Funders

  • Name:

    International Development Research Centre

  • Postal address:

    250 Albert Street PO Box 8500
    K1G 3H9 Ottawa ON
    Canada

  • Telephone:

    +1 (613) 236 6163

  • URL:

    http://www.idrc.ca/

  • Countries served:

  • Purpose:

    Community Libraries as Gateways for Information in Africa (Pilot Study) The South African Government is committed to developing an information society, as evident in its establishment of the Universal Service Agency (USA), in 1996, to deploy "telecentres," and its hosting of the 1996 G7 Information Society and Development Conference. The Government views information, as well as information and communication technologies (ICTs), as important conduits for sustainable development. IDRC's Acacia projects in South Africa use the telecentre and schoolnet approach, hence fit in well with the government's information society initiative. The project owners, Gauteng Provincial Library and Information Services (GPLIS) and the Northern Province Library and Information Services (NPLIS), have identified the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Johannesburg, as an associate to facilitate and manage the implementation of pilot telecentres at the two sites, and to demonstrate how appropriate ICTs can enhance this "gateway to information" featureof community resource centres. To date, two community centre libraries have been identified as sites for the pilot projects, and the communities prepared. This activity will demonstrate how community libraries or information centres can be mobilized to provide communities with multiple, development-oriented services. Possible use of appropriate technologies to this end, will be explored. Community Libraries as Gateways for Information in Africa (Pilot Project) IDRC's Acacia projects, focussing on communities and the information society in Africa through the telecentre and schoolnet approach, links well with the government's Information Society initiative. The project owners, Gauteng Provincial Library and Information Services (GPLIS) and the Northern Province Library and Information Services (NPLIS) identified CSIR as an associate to facilitate to manage the implementation of the pilots at the two sites to demonstrate how appropriate ICTs can enhance this "gateway to information" feature of community information resource centres. To date, the relevant provincial government departments, GPLIS as well as the NPLIS, have been consulted and buy in achieved. The sites (community centre libraries) have been identified, and the communities prepared. The main purpose of this study is to demonstrate how community libraries or information centres can be mobilised to support communities by providing multiple development-oriented services. Possible use of appropriate technologies to this end will be explored. The two pilot projects will be owned by the Poortjie (Gauteng Province) and the Makhuvha Village (Northern Province) communities. --ICA Conference on Archival Development, Tunis, 16-20 May 1995 This grant will support the International Council on Archives (ICA) for the Interregional Conference on Archival Development to be held in Tunis, 16-20 May 1995. The objectives of the Conference are to evaluate the actions in support of archival development since the 1960s; identify current and arising needs; and identify ways of making optimal use of resources available for archives and records management. A presentation will be made on IDRC's experience in this field. --NATIONAL MUSEUMS OF KENYA

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