Government has installed digitalised libraries in all the ten provinces across the country in order to raise the reading and literacy levels in the country.
Education Minister, John Phiri, says the digitalisation was installed using e-granary in all provincial libraries, colleges and provincial resource centres.
Dr Phiri says the installation of e-granary was done with support from the Flemmish Association for Technical Cooperation and Development Assistance that was working closely with his ministry.
He disclosed that the same facilities will be installed in district resource centres and will be extended to the school libraries and tertiary institutions.
The minister said this in Mongu today when he launched the Library Week. The Library Week has begun today ends on Friday, October, ends on October 18 under the theme ‘libraries in a changing environment’ and various activities have been lined up for the week.
The e-granary facility enables one to have access to a wide range of electronic resources up to 50 million websites even where there is no internet connectivity.
Dr Phiri said in order to improve the operations of the libraries in the country, his ministry is working with the national library and information policy and school college library manual besides deploying qualified personnel, provision of modern books and rehabilitating dilapidated libraries in the country.
And speaking earlier, Mongu Chief Librarian, Mary Maamba, expressed hope that the reading culture among members of the public including school pupils, college and university students would now increase following the digitalised libraries at the provincial town.
Ms Maamba disclosed that readers who visit the library stand at 75 on a daily basis.
Library and Information Association of Zambia President, Velenasi Munsanje, appealed to government to come up with the legal framework to back library services in the country.
Ms Munsanje said her association has come up with a draft bill for on-ward consideration to Cabinet on regulating libraries.
The official launch of Library Week was attended by Western Province Permanent Secretary, Amos Malupenga, Provincial Education Officer, Muyangwa Kamutumwa, Mongu District Commissioner, Maurice Litula, senior government officials, school head teachers, pupils and students including parents and members of the community.
ZANIS
Only a well organised, focused government can do such. PF has for sure shown us that they can improve things in this country. You call them Kaponyas and yet, they can think of such projects? MMD failed to do this in their 20 years in power. PF has done it in 2 yrs. During MMD Libraries where reduced to Rat homes. Keep it up PF and Sata. Be assured of my vote come 2016.
PF is a party of failures who cannot amount to anything. This report about libraries is rubbish!! Meanwhile Sata and Kabimba are stealing through Ichalo Lunda company or whatever they call it. Kick these bums out of office please!!
Bravo GRZ, we need more of such developmental projects and bravo again for increasing funding to the Ministry of Education.
KWEKWE: GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT. PF IS BUILDING UPON WHAT UNIP & MMD STARTED. OF COURSE WHO EVER DELIVERS TO THE PEOPLE FIRST, GETS COMMENDED.
PF IS A GREAT PARTY WHICH DESERVES RESPECT BECAUSE ONE DAY WE ALL WOKE UP BELIEVING IN THEIR DREAMS AND VOTED THEM INTO POWER. THEY HAVE A LOT OF NEW IDEAS WHICH IS GOOD FOR OUR COUNTRY.
IN FACT PF WILL MAKE GREAT SUCCESSES, SHOULD THEY OVERCOME THE IN FIGHTING CURRENTLY GOING ON IN THE PARTY.
HOWEVER, PF MUST ALWAYS REFLECT ON WHAT UNIP & MMD DID, AND GIVE RECOGNITION WHERE IT IS DESERVED!! THIS IS GOOD FOR OUR GREAT COUNTRY.
Other Presidents were just showing how educated they were by talking of GDP, micro economy, MDGs, and other non profit making words.. Now the man of Action. Even Paving roads. did UNIP think of that?
Well done fellows i only hope this wont be dismantled within a year to be found at soweto market or that street connecting Chacha and cairo road for 10 kwacha!
The GRZ must build proper libraries not those mickey-mouse libraries currently in provincial centres and colleges. On the whole, the GRZ deserves a pat on the back for this installation. But the question is, why are the pictures showing hard copies of books and not the hardware and software of digitalised library? Do these people really know what a digitalised library is?
Good question. I was actually on my way to voicing that very same concern. We do not even know what this e-granary really is about or how it functions (reminds me of a grain store, if you ask me). Will BYODs be allowed? What mode of access does it have (especially, curiously, where there is no internet connection)? Either the reporting is poorly done (as is usual), or there just isn’t enough fact to go around.
Do a Google search. Or check out Wikipedia. “eGranary.” Over 700 installed worldwide. No Internet required. Works with any WiFi device and any browser. Nonprofit project. Users can make their own Web sites on the local server. Looks cool!
these are the tblogs you wont find those bloggers
DO IT PF, SHOW THEM YOU CAN MOTIVATE ZAMBIANS FOR THE BETTER FUTURE. EDUCATION IS THE KEY AND INFORMATION IS POWER
Good job! We (ABZ, HP, MMD, NAREP, UPND etc) should give credit when it is due.
Well done PF. No talk about this one, just getting on with the job. That is how to do politics. Work first and talk later. Do the same on all other developmental projects and you will get our admiration and support.
Let me see if we have this story on the ZWD.
Let see if the stories on ZWD will be reported here.
One of the best news items in a very long time! Access to current and timely information is very critical to national development, as information is the lifeblood of any organization. This is a great project!
I am very happy with this initiative. Reading the article, I thought I was dreaming. I had to pinch myself to believe. Thank you thank you thank you thank you government. I am jumping like a spring buck with this news of good tidings. Now late this information filter to schools and colleges and councils & govt. Departments that e-library facilities are available in the provinces. I am so happy about this. Lets also push for fibre optic roll-out to residential areas to ride on Zamtel or Zesco power routers to increase this facility. Dr. Phiri, mwaikata inchinto! Mwangwila nchito mudala.
This is a very good initiative and the government has to be thanked. Egranary is a 4tb box full of e-resources in different formats and can be accessed via a local network. A special browser has to be installed into a laptop/desktop or phone to enable patrons to access e-resources from the digital library called Egranary. Resources can be updated or added to the digital library
which government installed and yet its the donors..yaba..please give us a break..pas the library legislation and we shall respect you!
Do we have a public library in Mpika now? And in Kitwe is it still Kaunda Square and Buchi libraries only?
Very good news indeed. How is it going to work without Internet? And have they brought computers for this library . They need a lot of computers in every library
Ndeloleshafye – No words.
reading and literacy ?
Libraries! They are some of my favorite places. I’ve been hoping for some time for libraries to take off in Zambia so I can take the young one there. I wonder if they will have storytelling time and other activities for children. Libraries are great for everyone, maybe they can have adult education classes, too, like basic software and internet use. The libraries I go to in the U.S. always have people in them, always.