Participants of the Scoping Workshop on Palm Leaf Manuscripts, held in Colombo, Sri Lanka

On 6-7 July in Colombo, Sri Lanka, experts, librarians and holders of Palm Leaf Manuscript collections in South and South-East Asia met during an IFLA workshop, to discuss the problem of metadata and digitisation for PLMs in the region.

 A two-day workshop with 15 participants from around the region took its starting point in the discussion on the problems of preservation and accessibility encountered by the lack of a unified metadata standard to describe Palm Leaf Manuscripts (PLMs). The workshop gave a clear picture of the current situation, and as well concluded that PLMs are essential manuscripts in Asian countries, and must be preserved as cultural heritage.

Libraries and institutions play an essential role in preserving cultural heritage, and during the workshop it was strongly agreed that institutions and countries must join forces in order to develop standards for the two main functions of PLMs management: Preservation and Access.

The report from the scoping workshop aims to explain the challenges of PLMs managements, and sets out recommendations for implantation of coordinated regional work. Participants will continue to work together to deliver a metadata framework, as well as to explore other relevant issues.

​Read the full report for conclusions and recommendations of the workshop.