Prof M Nkondo: Chair of the National Library Board

On behalf of the National Council for Library and Information Services (NCLIS)

LIS

TRANSFORMATION

CHARTER

PRESENTATION TO THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON

EDUCATION AND RECREATION

16th FEBRUARY 2011

Outline

• Background

• Scope and purpose of the Charter

• Analytical Framework

• Methodology

• Challenges and Interventions

- National Norms and Standards

- Governance

- Education and Training: Investing in People

- Protect the most vulnerable: People with Disabilities

- Access and Participation

- Culture of Reading and the Transformation of National Culture

- How to ensure effective implementation

Background

In April 2008, the National Council for

Library and Information Services (NCLIS), in

consultation with the Department of Arts and

Culture (DAC), brought together seven people

to form the Library and Information Services

Transformation Charter Technical Team.

Scope and Purpose of the Charter

Our assignment was to• Define the challenges facing the sector• and to provide a framework for effecting the

changes for the sector to contribute to- the elimination of illiteracy- eradication of inequality in the sector- promotion of social cohesion- and building an informed and reading nation.

Stakeholder consultation

• Briefings held in 9 Provinces, May to July 2008 • Minister briefed SALGA Executive Committee, Nelspruit,

2008 • Presentations at the LIASA Conference, Cape Town, October

2008 • National Summit, Pretoria, 5 December 2008 • Briefing of National Council for Library and Information

Services, 27 January 2009 • Briefing of Minister of Arts and Culture• Briefing of Minister of Education, 16 February 09• Briefing of MINMEC, February 2009 • Briefing of Portfolio Committee, 2 June 2010

Analytical Framework

Together the twelve chapters lay out a structure of practical

reasoning to guide librarians, managers of educational

institutions and public officials; specifically on what they

should think and do.

To exploit the particular circumstances they find themselves

in to enhance the public value of libraries.

To achieve this purpose, the Charter develops several

different kinds of ideas.

Analytical Framework (continued)

• First, it sets out an idea of what citizens should expect of librarians and public officials involved in the sector, the political, professional and ethical responsibilities they assume in taking office, and what constitutes success in the execution of their work.

• Second, it sets out, in broad outline, an analytical framework to guide librarians and managers of educational institutions in analyzing the situations in which they operate and assessing the potential for effective action.

• Third, the Charter identifies particular kinds of interventions they can make to exploit the potential of their political and institutional settings for enhancing efficiency and effectiveness.

Methodology

The Charter is grounded in the context of the SouthAfrican government in the last fifteen years.It is based on,• extensive public consultations in each of the

nine provinces,• interviews with scholars and practitioners,• as well as on available academic literature that is

relevant to understanding the context, purposesand methods of librarians and managers of educational institutions.

Challenges and Interventions

The Charter calls for institutional reform

and changes in how librarians and

managers of educational institutions

should do their work.

Challenges and Interventions (continued)

• National Norms and Standards• Governance• Education and Training: investing in people• Protect the most vulnerable: people with

disabilities• Access and Participation• Culture of reading and the Transformation of

National Culture• How to ensure effective implementation

Challenges and Interventions (continued)

a. National Norms and StandardsAt the core of the transformation challenges is the lack of national policy on norms and standards

b. GovernanceKey to the governance challenges are overlapping mandates and the lack of capacity to transform the sector in line with the Bill of Rights and applicable national policies. In this regard, legislation has to be reviewed to eliminate overlaps and confusion at the point of implementation.

Challenges and Interventions (cont.)c. Education and Training: Investing in People

The future of the sector lies in its human resources. Indeed, the sector must solve its training, recruitment and retention crisis if it is to contribute to national development and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals

The South African curriculum –in its ethos and its pedagogies – cannot be delivered without access to well-managed collections of learning resources

d. Protect the most vulnerable: People with Disabilities

Government should enforce the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in terms of which the sector should develop a rights and inclusion policy framework.

Challenges and Interventions (cont.)

e. Access and ParticipationAs part of a wider set of measures to achieve equality and justice, the sector must ensure free and easy access for all to Library and Information Services.

f. Culture of Reading and Transformation of National CultureTo develop a culture of reading, steps should be taken to mobilize TV and other forms of mass media in the campaign to resocialize all South Africans, especially children and the youth, within the framework of values provided by the Constitution and the White Paper on Batho Pele.

The other memory institutions, Archives and Museums, should be advised to develop their own charters.

Challenges and Interventions (cont.)

g. How to ensure effective implementation• If the sector is to take responsibility for its own

development, as it should, the Library and Information Association of South Africa and the National Council for Library and Information Services must be given greater authority on issues that concern them.

• Adequate funding must be provided.• An independent monitoring and evaluation system

must be established to make sure this happens.

ThankThankYouYou

NCLIS vision -“Towards the best informed nation”