Libraries - vision and investment needed

It may come as a surprise to many that Malta has had (with few interruptions) a library service available to its population since the year 1776 - the year of American independence.

This remarkable fact which no doubt assisted the formation of a Maltese intelligentsia and the evolution of national consciousness, is, of course, clouded by the mists of the circumstances of those distant times (rampant illiteracy, censorship, a single state-owned printing press, difficult access to education), and of subsequent events (war, political turmoil, exchanges of sovereignty over the islands, economic deprivation, limited intellectual openings) to name a few.

It may well continue to surprise many to learn that hallowed Maltese personalities such as Agius De Soldanis, Sir Hannibal Scicluna, Dom Mauro Inguanez, Dun Karm Psaila, the national poet, Guzè Cassar Pullicino and Peter Serracino Inglott had at some time in their life worked as librarians - the first four in the Malta Public Library (now the National Library) and the latter two in the University Library.

Mr Cassar Pullicino was to head a tradition of professional librarianship in Malta, being the first Maltese back in the 1950s to obtain in Britain training and qualifications in this emerging profession.

Where are we today? Apart from a score or so who have had the opportunity to acquire a library and information studies (LIS) education overseas, around 150 Maltese persons have to date obtained a Diploma in LIS at the University of Malta which has set up regular courses in this area since 1993. The LIS Division within the university's Centre for Communication Technology currently offers both diploma and degree courses, and is educating a further 20 students in LIS and, for the first time in this country, around another 20 will be trained in Archive and Records Management.

The backing of a good number of libraries and library professionals has been invaluable for these developments to take place, and the support of the National Archives of Malta in initiating studies in the archives area should here likewise be recorded.

Meanwhile, at a time when information technology appears to reign supreme over all areas of life, the number of book titles annually published in Malta or about Malta has increased from 264 in 1983 to over 500 in 2000. Aided by the Schools Library Service, the number of libraries in schools is on the increase. The same can be said for those in further and higher education. Special libraries continue to sprout in all kinds of private entities and in government departments and state agencies. The central public library in Floriana acts as a hub to seven regional and 38 branches scattered throughout the islands.

The public library service, now in conjunction with a number of local councils, is charged with providing a modern and efficient information, reading, and leisure quality library service to the population at large, in all its diverse pursuits and interests. The National Library of Malta, on the other hand, is charged with building and conserving the nation's collection of Maltese publications for present and future generations, and with providing services of permanent value to the country's researchers.

So, why was the Malta Library and Information Association's Report On The State Of Maltese Libraries (2006) - edited by Robert Mizzi, Catherine C. Vella and Heather Brown - necessary, and what does it tell us?

To start with, MaLIA set out on a fact-finding mission - to establish accurate and reliable information on the state of things. For instance, is the rather rosy scenario of the preceding paragraph a true depiction of things as they are?

Secondly, the contents of the report should be of consequence to at least three categories of readers: a) the members of the library and information profession itself; b) the governmental authorities responsible for funding, resourcing, and developing state-of-the-art library and information services to the population of Malta at a time when a high standard of literacy, quality information, and dependable knowledge are crucial to economic survival; and, c) to the population at large which, in various pockets, forms (or should form) the user-groups of libraries and organised information both for its own sake and for the collective good.

It is worth noting that the report was written by seven different librarians all of whom have given worthy contributions to the field. It starts by setting out its objectives, methodologies, and clarifications. The main objective was precisely to obtain "a clear picture of the current situation" and "to help identify strengths and weaknesses". It then proceeds to investigate the National Library, and a stratified random sample of public, academic, school and special libraries, by means of visits and interviews, carried out between November 2004 and October 2005. The data thus collated is undeniably well researched, and the information, the most current to date.

So, what conclusions can be drawn from this study, clearly of national significance? The report itself makes a number of noteworthy ones connected with lack of standards and other problems which continue to hinder library (for which read, educational, social, and economic) development in this country.

It has always been my belief that neither the government, which ultimately funds most library services, nor the population which should benefit from them, really grasp what is being missed by the absence of a rich and well-managed library in any area of life. The report finds that this is the case, that is, that there is little or no vision of what libraries are and what their value to a developed, knowledgeable and well-informed individual, and therefore, to society, can be.

Consequently it was noted that the personnel in a number of locations lack the necessary knowledge and skills to provide those essential professional services. It was reported, however, that in the education sector, academic and school libraries are recruiting more qualified staff, a development that is of some comfort, and that clearly requires emulation in more areas of public life.

At a time when short-sighted individuals, including decision-makers, can be heard to loudly proclaim that, now that we have the internet, libraries have become an anachronism, it is a sobering reminder to read in the report that public and private organisations in Malta "have not yet grasped the importance of having proper information management", and that they furthermore "need to understand that the most valuable intangible asset is now information and having an internet connection is not enough".

Those who work in the field know how true this is since, however much we all love the internet, the evaluation methods, quality-control, and filtering processes built up over time in information-generation and knowledge building is not to be taken for granted in large chunks of internet documents.

In libraries, where the internet is part of the array of important information tools to be used intelligently, we have the opportunity to combine and synergise information and knowledge processes in an organised and systematic way. Content is thus the key to our activities, and not necessarily the technology used to deliver it.

Yet, whereas in Malta the technological infrastructure has justifiably been the target of substantial investment, the report finds that the opposite is true of libraries. Maybe this has happened because they are not perceived to be appealing when viewed with the myopic spectacles of short-term returns.

However, when we measure the embarrassing percentage within generations of Maltese entering both school and the workforce as illiterates, this is precisely an area where our country can be seen to be going in the wrong direction. Unfortunately, no literacy will be gained by the use of IT, however rewarding in other ways this may be to those school leavers who regrettably cannot fill in a simple form to register for employment.

Compare this to another report on libraries, carried out this time in the United States. There, libraries and librarians and the services offered by them are considered valuable by the two thirds of adults (around 135 million people) who visited and used them last year. Seventy per cent of Americans report being extremely or very satisfied with their public libraries and 85 per cent agree that their public libraries deserve more funding and, because they are not blinded by the technology that surrounds their lives, 92 per cent believe libraries will still be needed in the future. These findings may be accessed at www.ala.org/ala/ors/ reports/2006KRCReport.pdf.

As can be seen from the American experience, there is little doubt that the more developed a society becomes, libraries and library services that provide opportunities for sustained reading and lifelong learning turn out to be yet another issue affecting a mature electorate.

MaLIA has long championed the cause of professional library and information services in Malta, and it is with a certain amount of expectation that positive developments will ensue following the MaLIA Council's meeting with the Minister responsible for libraries. The agenda was precisely to address long-standing problems and issues affecting libraries and the citizens who use them.

Let us hope that the impetus provided by the findings in this report may yet provide an opportunity for a resource as self-evidently valuable as libraries to be the subject of continuing fruitful dialogue and progress between the responsible minister and the profession. Constructive discussion in this area can only benefit our evolving society.