R.H.J. Egeter van Kuyk

Among this summer's more encouraging events has been the XIIth ESARBICA (1) Conference (and pre-conference seminar) that was held in Mangochi (Malawi), August 2-6, 1993. There were around 80 participants from Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, Republic of South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland and Namibia, with apologies from Uganda and Angola. The theme of the conference was "Private Archives"; the seminar concerned "Management of Audiovisual Archives", and had around 40 participants. It was coordinated by the representative of the International Council on Archives together with Mr. Everon Kloppers from Namibia and Mr Antonio Sopa from Mozambique.

The two meetings had at least one issue in common: private archives. The conference participants focused on archives made by important individuals, private (business) organisations and missionary societies. The seminar pointed out that private archives would only relate to the upper layers of (post) colonial society, and not touch the vast majority of the populace. Hence, to obtain a more complete view, it will be necessary to consider oral history and tradition as a complement to these private archives.

A lot seems to be happening in the Southern and Eastern African states. Among the developments that have come to our attention is the project of our colleagues from the Zimbabwe National Archives, who are studying how archive buildings may be constructed with a view to minimising energy and maintenance cost without sacrificing proper storage or access conditions. (2)

The increasing importance of audiovisual materials in the Eastern and Southern African region is evidenced by the implicit inclusion of audiovisual media in the Act on the National Archive System (Mozambique; Boletin da Republica, 26.10.1992), and by the explicit inclusion of such materials in Article 1 of the Archives Act (Namibia; Government Gazette, 18.06.1992).

Nevertheless, much remains to be done. ESARBICA has therefore established a Subcommittee on Audiovisual Archives. Its plan for immediate action 1993-1996 includes:
- promoting the creation of national groups
- carrying out a survey of the actual visual archiving in the region

ESARBICA's long term perspective concerns include:
- promoting regional and national training opportunities
- establishing a listing, per country, of audiovisual producers i.e. for copyright considerations
- establishing regional standards

The Subcommittee, rather than limit itself to general declarations of intent, is committed to collective activity. The Subcommittee is chaired by Mr. Everon Kloppers, of the National Archives of Namibia, PB 13250, Windhoek, Namibia.

NO2
For an important view concerning the storage problems of our region, see "The implications of implementing natural air-conditioning in the Southern African context" (Sandra Rowoldt, Cory Library for Historical Research, Grahamstown, RSA).

Les archives de cinéma privées dans les pays en voie de développement

Au mois d'août 1993 s'est tenu à Mangochi le XIIème congrès de la Southern Africa Regional Branch of the International Council of Archives (ESARBICA), ainsi qu'un séminaire.
Le congrès eut pour sujet de discussion principal le rôle joué par les archives privées pour la préservation du patrimoine cinématographique; le séminaire fut consacré au thème de la gestion des archives audiovisuelles.
Une sous-commission d'ESARBICA a été constituée pour accomplir d'ici 1996 les tâches suivantes:
* Encouragement de la création de groupes nationaux d'étude.
* Etude sur l'état de l'archivage de l'audiovisuel dans la région.
A plus long terme, l'ESARBICA prévoit:
* La tenue de stages de formation nationaux et régionaux.
* L'établissement et tenue à jour d'une liste de producteurs et d'ayants-droit dans le but de faciliter l'accès.
* La standardisation des normes techniques et de catalogage entre les pays de la région.
Informations: Mr. Everson Kloppers, National Archives of Namibia, P. B. 13250, Windhoek, Namibia.

Los archivos de cine privados en los países en vías de desarrollo

En el mes de agosto de 1993 se mantuvo en Mangochi el XII° congreso de la "Southern Africa Regional Branch of the International Council of Archives" (ESARBICA) y, adicionalmente, un seminairio.
El tema principal del congreso fué el del papel desempeñado por los archivos privados en la préservation del acervo cinematográfico. El seminario fué dedicado a la gestión de archivos audiovisuales.
Una sub-comisión de ESARBICA fué constituida para
llevar a cabo, hasta 1996, las siguientes tareas:
- Promover la creación de grupos nacionales de estudio.
- Llevar a cabo una encuesta sobre la situación de los archivos audiovisuales en la región.
A más largo plazo, la ESARBICA prevee:
- Organizar programas de entrenamient nacionales y regionales.
- Establecer y mantener al día listas de productores y propietarios de los derechos con el objeto de facilitar el acceso a los documentos.
- La estandardisación de las normas técnicas y de catalogación entre los países de la región.
Informaciones: Mr. Everson Kloppers, National Archives of Namibia, P. B. 13250, Windhoek, Namibia.