National Libraries Section
Strategic Plan
2007-2009
Mission
The IFLA National Libraries Section is a focal point for supporting the vital role of national libraries in society as custodians of the nations' intellectual heritage, thus providing organisation, access to and preservation of the national imprint in all media.
The Section aims at providing leadership in the areas of concern to national libraries, always in recognition of the needs and views of every region of the world. The Section's activities and goals underpin IFLA's three pillars, in particular: Society Pillar through its work in the World Summit for the Information Society (WSIS) and its support of national libraries world-wide; the Profession Pillar through its support and cooperation with the IFLA_CDNL Alliance for Bibliographic Standards (ICABS) and its professional practice and the Member Pillar through its information services (e-list, leaflets and newsletter).
A related but independent association is the Conference of Directors of National Libraries (CDNL) which was established to discuss policies and promote understanding and cooperation on matters of common interest to national libraries worldwide.
Goals
1. To promote the universal availability of information by such activities as encouraging the creation and building of national libraries, the development of national legislation for national libraries - especially legal deposit dispositions and preservation activities - and to promote the convergence of information and heritage institutions.
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society; (b) Defending the principle of freedom of information; (d) Providing unrestricted access to information; (e) Balancing the intellectual property rights of authors with the needs of users; (f) Promoting resource sharing; (g) Preserving our intellectual heritage.)
Actions
1.1 Organise a Session in collaboration with the AudioVisual and MultiMedia Section on legal deposit for audiovisual materials for Quebec 2008.
1.2 Work with the Bibliography Section on a proposal to assist African national libraries develop national bibliographies.
1.3 Work with colleagues in Division 1 to develop guidelines on 'twinning' with other libraries
1.4 Seek to develop a directory of national libraries on IFLANET
2. To serve as a forum to share and learn from the experience of the practical problems of national libraries, in order to promote benchmarking, best practices and quality models, and to improve management skills.
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society; (b) Defending the principle of freedom of information; (d) Providing unrestricted access to information; (f) Promoting resource sharing; (g) Preserving our intellectual heritage; (i) Promoting standards, guidelines and best practice.)
Actions
2.1 Organise a joint four-hour Session in Quebec 2008 with the Statistics and Evaluation Section on performance indicators, including a report on the new ISO standard for national libraries.
2.2 Support the work of the Cataloguing Section in promoting the new RDA cataloguing standard (Resource Description and Access) including promotion of an RDA satellite meeting prior to Quebec 2008
2.3 Support the work of the Preservation and Conservation Section including promoting attendance at a 2-day satellite meeting prior to Quebec 2008
2.4 Collaborate with the Bibliography Section on the development and promotion of Guidelines for electronic national bibliographies.
2.5 Publish the Newsletter of the National Libraries Section in electronic form twice a year.
2.6 Update the leaflet on the National Libraries Section and promote its translation into IFLA's official languages and its wide dissemination.
2.7 Take proactive measures to retain and recruit new members for the Section.
2.8 Maintain the nat-lib discussion list for all Section members and encourage discussion and information sharing through this channel.
2.9 Maintain the web page for the Section, ensuring it is updated with minutes, newsletters and any promotional leaflets describing the work of the Section.
3. To promote research in fields of interest to national libraries, always considering the opportunities to share experiences with other groups within IFLA and in close cooperation with CDNL, and to promote the development and implementation of standards.
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society; (b) Defending the principle of freedom of information; (d) Providing unrestricted access to information; (f) Promoting resource sharing; (g) Preserving our intellectual heritage; (h) Developing library professionals; (i) Promoting standards, guidelines and best practice.)
Actions
3.1 Support and cooperate with ICABS in their workplan regarding long-term archiving of electronic resources.
3.2 Encourage members to lobby within their countries in support of IFLA's efforts within the framework of the WSIS to promote the essential role of libraries in the Information Society and to help reduce the digital divide.
3.3 Work with the Chair of CDNL to align the agendas of both groups more closely and ensure the strategic directions of the Section complements the strategic directions of CDNL.
3.4 Work with CDNL to ensure that the Section's IFLA sessions reflect the needs and interests of both Section and CDNL members.
3.5 Support and cooperate with the World Digital Library and its Working Group on Digital Library Guidelines.
3.6 Support and cooperate with the proposed IFLA Special Interest Group on Digital Libraries.
