Celebrating International Archives Day: June 9th 2015

Venue:                                                            UB Library Ground Floor

Time:                                                              09:00 – 15:00hrs

Preface:

The University of Botswana Library-Special Collections Unit joined the world in celebrating the International Archives Day on the 9^th of June 2015. This was for the first time in history the University Library Special Collection Unit participated in the commemoration of archives, their value and promoting them / their use. The 9^th of June has been launched by the International Council on Archives on its General Annual meeting in November 2007 as the International Archives Day. June 9^th is considered the birthday of archives as it is on the 9^th June 1948 that the International Council on Archives was established under the auspices of UNESCO.

To commemorate this day, the UB Library Special Collections Unit adopted the theme: Your Archives, Your Legacy, Your Heritage. Through this theme, the Unit presented a stall to the public in the Ground floor of the Library building to show case its rich collection of audiovisual and print archives, artefacts and manuscripts.  The stall presentation comprised of the following archival items:

·         Personal archives acquired from the aristocracy.

·         Manuscripts of researches by founding professors of Local History, Cultures and Languages of the marginalised groups in Botswana.

·         University of Botswana campus aerial photographs

·         Photographs capturing University of Botswana student lives and activities

·         Artefacts

·         Audiovisuals of music

·         Arts manuscripts

·         Africana collection-books, manuscripts and notes of African origins

Additionally, the archivists used this commemoration to raise awareness to the public on:

·         The importance of records and archives as the foundation for human rights and identity.

·         The unique and extraordinarily rare documents preserved by the UB-Library Special Collections Unit especially on local and international content on  culture, oral traditions, indigenous knowledge, laws, evolution of economic activities to mention a few.

·         The significance of records and archives as primary sources of  both academic and personal research not only to historians but all inter-disciplinary inquiries

·         Improve and enhance the perceptions, image and visibility of archives and access to these.

Staff from the Special Collection Unit of the UB-Library presented to the public both orally and through a power-point depicting the content of the Special Collections holdings. The public was also given an opportunity to give feedback on the stall, holdings and services offered by the Special Collection Unit.