364

–

Main

Total

177

–

Branch

31,247,493

249,317

Number of volumes and nonprinted materials

Source: Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2010 Yearbook of Library in Taiwan (Taipei: NCL Library,2010): 74-75.

–

Branch

–

Provincial government library

–

Main

Main

County/City

Branch

Provincial/ municipal libraries

NTL library/ Taichung library

Category

Table 1: Number of public libraries in Taiwan and their total collections (Cont.)

496 Chao-chen Chen

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

497

After the reconstruction and improvement in design of the libraries in the earthquake-stricken areas, the government employed the same model in starting a large-scale “Public Library Renovation Project,” facilitating the renovation of 301 public libraries across Taiwan. The “Public Library Renovation Project” was the first of five sub-projects under the Public Library Consolidation Plan of the Council for Cultural Affairs in 2003. Around NTD 1.1 billion was invested in this sub-project, which was mainly focused on redesigning library space. Exterior renovations were undertaken on a portion of these libraries, while a small number of libraries were relocated because of the dilapidated condition of the buildings. Areas were earmarked for features collections and outdoor landscaping was planned for some of these sections. To improve and further enhance the functions of all public libraries, the government of Taiwan, China undertook the reading project of public libraries. In the years between 2009 and 2012, the government of Taiwan, China plans to spend NTD 2.7 billion on public library spaces, collection development, and reading services. Since 1980, public libraries in Taiwan, China have successively initiated the process of automation. Automated systems at that time were used for one library with each library purchasing a library automation system suite. The systems employed were single systems or the Novell-NetWare area network systems. The emergence and growth of the Internet has made it easier for public libraries to disseminate important information. Now people can use the resources of the library anytime and from any place. Since 1995, under the aegis of the government, the automated systems used by public libraries in each county and city have become web-based and similar to a shared information system prevalent in counties and cities. At present, town/city libraries are connected to the automated systems of county libraries. Many counties and cities have utilized the integration and network connections of these automated systems to implement reading policies. Anyone from a certain county can use the library card that he was issued from any of the towns to borrow books from any library within the counties and cities, thus fully achieving the purpose of seamless sharing of resources. Furthermore, public libraries also actively provide electronic resources to the people. Apart from the electronic resources procured by each library on its own, the NCL Library and the Taichung Library have also purchased electronic resources and books through funding provided by successive governments.

Academic Libraries The history of development of academic libraries can be traced back to the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, China. The Taiwan University Library (NTU formerly called as Taipei Empire University) was first established in

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Chao-chen Chen

1928. The total collection available at the NTU Library was 474,000 volumes in 1945. Most of these collections were in Japanese. Therefore, we can say that the history of academic librarianship spans over 80 years in Taiwan, China. As a division of the public libraries, the development of the academic libraries can be classified into the pre-1945 period, the period between 1945 and 1950, and the boom period from 1950 to the present.6 According to the statistics provided by the NCL, we divided academic libraries into university libraries and vocational school libraries. At present, we have 183 academic libraries and the total printed collection was 51,271,854 of 2009, averaging 376,999 volumes each.7

Table 2: Number of universities and technical colleges in Taiwan and their total in-house collection Type of collection Books, newspapers, periodical bound volumes

Audio-visual materials

Microfilm material

Other types

University Vocational school Subtotal General Vocational school Subtotal General Vocational school Subtotal General Vocational school Subtotal

Number of respondents 66 70

Total 37,022,713 14,249,141

136 66 70

51,271,854 2,964,588 803,092

136

3,767,680

65 67

11,306,637 819,639

132 52

12,126,276 338,175

54

53,157

106

391,332

Source: Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2010 Yearbook of Library in Taiwan (Taipei: NCL Library, 2010):141.

6 7

Ou-Lan Hu Chou, “The History of Academic Librarianship in Taiwan,” (paper presented at the Proceedings of History of Librarianship and Library & Information Science Education, Taipei, Taiwan, May 2007): 31–43. Counseling and Training Department, NCLLibrary, 2010 Yearbook of Library in the Republic of China (Taipei: NCL Library, 2010): 141.

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

499

In the digital age, electronic resources constitute the primary challenge to academic libraries. The only way of responding to complicated and varied problems in procuring electronic resources is to establish a consortium. At present, there are the Consortium on Core Electronic Resources in Taiwan (CONCERT), the Taiwan Academic E-Books Consortium, and the Chinese E-books Consortium, all proposed and established by academic libraries. They have also created useful collaboration models. Establishing institutional repositories is another important task of academic libraries in the digital age. The NTU Library has created a Chinese version for the D-Space system designed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and has provided it to other academic libraries to use. At present, it already boasts of 104 collaborators. Apart from progressing towards a digital library and providing digital services without walls around the clock, changes in university libraries are also reflected in space planning, collection development, personnel recruitment, and management. The process of development of libraries in Taiwan in these areas is described as follows: a. Spatial change: students and professors need spatial changes compatible with the new learning approaches and research methods. Consequently, many libraries are decreasing the interior space used for actual books and increasing the space suitable for personal in-depth discussions to happen. b. Archival changes: many libraries no longer possess collections of printed journals, particularly journals in engineering and the social sciences. The libraries that originally contained printed journal archives have largely switched over to storing them in density storage centers. Density storage centers refer to the leasing of storage space from private enterprises to store printed collections of libraries if the space provided by the NCL Library is not sufficient. The Taiwan Normal University, NTU, Chengchi University, and NCL Library have planned a joint automated storage center to be constructed in the Linkou campus of the Taiwan Normal University to serve as a repository of rare books and journals. c. Extending scope of operations: university libraries incorporate other operations comprehensively and these include learning media centers, publishing centers, and copyright management centers. An example in this case is the Taiwan Normal University Library that handles the filming, editing, repositing, and promotion of Open Courseware. A publishing center was also established under the library which was made responsible for school publications. A university section was

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Chao-chen Chen

also created to handle the repository and exhibition of university history materials. These are areas not covered by the scope of traditional libraries. Libraries have already become the repository centers of knowledge for schools. d. Expanding the recruitment of personnel with cutting-edge skills: libraries upgrade their current staff with on-the-job training programs. They also hire specialists and experts with cutting edge skills and competencies needed in areas like digital media, web design, publishing, and copyright. e. Management changes: libraries can no longer afford to function as if they are indifferent to return to cost ratio. Rather, they should pay close attention to returns on investments. Along with the development and growth of the university as a whole, they are geared towards maximum flexibility for spin and curve at any given time.

School Libraries According to the statistics provided by the NCL, school libraries can be divided into senior high school libraries, senior vocational high school libraries, special school libraries, junior high school libraries, and elementary school libraries. There are 323 senior high school libraries, 743 junior high school libraries, and 2,720 elementary school libraries in Taiwan. China8 and the total collection in the school libraries exceeds 13 million, averaging 30,000 volumes each, in Taiwan, China as of 20109

Table 3: Number of school libraries by city and by county in Taiwan Type County/city Taipei City Kaohsiung City

Senior high school libraries 48 35

Vocational senior high school libraries 20 21

Special school libraries 4 5

Junior high school libraries 62 79

Primary school libraries 151 241

Total 285 381

(Continued)

8 9

NCL Library, “School Libraries”Library Statistical System, libstat.ncl.edu.tw/nclstatFront/ (28 Nov. 2011). School Libraries Statistical System, “2010 School Libraries Statistical System Statistical Report,” School Libraries Statistical System, http://libstat.ncl.edu.tw/nclstatFront/index.jsp (28 Nov. 2011).

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

501

Table 3: Number of school libraries by city and by county in Taiwan (Cont.) Type County/city

Senior high school libraries

Vocational senior high school libraries

Special school libraries

Junior high school libraries

Primary school libraries

Total

Taichung City New Taipei City

37

11

4

70

231

353

37

16

1

68

214

336

Taitung County Tainan City Yilan County Hualian County Jinmen County Nantou County Pingtung County Miaoli County Taoyuan County Keelung City Lienchiang County Yunlin County Hsinchu City Hsinchu County Jiayi City

5

4

0

21

101

131

33 6

16 5

2 1

60 24

221 78

332 114

7

6

1

24

106

144

1

1

0

5

20

27

7

6

0

32

153

198

11

10

0

36

200

257

9

7

1

30

123

170

22

7

1

57

179

266

7

4

1

13

43

68

1

0

0

5

8

14

12

7

1

33

158

211

10

3

0

12

32

57

8

1

0

29

82

120

9

7

1

8

20

45 (Continued)

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Chao-chen Chen

Table 3: Number of school libraries by city and by county in Taiwan (Cont.) Type County/city Jiayi County Changhua County Penghu County Total

Senior high school libraries

Vocational senior high school libraries

Special school libraries

Junior high school libraries

Primary school libraries

Total

5

3

0

22

142

172

10

11

2

39

174

236

1

1

0

14

41

57

323

167

25

743

2720

3978

Source: NCL Library, “School Libraries” Webpage of Library Statistical System, libstat. ncl.edu.tw/nclstatFront/ (28 Nov. 2011) Table 4: Total collections of school libraries in Taiwan Type Municipal senior high schools Municipal vocational high schools Private senior high schools Private vocational high schools National senior high schools National vocational high schools County senior high schools Special schools Total

Number of schools 59

Number of volumes (in 1000)

Average number of volumes (in 1000)

13 140 75 85

15,453

30

79 39 25 515

Source: School Libraries Statistical System, “2010 School Libraries Statistical System Statistical Report,” Webpage of School Libraries Statistical System, http://libstat.ncl.edu. tw/nclstatFront/index.jsp (28 Nov. 2011)

Cultivating reading habits of students, enhancing their knowledge, and encouraging literacy are the most important tasks of school libraries. Preparing for entrance examinations occupies a lot of time for junior and senior high school students. This is also the greatest hindrance for libraries that want to encourage self-study abilities in students through the promotion of reading

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

503

or by enhancing information literacy. However, the aim is to improve gradually, as the existing structure of senior high school libraries is sound. These libraries also facilitate and encourage frequent international exchanges. In 2007, the International Association of School Librarianship held its annual conference in Taipei. This was organized by the Library Association of the Republic of China (LAROC) and the Graduate Institute of Library and Information Studies of Taiwan Normal University where more than 400 foreign and local scholars and experts in school librarianship participated. This was the first international event in the school library community of Taiwan, China. Although primary school students do not experience the pressures of entrance examinations, the support system in many primary school libraries in Taiwan, China is lacking in official personnel and professional management. Thus, the development of primary school libraries is still in its infancy. Starting 2009, the Ministry of Education began the trial for the teacherlibrarian project in primary schools, hoping that by forming a complete system, it could set the foundation for the development of primary school libraries.

Special Libraries Special libraries are designed to support the functional or research needs of various institutions and organizations according to the Library Law. These libraries hire specialists to provide related library and information services. According to the statistics provided by the NCL, there are nine types of special library in Taiwan, China, namely, government agencies, research institutions, public enterprises, private enterprises, mass communication agencies, hospitals, social organizations, religion organizations, and others attached to their parent institutions. Furthermore, the body of work available in such libraries also varies widely. Folk operas, county annals, rare books, documents of modern history, scientific and technological materials, medical research, law and legislation, medicine, life science, fine arts, museums, archives, religion, Buddhist studies, ICT information, financial and economic topics, mass media, and agricultural research are important examples of the variety of material collected by different kinds of special libraries. There are 660 special libraries in Taiwan, China as of 2011.10

10

NCL Library, “Special Libraries” Library Statistical System, libstat.ncl.edu.tw/nclstatFront/ (28 Nov. 2011).

Tainan City Yilan County Hualian County Jinmen County Nantou County Pingtung County Miaoli County Taoyuan County

Taichung City Taitung County

County/City Taipei City Kaohsiung City

Type

13 6 6 1 7 8 6 14

1

7

4

3

13

4

3

9 2 1

18

Medical libraries 30 16

15

Government agency libraries 105 24

0

0

0

0

0

2 0 0

0

2

Association libraries 13 1

4

4

1

1

0

9 1 0

0

3

Business libraries 47 17

Table 5: Number of special libraries by county and by city in Taiwan

0

0

0

0

0

0 0 1

0

0

Mass communication libraries 7 1

5

0

3

5

1

12 0 2

3

15

Religious libraries 23 15

0

0

1

0

0

0 0 0

0

0

Other special libraries 8 0

36

13

17

20

3

45 9 10

10

53

Total 233 74

504 Chao-chen Chen

4 4 4 5 6 0

175

5 3

1 0 4

1

218

19

0

0 0 0

1 0

0

0 0

118

0

2 0 2

8 5

1

1 0

9

0

0 0 0

0 0

0

0 0

111

0

2 2 1

4 0

1

2 0

10

0

0 0 0

1 0

0

0 0

Source: NCL Library, “Special Libraries” Webpage of Library Statistical System, libstat.ncl.edu.tw/nclstatFront/ (28 Nov. 2011)

5

1

Yunlin County Hsinchu City Hsinchu County Jiayi City Jiayi County Changhua County Penghu County Total

4 0

1 0

Keelung City Lienchiang County

660

2

9 7 13

23 12

8

8 0

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

505

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Chao-chen Chen

Table 6: Number of collections of special libraries in Taiwan

Books (volumes) Bound periodicals (volumes) Current periodicals (type) Academic papers (volume) Conference materials (volume) Audio-visual materials (item) Electronic databases (kind) Others (volume/item/ type)

Number of respondents (by university) 209 195

Total 6,644,690 112,907

Average 31,792.78 579.01

131

1,431,783

10,929.64

80

251,542

3,144.28

38

43,829

1,153.39

138

575,846

4,172.80

122

11,904

97.57

17

1,028,138

60,478.71

Source: Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2010 Yearbook of Library in Taiwan (Taipei: NCL Library, 2010): 184.

Economic prosperity and social stability have been instrumental in ushering in rigorous development of special libraries in Taiwan, China in the past two decades. Given the changing times, the transformation of special libraries is imperative. Many enterprise libraries have been transformed into knowledge management centers or database construction divisions. Aside from providing information and resources, they are also responsible for the internal documents of the enterprise such as patent management.

Current Status of Library and Information Science Education A formal department facilitating library and information science education was established in 1955 in Taiwan, China. The development of library and information science education spans 54 years. Today there are 10 institutions of higher education set up to conduct library and information science programs/courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. However, most of the library departments/graduate institutes in these schools have changed their names to “Department of Library and Information Science” or

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

507

“Graduate Institute of Library & Information Studies” with special curricula designed for traditional library science concerns and newly developed information science since 1992. The core courses designed for fostering the growth of library professionals focused on library science are the application of information science, computing technology, networking systems documentation, and archival studies. Library and information science education (including the four categories of library science, information science, documentation, and archival studies) in Taiwan, China has been implemented since the 1990s in two different modes: regular education and distance education.11

Regular Education The comprehensive regular education of library and information science offers undergraduate and graduate programs (Master and PhD degrees). Six universities offer library and information science courses at undergraduate level, Taiwan Normal University since 1955, NTU since 1961, Fu Jen Catholic University since 1970, Tamkang University since 1971, Shih Hsin University since 1995 (formerly called Shih Hsin Junior College in 1964), and Hsuan Chuang University since 1998. There were approximately 1,515 students enrolled in the undergraduate programs and 373 students enrolled in the graduate institute courses in the 2004–2005 school year.12 Nine master degree programs on library and information science/studies have been established by the above-mentioned institutions for higher education in different years, namely, NTU in 1980, Tamkang University in 1991, Catholic Fu Jen University in 1994, Cheng-chi University (NCCU) in 1996, Chung Hsin University (NCHU) in 1999, Shih Hsin University in 2000, Chiao Tung University (NCTU) in 2002, and the Taiwan Normal University also in 2002. The NCCU, NCHU, and NCHU do not have undergraduate programs. In 1989, the NTU began its doctoral program, and in 2008, the Taiwan Normal University initiated its doctoral program as well.13

11 12 13

Mei-Ling Wang, the 9th Chapter: Education on the Library Information Science in the Third Library Yearbook of the Republic of China (Taipei: NCL Library, Aug. 1999): 187–229. Statistics by Mei-ling Wang reported in The ROC Library Yearbook in 2006 published by the NCL Library: 137, 146. Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2009 Yearbook of Library in the Republic of China (Taipei: NCL Library, 2009): 219–220.

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Chao-chen Chen

Table 7: Summary of Departments/Institutes of Library and Information Science in Taiwan and their year of establishment Graduate Institute of Library and Information Science, National Taiwan University Graduate Institute of Library and Communication, National Taiwan Normal University Department of Library and Information Science, Fu Jen Catholic University Graduate Institute of Library and Communication, Shih Hsin University Department of Library and Information Science, Tamkang University Graduate Institute of Library and Information Science, Chung Hsing University

Bachelors 1961

Masters 1980

Doctorate 1989

1955

2002

2008

1970

1994

1995

2000

1971

1991 1999 2002

Digital Library and Information Program, Chiao Tung University Graduate Institute of Library, Information, and Archival Studies, Chengchi University Department of Library and Information Science, Hsuan Chuang University

1996 1998

Source: Counseling and Training Department, NCL Library, 2010 Yearbook of Library in Taiwan (Taipei: NCL Library, 2010): 236.

Distance Education Special Courses The Department of Humanities of the Open University offer a series of library and information science courses such as introduction to library science, book selection and acquisition, classification and cataloging, and management of audio-visual material. Around 800 to 2,000 students are enrolled in each course. During the past decade, some special courses have also been designed for on-the job library staff with the cooperation of NCL and some universities, i.e., Chengchi University, Taiwan Normal University, and Sun-Yat Sen University.

On-the-Job Training and Continuing Education Since the summer of 1956, the Library Association of China (renamed Library Association of the Republic of China, LAROC in 2005) has been organizing on-the-job training sessions annually on recent professional developments in

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

509

the fields of library and information science. There were 8,874 librarians enrolled in the workshops offered before 1997.14 And over 7,000 librarians have participated in the workshops over the past ten years. The courses offered depend on the needs of the libraries, their functions, the newest developments in information technology and networking, and the needs of the librarians and the society at large. These workshops were held by different institutions, such as the NCL, the departments/graduate institutes of the above-mentioned universities, and public libraries. Due to advancements in the field of information technology, librarians need more up-to-date knowledge of computers and ICT technology and their applications. LAROC has been increasing the amount of such workshops since 1983. There were more than 150 workshops held in the past decade. The topics of the workshops are versatile: advanced technical services, library collection planning, electronic library and information retrieval, subject analysis and MARC, library resources organization, electronic resources organization, electronic collection development, library and information law and regulation, quality management of library excellence, digitalized collection development, library management and marketing, management of the digitalized contents, digital library and digital learning, reading and information society, collection development and freedom use, etc. The faculty members of these workshops include university professors and senior librarians who have worked in various types of libraries for a certain length of time. Both the theoretical material and the practical material were covered in each course of the workshops. Apart from the short-term workshops for enhancing the professional abilities of in-service personnel, several in-service master programs were also established, such as the In-service Master Program of Library and Information Studies of Taiwan Normal University and the Master Program of Library, Information, and Archival Studies of Chengchi University. Each university accepts around 20 students each year and offers avenues to obtain a master’s degree through weekend classes or by e-learning methods.

Development of Digital Libraries in Taiwan, China Epoch-Making e-Plans in Taiwan, China Taiwan, China has been undergoing an e-revolution as unprecedented technological advancements in various fronts have taken the nation by storm. Sophisticated upgrades in mobile technology, for instance, have transformed the

14

Mei-Ling Wang, the 9th Chapter: Education on the Library Information Science in the Third Library Yearbook of the Republic of China (Taipei: NCL Library, Aug. 1999): 6.

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Chao-chen Chen

everyday lives of the Taiwanese people. In an attempt to respond appropriately to this e-trend, the Taiwanese government launched the e-Taiwan and m-Taiwan Projects. The implementation of these projects is aimed at enhancing Taiwan’s overall competitiveness and economic advantages in its international trades worldwide. Of the nationwide programs included in the e-Taiwan Project, two of them bear critical significance in the development and growth of library and information science: Digital Archives Program (NDAP) and Science & Technology e-Learning Program. These two programs were integrated as one in 2006 and are now poised to bring about cutting edge digital content creation and applications in Taiwan.15 Undoubtedly e-Taiwan and m-Taiwan will elevate Taiwan’s overall competitiveness and accelerate Taiwan, China toward comprehensive digitalization. With virtually unlimited dynamic applications from e-Taiwan and m-Taiwan, information will reach individuals requesting them in real time via channels such as cell phones and wireless broadband. At the core of e-Taiwan and m-Taiwan lie two critical factors: digital content and digital applications made available to people with diverse needs. Therefore, these digital programs and applications are expected to create a tremendous impact on institutions, businesses, and related aspects in our society, including the government, schools, libraries, museums, media, entertainment, publishing, and tourism. Because of their impact, Taiwan, China will undergo dramatic changes in the near future.

Impact of Digital Waves by Libraries Libraries constitute a vital part of the infrastructure of the information society. Considering the directions to take for future development, apart from studying the impact of Google, libraries need to take into account how researchers are searching for and using information. A survey of Research Information Network and Consortium of CURL Research Libraries about the researchers’ use of academic libraries and their services (2007) has found the following.16 a. Researchers are apparently hungry for more digital content, manifesting a demand far exceeding what libraries with limited budgets can supply. b. Researchers today visit the library less frequently than they did five years ago and this trend will continue.

15 16

Taiwan e-Learning and Digital Archives Program, “Overview” Taiwan e-Learning and Digital Archives Program, teldap.tw (8 Apr. 2010). Research Information Network and Consortium of CURL Research Libraries (2007) Researchers’ Use of Academic Libraries and their Services: a Report Commissioned by the Research Information Network and the Consortium of Research Libraries.

2.21 Taiwan, China – Development of Libraries

511

c. Most researchers use digital search aids to locate both digital and printbased resources. Researchers adopt a variety of pragmatic approaches to overcome barriers to access, and they may by-pass the library. d. Researchers are teaming up across the borders and expanding their studies in interdisciplinary areas, and libraries need to come up with resources and venues accessible to such growth of collaborative research. e. Researchers are adopting social networking technologies in sync with high-tech advancements, exhibiting typical characteristics of Generation G. They are arguably one of the six generations Howe and Strauss (1993)17 mention in their study categorizing the masses according to their information needs and diverse approaches to search for information. Some library users still hang on to hardcopies in paper format, while others have advanced to the e-format and dig out information from digital databases. It is interesting to note that the demand for hardcopy printing has increased, along with e-format publishing. Impacted by the waves of digitalization, libraries in Taiwan, China continue to strive towards the following modernization goals. a. To digitalize their special collections, so that they can be widely available to the general public. b. To create an institutional repository, so that publications from colleges, universities, and research institutions can be made available for open access. c. To create consortiums, so that several libraries can pool their resources and purchase e-books, e-journals, and databases that are readily accessible to the general public. d. To construct a portal for information services and provide open-linking of related knowledge, so that enquiries can be spontaneously responded to. e. To construct supporting facilities for e-learning and to encourage learners to use e-libraries and digital collections. f . To support knowledge-based networking, incorporating Google Scholar and other search engines, to make possible a seamless search effort specific to the subjects concerned. g. To supply Mobile and Web 2.0 Services.

17

Howe, N. and Strauss, W. (1993) 13th Generation: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail? New York: Random House.

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The Next Fifteen Years of Libraries in Taiwan, China (2010–2025) In today’s knowledge economy, the government of Taiwan, China has emphasized library development. Both hardware construction and software investment have resulted in considerable growth. Digital technology has impacted the librarianship, spurring further advancements and providing more convenient services. The Internet also allows libraries to tightly collaborate and enables libraries to work closely with other non-library institutions, as librarians expand their concerns from the library’s in-house collection to the vast Internet resources and other digital archives. It has been said that libraries will disappear in the age of the Internet. However, we believe that libraries need to change along with the developments in time. They will not disappear but their services can be more refined, thorough, convenient, and personalized. Over the next 15 years, Taiwanese libraries will have significant changes modeling the development of Taiwanese population growth and changes in society. The predications for these future trends are: 1. NCL and Public Libraries: to integrate resources more effectively, the Taiwan, China government hopes to incorporate two public libraries under the NCL Library, making them the Taipei branch and the Taichung branch of the NCL Library. This integration streamlines the operational ability of public libraries. The automation system, the ordering of digital resources, space transformation, digital services, and reading promotions can be planned in the same system streamlining process. With the change of the administrative system, town and city libraries would be directly under the jurisdiction of county and city libraries and become the branches of the county and city libraries. 2. Academic Libraries: academic libraries will evolve rapidly toward an all digital library format and be associated with e-campus and the digital learning environments that provide 24-hour digital services for both teachers and students; becoming a publishing and intellectual property management center. Due to budget cuts, all universities are more open to sharing their resources and to working with each other more closely to extend their budgets. Besides working together to organize their digital resources, they will also integrate their digital reference services and provide digital, seamless, and personalized services for both faculty and students. 3. School Libraries: Taiwanese society now faces the problem of a low birth rate. As the number of elementary school students decreases, the government takes the initiative by making elementary schools more streamlined by providing a complete learning environment for students. Thus, the problems of insufficient labor and inadequate budget

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for elementary school libraries will be resolved. As for junior high school libraries, due to the policy of 12 year compulsory education, junior high school students’ academic pressure is reduced. Learning moves towards a normalization trend. Students will not study for entrance exams, but can pursue their own diverse interests. Therefore, junior high school libraries will increase in importance. 4. Specialized Libraries: Taiwan, China’s specialized libraries mostly comprise government agency libraries or enterprise specific libraries. Due to insufficient budgets and human resources, libraries are not important units for agencies or enterprises and will be integrated with agency and enterprise specific domains or documentation units. This transformation into a knowledge management center of the agencies or enterprises will reduce budgets and allow resource sharing between agencies and enterprises. If such transformations and resource sharing is not possible, then these libraries will have to be dissolved.

2.22 United Arab Emirates Libraries in the United Arab Emirates David G. Hirsch The history of libraries in what is now the United Arab Emirates (UAE) dates back over 100 years to the founding of the Taymiyah Library in Sharjah in 1907.1 During the years before the establishment of the UAE, many other private libraries were established in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Ras al-Khaimah. The first true public library was established in Dubai in 1965. The first public libraries established at the federal level were those set up by the Ministry of Information and Culture in 1972 in many locations throughout the UAE. Some of the oil companies set up libraries as well.

Public Libraries in Abu Dhabi The Cultural Foundation in Abu Dhabi was established in accordance with Amiri Law No. 7 of 1981, which also established the role of the National Library as an institution responsible for preserving the intellectual heritage of the UAE and providing a library service to the public.2 The National Library opened its doors in April 1984. While there are other academic and special libraries in the capital, the National Library is the only truly public library in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. It offers services for both adults and children, and has a substantial children’s library with nearly 20,000 titles in English and Arabic, which it plans to expand. The library is open seven days a week. Over 130,000 individuals visited the library in 2009. The National Library now holds approximately two million volumes (twothirds in Arabic and one-third in English and other languages). It subscribes to approximately 650 Arabic-language and 500 English-language periodicals, and more than 3,000 electronic journals. In addition to its general collections, it maintains a special library containing publications of the GCC countries, a collection of over 6,000 rare book titles in various languages, a collection of over 4,500 manuscripts, the private collection of Sheikh Faleh bin Nasser Al-Thani which consists of about 15,000 volumes, a partially cataloged 1 2

Hamdı¯ Hanafı¯ Hammu¯dah, Dalı¯l al-mu’assasa¯t al-thaqa¯fı¯yah wa-al-‘ilmı¯yah fı¯ Dawlat al˙ ¯ ra¯t al-‘Arabı ˙ Ima ¯˙yah al-Muttahidah (Abu Dhabi: al-Mujamma‘ al-Thaqa¯fı¯, c2004): 4. ˙ http://www.adach.ae/en/portal/national.library/history.aspx (accessed May 15, 2010).

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collection of over 9,000 works in Persian, and over 2,000 Master’s theses and PhD dissertations. Its catalog is freely accessible via the internet at http:// library.adach.ae. The National Library is also an active publisher, having produced over 500 print publications and approximately 65 Arabic audio books. Among its publications are items of particular interest to researchers and library professionals, such as a Directory of Libraries and Cultural Institutions in the UAE, a Directory of UAE Periodicals, and a Union Catalog of UAE Periodicals. Online article database access has heretofore been limited, but plans are underway to provide access to a large number of Arabic- and English-language article databases. In addition to providing access to commercially available digital content, the library has begun digitizing and creating metadata for local content such as photographs and documents specifically relating to the culture, heritage, and history of the UAE. In December 2009, the Cultural Foundation building in central Abu Dhabi was closed and the National Library was temporarily relocated to an outlying area of Abu Dhabi. Public services were available at the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) building closer to the old downtown location. In April 2011, the National library moved its administration and a small public facility to a central location in downtown Abu Dhabi. A children’s library was subsequently opened in the Al Bateen residential neighborhood, and another public library and specialized Gulf Studies library were opened in the Corniche district of the city. The library is also planning to open branches in various shopping centers in the larger population centers, such as Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and the western region of the Emirate. Additionally, the library plans to institute programs for special needs users, as well as for penal institutions in Abu Dhabi. The National Library has an active gift and exchange program through which it distributes publications both within the UAE and internationally. As part of its outreach efforts, the library publishes a monthly online newsletter in both Arabic and English. The newsletter includes information on recent arrivals in the library, as well as sections on what is being read in Abu Dhabi, the Arab world, and abroad. The electronic newsletter has over 3,000 subscribers worldwide. Access can be obtained by sending an email to nlibrary@ adach.ae. A noteworthy annual event is the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair which is jointly organized by the National Library and the Frankfurt Book Fair through a joint venture company called Kitab. Detailed information on the book fair is available at http://www.adbookfair.com/cms/. The Abu Dhabi Educational Council is working on an ambitious project to rebrand school libraries in Abu Dhabi as Learning Resource Centers. The stated goal is to upgrade collections, services, computers, equipment, furniture, and facilities for public school libraries throughout the Emirate. The project

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began with ten libraries in 2007 and now includes all 300+ libraries in the Emirate. Core collection purchasing and processing is accomplished centrally for the Abu Dhabi Educational Zone.

Dubai The Dubai Public Library was established in 1963 during the reign of the late Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, ruler of the Emirate of Dubai, 1958– 1990, in the Al-Ras area of Dubai City overlooking Dubai Creek (Khor Dubai). It is considered the oldest and the first public library in the UAE according to the modern understanding of the term. It was the foundation stone of the library movement in the UAE which it encouraged through its activities, events, and services, its assistance in the development of other libraries, and its role in training a generation of professional staff.3 For nearly half a century the library, under the auspices of Dubai Municipality, has contributed effectively to the cultural, scientific, and information development of Dubai and the UAE. Dubai Public Library has witnessed remarkable expansion and development with respect to its buildings, collections, services, employees, systems, and technologies, which can be ascribed to its staff and to the sponsorship and attention of the responsible officers of Dubai Municipality. In order to serve the majority of the citizens and residents of the Emirate by communicating culture and knowledge and instilling prevailing cultural notions, and in keeping with the urban and architectural development of the rapidly expanding capital of the Emirate, the library established branches in Hor Al-Anz, Al-Rashidiyah, Al-Safa, and Umm Suqeim in 1989, Hatta in 1998, and Al-Twar in 2007. The branch at Dar Al-Ittihad (location of the signing of the convention establishing the United Arab Emirates in 1971) is dedicated to the history and heritage of the United Arab Emirates.4 Dubai Public Library and its branches recently came under the auspices of the newly created Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), which is planning to launch a new identity and development campaign.

Sharjah Sharjah Library was established in 1925, when it was called the “Qasimi Library.” Originally located in Sharjah Fort, the library was founded by His

3

4

http://login.dm.gov.ae/wps/portal/!ut/p/c0/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3hHP193S3 cfQwN_TxdjAyNTXz8fzyBPY4NgA_3g1Dz9gmxHRQBrFZ2t/?WCM_GLOBAL_CON TEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/DMEGOV/dm+internet+en/your+daily+life-en/living+in+dubaien/knowledge+and+information-en/dplabout (accessed May 12, 2010). Ibid.

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Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr Al-Qasimi as his private library, along with another library in Al-Bait Al-Gharbi. After the demise of His Highness in 1951, Qasimi Library was inherited by the ruler H.H. Sheikh Saqr bin Sultan Al-Qasimi. In 1956 the library moved to a new building constructed in the courtyard of the fort, which also housed the headquarters of the Naturalization Department, a reception hall, and a private office for His Highness. Later, the library came under the province of H.H. Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed AlQasimi, and then H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammad Al-Qasimi (the present ruler of Sharjah and member of the UAE Supreme Council), who directed that the library be moved to the Sharjah Municipality building near Africa Hall; it was then renamed “Sharjah Library.” During the integration of Sharjah’s administrative departments with the country’s federal establishments, the library functioned under the Ministry of Information for a short period. However, His Highness reclaimed it and brought it under Sharjah’s Department of Culture and Information. Sharjah Library is located in the Muailiah area near Sharjah University City. Its premises, with an area of 20,000 square meters, can accommodate 549 people at a time. The library contains more than 300,000 volumes, with space for an additional one million volumes. It is open to the public from Saturday through Thursday, and closed on Fridays and official holidays. In addition to its central location in Sharjah City, it administers branches in the cities of Khorfakkan and Kalba in the Emirate of Sharjah.

University Libraries at United Arab Emirates University The UAE University Libraries were launched almost simultaneously with the establishment of UAE University during the 1977–78 academic year. The goals of the University Libraries were to make information resources available to faculty members, students, and community users; to participate in the UAE’s development; and to assist in solving the various problems of the growing nation. In the beginning, the University Libraries adopted the Dewey Decimal Classification, with modifications for the Arabic collections, and work in cataloging and public services was done using traditional manual methods. In 1988, the libraries began automating some services and, with the aid of the Computer Center, established an automated circulation system. In 1990 the University was reorganized, and the Libraries Administration became the University Libraries Deanship. In 1992, the Deanship launched a major project to modernize its services, as well as minimize cost and manpower requirements, by adopting a fully integrated library system that would both meet the needs of research and support the Deanship’s bibliographic standard. This plan led to two major achievements during the 1990s, which were (1) the conversion of all library holdings from the Dewey Decimal to the Library of Congress Classification system, and (2) the entry of bibliographic records for all holdings

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into a bilingual database. The library’s holdings can be accessed at http:// library.uaeu.ac.ae/. The University Libraries consist of the Zayed Central Library, which serves all students and faculty as well as outside users, and five branch libraries: Maqam Humanities and Social Sciences Library (for women only), Maqam Science Library (for women only), Falaj Library (for men only), Jimi Library (for men only), and the Islamic Institute Library (for men only).

Zayed University Zayed University (ZU) began in 1998 as an undergraduate school for Emirati females, with campuses in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. In 2008 the university was accredited by the US-based Middle States Commission on Higher Education. ZU is a comprehensive university with undergraduate and graduate (Master’s level) degree programs for male, female, and international students. Undergraduate students study in single-gender classrooms, while graduate students study in multinational and mixed-gender classrooms and programs. Although most ZU students are Emirati, the faculty and staff are from many other countries, with very few from the UAE. Most of the dozen or so librarians working at ZU Library have advanced academic degrees or certification from accredited institutions in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, or the UK. The ZU Library reflects a common international academic library model, with departments for public services and technical services. Library instruction (IL) is a fully developed component within the library’s public services department, using best practices as guidelines to support learning for the student body. Zayed University is recognized locally and internationally for providing an excellent information literacy program and integrated IL curriculum. The Learning Enhancement Center (LEC) enables student development of language and independent learning skills. In addition, the LEC supports skills development in math, information literacy, and information technology. LECs on each ZU campus allow students to find materials supporting their classroom activities in the Academic Bridge Program and their skills development in the Colloquy. Students receive guidance from LEC staff, their instructors, and peer tutors. The LEC is used in a number of ways: (1) as a drop-in center where materials are provided with answer keys so that students can mark and evaluate their progress; (2) as a classroom (by pre-arrangement) where instructors bring students and work with them on specific materials; (3) as a meeting place for the Peer Tutoring Program; and (4) as a technology commons where students can use facilities such as computers, VCRs, and tape players in order to enhance their learning. In addition, the LEC serves as a support

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center for the following programs and partners: the Writing Center, with the University Language Center; IT Skills Training, with the Colloquy and the Computer Services Department; and the Math Help Center, with the Math Department.

Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KUSTAR) has two library facilities serving its Sharjah and Abu Dhabi campuses. Each campus has about 250 students, and the Abu Dhabi campus has plans to expand each year as classes are added.5 The library on the Sharjah campus was founded in 1990 when the school was known as Etisalat University College. The collection at Sharjah has about 11,000 volumes, whereas the more recent (2008) Abu Dhabi campus library has about 1,100 volumes. The subject emphasis has been telecommunications, and is broadening to include other areas of electrical and electronics engineering as well as mechanical, biomedical, nuclear, and aeronautical engineering. The collections also support preparatory or foundation courses. The Abu Dhabi campus library has roughly 1,000 square meters of space for stacks, offices, journals, computers, and group study. The Sharjah campus library has considerably less space.6 Services are described at http://www.kustar.ac.ae/library/index.php?page= library-service. The KUSTAR Library’s online catalog can be accessed at http://library.kustar.ac.ae:8000/cgi-bin/gw_46_4_2/chameleon.

Higher Colleges of Technology Libraries at the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) are among the best equipped and most extensive in the Gulf region, boasting a full range of collections and services and featuring advanced information and learning technologies. HCT has campus libraries in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Madinat Zayed, and Ruwais in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, as well as in the Emirates of Dubai, Ras Al-Khaimah, Sharjah, and Fujairah. Each location has both men’s and women’s colleges. The combined collections of all HCT libraries, which consist of more than 160,000 titles and 320,000 items, including books, popular and scholarly journals, and multimedia materials, can be accessed through a centralized database at http://library.hct.ac.ae/.

5 6

Dorothy Furber Byers, email to author, July 5, 2010. Ibid.

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American University of Dubai The American University in Dubai (AUD) Library provides information resources and services to support the instructional programs and educational goals of the university and the research and staff development needs of AUD faculty and staff. To achieve these goals, the library provides a rich collection of print and electronic resources with a strong focus on course-related information literacy and reference support. The AUD Library’s collections include over 86,000 print and ebooks, 364 journal subscriptions, and 61 online databases.7 The collections contain both print and ebooks on areas relating to programs offered at AUD. Over 45 databases are provided for research, with access both on-campus and off-campus. The library offers research guides for each major degree program. Other services include three computer labs and facilities for printing, scanning, and photocopying. The library accommodates both wired and wireless computer access. Its online catalog is searchable at http://librarycatalog.aud.edu/ InfoCentre/Library.do.

University of Dubai The University of Dubai (UD) originated in 1997 as Dubai University College, and was given the legal right to operate by decree of the Ruler of Dubai in 2000. At the same time the UD Library as a resource center began to operate as part of the University. Its collection has steadily developed from a meager 6,206 volumes in 2005/06 to 12,100 volumes in 2009/10, showing an annual increase of more than 1,000 volumes. In 2010 the library began collecting ebooks; this collection currently numbers 4,882 titles, with plans for future development.8 The periodicals collection has steadily developed from 50 titles to 100 titles. The library currently subscribes to approximately 12 databases. Its online catalog is accessible via the internet at http://ud.ac.ae.

American University of Sharjah The American University of Sharjah (AUS) Library is one of the largest of its kind in the UAE. Focusing on scholarly topics taught at AUS, the library offers a comprehensive collection to satisfy the needs of AUS students and faculty.

7 8

http://www.aud.edu/Library/Index.asp (accessed May 8, 2010). Ali Amour Suleiman, email to author, June 28, 2010.

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The collections consist of over 145,000 print and electronic items, including books, CDs, DVDs, 50,000 ebooks, 262 print journals, and approximately 50 online databases and indexes which are accessible both onsite and remotely. The library’s holdings can be accessed at http://alberta.aus.edu/search. The new AUS Library is a state-of-the-art learning center, designed to meet a wide range of student and faculty information needs. The building utilizes a zoned approach that provides spaces for quiet study, group study, computing, technology-enriched learning, media viewing, browsing, and instruction. The library’s facilities include the technology-rich Information Commons, an integrated research and computing environment located on the ground and first floors. Equipment includes fast, powerful computers, scanners (A3 and A4), printers (b/w and color), and DVD burners. The library has set aside 20 group study rooms (with whiteboards and data/power connections for laptops), and four presentation practice rooms (with ceiling-mounted projectors and laptop hookups). The library also hosts the Writing Center which provides one-on-one tutoring sessions to boost writing skills. Additionally, there are designated no-talking zones for those who prefer a silent study environment.

University of Sharjah The University of Sharjah manages the various functional issues of nine campus libraries. Four are located on the University City campus at the Men’s Colleges, the Women’s Colleges, the Medical and Health Sciences Complex, and the College of Fine Arts. Each library contains a growing collection of different sources and formats covering the university’s program for study and research. There are five community college libraries affiliated with the university, located in Sharjah City, Khorfakkan, Dibba al-Hisn, Kalba, and Malihah in the Emirate of Sharjah. These nine libraries are fully automated and directly linked to all faculty and university offices through the university network. This linkage enables users to search the library catalog, electronic databases, and a range of other information resources from anywhere on campus. The library’s holdings are currently inaccessible online outside of the university’s network.

Paris-Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi Campus Established in 2006, the Paris-Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi (PSUAD) Library contains reference works in French in the areas of Arts, Literature, and Social Sciences, as well as additional collections in other languages. However, it is not a research library. The collection development policy covers the

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Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs. Main acquisitions are done according to the fields of study offered at PSUAD: Archaeology, Art History, Communications, Economics, Geography and Urban Planning, History, International Trade, Law, Management, Marketing, Philosophy, Political Sciences, Sociology, and English, French, French Literature, German, Italian, and Spanish. In July 2009 the PSUAD Library’s holdings numbered approximately 50,000 books, 200 journal subscriptions, and four databases (JSTOR, FACTIVA, LexisNexis Jurisclasseur, and Encyclopedia Universalis). Approximately 17,000 new items are added anually. Access to the library is restricted to the PSUAD community. However, external users may obtain special authorization to use the collection in-house by addressing a written request to the library.9

New York University Abu Dhabi Campus The New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) Library supports learning and research by providing in-depth access to the world of scholarly information. The breadth of resources available is on a level with that of the world’s finest universities and research centers. Rapid access to New York University’s collection of over fivemillion volumes is provided by combining access to print and electronic documents in ways that save time and increase convenience for the researcher. The library holds 80,000 sound and video recordings, and virtually all of the world’s digital scholarly journals and periodicals. The library acquires new items continuously, and honors special requests for material from students and faculty.10 Specialist librarians and technology experts are available to accelerate the discovery, use, and sharing of vital information. The latest tools for organizing, analyzing, and presenting knowledge are available at the library and can be accessed 24 hours a day via the library’s extensive online facilities. The library and NYUAD information technology services work together to provide opportunities to learn independently – or work collaboratively with others – in an environment rich in information and the technology needed to process text, image, sound, and video. The NYUAD Library facility provides spaces for engagement between faculty and students, complemented by quiet areas for concentration and contemplation. Group study rooms have large data displays and a broad selection

9 10

Universite´ Paris-Sorbonne Abu Dhabi. http://library.psuad.ac.ae/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session= 12S64E3732K97.11551&profile=ebu&menu=tab252&submenu=subtab121&ts=1206434156 127#focus (accessed June 12, 2010). http://nyuad.nyu.edu/academics/library.html (accessed May 22, 2010).

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of software packages that create a productive environment for completing team projects. Laptops and audiovisual equipment are available for loan. Comfortable reading areas and views of the campus garden create a relaxed atmosphere for study. Service to scholars is the primary mission of the NYUAD Library staff. Value is placed on saving time for researchers, providing requested items efficiently, informing scholars of new resources, and offering assistance in finding, using, analyzing, and presenting knowledge.

University of Wollongong in Dubai The University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) Library is a rich academic resource for students and alumni. It has a comprehensive range of print and electronic information, including electronic journals, index and abstracting services, links to subject-based resources throughout the world, standards and statistical information, and the library catalog.11 The library’s resources include approximately 27,000 items consisting of books, journals, newspapers, kits, cassettes, videos, and DVDs. In addition, electronic resources, including 8500 ebooks, 300 online databases, and 22,000 electronic journal titles, are accessible through the library’s online catalog at http://library.uowdubai.ac.ae. The library is open six days per week and is served by helpful professional staff. Using a UOWD email account, students can also access high-quality electronic information resources via the library’s website 24 hours a day. Other university libraries in the UAE include those of Abu Dhabi University, Al-Hosn University, and the British University in Dubai.

Specialized Libraries In addition to university and public libraries, many other organizations, institutes, clubs, companies, government ministries, and specialized research and training institutes also have libraries.

Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research The UAE Federation Library at the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) in Abu Dhabi has specialized holdings in economic,

11

http://www.uowdubai.ac.ae/library/details.php?sec=4&PHPSESSID=50e56049232475ea436795 57a3d7612c (accessed May 23, 2010).

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political, and social sciences. The library is primarily focused on acquiring materials relevant to the UAE in particular and the Gulf region in general. The UAE Federation Library was founded at the same time as the ECSSR in 1994. The library’s central objective is informational support for the research needs of the ECSSR.12 Its holdings include international reference works, general and specialized encyclopedias, periodicals, important documents, official reports, maps, electronic databases, and other materials in ECSSR’s fields of interest. The library’s holdings can be accessed from its homepage at http://library.ecssr.ac.ae/.

National Center for Documentation and Research The Emirates Library in Abu Dhabi is an integral part of the National Center for Documentation and Research (NCDR), to which public access is assured. The library has a specialized collection of books, manuscripts, and periodicals, and is planning to make its public catalog available via the Internet.13 The collections encompass both general and specialized subjects, to include general reference books covering a wide spectrum of subjects in Africa, America, Asia and Europe; specialized sections earmarked as Emirates, GCC, Gulf, Iran, Iraq, and Oman, with an impressive range of books focusing on Arab and Islamic Studies; biographical references, atlases, dictionaries, and encyclopedias; antiquarian and rare books in Arabic, Dutch, English, French, German, Persian, and Portuguese; and photocopies of Arabic manuscripts, old and rare Arabic books about Islam, the Prophet Muhammad, and genealogies of Imams and the Sultans of Oman.14 The Emirates Library has approximately 500 periodicals (both electronic and hard copy), including local daily newspapers (in Arabic and English) and magazines and journals from different parts of the Arab world, in accordance with the needs of the different archives. The daily newspapers are bound in monthly volumes which are categorized and numbered for the convenience of researchers. There is also a collection of old Arabic and foreign periodicals.

Petroleum Institute Launched in 2000 under an amiri decree and in collaboration with the Colorado School of Mines, the Petroleum Institute (PI) provides academic programs leading to BS degrees in various engineering fields, including chemical,

12 13 14

http://library.ecssr.ac.ae/ (accessed May 14, 2010). http://www.cdr.gov.ae/ncdr/English/emirateslibrary/index.aspx. Ibid.

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electrical, mechanical, petroleum, and petroleum geosciences engineering.15 The Petroleum Institute operates as a leading international educational and research center for the oil and gas industry, in partnership with the best engineering and science universities in the world. It also provides continuing education opportunities to professionals in the oil and gas industry. It is funded by ADNOC and its international partners, namely BP, Japan Oil Company, Shell, and Total.16 The Petroleum Institute Library strives to meet the information needs of its students and faculty as well as the wider PI community. The library service operates on both the female and the male campuses, providing students and faculty with a wide range of print and electronic resources to assist them with their information needs. Each library is equipped with a large number of personal computers for student use. Interlibrary loan services are available for faculty and senior students to obtain materials not owned by the library. The PI Library’s online catalog is available at http://library.pi.ac.ae/#focus.

Integrated Library Systems Commonly Used in the UAE Only a few integrated library systems are truly able to function in a bilingual environment. Arabian Advanced Systems has formed a partnership with SIRSI-Dynix to Arabize Symphony, the “offspring” of SIRSI’s Unicorn and Dynix’s Horizon systems. This system is Unicode compliant and is currently being used by the National Library, the National Center for Documentation and Research, the Environmental Agency, and the Abu Dhabi Educational Council, as well as a number of other institutions. Some institutions are still using Horizon while planning to upgrade to Symphony. Millennium, the ILS developed by III, Innovative Interfaces, is currently used by Zayed University, United Arab Emirates University, the Higher Colleges of Technology, and American University in Sharjah. Each university has its own online catalog, available through the respective library’s website. Virtua, by VTLS, also has Arabic-language capabilities and is used by some libraries in the UAE. Zayed University, United Arab Emirates University, and the Higher Colleges of Technology also have a union catalog called LIWA, which includes holdings of all three universities and is searchable on the web at http:// www.liwa.ac.ae/. LIWA’s interface is English only, but Arabic-script searches may be entered.

15 16

http://www.pi.ac.ae/PI_ACA/lib/index.php (accessed May 22, 2010). http://www.adnoc.ae/Content.aspx?mid=118&newid=118 (accessed May 17, 2010).

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Online Content Projects Al-Waraq is an Arabic digital library project based in Dubai which focuses on full-text editions of both religious and secular classical Arabic works covering fields ranging from Quranic and Hadith Studies to geography, history, and poetry. It is available gratis with a simple online registration. The website is http://www.alwaraq.net. Unfortunately, the search interface is in Arabic only. The National Library in Abu Dhabi has an online Poetry Encyclopedia which currently includes nearlythree million verses of Arabic poetry as well as biographical data on poets of all eras from pre-Islamic to modern times. The Poetry Encyclopedia is freely accessible at http://poetry.ae. Presently the search interface is in Arabic only. The Emirates Lawyers Association has an online database which includes the official gazettes of the individual Emirates as well as the UAE federal official gazette. It is available by subscription at http://www.mohamoon-uae.com/. Half a dozen major Arabic- and English-language UAE newspapers have websites; several of them also have archived issues going back a few years. There are, in addition, other Gulf-focused newspapers in various languages that maintain websites: – – – – – – –

Al-Bayan (Arabic): http://www.albayan.ae Al-Khaleej (Arabic): http://www.alkhaleej.ae/ Al-Ittihad (Arabic): http://www.alittihad.ae/pdf.php The National (English): http://www.thenational.ae/ Gulf News (English): http://gulfnews.com/ Khaleej Times (English): http://www.khaleejtimes.com Gulf Madhyamam Daily (Malayalam): http://www.gulfmadhyamam. net – Daily Al-Sharq Dubai Edition (Urdu): http://www.dailysharq.com/

Library and Information Science Education and Professional Development The UAE remains the only Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member state without a full Bachelor’s or MA/MLS degree program in Library and Information Science. The Abu Dhabi Vocational Education and Training Institute currently offers a two-and-a-half-year post-secondary diploma program. Zayed University planned to offer a five-course post-BA certificate program in Fall 2010, with the goal of eventually transforming it into a full Master’s degree program. Similar initiatives are being considered at other institutions. There is no formal UAE librarians’ association, but there are two informal groups, one affiliating primarily academic librarians and the other primarily school librarians. Both groups organize visits to other institutions. Various

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lectures and workshops are organized and sponsored by the UAE University, the National Center for Documentation and Research, the Abu Dhabi National Library, and the US Embassy. The Special Libraries Association – Arabian Gulf Chapter is a GCC-wide organization that has been in existence for 17 years. Its members include library professionals from the six GCC states as well as other interested individuals. The chapter hosts an annual conference and sponsors a variety of short courses. Recent conferences have attracted 300–600 participants. Further information about the chapter and its annual conference, as well as the chapter’s newsletter, can be found at http://units.sla.org/chapter/cag/website/index. html#. Within the Arabian Gulf region, Zayed University initiated and hosted the first meeting of the Information Literacy Network of the Gulf (ILN) in December 2005. The ILN now has over 100 participants from throughout the region who attend regular meetings and workshops focusing on information literacy.17 Further information on the ILN is available at http://information literacynetwork.net/.

The Future The UAE has largely been spared some of the major budget cuts experienced in other parts of the world in recent years. As is evident from the above, many initiatives to expand, modernize, and standardize collections and foster cooperation are underway.

Bibliography Dalı¯l al-maktaba¯t al-ja¯mi‘ı¯yah. 2002. [‘Ayn]: Ja¯mi‘at al-Ima¯ra¯t al-‘Arabı¯yah al-Muttahidah. ˙ fı¯ Hammu¯dah, Hamdı¯ Hanafı¯. c.2004. Dalı¯l al-mu’assasa¯t al-thaqa¯fı¯yah wa-al-‘ilmı¯yah ˙ Dawlat al-Ima ˙ ¯ ra¯t ˙al-‘Arabı¯yah al-Muttahidah. Abu Dhabi: al-Mujamma‘ al-Thaqa¯fı¯. Hammu¯dah, Hamdı¯ Hanafı¯. c. 2003. al-Ima¯˙ra¯t al-‘Arabı¯yah al-Muttahidah: Dira¯sah bib˙ liyu¯jra¯fı¯yah, ˙ al-dawrı ˙ ¯ya¯t. Abu Dhabi: al-Mujamma‘ al-Thaqa¯fı¯. ˙ Iqraʾ(Sha¯riqah, United Arab Emirates) Iqraʾ = Read.al-Sha¯riqah: Ida¯rat al-Maktaba¯t, Da¯ʾirat al-Thaqa¯fah wa-al-I‘la¯m, [1998–]. Kalburgi, L.B. 1992. An in-depth evaluation of development of libraries and information services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after its independence: Possibilities, problems and current boundaries of building up an effective library and information service system (LIS). Dharwad: Karnatak University, Department of Library and Information Science. al-Maktaba¯t al-‘a¯mmah fı¯ Dubayy = Dubai Public Libraries. Dubai: Baladı¯yat Dubayy, [200–].

17

Carol Hansen, email to author, June 30, 2010.

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¯ ’ishah. 2006. Athar al-maktaba¯t al-madrası¯yah fı¯ al-wa‘y al-thaqa¯fı¯ fı¯ al-Ima¯ra¯t: Mansu¯r, ‘A ˙Namu¯dhaj mada¯ris mintaqat Ra’s al-Khaymah al-ta‘lı¯mı¯yah. Dubai: Nadwat al-Thaqa¯fah ˙ wa-al-‘Ulu¯m. Nu‘aymı¯, Ahmad Na¯sir. 1986. Dira¯sah taqwı¯mı¯yah lil-dawr al-tarbawı¯ lil-khidmah al˙ bi-Ja¯mi‘at ˙ maktabı¯yah al-Ima¯ra¯t al-‘Arabı¯yah al-Muttahidah / Ahmad Na¯sir al-Na‘ı¯mı¯. ˙ ˙ ˙ al-Tab‘ah 1. Kuwait: Maktabat al-Fala¯h. ˙ Nuways,˙ ‘Abd Alla¯h. 1981. al-I‘la¯m wa-al-tanmiyah al-watanı¯yah fı¯ Dawlat al-Ima¯ra¯t al‘Arabı¯yah al-Muttahidah. Emirates: Mu’assasat al-Ittih˙a¯d. ˙ Wasa¯’il al-i‘la¯m fı¯ Dawlat al-Ima ˙ ¯ ra¯t al-‘Arabı¯yah al-MuttahiNuways, ‘Abd Alla¯h. 1984. dah. al-Tab‘ah 1. Abu Dhabi: s.n. (Sharikat Abu¯ Zaby lil-Tiba¯‘ah wa-al-Nashr). ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙

2.23 Vietnam Information Technology in Vietnamese Libraries Binh P. Le Introduction This chapter looks at the impacts of information technology (IT) on Vietnamese libraries in the first decade of the twenty-first century. The first part examines the role played by the several governments, including the Vietnamese government, and a number of international organizations in making IT feasible in Vietnamese libraries. The second part discusses the implications of IT in Vietnamese libraries. Like most sectors of Vietnamese society, Vietnamese libraries have experienced important technological changes in the ways they gather, organize, produce, and disseminate information. Discernible changes include the increases in the number of personal computers available in the libraries, online catalogs, electronic databases, and especially the proliferation of library websites. The last part looks at the challenges of and prospects for IT in Vietnamese libraries.

Vietnam’s Library Systems There are five major library systems in Vietnam.1 The public library system, under the management of the Library Department of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. It includes the National Library of Vietnam, 64 provincial and municipal libraries, 582 district libraries, and about 7,000 commune and village libraries. Many of the 7,000 “village libraries” also serve as telecenters. Except for the National Library of Vietnam, the General Sciences Library in Ho Chi Minh City, and several provincial and municipal libraries located in large metropolitan areas, most of Vietnam’s public libraries remain largely underdeveloped. In fact, according to the Development of Public Library Performance in Laos and Vietnam (2009), prepared by Barbro Thomas of the National Library of Sweden, “some 60 percent of the Vietnamese libraries

1

National Library of Vietnam, Vietnam Country Report (Hanoi: National Library of Vietnam, 2008): 2.

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do not yet meet adequate standards for a public library, with proper library building, professional staff and updated technology.”2 The academic library system is under the management of the Ministry of Education and Training. It consists of 353 libraries. Like their public library counterparts, there are only a couple of dozen academic libraries, most of which are situated in Vietnam’s largest university systems and have adequate collections. Generally, these are mostly located in Vietnam’s major cities such as Ha Noi, Hue, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, and Can Tho. In terms of utilization of ICTs, academic libraries have been much moreat the forefront of the digital transformation, albeit limited in comparing to their counterparts in developed countries, than that of the other library systems in Vietnam. The school library system consists of 17,459 libraries. In general, school libraries are a recent development in Vietnam. As a result, each of these “school libraries” may contain less than a couple of hundred books. More often than not, there are no designated library buildings, trained library staff or school librarians. In recent years, several international organizations, mostly American-based, such as the Global Village Foundation and the National Library of Vietnam’s Library Project, have been providing assistance for the development of school libraries in Vietnam. The Global Village Foundation, for example, has been providing hundreds of “mobile libraries” to some of the poorest and most isolated schools in Central Vietnam.3 Similarly, the National Library of Vietnam’s Library Project, established by Chuck Thuesch – an American veteran of the Vietnam War – have built over 30 libraries in Vietnam, most of which are strategically located in or near the school complexes.4 The special library system consists of 60 research libraries and 218 library and information centers. They include the National Assembly Library, the National Archives Center (Number 1), the National Center for Natural Sciences and Technology Library, and the National Center for Scientific and Technological Information and Documentation (NACESTID). These libraries are under the management of various research institutes and governmental ministries. Due to their limited access, it is difficult to assess the collections and services of these libraries. However, it is worthwhile to note that one of the most noticeable libraries of this system is the National Center for Scientific and Technological Information and Documentation. It serves as the national information center for science and technology for the entire country. NACESTID has been involved in digital library development since the late 1990s, and

2 3 4

Barbro Thomas, Development of Public Library Performance in Laos and Vietnam (Stockholm: National Library of Sweden): 18. “Portable Mobile Library Project,” Global Village Foundation. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://www.globalvillagefoundation.org/mobilelibrary.html. Library of Vietnam Project, accessed December 5, 2011, http://www.libraryofVietnam.com/ thelibrary.htm.

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is also one of the first libraries in Vietnam to start the development of digital content.5 In addition to these library systems, there are 2,740 military libraries and reading rooms. These libraries are situated in the Ministry of Defense, military academies, military research institutes, and military installations throughout the country. Due to their limited access, there is no information about the sizes of these collections and services or of the level of library automation.

Development of Information Technology In recognizing the need to join the digital revolution, Vietnamese policy makers have been working on the development of the country’s IT infrastructures in the past couple of decades. The first major landmark national information technology (IT) policy, known as Resolution 49/CP or IT-2000, was promulgated by the government in August 1993. The resolution called for the establishment of essential IT infrastructures in Vietnam. It was intended to meet the basic information needs of the government and to develop Vietnam’s knowledge-based economy. Of course, IT infrastructures alone cannot propel Vietnam into the digital age. As a result, the resolution also put emphasis on the following areas: IT education and training, IT research and development, IT industry, and data communication networks. Subsequently, many IT policies have been enacted by the national government to facilitate Vietnam’s digital transformation. In conjunction with the enactment of IT policies, the government has also allocated resources for the development of IT infrastructures. For example, in April 2003 the government of Vietnam stated that it will commit “$100 million to information technology, with the aim of quadrupling the number of Internet users to 4 million by 2005.”6 Initially, many of the stated goals of Vietnam’s attempt to build an alldigital national IT network system with only the latest technologies and equipments were far from being realized. It was because of Vietnam’s antiquated IT infrastructures, critical lack of human and financial resources, underdeveloped socio-economic environment, and low level of private sector participation. Some blamed the political system for the underdevelopment of IT in Vietnam. Today, a decade later, the country’s IT infrastructures have shown some visible progress. For example, according to a recent survey conducted by Pando Network, “Vietnam has the average Internet connection speed of 374

5 6

Hung Ba Ta, “Digital Library Development in Vietnam” (paper presented at the annual conference of the Pacific Neighborhood Consortium, Osaka, Japan, September 20–23, 2002). Richard Poynder, “International Report,” accessed December 1, 2011, http://www. richardpoynder.co.uk/international_report_april_03.htm.

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kbps, the highest in Southeast Asia and the third highest in Asia,” and that the “other Asian countries have faster Internet speed than Vietnam are South Korea and Japan.”7 In the area of library services, the National Library of Vietnam’s efforts to deliver library services via 7,500 cultural post offices, which have been equipped as telecenters, to rural populations throughout Vietnam would not have been feasible without such IT infrastructures. Similarly, Vietnamese now can easily and instantly communicate with anyone anywhere inside or outside the country either through email or any of the mobile telecommunication devices. In other words, the IT infrastructures established by the government have made the development, growth, and application of IT in the various aspects of Vietnamese societies, from commerce to education to library services, possible. The problem for Vietnamese libraries, however, was that with limited resources the government has been unable to provide adequate funding for the development of IT in Vietnamese libraries. Consequently, Vietnamese libraries had to look outside the country for support for their IT development. As a matter of fact, in terms of IT, much of what Vietnamese libraries have accomplished would have been minimal had there been no generous financial and technical support from foreign governments and international organizations.

International Assistance in Information Technology Development By the late 1980s, in recognizing the pressing need for IT development in Vietnamese libraries, many foreign governments and international organizations began to make substantial efforts to introduce IT into Vietnamese libraries. Countries such as Australia, Sweden, and France as well as international organizations such as The Asia Foundation, The Atlantic Philanthropies, the East Meets West Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the World Bank have made the most significant contributions to the development of ICT in Vietnamese libraries. In addition, numerous international librarians, especially American librarians, and smaller organizations have also played an important role in the development of Vietnamese libraries, including IT development. It is impossible to enumerate the list of all the library projects and activities that have been carried out by these organizations in the past two decades.

7

“How Is Vietnam’s Internet Speed: 373kbps, 1.7Mbpls or 9.79Mbps?” VietnamNet. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://english.vietnamnet.vn/en/science-technology/14161/ how-is-vie.

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However, it is worthwhile to mention some of the most important of them. In the history of the development of Vietnamese libraries, there has been no other international entity that has contributed more to the development of Vietnamese academic libraries than The Atlantic Philanthropies. This foundation has contributed an enormous amount of money to various projects, including the construction of four modern libraries at the University of Hue, the University of Da Nang, the University of Can Tho, and the University of Thai Nguyen. These libraries, commonly known as Learning Resources Centers (LRC), were designed to serve as models of multipurpose, state-of-the-art university libraries. Besides funding for the construction of each of these libraries, the foundation also provided all essential library materials such as books, computers, and equipment. Albeit a latecomer, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has also played an important role in the IT development in Vietnamese libraries. For example, in 2011 the foundation provided U.S. $30 million to expand the Government of Vietnam’s Ministry of Information and Communication’s program aimed at the “improvement of computer usage and public Internet access in Vietnam.”8 Specifically, the program intends to “close the ‘digital divide’ between urban and rural populations, equipping public libraries and Community Post Offices with technologies and skills needed to change lives and strengthen communities through information access.”9 Among the other components of the grant, there will be some “12,070 Internet-ready computers to be installed at 1,900 public libraries (65 percent of the country’s total) in 40 of Vietnam’s most disadvantaged provinces.”10 Earlier, in 2008, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a grant of U.S. $2,149,000 to the Vietnamese government to support Vietnam’s efforts to expand and promote the use of information and the Internet.11 The main goals of the grant were to “strengthen public library institutions and support public Internet access in Vietnam.”12 Specifically, this project aimed at improving access to the Internet for the people who live in some of the most impoverished and isolated provinces in North Vietnam. Accordingly, under this program

8 9 10 11 12

“Vietnam’s Public Libraries Offer Improved Access to Information Technology,” Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://www.gatesfoundation.org/ press-releases/Pages/Vietnams-impr. “Vietnam’s Public Libraries Offer Improved Access to Information Technology.” John Russell, “Gates Foundation Donates $30m Towards Rural Internet Initiative in Vietnam,” accessed December 5, 2011, http://thenextweb.com/Asia/2011/11/15/gates-foundationdonates-30. “Improvement of Computer Usage and Public Internet Access Ability in Vietnam,” Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://www.gatesfoundation.org/ press-releases/Pages/Vietnams-impr. “Asia Foundation Launches Project to Support Public Libraries and Internet Access in Vietnam,” Asia Foundation. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://asiafoundation.org/news/2009/ 04/asia-foundation-launches-proje.

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“approximately 90 public library staff at the provincial level and district levels, and 270 commune staff from 90 selected sites” are to “be trained to educate library patrons on effective use of the Internet, significantly increasing their access to information.”13 Prior to that, the foundation also funded a series of surveys, which were conducted by the Library Department of the Ministry of Culture and Information, the National Library of Vietnam, and the General Sciences Library of Ho Chi Minh City, of the 64 provincial/city libraries and nearly 700 district libraries on information technology infrastructure and computing access in Vietnamese libraries.14 Another important and yet often overlooked phenomenon have been the contributions to IT development in Vietnamese libraries made by Vietnamese librarians who were trained overseas, especially in the United States. In 1993, through the support of the Harvard-Yeng Ching Institute, six Vietnamese librarians, including the Deputy of the National Library of Vietnam, the Director of the Library of Vietnam’s National University in Hanoi and the Director of the General Sciences Library of Ho Chi Minh were brought to Simmons College for advanced training in librarianship. This and subsequent programs have brought many Vietnamese librarians/students to the United States and Western countries for similar education. Bedsides obtaining advanced and modern education in librarianship, they personally experienced firsthand the technological transformation (e.g., library automation) in libraries in the United States. When they returned to Vietnam, they brought with them not just advanced library science skills, but also the modern technical knowledge and the recognition that Vietnamese libraries needed to be transformed technologically, in the same way that technological transformation was taking place in libraries in the United States at the time.

Information Technology in Libraries Like libraries around the globe, Vietnamese libraries have attempted to propel themselves into the digital age. Consequently, there have been many visible technical transformations in Vietnamese libraries. While there are noticeable developments such as the emergence of library online catalogs and libraryrelated electronic newsletters and periodicals, the following are seen to be of significance. One of the most visible developments is the proliferation of library websites. Today, virtually all major academic, municipal, and provincial public

13 14

“Asia Foundation Launches Project to Support Public Libraries and Internet Access in Vietnam.” National Library of Vietnam. CDNL-AO Vietnam Country Report, 2006–2007(Hanoi: National Library of Vietnam): 1.

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libraries have their own websites. For example, a library user can quickly find out about the services or resources available in any major Vietnamese academic or public library through their websites. Besides providing information about the services they offer, from online catalogs to electronic databases, the library websites also provide Internet links to resources on a variety of topics such as agriculture, health care, economy, trade, and education. Generally, the selected Internet links provide information relevant to the specific needs of the users whom they serve. Without these websites and the development of IT infrastructures, Vietnamese people, especially those who live in the rural areas, would not have access to important resources. Vietnamese libraries’ websites also provide Internet links to foreign scholarly language resources. It is important to point out the production of scholarly resources, specifically scientific resources, are still very scarce in Vietnam. Moreover, the quality of Vietnamese sources available on the Internet is poor. As a result, providing Internet links to foreign scholarly language resources is a vital library service of Vietnamese libraries. Computers are now available in libraries, especially academic and large public libraries. A decade ago, computers were used mostly for technical processing. However, in recent years, computers have been used to perform many library tasks, from technical processing to digitizing documents to database and Internet searching. Library staff and professionals rely heavily on computers for communication, especially email. In addition to making computers available to the library staff, libraries also make computers available to library users. Word processing and Internet searching are the most common usages of library computers. In fact, Internet searching is very popular with users, especially Vietnamese college students. The problem, however, is that the number of computers available to the public is still limited. It is normal to see library users lining up in front of the libraries long before the libraries open to use the computers. It is also not unusual that many users are turned away, because the libraries do not have enough computers for them to use. It is worthwhile to point out that computers and software are still expensive in Vietnam. In addition, the costs to maintain and upgrade are quite prohibitive. In fact, Vietnamese libraries, including large academic libraries, have not yet established policies on technology life cycles for computers, due to limited or no designated technology budget. They simply use computers until the equipment stops working. Electronic databases are also available in major Vietnam’s academic and public libraries. There are a couple of major types of electronic database. The first type is commercial databases, which include the following databases: Chemical Abstracts, Compendex, and Wilson and EBSCO databases. Despite the benefit of being able to subscribe to commercial databases at a low cost, most Vietnamese libraries still cannot afford to subscribe to these services. As a result, only major libraries such as the National Library of Vietnam, the General Science Library in Ho Chi Minh City, the Vietnam National

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University, and the National Center for Scientific and Technical Information (NACESTI), subscribe to these databases. The second type is electronic databases provided by international organizations free of charge or at extremely low cost. They are provided by organizations such as the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and foundations such as the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Following are the most popular databases available in Vietnam’s largest public and academic libraries: Access to Global Online Research in Agriculture (OGORA), Online Access to Research in the Environment (OARE), and the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Imitative (HINARI). These databases provide access to thousands of leading journals in the fields of food, agriculture, environmental science, medicine, and related social sciences. Lastly, Vietnamese language sources are also in high demand. As a result, many institutions in Vietnam such as the National Library of Vietnam and NACESTI have taken efforts to produce information in digital format as well as digitalize Vietnamese sources and make them available to the public. On the publication of Vietnamese sources in digital format, many of these institutions have been publishing numerous online publications, including newsletters, bulletins, and journals. For example, NACESTI has already published more than ten online publications including newsletters and journals. Similarly, many other major academic and research libraries also have also been publishing online publications. Vietnamese libraries have also begun to digitize Vietnamese language sources. One of the major digitization projects has been the Vietnam Journals Online (VJOL), which was jointly initiated in June 2006 by the International Network for Technological Availability of Scientific Publication, the National Center for Scientific and Technological Information, the Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences, and the Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology (International Center for Scientific and Technological Information, 2011).15 This database provides tables of contents, abstracts and full texts of Vietnamese journals in the fields of science, technology, and economics. It is still a small database, however, containing 23 journals with fewer than 1500 articles.16 Nonetheless, this is an attempt by Vietnamese libraries to meet the demand for Vietnamese language sources as well as to join the Open Access movement.

15 16

“Vietnam Journals Online (VLOL),” International Centre for Scientific and Technological Information. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://www.icsti.su/portal/eng/centre_e_ delivery/index.php?module=r. “New Journals on VJOL,” VJOL Newsletter. Accessed December 5, 2011, http://www. inasp.info/uploaded/vjol-newsletter-2.pdf.

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In recent years, many Vietnamese university libraries have also started digitizing technical reports, doctoral dissertations, textbooks, and course packs. Similarly, attempts have been made to digitize archival materials, such the NOM language materials (e.g., The Sino-Nom Digital Project), and the French Project VALEASE (Valorisation de l’Ecrit en Asie du Sud-Est), which digitized books, journals, and newspapers published in French Indochinese territories from 1861 to 1954 available in the National Library of Vietnam. By far the most important digital projects have been carried out by the National Library of Vietnam and NACESTI. The content development, however, is slow due to the lack of advanced technologies, equipment, technical skills, resources, and legal and governmental policies.17

Challenges and Prospects Information technology has enabled Vietnamese libraries to improve and expand library services to the public. However, Vietnamese libraries still face many critical challenges in their digital transformation process. As mentioned above, there is a strong demand for access to computers and the Internet, because the majority of Vietnamese cannot afford to pay for personal computers and the Internet services. The average cost for a basic computer is still a huge sum of money for most Vietnamese. As a result, they rely on the libraries to meet their computer and information needs. The problem, however, is that Vietnamese libraries have not been able to adequately fulfill the needs of their users. Vietnamese libraries, like the people whom they serve, cannot afford to purchase a large number of computers, even if computers are readily available in Vietnam at competitive prices. Moreover, what has further made it problematic is that the costs of maintaining, training, supporting, and continuous upgrading especially in terms of software are still high. It is not unusual that library staff in smaller libraries share computers among themselves. In rural areas, especially at the district and village level, computers are far from being prevalent. It is worthwhile to note that, unlike libraries in the United States, Vietnamese libraries do not have budget specifically designated for ICT equipment, nor IT equipment life cycles. Since the late 1980s, when the country opened up and expanded its economy and education system, there have been strong demands for information, particularly Vietnamese language sources. In response to this challenge, many institutions, including Vietnamese libraries, have been trying to create databases containing Vietnamese language sources. As mentioned earlier,

17

Kiem Minh Cao and Huy Nhat Nguyen, “Content Development in Vietnam” (paper presented at the 37th CO-EXIST-SEA Workshop, Bangkok, Thailand, November 29–30, 2005).

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the number of Vietnamese language databases is still limited. For example, the Vietnam Journal Online database thus far has digitized fewer than 1,500 full text articles from fewer than 23 journals (VJOL Newsletter, 2008). Needless to say, Vietnamese libraries need to digitize as many Vietnamese older periodicals and newspapers as well as research reports as possible. In addition, although major academic and large public libraries now have access to some scientific and medical databases, Vietnamese libraries should acquire additional foreign language databases in the fields of business, education, law, and management, and make them available to users. Simply put, Vietnamese researchers, from students to scholars, will not be able to produce first-rate research, if they have no access to the most advanced and timely resources. Interlibrary loan service is very limited. In general, it is being carried out on an informal basis. Several factors contributed to this phenomenon. First, the resources are very scarce. As a result, libraries do not want to lend out their only copy. Second, the postal service is unreliable. Third, Vietnam does not have comprehensive online national bibliographic databases. It is, therefore, cumbersome to search for materials available in libraries throughout the country. To meet this challenge, Vietnamese libraries have been digitizing materials and making them available to the public via the Internet. However, because of limited financial resources, lack of standardization, and IT equipment (e.g., scanners, computers) the amount of material available digitally is still limited. And for the most part, the digitalization projects are being carried out by only a handful of university and public libraries. Thus far, the private sector has not been involved in any of the digitization projects. Moreover, the quality of digitized Vietnamese language sources is still low. It might be time for Vietnamese libraries to consider working or partnering with companies like Google or Yahoo to digitize and make their collections available to the public electronically. In so doing, Vietnamese libraries will not have to bear the financial burdens. Interestingly, one of the advantages that Vietnamese libraries have over many libraries in the West is that a large quantity of Vietnamese library materials have been published by the government’s ministries and research institutes. In other words, unlike the libraries in the West, the copyright issues might not be a major impediment to the digitalization of Vietnamese libraries’ collections. Lastly, there are more than 22,000 librarians and paraprofessional library staff working in Vietnamese libraries.18 It is a considerable number for an underdeveloped country. In reality, however, the number of trained librarians is small. Moreover, the number of librarians with advanced computer-related

18

Son Van Vu, “Electronic Libraries and DUBLIN CORE: The Case of Vietnam” (paper presented at the 3rd CO-EXIST-SEA Workshop & DC Conference, Tokyo, Japan, October 23– 26, 2001).

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skills is even more limited. What is needed is a large increase in the number of librarians who are trained not only in modern librarianship, but also in related skills such as fund raising, marketing, entrepreneurship, and inter-institutional collaboration (both domestic and international). Vietnamese libraries will not meet these challenges unless they radically strengthen and expand the graduate education programs in librarianship in the country. Currently, there are only a few schools offering graduate degrees in librarianship. Furthermore, what has contributed to the lack of trained librarians in Vietnam is that the salaries for librarians are low. Added to this is the fact the library profession is not as prestigious or lucrative as other professions such as engineering, medicine, and business. In Vietnamese society, like most Asian societies, parents put every effort toward their children’s education, and in return, they expect that their children will bring them not only wealth but also family honor. As a result, there are few students who want to pursue a career in librarianship.

Conclusion Vietnamese libraries have made tremendous progress in the areas of IT. Most Vietnamese libraries now have their own websites, online catalogs, and access to electronic databases and the Internet. Similarly, Vietnamese librarians and staff have also embraced and made effective use of IT. Services such as email, electronic newsletters, and electronic bulletin boards are common in Vietnamese libraries. However, they still have a long way to go. There are still severe shortages of computers, domestic and international scholarly databases, trained IT technicians and librarians, and modern library facilities capable of accommodating modern IT equipment. Furthermore, the number of households connected to the Internet is low. At the present time, according to the Ministry of Information and Communication, it stands at only 8%.19 This is not to mention the fact that the number of households in the rural areas connected to the Internet is much lower. In some provinces the number stands between 2 and 4%.20 Needless to say, unless more people are connected to the Internet, viable library services are not likely to extend beyond Vietnam’s urban centers.

19 20

“Only 8% of Homes Have Internet,” VietnamNet. Accessed December 5, 2011, http:// english.vietnamese.vn/en/science-technology/14078/only-8-of. lbid.

About the Contributors Kanwal Ameen is Chair, Department of Library and Information Science, Punjab University (PU), Lahore, Pakistan. She received her Master’s and PhD from Punjab University. She has been awarded a number of international and national scholarships including a Fulbright Post-Doc (2009–2010) at the University of Missouri, USA, and a Pre-Doc Fulbright in 2000–2001 to attend the University of Texas at Austin. Dr Ameen has published more than 50 articles in international journals, conference proceedings, and book chapters. She was the Chief-Editor of the Pakistan Journal of Library and Information Science from 2005–2009, and Secretary of the IFLA SIG on LIS Education in Developing Countries. Helena R. Asamoah-Hassan is the University Librarian, Kwame University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. She has a Bachelor of Library Science degree from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria, a Master of Arts in Library Studies from the University of Ghana, and a PhD in African Art and Culture from the Kwame Nkrumah University, Ghana. She was the President of the Ghana Library Association, and is a member of the Governing Board of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). Dr Asamoah-Hassan has several publications to her credit. Selma Alpay Aslan is currently Director of TOBB University of Economics and Technology Library in Turkey. She has managed library and information services for the British Council in Turkey for many years and was Director at the Ankara University Veterinary Faculty Library. Her professional activities include Steering Committee Membership for ANKOS, Anatolian University Libraries Consortium; President of the Turkish Librarians Association (TLA); Member of IFLA 61st General Conference, Istanbul 1995, Local Organizing Committee; editor of local professional journals and involvement in PULMAN 5th and CALIMERA 6th EU RTD IST Framework. She has a number of articles, book chapters and other works concerning libraries to her credit. Ms. Aslan has a MLib from the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, United Kingdom. Nancy Beygijanian has a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology and Master’s in Library and Information Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), USA. She is active in ACRL and ALA and has published an article on Iran for the IFLA Journal as well as written book reviews for the Middle East Librarians Association (MELA) journal, USA. Currently, Ms. Beygijanian is doing freelance work as a research assistant in archives at UCLA.

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About the Contributors

Rakesh Kumar Bhatt is a an Associate Professor and was Head of the Department of Library and Information Science, University of Delhi, India. He holds MA and PhD (History), MLS and PhD in Library Information Science. Dr Bhatt has also worked as Librarian at the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, and has published many research papers in national and international journals. Currently he is the managing editor of Libraries, Information, and Knowledge: An International Journal. He has presented many papers at national and international conferences and is active in library associations. Chao-Chen Chen is professor at the Graduate Institute of Library and Information Studies, and the University Librarian of National Taiwan Normal University. She is the President of the Library Association of the Republic of China. She received her PhD degree in Library and Information Science from the National Taiwan University and has presented papers at many national and international conferences Dr Chen was president of the Library Association of the Republic of China. Ching-chih Chen is President of the Global Connection and Collaboration, USA. She was professor at the Graduate School of Library Information Sciences, Simmons College, Boston, USA and retired in June 2010. She is the author or editor of 35 books and over 200 journal articles in information technology. Chen received her bachelor’s degree from the National Taiwan University, Master’s in Library Sciences from the University of Michigan, and a PhD from Case Western University, USA. An International Consultant, she has presented many papers and has been a Keynote Speaker in more than forty countries at various national and international conferences. A fellow of the American Association of Advancement of Science, Dr Chen was appointed a member of the U.S. President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC) in 1997. Dr Chen is the recipient of 20 major awards and honors including LITA/OCLC Kilgour Award from the Library Information Technology Association / American Library Association in 2006, the International Peace Prize of the United Cultural Convention of the USA in 2006, and Beta Phi Mu Award from the American Library Association in 2008. John Kipngetich Chepkwony is the System Administrator and Senior Librarian at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. He has a Master of Science degree in Information Science from Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia and a Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Science from the University of Nairobi in Kenya. He is actively involved in community development and has published several articles and books. Muhammad Hossam Haider Chowdhury is the head of the University Library, Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB). He received his Master’s in Library Science from the University of Dhaka. He worked at the Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation of Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic

About the Contributors

545

Disorders (BIRDEM) as a Cataloguer, and at the Defense Science Organisation (DSO) as library officer. In 1990 he received training in Library Automation from the University Sains, Malaysia, and worked for the Department of Public Library and the Library Association of Bangladesh (LAB). Bernard Dione is lecturer at the Ecole de Bibliothe´caires, Archivistes et Documentalistes (EBAD), the Cheikh Anta Diop University library school, Dakar, Senegal, West Africa. He has a Master’s degree in Library & Information Science from EBAD and a PhD in Philosophy from Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar, Senegal. Before joining his teaching position, he was Head of the Collection Development at the University Library. He defended his PhD dissertation at EBSI, Montreal University, Quebec, Canada, in May 2012. Svetlana Dobrusina is Director of the Federal Conservation Center of the National Library of Russia. She has a PhD habilitus in Biotechnology, and has many publications to her credit. Shler Salih Faraj is the Senior Chief Librarian, Central Library, Sulaimani University, Iraq. She has a BA in Library & Information Science from AlMustansryah University and has been very active in promoting librarianship in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Aleksandra Goryaeva is a Senior Scientific Researcher of the Federal Conservation Center, National Library of Russia. She has a Postgraduate degree in Biotechnology from St. Petersburg Technological University and has many publications to her credit. David Hirsch has served as Librarian for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), USA since 1989. He is also an adjunct faculty member of UCLA’s Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures. On leave from UCLA in 2009–2010, he served as Library Advisor at the Abu Dhabi National Library. Mr. Hirsch has a BA degree in Oriental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and Master’s degrees in Middle Eastern Studies and Library Science from the University of Chicago. He also studied at the American University in Cairo and at the United Arab Emirates University. Mr. Hirsch is a past president of the Middle East Librarians Association (MELA) and currently serves on the Executive Board of The Islamic Manuscripts Association and chairs its Cataloging Subcommittee. He was Chair of the Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Section (AAMES) of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), and was Vice President of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) Arabian Gulf Chapter 2009–2011. Robert L. “Jay” Jordan was the fourth President of the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) from 1998–2012. He came to OCLC after a 24-year career with Information Handling Services, an international publisher of databases, where he held a series of key positions in top management, including President of HIS Engineering. Mr. Jordan graduated from Colgate University,

546

About the Contributors

USA with a BA in English Literature and served as a U.S. Army officer in Germany. He is active in many professional organizations, including the American Library Association and the Special Libraries Association. He is a Fellow of the Standards Engineering Society and an excellent speaker. President Jordan has presented papers and given talks all over the world about OCLC. He retired from OCLC on June 30, 2012 after 14 years as President and CEO. Jennifer M. Joseph is the University Librarian for the University of the West Indies and also the Campus Librarian at the St. Augustine Campus in Trinidad and Tobago. She is a graduate of Columbia University, New York, USA, where she completed her Master of Science degree in Library and Information Sciences. She holds a diploma in Human Resource Management, a diploma in Library and Information Studies and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of West Indies. She is an active Member of the Library Association of Trinidad Tobago (LATT) having served on its executive committee in various capacities for several years. She also served as the association’s President for two terms from 1993–1995 and 1995–1997. She is active in IFLA and currently serves on the Standing Committee for Latin America and the Caribbean. Ms. Joseph has presented several papers and has authored articles and chapters for many peer-reviewed publications. Majed Khader is a Professor, Associate University Librarian and Director of the Morrow Library at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, USA. He is also an adjunct professor of Islamic Studies at Marshall University. He holds a BA degree in Arabic Language and Literature from the University of Jordan, a MS and Post MS Certificate in Library and Information Studies from the University of North Texas, and PhD in Library and Information Science from Texas Woman’s University, USA. Dr Khader has written and presented papers at national and international conferences. He was the Chair of the Asian, African and Middle Eastern Sections (AAMES) of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and Chair of the Near East and South Asia Committee, a sub-committee of the International Relations Committee of the American Library Association. He also served on the International Relations Committee of ACRL. Mahmoud Khalifa is currently a librarian at the Library of Congress in Cairo, Egypt. He has a Master’s of Art in Information Sciences and a PhD in Information Science from Cairo University. He is the founder of “Cybrarians” an Arabic Portal for Librarianship and has several articles and publications to his credit. M Shamsul Islam Khan is the Managing Editor of a peer reviewed journal Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition. He obtained his post graduate diploma and Master’s degree in Library Science from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He was President of the Library Association of Bangladesh and was also Vice President of the Editing and Publication Association of Bangladesh. Mr. Khan was Chief Editor of Bangla newsletter Upatta,

About the Contributors

547

Managing Editor and Editor of the Eastern Librarian, published by the Library Association of Bangladesh. He has presented many papers in national, regional and international conferences and has over 35 published papers to his credit. Marian Koren received her PhD cum laude from the University of Amsterdam. She studied Dutch law, law of international organizations, European Social Economic law and human rights at the University of Utrecht. She is the author of numerous articles in library journals and was awarded with the Victorine Van Schaick Award, highest library award in the Netherlands. Marian Koren has been working at the Netherlands Public Library Association since 1979 and is currently senior policy advisor. She also was a researcher at the R & D Department of the Royal Library, The Hague. At present, she is the executive secretary of FOBID Netherlands Library Forum, the national umbrella organization for library organizations. Jesus Lau is Director of the Universidad Veracruzana / USBI Library and Coordinator of the UV Virtual Library in Mexico. He received his PhD in Information Science from Sheffield University, England and Master’s degree in Library Science from Denver University, USA. He has won the National Researcher Award of Mexico six times between 1989–2009. He served on the Board of Directors of the Special Libraries Association (USA), was a member of the Governing Board of IFLA; member of the Trejo-Foster Foundation and was President of the Mexican Library Association (AMBAC). Dr Lau also served as the Coordinator several IFLA-UNESCO Information Literacy projects: He has published more than 150 articles and papers, and 15 books in Mexico and across the world. He was honored with the “Librarian of the Year” Award by the Mexican Library Association in 2011. Binh P. Le, is an Associate Librarian and a faculty member of the Pennsylvania State University. He has chaired many ALA/ACRL committees including the Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Section (AAMES) of the Association of College and Research Libraries, (ACRL/AAMES) and ACRL/LPSS/Martha Lange CQ Press Award Committee. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Library and Education Assistance Foundation for Vietnam (LEAF-VN). Mr. Le chaired the Pennsylvania State University, Abington College Faculty Senate. He has won many awards including the 2006–07 ALA/ACRL LPSS Marta Lange CQ/Press Award, and The Pennsylvania State University, Abington College Distinguished Faculty Service Award for 2006–2007. He is listed in Who’s Who Among Asian Americans, and Pi Sigma Alpha (The National Political Science Honors Society) and has several articles and publications to his credit. Cavan McCarthy, BA (Leeds, UK), MLS (State University of New York, Albany, USA), PhD (Loughborough, UK), is a retired professor of library and information science. He taught for 20 years in various Brazilian federal universities, notably the federal university of Pernambuco. His doctoral thesis was on the automation of libraries and bibliographic information systems in

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About the Contributors

Brazil. He also taught on the faculty of library schools in Nigeria, Kuwait and Iowa (USA) before retiring after several years at the school of library and information science, Louisiana State University. He has published widely in English and Portuguese on library automation and digital libraries. Suprabath Majumdar obtained Gold Medal for standing first both in Graduate and Postgraduate degree in Library and Information Science from Banaras Hindu University, India, and the University of Delhi, India respectively. He obtained PhD from Jiwaji University, Gwalior (lndia). He began his career as trainee at the American Centre Library of Delhi, worked at Jawaharlal Nehru University, and at the Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi. Dr Majumdar became Director of the Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi, Government of India and served as University Librarian of the University of Delhi, India from 2005 until his retirement in December 2010. He has contributed many articles in different journals, seminar and workshop proceedings. At present, he is Chief Librarian, India International Centre, New Delhi. Stephen M. Mutula Professor of Information Studies in the School of Sociology and Social Studies, University of Kwazulu Natal, Scottsvill, South Africa. He holds a PhD in Information Science from the University of Johannesburg, South Africa, and a Master’s degree in Librarianship from the University of Wales, UK, Postgraduate diploma in Computer Science from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, and a Bachelor degree in Education from Kenyatta University, Kenya. He has published extensively in many reputable international refereed journals and chapters in books. Dr Mutula serves on more than a dozen international editorial boards, has won several international excellence awards for his distinguished research work from various academic societies and literary clubs, including from the Emerald Literati Club (UK) and IFLA. He was researcher of the year at the University of Botswana in 2007–2008. Nader Naghshineh is an assistant professor and also serves as referee for several Iranian professional journals. He is also the Executive Advisor for Academic Enterprise for the research office at University of Tehran. He graduated as an engineer from Sharif University of Technology and was chosen as an outstanding engineer in 1989 by TMS in the United States. During the late 1990’s he was second to the Iranian Research Center on Scientific Information and Documents. He has a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Tehran. He played a key role in establishing the first information science laboratory in Iran. He received his PhD from the University of Tehran. Dr Naghshineh is also the Executive Advisor for Academic Enterprise for the research office at the University of Tehran. Amy Phillips obtained a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from The Catholic University of America, USA and a Master of Theological Studies from Boston University USA. Since then she has catalogued various special collections: The Massachusetts Bible Society Collection at Boston

About the Contributors

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University School of Theology, the archeological slide collection of Helmut Koester at the Harvard Divinity School, and rare and antiquarian sheet-maps at the Harvard Map Collection. Currently Amy is employed at the Woodstock Theological Center Library, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C., USA. In the Spring of 2007 Amy volunteered as a catalog librarian for the E´cole biblique et arche´ologique franc¸aise de Je´rusalem (EBAF) where she re-organized and cataloged the cartographic materials and continues to support this project whenever she is able to return. She is also currently researching the cartography of Israel/Palestine created by the Dominicans of EBAF and other religious orders. H.Kay Raseroka was the director of Library and Information Services at the University of Botswana, Gaborone, Republic of Botswana, in Southern Africa and retired in 2010. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology and Psychology for which she studied at the Ester University College of Fort Hare, Alice, South Africa; a postgraduate diploma in Library Science from the University of South Africa, and a Master’s degree from the University of London, UK. In 1987–1988 she was the Hubert Humphrey Fellow at the University of Pittsburgh, USA. She has been granted a number of professional awards including the Honorary fellow of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) 2007; Distinguished Service Award of the Asian, African and Middle Eastern Section: (of ACRLIALA) for outstanding leadership and contributions to librarianship; Library Associations (UK) Medal of honor nominated and voted for by members of the Library Association (UK) as one of the one hundred most outstanding librarians of the Century in celebration of the Library Association Charter Centenary (1998). Miss Raseroka was President of IFLA from 2003–2005. She has published many articles and presented papers at various national and international conventions. Gabi Schneider has MA in English, German, and Italian language and literature from the University of Zurich, and Certificate in academic librarianship, from the Swiss Library Association. She is a versatile librarian and experienced project manager with a strong interest in culture and information technology. After working with the Swiss National Science Foundation, Gabi Schneider took up training in academic librarianship at the Berne Town and University Library and became the Director’s assistant. Working for Ernst & Young as an information professional she specialized in digital knowledge network in a business environment. In 2001, Gabi Schneider became director of the Cantonal Library of Graubu¨nden. She has been a project manager, library consultant and teacher at HTW Chur, University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Information Science. Gabi Schneider is a board member of the Swiss Library Association (Bibliothek Information Schweiz – BIS), and is responsible for international relations. She is a member of the Swiss National Library Commission. Anna Maria Tammaro has PhD and Masters in Information Science from Northumbria University, Specialisation in Library Science and degree in

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About the Contributors

Philosophy from the University of Rome, Italy. She has been teaching at the University of Parma since 2001 and is the Local Coordinator of the International Master in Digital Library Learning (DILL). She is the University rector Delegate for e-learning and has been involved in the Italian research projects “Digital Library Applications” and “Access to digital Library” and has collaborated with the European projects “Minerva Ministerial Network for digitization in Europe” and the Tempus Project NMPLIS. She was Researcher Fellow at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA from 2008–2010. Dr Tammaro is the Chair of IFLA Division IV and member of the IFLA Governing Board. From 2007 to 2011 she was Chair of the Education and Training Section. In 2011 was been awarded the “Bobcats of the Year Award” by EUCLID for her contributions to LIS in Europe. Since 2011, she is Vice President of the Tuscany Section of the Italian Library Association (AIB). Dr Tammaro has published 6 books and 74 papers. Javier Tarango has a Bachelor degree in Pedagogy, from Autonomous University of Chihuahua, Mexico, a Master’s degree in Information Science from Guanajua University, Mexico, a Master’s degree in Organisational Development from Monterrey University, Mexico, and PhD in Education with major in Library and Information Science from the Autonomous University of Chihuahua, Mexico. He is a faculty member at the Autonomous University of Chihuahua in the School of Information Science. He also works as the Director of Educational Research at the High School College of Chihuahua State (COBACH). He also advises the Pella Window Store (Mexico) in knowledge management and is a virtual tutor of the online Library Science Bachelor Program of Guadalajara University. He was the President of the Organizational Committee for USA-Mexico Transborder Library Forum (2005), and the AMBAC Mexican Library Conference (2008). Timothy Thompson is completing a dual Master’s degree in Library Science and Latin American and Caribbean Studies at Indiana University, USA. He has BA in English from Calvin College and a Master’s degree in English from Boston College, USA. He spent 2011 in Brasilia, Brazil, on a Boren Fellowship, studying advanced Portuguese and conducting research for his Master’s capstone project. His research surveys major Brazilian digital library initiatives and centers on the contribution that digital libraries can make as information resources supporting human development. He was selected by the Council on Library and Information resources (CLIR) to receive the 2011 Rovelstad Scholarship in International Librarianship, which allowed him to attend the 77th IFLA World Congress in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Pawel Trzopek OP, is the head librarian at l’E´cole biblique et arche´ologique franc¸aise de Je´rusalem (EBAF), Israel. Pawel joined the Dominican Order in 1991. He obtained a Master in Theology from the Pontifical Academy of Theology, Krakow, Poland in 1998; Licenciate in Biblical Theology from Catholic

About the Contributors

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University of Lublin, Poland, 2001; and SSB, Pontifical Biblical Commission, from The Vatican, 2002. He has been a lecturer in the New Testament, at the Dominican College of Philosophy and Theology, Krakow since 2002. He has published dozens of popular articles on biblical topics in different reviews in Poland. In 2009 he founded a new monthly, Biblia krok po kroku (Bible step by step), and is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature. Tatiana Velikova is Deputy Director of the Federal Conservation Center of the National Library of Russia and a PAC Standing Committee Member. She has a PhD in Biotechnology, and has several publications to her credit. Robert Wedgeworth served as the University Librarian, Professor of Library Administration and Professor of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA from 1993–1999. Before going the University of Illinois, he served as Dean of the School of Library Services, Columbia University from 1985–1992 and Executive Director of the American Library Association 1972–1985. He has a Master’s in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. He served as President of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institution (IFLA) from 1991–1997. Professor Wedgeworth has been appointed to serve on the National Museum and Library Services Board of the United States by President Barrack Obama. Mr. Wedgeworth has won many honors and awards including six honorary doctorates, the Medal of Honor from the International Council of Archives, Lippincott and Melvil Dewey awards and the Humphry/OCLC/Forest Press Award for his achievements in International librarianship from the American Library Association. He is the author/editor of books and has published many articles.

About the Editor R.N. Sharma is dean of the library at Monmouth University, New Jersey. He is an active professional and has won many awards, grants, and honors, including the Academic/Research Librarian of the Year Award from the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL)/ALA for 2005, and the Humphry/ OCLC/Forest Press Award in 1997 from the American Library Association (ALA), for his significant achievements and contributions to international librarianship. He was also honored by the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association in 2010 and by the Asian, African and the Middle Eastern Section (AAMES/ACRL) in 2011. He is the author/editor of 12 books and has published over 250 articles, book chapters, editorials, interviews, conference reports and book reviews and was editor of Library Times International from 1984–2010. Dean Sharma has served on over thirty-five committees of ALA, ACRL, and APALA and chaired many committees, including the International Relations Committee (IRC) and AAMES of ACRL, and the Humphry/OCLC/Forest Press Award Committee, of IRC/ALA. Sharma was president of APALA and has presented over thirty papers including many keynote addresses at national and international conferences. He is listed in over twenty biographical dictionaries, including Who’s Who in the World, Contemporary Authors, Who’s Who in America, Directory of American Scholars and International Dictionary of Distinguished Leadership. He was honored with a festschrift “Challenges for South Asian Resources and Information Services: Essays in Honour of Dr. Ravindra N. Sharma”, edited by Rajwant Singh Chilana, published in 2008 by the Concept Publishing Company. Sharma was director of the library of West Virginia State University, director of the library at the University of Evansville, Indiana and head librarian at Penn State University-Beaver Campus. He has a Bachelor’s degree (Honours) and MA in history from the University of Delhi, India; a Master’s degree in library and Information Science from the University of North Texas, and a PhD from the State University of New York, Buffalo, USA.