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The Herald, 18 September 1985

LEGISLATION will soon be put before Parliament to enable the National Archives to pursue a more vigorous records management programme, the Minister of Home Affairs, Cde Enos Nkala said in Harare last night.

Opening the National Archives 50th anniversary exhibition at the National Gallery, Cde Nkala said the legislation would prevent the flight beyond the country’s borders of valuable historical records and make way for the legal deposit of a wider range of publications.

“Prototype automated systems are already being tested and when operational will enable the National Archives to achieve greater control over its vast documentary holdings while facilitating access to the masses of information held.

This was also intended to decentralise the archival service and provide archival facilities at provincial level and within the smaller urban centres.

The director of the National Archives, Mrs Angeline Kamba, thanked the National Gallery for mounting the exhibition, Historical Perspectives.

“We at National Archives responded with enthusiasm and excitement, more so as many of our art treasures are completely unknown to the public. The combined expertise of the two institutions has produced something which will be of topical interest.”

The director of the National Gallery, Prof Cyril Rogers, said his institution took it as a privilege to be associated with National Archives. “Both of us aim to serve the nation of Zimbabwe, the continent of Africa and the World beyond that.”

LESSONS FOR TODAY

The National Archives of Zimbabwe commemorates its 85th anniversary this year, under a very changed environment that has affected patronage by both local and international researchers due to the coronavirus pandemic global lockdowns. This has adversely effected the National Archives’ revenue collection, since it cannot only rely on funding from Government.

Dynamic changes in information and communication technologies also mean that the National Archives of Zimbabwe, the National Gallery of Zimbabwe and other information resource centres must ensure that they fully embrace digitisation, so that more clients can access their collections. This would also enable them to mount online exhibitions.

Digitisation requires huge capitalisation from both Government and the private sector.

Since the National Archives is governed by an Act of Parliament, they need to continually educate producers of their collections on why  it is important that they  deposit copies and/or items they produce with them: quantities and how often they should do it, and the benefits the producers derive. This includes electronic formats.