Moving Forward and Making a Difference in Archival Institutions Through a Multifaceted Approach to Public Programming

Abstract

Traditionally, archival institutions neglected building relationships with their constituencies and focused on other operational functions. There are number of strategies that can be used to build such relationships, including public programming. Effective public programming strategies depend on sound public programming planning, appropriate research strategies, and ethical principles. It is evident that attempts to build relationships between the archives and their constituencies are a recent phenomenon in Africa. In fact, it seems to be an afterthought both to practitioners and scholars. Building relationships with users will make memory institutions visible and successful. Public programming, with its focus on the public that the organisation serves, is one of the tools that may be used by memory institutions such as archives to bring the archives to the society and the society to the archives.

effect of converted buildings on the management of records and archives in the Eastern Cape Provincial Archives of South Africa

“…When scarce resources are allocated to direly needed infrastructure such as health, transport, water and sanitation, and security, the housing of archival materials may not be among the top priorities of some governments. For example, Ngulube (2018) states that lack of perceiving archives as valuable documents by the North West province in South Africa resulted in the conversion of a purpose-built archives structure into a call centre.…”

“…Experts, supported by legislation, regulations and a standard, guide organisations intending to adapt existing buildings or to erect new buildings for archives (McCausland 2013). In the developing world, there are countries that boast of purpose-built archival buildings (Abioye 2007;Bhebhe, Masuku & Ngulube 2013: 47;Murambiwa 2012;Netshakhuma 2019;Ngoepe & Keakopa 2011;Ngulube 2018). The advent of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and the resultant emergence of electronic records affect infrastructure and archival legislation for the records and archives management (Chigariro & Khumalo 2018;McCausland 2013;Netshakhuma 2019;Ngoepe & Keakopa 2011).…”