   
Regional Activities: Asia and OceaniaAnnual Report 2001Standing Committee MembersSTANDING COMMITTEE 1999/2001 Special Advisers 1999/2001 Corresponding members 1999/2001 Ex-Officio 1999/2001 STANDING COMMITTEE 2001/2003 Special Advisers 2001/2003 Ex-Officio 2001/2003 MeetingsThe Standing Committee held two meetings during the period covered by the report. Mid-Conference Meeting, Penang, Malaysia, 7 - 9 March 2001 The mid-Conference meeting was hosted by Universiti Sains Malaysia Library and was attended by the following members and representatives. Ms. Amelia McKenzie, Ms. Rashidah Begum bt. Fazal Mohamed, Russell Bowden, Ms. Khunying Maenmas Chavalit, Gary Gorman, Abbas Hori , Ms. Thara Kanakamani, Jayasiri Langkage, MsHilda Nassar, P.E. Harrison Perera, Ms. Sun Liping, Shawky M.A.Salem, Ms. Maria Lao Sunthara, Ms. Pensri Guaysuwan , and Ms. Gunilla Natvig from the Advancement of Librarianship Programme(ALP). Ms. Aree Chuenwattana, Thailand, attended as an observer. The attendance was very encouraging and and there was very fruitful discussion on several matters. These included the Division 8 organisational structure, selection of receipients for the DANIDA grants, the ALP scholarships in information technology and the ALP in service training/attachments awards. There were more than 200 applications for these grants and awards. The Committee discussed and approved several new project proposals. The program for the Boston Conference was finalised Members were also asked to start thinking about the Section's action plans for the future using the IFLA's professional priorities as a base. The Committee took this opportunity to introduce IFLA to the Malaysian Library community. A Seminar on the Digital Challenge in Libraries was held on 9 March. This Seminar was organised by the RSCAO and the Library Universiti Sains Malaysia in co-operation the Penang State Library and the Persatuan Pustakawan Malaysia(Librarians Association of Malaysia).The following papers were presented:
Meetings at 67th IFLA Council and General Conference, Boston, 16 - 25 August 2001 The Meetings were attended by: More than 30 other IFLA participants from the United States of America, Europe and several Asia/Oceania countries attended the meetings as observers. The rescheduling of the Regional Sections meetings so that they did not coincide with the Sections that are concerned with different types of libraries and library activities allowed greater participation in the Section's meetings. The main agenda for the Boston meeting was planning the 2001/2003 Strategic Plan for the Section and the actions and activities to make the Strategic Plan a success. The new Committtee also began its term of office during this meeting. The Chairs and Secretaries of the old and new Committees also attended the Coordinating Board of Division 8 meetings. Ms. Rashidah Begum was elected Chair of the Coordinating Board for 2001/2003 and as Chair of the Division she is member of the IFLA Professional Committee, IFLA Governing Board and the Chair of the ALP Advisory Board. She attended the IFLA Professional Committee meeting in the Hague in December 2001. The Strategic Plan of the Section and the further integration of the Section and Division with the activities of the other sections of IFLA were discussed during this meeting. Pprojects 2001The focus of the projects during this period was on education and training of library and information professionals in the region as a means of improving their knowledge, and competencies. Three(3) library and information professionals from Myanmar, India and Sri Lanka received the ALP scholarships in information technology while 3 others from Myanmar, Philippines and Bangladesh received grants to attend one month in service training/ attachments at advanced libraries in the Asia Oceania region. The Committee had lengthy discussions on training facilities and needs of these groups and is was decided alternative venues be explored. The ALP sponsored International Conference for Library and Information Science Educators in Asia Pacific (ICLISE), 2001 was held in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, 11 - 12 June 2001. ICLISE 2001 played an important role in bringing together LIS educators from all over the Asia Pacific Region. Twenty-two papers were presented by speakers from Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Taiwan R.O.C., Pakistan, Iran, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Kuwait, India and Nepal. There were nearly 80 participants, many of whom met for the first time at the Conference. An ongoing protal http://www.iiu.edu.my/iclise has been developed. A workshop on library and information science curriculum in the Arab countries to be held in 2002 is also the result of contacts made at this conference. A training Workshop on Information Technology and Preservation Awareness Raising for Library and Information Paraprofessionals in the South pacific Region was held at the University of South Pacific, Fiji, 29 October - 2 November 2001. It was attended by 19 paraprofessional and operational staff from libraries in 10 Pacific island countries and members of the Fiji Library Association. Training materials that were used have proved to be useful as in-house reference materials subsequent to the Workshop and are being usedby participants to develop the services further. 67th IFLA General Conference and Council, Programme, Boston, 16-25 August 2001The following presentaions were made during the Division's Open Forum, Section's Open Session and the Section's Workshop 1. Division of Regional Activities - Open Forum (with simultaneous translation) Bridging the Digital Divide: Meeting the Challenge of the Knowledge age in Developing Countries
2. Asia and Oceania Section - Open Session (with simultaneous translation) Bridging the digital divide in Asia and Oceania
3. Asia and Oceania Workshop 'Small is Beautiful: Creative Strategies for Library Development'
MembershipThe Section with 345 members has the third largest membership of all IFLA's Sections.Relationships with other BodiesRSCAO members have regularly been in contact with other Sections throughout the year contributing individually or as a group to their activities. The Section also continued to work closely with ALP in the selection and evaluation of projects and activities.ConclusionThe Section's activities for 2001 have met its objectives to initiate, promote and facilitate the development of libraries and information services and library professionals in the region. It has provided opportunities for training in library and information management skills. Through its Seminars and Conferences it has been able to share the work of IFLA and the wide variety of activities carried out by its 28 Sections with librarians from the Asia Oceania region. The rescheduling of the Section's meetings during the IFLA Conference to Sunday had a very positive impact as it has led to greater interaction between librarians from the region and librarians and information professionals from other parts of the world. Throughout 2001 the activities of the Section have touched and benefited more than 500 library and information professionals from the region. Their eagerness to be part of the activities of our Committee is a strengh we will build on and expand as we face the challenges of the years ahead. Report prepared by:
| |||
 |
|||
|
| |||
|
|
Copyright ©
www.ifla.org | ||