African/Arab Conference on Public and School Librarianship

Organised jointly by IFLA, UNESCO and the Rabat School of Information Science.

19 - 21 September 2001
Ecole des Sciences de l'Information
Rabat, Morocco

This conference is aimed at librarians and government representatives engaged with public and school libraries at a managerial and decision-making level, as well as educationalists from African and Arab countries. The conference will be open to participants from elsewhere.

Working languages will be English and French, with simultaneous interpretation. The fee for registration is US$100 per person, which includes all conference documentation, refreshments, lunches and conference dinner.

The main topics of the conference will be the latest developments in public and school libraries. Key elements are the promotion of various IFLA/UNESCO publications for those sectors: the Public and School Library Manifestos, the new Public Library Guidelines and the (draft) School Library Guidelines. The situation worldwide will be discussed with special reference to the situation in African and Arab countries. Speakers will therefore be drawn from local and regional librarians and educationalists as well as those involved in the work of the IFLA Sections.

The event is made possible thanks to generous support from UNESCO, the US National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) and the IFLA Programme for the Advancement of Librarianship (ALP). The Ecole des Sciences de l'Information in Rabat contributes its resources.

Programme

The preliminary programme includes:

• Wednesday 19 September 2001:
Presentation of relevant IFLA and UNESCO programmes. Presentation and discussion of manifestos and guidelines.
• Thursday 20 September 2001:
African public and school libraries: case studies, experience and best practice. Government policies. Projects IFLA Sections of Public and School Libraries.
• Friday 21 September 2001:
Lifelong learning. Bridging the digital divide. Planning for the future.
• Saturday 22 September 2001:
Social and cultural programme

Programme Committee:

* Sjoerd Koopman, IFLA Coordinator of Professional Activities, Chair
* Birgitta Sandell, Director IFLA/ALP Programme
* Jacinta Were, IFLA Africa Section
* Glenys Willars, IFLA Section of School Libraries and Resource Centres
* Philip Gill, IFLA Section of Public Libraries
* Mohamed Benjelloun, Director Ecole des Sciences de l'Information
* Aziz Abid, UNESCO Information Society Division

Registration

There is a limited capacity at the conference venue in Rabat. You can express your interest in participating in the Africa/Arab Public and School Library Conference by filling in your address details below and sending it to IFLA Headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands, before Friday 15 June 2001.

REGISTRATION

(Please send this form before June 15, 2001)

Name:	___________________________________________ [ ] Mr [ ] Ms
Position (please indicate function and level):	______________________________________________________
Institution:	______________________________________________________
Address:	______________________________________________________
Postal code and city:	______________________________________________________
Country:	______________________________________________________
E-mail:	________________________ _____________________________

Send these address details to:

After receipt of your request we will further inform you on registration procedures, hotel accommodation, programme etc.