Supporting Research in Area Studies: a guide for academic libraries

The study of other countries or regions of the world often crosses traditional disciplinary boundaries in the humanities and social sciences. Supporting Research in Area Studies is a comprehensive guide for academic libraries supporting these communities of researchers. This book explores the specialist requirements of these researchers in information resources, resource discovery tools, and information skills, and the challenges of working with materials in multiple languages. It makes the case that by adapting their systems and procedures to meet these needs, academic libraries find themselves better placed to support their institution's�� international agenda more widely. The first four chapters cover the academic landscape and its history, area studies librarianship and acquisitions. Subsequent chapters discuss collections management, digital products, and the digital humanities, and their role in academic projects. The final chapter explores information skills and the various disciplinary skills that facilitate the needs of researchers during their careers

University press publishing consortium for Africa : lessons from academic libraries

This paper presents the results of a case study of the policies and practices of six African university presses. Based on the findings, it posits the formation of a consortium of African university presses. It borrows heavily from consortium formation in the library world

Globalization and Legal Information Management

Draft of Chapter 2 of the IALL International Handbook of Legal Information Management by Jules Winterton, Associate Director and Librarian, Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London. This chapter is a relatively brief survey of what globalization means in the field of legal information management and what effect it has had and will have on a range of activities and policy areas relevant to the practice of legal information management. There are firstly some comments towards a definition of globalization for the purposes of this chapter and then a survey of the following in the light of that definition: legal systems, information consumers, legal information needs, information and management, legal publishing, digitization, intellectual property rights, lobbying and advocacy on policy issues (the politics of law librarianship), international networking, and legal information managers and law librarians of the future

National Library (Republic of Mauritius) : Strategic Plan

The National Library of the Republic of Mauritius was established as a body corporate under the National Library Act 1996 No. 32. The main role of the National Library of Mauritius is to build the most comprehensive collection of our national heritage by collecting, receiving and preserving all publications and productions printed and produced in Mauritius for present and future generations. The main source of its acquisition is by means of the legal deposit system as per the National Library Act 1996 which stipulates that every printer in Mauritius is required to deposit free of charge with the Director of the National Library six copies of each publication, be it a book, periodical, report, newspaper or any other printed document. The same rule applies to all the producers in Mauritius who have to deposit six copies of any non-print materials produced. To ensure that access is given to the most comprehensive collection of Mauritiana materials, the National Library has also to acquire all print and non-print materials published abroad, whose subject matter is related to Mauritius. Along with, the National Library will build a collection of foreign reference materials on different subjects of interest to Mauritius. Equally of vital importance to the National Library is the conservation of our cultural heritage – ways and means are being worked out to preserve and conserve documents for generations to come. The aim of the National Library is to become the premier library in Mauritius in the dissemination of both retrospective and current information, utilizing modern techniques and other technological advances. The National Library is at the service of the Mauritian people, for the purpose of their research, scholarship and creativity. This Strategic Plan sets out the vision, strategic management principles, goals, objectives and plan of action that will govern the National Library for the next three years

Cutting out the middle man?: disintermediation and the academic library

Big Deals, open access, and digitisation increasingly mean that selection decisions are being removed from librarians and transferred to the end user. David Ball looks at the forces pushing towards this ‘disintermediation’ and considers the future role of the academic library

The Academic Library in Society’s Knowledge System : a Case Study of Tshwane University of Technology

Academic libraries traditionally support universities in their teaching, learning, and research activities. Their support roles can be broadly defined in terms of the organization and storage of knowledge, as well as its distribution and access. This makes them important role players in South Africa’s broader library and information services ecosystem. As a result, academic libraries do not operate in a vacuum. As part of the broader society the targeting of academic libraries during student protest action represents a unique type of social conflict. This unique type of social conflict is not fully understood and this study investigated Tshwane University of Technology’s libraries using the idea of a knowledge system as a theoretical framework. The main argument of the study is that academic libraries have a historical relationship with research libraries, and have an important connection with society’s knowledge system. The oversight of the functions of academic libraries problematizes their role and response to social conflict. The study used a focused literature review and documentary evidence, and data was collected from a purposive sample using an electronic survey questionnaire, focus groups and interviews. The study found that TUT’s libraries passive response to the 2015 and 2016 student disruptions stems from a poor understanding of the theoretical context of their support roles and functions. The main value of the study is to call attention to the idea of a knowledge system and to enable TUT’s libraries to respond adequately to social conflict.Dissertation (MIS)--University of Pretoria, 2018.This work was supported by the Tshwane University of Technology [grant number 168409].Information ScienceMISUnrestricte

Digitization for libraries in Kenya

It is now over 10 years since the first online library service was introduced and much has happened to make digital collections a norm, not an exception. Libraries and archives have had to embrace ICT to keep abreast of user expectations, habits and global trends. Setting up of digital collections in Kenya has generally progressed more slowly than in other countries in Africa and the rest of the world. The progress made to date might be good, but the pace is not impressive. This is particularly worrying if measured against the developments of other libraries globally. Initiatives for library digitization are patchy, with academic and research institution libraries showing greatest advances. The status of digital libraries and the challenges that digitization presents, based on the literature and findings of a study, are mentioned. A proposal for the way forward, despite the hurdles, is presented at the end

SUPPORTING AFRICAN DIGITAL LIBRARY PROJECTS: EXPERIENCES FROM THE FIELD

This paper outlines the activities of the African Digital Library Support Network (ADLSN) in enhancing knowledge access by promoting and assisting the development of low-cost digital libraries in Africa. It aims to stimulate practical discussion on how digital library projects can be run in Africa in a collaborative way. It focuses on the milestones and challenges of the ADLSN, starting by narrating events leading to the formation of the network, its structure and its strategic directions. The notion of National Centres through which the Network grew is discussed and the financing of activities is addressed. The paper examines some of the barriers that must be taken into account when developing digital libraries and also makes recommendations for policies related to collaborative national and/or regional digital library projects. The paper uses a qualitative approach and is based on the personal experiences and observations of the authors together with some informal interviews and document analysis