Second Iberoamerican Conference of National Heads of Public Libraries. Antigua, November 6'th to 8'th 2000

The aim of the conference was to continue work on the PICBIP (Iberoamerican Co-operation Programme on Public Libraries), which was set up following approval at the First Iberoamerican Meeting of National Heads of Public Libraries, held in Cartagena de Indias (Colombia) in November 1998.

Main objectives of the conference were to review the situation of the action and projects approved for implementation at the Cartagena meeting in 1998; to propose new initiatives; and to discuss and approve the operating rules of the Iberoamerican Forum of National Heads of Public Libraries.

Senior specialist and administrative heads on public library issues from 14 Iberoamerican countries took part: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Spain and Venezuela. The heads of the Central Library of the UNAM (Autonomous National University of Mexico) represented Mexico. The event was also attended by representatives of the IFLA, UNESCO, EDIBCIC (the Iberoamerican Association for Education and Research in Library Studies) and the CERLALC (the Regional Centre for the Promotion of Books in Latin America and the Caribbean).

The meeting agenda opened with a description of the running of the PICBIP action and projects selected as priorities by the executive committee of the Forum. Two reports complemented the programme on 6 November. The first was given by Assumpta Bailac, a member of the Standing Committee of the IFLA Public Libraries Section and director of Library Service of the Diputació de Barcelona (Provincial Council of Barcelona) (Spain). Bailac spoke on the presentation of the latest draft version of the "IFLA Guidelines for Public Libraries" and analysed the changes they introduce in comparison with the Guidelines for Public Libraries published in 1986. The day closed with the address given by Adelaida Nieto, director of the CERLALC, on "The Book: Cultural Diversity and Globalisation: Reading Together".

In the morning of 7 November, the operating rules of the Iberoamerican Forum of National Heads of Public Libraries were debated and approved. Next, María José Moura, Director of Library Services of the Portuguese Book and Library Institute, gave an address entitled "Public Libraries and Training for Life". During the course of the afternoon, conference delegates divided into two workgroups to analyse the projects currently in progress, to study whether they should be continued, and to put forward new initiatives around two proposed areas: information and communication; and training and skills/pilot projects.

The first group was co-ordinated by María Victoria Peni (Chile). The reporters in this group were: Alfonso Quintero (Venezuela); and Belén Martínez (Spain). The second group was co-ordinated by Maritza Turupial (Venezuela). The reporters in this second group were Olga Elizabeth Ledezma de Cuevas, (Panama), and Assumpta Bailac (Spain).

8 November began with a plenary session at which the partial and provisional conclusions of each of the workgroups were presented to the conference as a whole and discussed. The aim was to reach final conclusions agreed by all the conference delegates. Following this session, Isidro Fernández-Aballí, (UNESCO), presented a report on Latin America and the Caribbean within the framework of the UNESCO Communication, Information and IT Program.

In addition, given the cultural and social importance of public libraries, which make up the most extensive network of centre that provide access to information and culture for citizens in Iberoamerican, this Second Conference agreed to ask the SECIB (Iberoamerican Co-operation Secretariat) to present papers to the Iberoamerican Summit of Heads of State for recognition of the Iberoamerican Forum of National Heads of Public Libraries as a Iberoamerican Co-operation Summit Programme.

Lastly, the members of the PICBIP Executive Committee were appointed, as agreed at the Cartagena de Indias Conference and as stipulated in the operating rules of the Iberoamerican Forum of National Heads of Public Libraries, approved at this Conference. The assembly agreed to replace Mexico with Costa Rica, meaning that the Executive Committee for the coming two years will be made up of the following countries and organisations: Chile, Costa Rica, Spain, Portugal, Venezuela and CERLALC.

("Correo Bibliotecario" núm. 45 October - November 2000) January 2001