Libraries
I attended (as an observer since I am not a member) the Harare City Library AGM on Monday, 30 January 2012. Nice place, but in an interesting way, quite bizarre!
Founded in 1902 as the Queen Victoria Library, in 1982 it became the Harare City Library. Now in 2012, it has 3658 adult and 518 children members, about 25 000 books (I have under 4000) and it only runs because the Zimbabwe Open University rents rooms. ZOU provides about two thirds of it’s operating budget. Are there only 4000 people out of Harare’s one million who can read, or are they all, like me, in possession of sizeable personal libraries? Or do they simply not know the library exists?
It is owned by a trust. Two trustees are the Harare Mayor, and the Master of the High Court. It is run by a Management Committee. Six members are elected
(committee members, elected by the library members). Three Members are appointed by the Minister (Youth, Sport and Education). One by the City of Harare. Charles Nyatsuro – who was living and working as a gardener, and was the MDC Harare Central chairman, when I was elected to City Council. He is now elected from Ward 2, was appointed, but has never attended a Library meeting. And I know he can read because he borrowed, and never returned, several books of mine. About twenty five people came to the meeting. The outgoing chairman was Petina Gappah – the novelist.
When they took over, there was no outgoing committee. No accounts. Big debts. There had not been a grant from the City of Harare since 2006 (but plenty of bills). So they put together a strategic plan, and got accounts done (the Committee Treasurer was an accountant). Sixty nine percent of their revenue is from ZOU. Thirty one percent from membership fees. Of their bills, 81 percent went to salaries, and they actually have no librarian (as in qualified) on staff. The man in charge, ‘acting’ is not qualified! Of other bills, they owe $6000 in telephone bills, $13 000 to ZESA, and over $30 000 to the City. Annual income projected to be about $75 000 (of which about 80 percent will be staff running costs!)
They, traditionally run a lending library. To outlying suburb libraries, which are all owned by the City of Harare, not the trust that owns the Central Library. But some of them are shut, the rest are in trouble, and there is no facility (vehicle, fuel, qualifications.) to run the lending side anymore. The Hatfield Library is a building. And the Junior Chamber International (JCI) is attempting to get it up and running again (once they get the City to plough through the bureaucracy).
But it all begs the questions – Why do people read? Why do people join the library? Why do people use the library? What kind of people use the library, and for what?
On the other hand, do people no longer read? And I KNOW that is not true. Is everything we do now on computer? Through the internet? Again, I KNOW that is not true. Almost no Zimbabweans (relatively speaking) have access to computers or the internet. What are the figures, if you have those you are in the top one percent of the world’s population, a very small elite.
And who are these people that keep this very valuable resource on it’s feet. After being run down and neglected by previous regimes (no accounts, no librarian!) they have, at the very least, put it on it’s feet. While it cannot function in many ways, at the very least we (they!) now know what is wrong and can plan what to do.
These questions need to be answered. Until we know the answers to these questions, it is difficult to rehabilitate the place. Rehabilitate it for what? To what? A bit like the pool (MacDonald Park, see a previous blog). What am I doing this for? Now that I have done it (or been involved in the doing of it), I am very pleased it has happened. The people use it. Want it. But there was every danger that I was working towards nothing.
Similar thoughts with the library (although I am not involved). What are they doing it for? Are books a thing of the past? Do people just want internet access, and can it provide as much, the same, as easy, as good. information, learning, education, advancement as books can? Do they need to provide both?
The big question – what do Zimbabwean’s want? And how do we make them stand up and tell us what they want? Come on Zimbabwe. Find your voice. Not as individuals (even if that is the start point) but as a nation. Tell us how to get ahead. Tell us how to plan. Tell us what to plan for.
Thursday, February 23rd 2012 at 8:40 am
I think internet and computer-device access is not in the top 1% of the world.
I know its not in the top 1% of Zimbabweans.
Internet access i think is above 20%.
Computer access maybe be low but then maybe its not computers people need or can use to read books.
Mobile devices like feature phones, tablets and ebook readers are an opportunity.
Mobile phones I’d put at around 50% of the population (actual mobile penetration, the count of active SIM cards is around 9.5 million now but most of that may just be multiple SIM owners)
Mobile devices that can take in a book in the form of a text file or pdf etc (feature phones and smartphones, are conservatively a little less than half of all those mobile phones. So maybe 20% of Zim’s population?
Smartphones can be bought for under $150 now. Feature phones are around $60.
These mobile devices can be used by readers to download and read the books they want.
The downloads can be from the internet or someone physically going to a library and pluggin their device into some source.
I think libraries in the traditional sense of long shelves of books may be going out and we need to start thinking about enabling readers to use devices to read.
The library for example can have its own computers that readers come to use.
Library can also have its collection of ebooks that they sell, rent out or give away for free.
The library as an environment for reading can now also be emphasized more so people can come with their devices there.