SCECSAL XXI guidelines for authors updated

The Organisers of SCECSAL XXI have updated the guidelines for authors for preparing and submitting conference papers. Please, download the updated guidelines HERE.

Zimbabwe Library Association - 48th Conference & AGM, Victorial Falls, 24-27 June 2014

Main Theme: ‘Working smarter and adding value: Library services in a new paradigm‘ 

3rd Call for Papers

The Internet, with its array of new media technologies has opened a new world to information seekers from academics, researchers, business communities and even those with a casual information need. The increasing Internet penetration as a means of communication has resulted in the flourishing of digital publishing and increased capacity of individuals to access vast amounts of information. It has also provided the means for new connected virtual communities to develop across the world. This development has resulted in many regarding the library as an antiquated institution from another period  no longer relevant and easily targeted for budget cuts and low prioritisation. Libraries are also attracting criticism from people who argue that technology has made them obsolete. The question that arise from these views is; ‘Is the library still playing an indispensable role in today’s information society?’

It is against this backdrop that the Zimbabwe Library Association (ZimLA) invites interested professionals from the broad, interdisciplinary Library and Information Science field to submit abstracts of papers to be presented at its 48th conference and AGM. These papers should attempt to address the above main theme but stemming from, but not necessarily limited to the sub-themes listed below.

Sub-Themes

• Innovation in library services
• Information literacy and lifelong learning

          - In different types of libraries
          - Approaches/models in academic and school curricula
          - As a vital life skill
          - In protecting Intellectual property and Copyright

• Embedded librarianship
• Responsiveness to changing information and technology landscape
• Information brokering and info-preneurship
• Community librarianship
• Library out-reach services
• Corporate librarianship
• Use of social media in library services
• Changing roles of librarians
• Proactive librarianship
• Knowledge management
• Open access

Dates to note:

28 March 2014: Deadline for submission of abstracts

15 April 2014:  Submission of full text papers

15 May  2014:  Program with presenters sent out

For gudelines on submision of abstracts, please contanct any of the folloiwng:
 Ronald Munatsi [ronaldmunatsi@gmail.com]

Lantern R Fusire [lantern.fusire@nust.ac.zw; fusirelantern@gmail.com]

Harriet R Ncube [hrncube@nrz.co.zw; hrncube@gmail.com]

 

15th Annual Conference of APLESA, April 7 - 11, 2014, Radisson Blu Hotel, Lusaka, ZAMBIA

We are very pleased to announce that the 2014 Association of Parliamentary Libraries of Eastern and Southern Africa (APLESA) annual conference and meeting will be hosted by the National Assembly of Zambia at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Lusaka from 7-11 April 2014.

The conference will unite parliamentary library and information professionals and other interested parties from across the Southern and Eastern regions of Africa with the objective of promoting co‐operation, communication, networking, resource sharing and capacity building among APLESA member Parliaments. From this unique intersection, new ideas and relationships are expected to emerge from the conference.

Held under the theme “Legislative information and Parliamentary Libraries: pursuing frontiers of knowledge”, the conference will widen discussions from previous interactions and consolidate current thinking in order to plant seeds for the future. With the gathering expected to be a stimulating week of presentations, interactive sessions and discussions aimed at addressing issues and challenges related to legislative information, and library and information services, everyone will have the opportunity to share experiences and knowledge, network with colleagues, and learn about new and innovative ways.

We look forward to a great conference and welcome you to Zambia.

Ms. Chama M. Mfula
Chief Librarian
P.O Box 31299
Lusaka, Zambia
Fax: (+260) 211-292252
Email: cmmfula@parliament.gov.zm
Tel: (+260) 211-292425 – 36/ 292929
Mobile: +260-977-117972

Other contacts include:

1. Mrs M Suuya
Deputy Chief Librarian
Email: msuuya@parliament.gov.zm
Mobile: +260-955/977-829666

2. Mr Peter K.Moatswi
Secretary General, APLESA
Email: kmoatswi@gov.bw
Tel: (+267) 3705502 / 3616800
Mobile: (+267) 72246680

14th Biennial Congress of AHILA (AHILA 14)

Date: 20th - 24th October 2014

City: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Theme:

ICTs, Access to Health Information and Knowledge: Building Strong Knowledge Societies for Sustainable Development in Africa

Background

The Association for Health Information and Libraries in Africa (AHILA) is pleased to announce its 14th Biennial Congress scheduled to take place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. AHILA was founded in 1984 with the aim of improving provision of up-to-date and relevant health information; encourage professional development of health librarians; promote information resource sharing in Africa and exchange of experiences as well as promoting the development and standardization and exchange of health databases in Africa. The main theme of the 14th AHILA Congress is: “ICTs, access to health information and knowledge: building strong knowledge societies for sustainable development in Africa”.

The sub-themes of the Congress are:

1. ICT’s and health information and knowledge management systems for  sustainable development

• Use of ICT to enhance access to health information for gender empowerment and poverty reduction
• Qualitative and quantitative studies of knowledge management systems for health
•  ICTs and evidence based health care practices
• ICTs and knowledge management practices for health care services
• The design of appropriate ICTs to meet information needs of various stakeholders in health care setting, such as health professionals, patients and health consumers
• ICT and indigenous knowledge management
• Security, privacy, and risk management through ICT
• Mobile health applications and access to health information
• Emerging technologies for disseminating health information
• Information discovery: portals, databases, gateways

2. Health information literacy and information behaviour

• Health information literacy seeking behavior: theories and models
• Research approaches and methodologies for health information literacy, information needs and information seeking behavior
• Information seeking, searching, use and sharing in health care context
• Information literacy and health libraries

3. Social media networking and dissemination of health information and knowledge: its contribution to creating knowledge societies

• Social media, Web 2.0 and Information Literacy 2.0 approaches for health library and information services
• Role of libraries in supporting web2.0-based medical education and learning
• Qualitative and quantitative studies of social media for health information
• Application of social media/networks applications, interfaces and interactions techniques in library and information centers setting
• Developing social media tools/ applications for health professionals, patients and health consumers
• Role of libraries in supporting collaborative biomedical research
• Ethical & legal issues, confidentiality and privacy in information delivery services

4. Capacity building of Health Information Professionals: the role of LIS education in Africa

• Curriculum development for LIS education
• LIS education and innovative teaching techniques and methods
• LIS education and e-learning technologies
• LIS education, information literacy and ICTs
• LIS education and knowledge management
• LIS education, networking and collaboration
• LIS education continuing education and professional development programmes
• LIS job market in Africa: current trends
• Information literacy instruction, including curriculum development, instructional design, teaching techniques and methods, and evaluation
• Information literacy, online learning, distance learning and lifelong learning

5. Bringing health information and knowledge to Africa’s rural communities through partnership and community engagement

• Access of health information to patients and health consumers: strategies and approaches
• Indigenous knowledge management
• Innovative rural health information services delivery
• Partnership and community engagement approaches for rural information provision

The Congress will incorporate the 2nd HIFA International Conference (Healthcare Information For All) where delegates will review progress made since the launch of HIFA at AHILA 10 (Mombasa, Kenya, 2006) and ways forward to accelerate progress towards Healthcare Information For All in Africa and worldwide.

Abstract details:

Abstract should be in English with a maximum of 500 words.  
Deadline for submission of abstracts is 1st March 2014

All abstracts should be submitted as an attachment and sent to the following:

1. Prof. Frankwell Dulle, Email address:  dullefw2011@gmail.com OR nzengamshe@yahoo.com 
2. Dr. Alfred Sife, Email address:  sifesas@gmail.com OR sifesas@yahoo.com  
3. Dr. Edda.T. Lwoga, Email address: tlwoga@gmail.com 
4. Copy to Ms Rehema Chande-Mallya, Secretary Organising Committee: email address: rchandemallya@gmail.com

For information on sponsorship, conference exhibition or nay other enquiries please contact Ms Rehema Chande-Mallya, Secretary Organising Committee: email address: rchandemallya@gmail.com

Kitwe Public Library in Zambia

The Kitwe Public Library (KPL) started operations in the early 1960s. It is

Kitwe Public Library main entrance

located at the City Square in a building that was constructed in 1954. The building originally served as the Civic Centre and later as a Whites’ only library before becoming a public library. The library falls under the Department of Housing and Social Services of the Kitwe City Council.

Library membership is open to the public. However, adults pay five Kwacha (about US$0.90) per month to use the library while junior membership fee is fixed at three Kwacha (about US$0.54) per month. The library has a seating capacity of about 85 in addition to 50 at its Buchi Township branch library. This capacity is not adequate for a city with a population of about 520,000 inhabitants (based on 2010 Population Census).

Reading room

KPL has about 14,000 volumes covering textbooks, reference materials and children’s books. However, most of the collection is obsolete. The library was once an Environmental Public Information Centres (EPIC) and served as a public disclosure and reference centre for research and other educational and academic purposes supporting the World Bank funded Copperbelt Environment Project (CEP). Kitwe, founded in 1936, is the hub of the Copperbelt Province in which the copper mining industry dominates. Environmental problems associated with the mining industry are a major issue. CEP addressed environmental liabilities associated with the mining sector. CEP closed in 2011.

ICT in the library

Library card catalogue

Like most public libraries in sub-Saharan Africa, Kitwe Public Library is yet to embrace fully modern information and communication technologies (ICT). When you walk into the library, you will see that there are no signs of any use of computers for public library services such as library loans/circulation or Open Access Public Catalogue (OPAC). The old library card catalogue still lives on.

Although efforts are being made to use computers in the library, they seem inadequate. During the Copperbelt Environment Project the World Bank donated four computers to the library. Today, only two standalone computers are operational and are being used for office work. In 2011, the Kitwe City Council purchased a computer server for the library and Koha, an open source library automation system, was installed. After about one year of operation, the library experienced problems with the server and since then the system has been down.

The library is not connected to the Internet. It therefore lacks access to digital information resources including thousands of peer reviewed electronic journals and books available online for free or at reduced cost to public institutions in most developing countries.

Plans are on paper to connect the library to the Internet. However, it is not clear as to when this will happen. A room with computer network cables and extra-power points is being prepared to serve as an Internet access centre. Let us hope that soon, the Kitwe Public Library will be connected to global knowledge through the Internet.

Digital agriculture information management in ECOWAS countries

I recently organized a seminar on Agricultural Information Management and Knowledge Exchange in ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) countries in Akosombo, a small town in the east of Ghana in the Eastern Region and the site of the Akosombo Dam. I invited senior officers responsible for information management and dissemination functions in Ministries of Agriculture to discuss the impact and the resulting policy and strategy implications of modern information and communication technologies on agricultural information management, dissemination, and knowledge exchange in their ministries.

Workshop participants

The participants came from  Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Only Côte d'Ivoire was not represented at the seminar. They included directors or officers in charge of ICT,  Archives, Libraries and Documentation, Communication and Public Relations, and Agricultural Statistics.

From the ensuing discussions it was evident that there is an absence of appropriate policies to facilitate information management and dissemination and a general lack of investments in digital agricultural information management and dissemination activities. The result is that a lot of emphasis is being placed on print-based information resources which by default are limited in circulation. In most instances very few copies of print documents are produced, mainly as grey literature, and are rarely documented making difficult to know what is available in the Ministry.

The absence of coordination among the units or departments involved in the collection, management and dissemination of information was also a major concern for some participants. They indicated that in some cases communication units and IT departments do not coordinate their activities regarding content generation for the Ministry’s web site.

The participants agreed that social media has a role to play in information dissemination and knowledge sharing. However, official use of social media tools in Ministries of Agriculture was said to be very limited. Some ministries are experimenting with social media, especially with Facebook. But without social media strategies in place, such experiments are doomed to fail.

While some Ministries of Agriculture (i.e. Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Senegal) have developed websites, the discussions revealed that provision of content on the websites is erratic, and is a major challenge. Most websites do not provide access to full-text documents produced by the Ministries due to the absence of policies on digital information resources dissemination. In some cases, up-loading documents to the website takes longer than necessary because of weaknesses in the internal work flows for digital content management.

Agriculture statistics graphs
from CountrySTAT

One aspect of information management that is doing quite well in the region is agricultural statistics. Countries such as Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo have been assisted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to develop their capacity to provide reliable statistical data on food and agriculture, necessary to monitor national trends. This was done under the CountrySTAT initiative, and they all have websites where agricultural related statistics are publicly accessible.

If Africa is to fight poverty with information and knowledge, easy access to relevant information, such as information for agricultural and rural development, is critical. Ministries of Agriculture can easily make their information accessible if they managed and disseminated their information resources in digital information. To achieve this, they will have to put in place policies and strategies conducive for digital information management and sharing, and invest in both institutional and individual capacity development.
------
Justin Chisenga, PhD
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Regional Office for Africa
Accra, Ghana

First CARLIGH international conference

The Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries, Ghana (CARLIGH) is pleased to announce that the 1st International Conference of the Consortium will be held in Accra, Ghana from 14-18  July 2014  as part of its 10th Anniversary celebrations. 

Theme and Sub-Themes

The theme for the Conference is: “Innovation for access to information”.

The sub-themes for the Conference are:

1. Library integration and resource sharing
2. Technology driven information services – E-resources, Institutional Repository, Open Access
3. The 21st Century Librarian – satisfying the needs of varied users
4. Social media in libraries and information service delivery
5. Impact of social media on socio-economic development
6. Innovative library marketing and collaboration

Registration

The Governing Board of CARLIGH wishes to invite both local and foreign participants to register for the conference. Please send the following personal information: Name, Institution of Work, Designation, Country of Origin,  Contact  Address, Telephone and Email to: maadwoa2000@yahoo.com and  egy28@yahoo.co.uk

 

Registration fees

Local participants  GH¢300

Foreign participants $250

The registration fee covers, snacks, lunches, a dinner and conference materials. The deadline for registration is  15th February, 2014. Registration is open to both those who want to present papers and other participants. Further information would be provided on how to pay the registration fees.

Accommodation

Information about accommodation would be provided in due course. The planning committee is still negotiating for conference rates.

Submission of Abstracts

The Consortium invites the submission of abstracts to be considered for papers to be presented at CARLIGH 2014. Abstract must be presented in bold; Arial 12, and a maximum of 150 words. Download the guidelines for authors.

 

All abstracts and papers should be sent to the following addresses:

   Dr. Mrs. Helena Asamoah-Hassan, University Librarian,
   KNUST, Kumasi. Email: maadwoa2000@yahoo.com

   Alhaji Ibrahim Kwabena Antwi, University Librarian

   UDS, Tamale. Email: ikantwi1993@yahoo.com

Deadline for Abstracts: 31st January 2014
Authors whose abstracts will be accepted will be notified by 15th February 2014

Submission of Full Papers

The final document is to be submitted by 31st March 2014 in MS Word format.  Submissions received after 31st March 2014 will automatically be dropped from the programme.

Authors are responsible for the quality of their paper and are kindly requested to observe the following guidelines for the preparation and delivery of manuscripts. Use of English (UK) spell checker is recommended.

The 1st International Conference of CARLIGH promises to be a melting point of great minds in the global knowledge economy.  It is expected that a cross section of the society interested in information as the driver of emerging economies will attend.

 

Survey of agricultural information centres, libraries and documentation centres in Africa

Is this the state of agricultural information centres
in sub-Saharan Africa?

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) - Regional Office for Africa, in collaboration with the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) and the International Association of Agricultural Information Specialists (IAALD Africa Chapter), is conducting an online survey of agricultural information centres, libraries and documentation centre.

The goal of the survey is to establish the state of agricultural information centres, libraries and documentation centres in sub-Saharan Africa.

Potential use of the results of the survey include the design of capacity development and technical support initiatives to enhance access, dissemination and exchange of agricultural information and knowledge in sub-Saharan Africa.

You can prepare to complete the online survey by downloading and reviewing a PDF (266K) copy of the questionnaire.

To complete the survey online, on Survey Monkey, click HERE or cut and paste the following link in your browser:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/survey-of-agric-information-centres

The survey closes on 20 December 2013

SCECSAL Author Awards 2014 - Call for Nominations

The Malawi Library Association is inviting nominations for the SCECSAL Author Award to be presented at SCECSAL XXI Conference scheduled for  28th July - 1st August 2014 at Sunbird Capital Hotel, Lilongwe City, Malawi.

Guidelines

The guidelines for submitting the nominations are available on the SCECSAL Website on the Author Awards page .

Publications published in 2011 2012, 2013, including 2014 (the year in which the award will be offered) are eligible for the awards.

Submission of Nominations

All nominations and inquiries should be forward to:

Mr. Geoffrey F. Salanje
Chairperson
SCECSALXXI - Publicity and Publications Sub-Committee
C/o Bunda Campus
Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Science (LUANAR)
P.O Box 219
Lilongwe, MALAWI
Cell No: (265) (0)9 99 930 892
Tel No : (265) (0)1 11974112 (Office), (265) (0) 1 277308 (Home)

E-mail: gsalanje@bunda.luanar.mw or salanje@yahoo.com

Please copy:

Mr. Gray L. Nyali
Chairperson
SCECSAL XXI Main Organizing Committee
C/o National Library Services
P.O. Box 300134
Capital City
Lilongwe 3, MALAWI
Cell No. +265 (0) 999 955 880. Tel. +265 (0) 773 362
E-Mail. gnyali@hotmail.com

Closing Date

The last day for receiving nominations is: 30th May 2014.

Note

Library and information professionals who wish to be considered for the Awards should liaise with their national library and information associatons.

Malawi Library Association announces SCECSAL XXI, July 2014

DATES: 28th July - 1st August 2014
VENUE: Sunbird Capital Hotel, Lilongwe City - Malawi
THEME: Information and knowledge management as a driving force for socio-economic development in Africa
SUB-THEMES:

1. Information and communication technology (ICT) for knowledge-based economies
2. LIS education and socio-economic development
3. The impact of global credit crunch on African libraries and archives
4. Knowledge and information in health care delivery services
5. Conflict management: the role of archives and records
6. Social media and socio-economic development
7. Information literacy for socio-economic development
8. Knowledge and information for persons with special needs
9. The impact of libraries and information services in shaping knowledge economies
10. The role of agricultural information services in socio-economic development

CONTACTS

Mr. Geoffrey F. Salanje
Chairperson
SCECSALXXI - Publicity and Publications Sub-Committee
C/o Bunda Campus
Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Science (LUANAR)
P.O Box 219
Lilongwe, MALAWI
Cell No: (265) (0)9 99 930 892
Tel No : (265) (0)1 11974112 (Office), (265) (0) 1 277308 (Home)
E-mail: gsalanje@bunda.luanar.mw or salanje@yahoo.com

Mr. Gray L. Nyali
Chairperson
SCECSAL XXI Main Organizing Committee
C/o National Library Services
P.O. Box 300134
Capital City
Lilongwe 3, MALAWI
Cell No. +265 (0) 999 955 880. Tel. +265 (0) 773 362
E-Mail. gnyali@hotmail.com

ABSTRACTS

• An abstract should be of approximately 500 words, Times New Roman Font 10; align left, but justify text under your abstract
• An abstract should have author (s) details (name, occupation, position, organisation, city, country, email address, fax number and mobile number)
• Title of conference paper (Times New Roman 14; sentence case; centre)
• Keywords: Maximum seven key words that closely identify key issues addressed in your Paper.

Those wishing to submit abstracts for consideration must consult the Author Guide to Submitting an Abstract and a Full Paper which also has the addresses where the abstracts should be sent.

IMPORTANT DATES

• Deadline for submission of  abstracts   - CLOSED
• Notification of acceptance of Abstracts  - 30th November, 2013
• Deadline for submission of complete papers - 29th March, 2014
• Notification of acceptance of paper   - 27th June, 2014

#HASHTAGS, TWEETS AND POSTS

• #Hashtag for tweets: #scecsal2014
• Other social media: scecsal2014

A Glimpse into the Future of Public Libraries in Africa

Books in a public library

Public libraries in most countries in Africa are top on the list of the most neglected public institutions. Most public libraries are under-funded, stocked with old and sometimes out-dated publications (the only latest publications being daily newspapers), lack access to modern information and communication technologies (ICTs), and their staff lag behind in current developments and techniques in information and knowledge management. With this type of profile, is there a future for public libraries in Africa?

Discussions at the first ever African Public Libraries Summit (APLS) 2012, held at Indaba Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa, 19–21 September 2012, revealed that while some public libraries are almost on stand still, others are making good progress by being innovative and adopting modern ICTs. A good case was presented from Botswana.


Ms Ruth B. Maphorisa

Ms. Ruth B. Maphorisa, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture, Botswana, shared the experience of her government’s Sesigo - Botswana e-Public Libraries project. Under the project, public libraries in the country are providing access to computers, computer training and internet access to Batswana. The libraries are also providing space for homework clubs, health talks,  lifeline youth meetings, unemployment workshops and training sessions, book reading clubs,  English learning sessions and talk shows involving professionals from different fields including health, education and social welfare. The project is being implemented by her Ministry in collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation through the African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP).

Ms. Magdeline Engleton

Ms. Magdeline Engleton, Senior Library Officer, Botswana National Library Service, based Molalatau Village Library, shared her experience in running and providing information and library services to rural communities. Her library engages with community members to identify their needs, and gets them involved in the Library activities. She is providing computer training, Internet services, and helping the youths in the community to search for jobs. These services, which are beyond the traditional public libraries’ services, are attracting community members to the Library.

Although external international organizations are involved in the working in the Sesigo - Botswana e-Public Libraries project, it was clear from the discussions that the success of the initiative is largely because of the Government’s commitment and support to public libraries. The Permanent Secretary participating in the entire three-day meeting, which focused on public libraries, is proof of this support.

What is the status of public libraries in other African countries? Do they have a future? Will they end up like the extinct dinosaur?

About 127 delegates attended APLS 2012 from 53 countries out of which 43 were African countries.

SCECSAL 2012: Post Conference Views

Uganda Library and Information Association members
Winners of SCECSAL 2012 Culltural Evening Performance

I commend Kenya Library Association (KLA) for a successful SCECSAL 2012 conference. The attendance at the conference was more than I had expected. About 330 delegates, including the largest airborne delegation of about 40 participants from Zambia, took part in the conference. About 78 papers were presented, and the quality of most presentations was very high. The conference venue (Laico Regency Hotel) was ideal, and of course, the food during lunch breaks was great. The conference registration fee (US$300), although some would say that it was relatively high, I think was ok considering the costs involved in organizing such conferences. Performances during the Cultural Evening, on 6 June, were outstanding.  Shame on Malawi Library Association (MALA) for refusing to perform. I hope MALA learned a lesson from the lone rangers from Nigeria, Norway and United Kingdom who put up excellent performances. Congratulations to Uganda Library and Information Association for winning the Cultural Evening trophy. I never knew that library and information professionals could double as traditional dancers until I watched the act from Uganda. They were original, well organized, and deserved to win. I suspected that Kenya Library Association tried to rig the competition. I could hardly recognize any of the dancers in the Kenyan group. Where were all the well-known library and information professional dancers from Kenya? Jacinta Were? Rosemary Gitachu? Joseph Kiplang’at? Constantine Nyamboga? Tirong arap Tanui? Peter Weche, although officially not part of the dancing group, did his best to support the dancing group by illegally dancing on the floor (and not on the designated dancing area). It was too late. Mmmmmmmmm! I enjoyed the evening. The music by Kayamba Africa was great.
The challenge is now for Malawi Library Association (MALA), designated host for SCECSAL 2014, to beat SCECSAL 2012. In my view, the areas requiring improvement, which MALA should look at, include the following:

•  Registration process: the registration process at SCECSAL 2012 could have been better. I am sure that some individuals took advantage of the seemingly uncoordinated process and participated in the conference without registering and paying the registration fee. It is advisable to commence onsite registration at least a day before the conference to carter for the early arrivals, especially participants coming from outside the country.
• Access to conference venue/meeting rooms: only registered participants with valid participant’s badges MUST be allowed to enter the meeting rooms. Free access to the conference rooms at SCECSAL 2012 contributed to the security breaches and loss of valuable items experienced during the conference.
• Conference papers: some paper presenters complained that their papers were not included in the publication containing the conference papers. I know how difficult it might have been for KLA to have all the papers submitted in time for the publication. Maybe in future the organizers should inform potential paper presenters/authors to submit papers by a certain date, if they are to be included in the publication. Inclusion in the publication of paper submitted after that date should be at the discretion of the SCECSAL host Association. Host Associations should also ensure that basic editing and layout of the papers to ensure uniformity and consistence is done. This is visibly missing from the SCECSAL 2012 publication.
• Author Awards: why is it that only Namibia (2000) and South Africa (2002) managed to organize SCECSAL Author Awards? The Author Awards page on the SCECSAL web site outlines clearly the guidelines for awards.  Shame on Uganda Library and Information Association (2004), Tanzania Library Association (2006), Zambia Library Association (2008), Botswana Library Association (2010) and Kenya Library Association (2012) for failing to organize the Author Awards competition!. Shame will also be on MALA if they fail to do so in 2014. As my Nigerian brothers and sisters would say: Chineke! God forbid.
• Minutes of the General Assembly: follow-up on the deliberations of the SCECSAL General Assembly is rather poor due to late distribution of the minutes of the meeting. Why should SCECSAL member Library Associations accept to distribute the minutes of the meeting two years after the meeting? Let  Article 5 (5.6) of the SCECSAL constitution guide the host associations on this matter.

Zambia Library Association members
Runners-up SCECSAL 2012 Culltural Evening Performance

For my last word, let me say that I felt sorry for my sister (Nomsa Mkwanazi) from Swaziland Library Association (SWALA) when she was presenting SWALA’s bid to host SCECSAL 2014. SWALA lost the bid to KLA in 2012 and I am assuming that they were on standby to host 2012 SCECSAL. If this was the case, then all that was required from SWALA was to follow the procedure outlined in Article 6 (6.6) of the SCECSAL Constitution, and SCECSAL 2014 would have been theirs to host. No bids would have been required. SWALA, pleaase, give it a thought for SCECSAL 2016.

Sounds from SCECSAL 2012 Cultural Evening

Uganda Library and Information Association - Winners SCECSAL 2012 Cultural Evening

Final Dance at SCECSAL 2012 Culltural Evening

At the Podium - SCECSAL 2012

Ellen Tise and Kay Raseroka - Past IFLA presidents at SCECSAl 2012

Kenya Library Association President Prof. Constantine M. Nyamboga

Prof. Joseph Kiplang'at

Dr. Justin Chisenga

SCECSAL 2012 Resolutions

John Tsebe
CEO - National Library of South Africa
moving a resolution on AfLIA

The  20th Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern Africa Library and Information Association (SCECSAL) meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, 4 – 8 June 2012, closed on Friday, 8 June with conference resolutions and a resolution on the Africa Federation of Library and Information Associations (AfLIA). The documents can be downloaded from the SCECSAL website:

• SCECSAL 2012 Resolutions
• SCECSAL Resolution on AfLIA

The SCECSAL 2014 conference will be hosted by the Malawi Library Association (MALA). The Association saw off a challenge from Swaziland Library Association (SWALA) and Uganda Library and Information Association (ULIA). SWALA will be on standby in case MALA fails to host the conference.