AFRICANA LIBRARIES

NEWSLETTER

No. 104, Nov 2000/Feb 2001 ISSN 0148-7868

ALC MEETINGS...

FALL 2000

In November, Africana librarians met for their fall conference at the annual meeting of the African Studies Association in Nashville, Tennessee. For two days, the librarians had a busy agenda discussing cooperative projects in meetings of the Bibliography, Cataloging, and Book Donations Committees, as well as in various working groups and CAMP meetings. Minutes of some of the meetings are printed in this newsletter and will soon be at

http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/amed/6minutes.html

The Africana Librarians Council extends its heartfelt thanks to the outgoing ALC chair, Ruby Bell-Gam (UCLA), for all the fine work she has done on behalf of the ALC and its members during the past year.

The new ALC chair for the year 2001 is Jill Young Coelho (Widener Library, Harvard University).

NEWLY ELECTED ALC OFFICERS

Several new ALC officers were elected at the Nashville conference. They are:

Vice Chair/Chair Elect - Greg Finnegan, Associate Librarian for Public Services and Head of Reference, Tozzer Library, Harvard University

Member at Large - Loumona Petroff, Africana Cataloger, Boston University

Secretary - Bob Lesh, Africana Cataloger, Northwestern University

Chair of the Book Donations Committee - Deborah LaFond, Bibliographer for Social Sciences at SUNY at Albany

SPRING 2001

Indiana University in Bloomington is happy to welcome the Africana Librarians Council for its upcoming spring meeting, April 26-28, 2001.

* Register for the conference

A conference registration form, as well as information on accommodations and transportation, can be found on the web site of Indiana University's African Studies Collection at

http://www.indiana.edu/~libsalc/african/alc/index.html

* Make your hotel reservations

A block of 25 rooms is being held at the Indiana Memorial Union (IMU) Hotel, and we encourage conference attendees to call early for reservations. Be sure to mention the "Africana Librarians Council" when making your reservations! For rates and room reservations, contact the Indiana Memorial Union Hotel at 800-209-8145 or at

http://www.imu.indiana.edu/imurates.html

Have a safe trip to Bloomington! See you there!

This is the first article in a new series to highlight important Africana collections in Europe.

Our German colleague, Irmtraud D. Wolcke-Renk, submits this profile of her collection for our ALC readers.

Africa South of the Sahara at the University Library, Frankfurt/Main.

The subject "Africa South of the Sahara" is of special significance for the Stadt- und Universitätsbibliothek in Frankfurt am Main, being one of our special collections sponsored by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Society).

Frankfurt has had an Africa collection with a distinguished tradition even before the establishment of the special collections program. The origins of the Oriental and African collection in the former municipal library go back to a donation by the founder of Ethiopian Studies, Job Ludolf (1624-1704), who with his papers on the language of the Hottentots was also one of the first to explore African linguistics. A valuable collection of Ethiopian manuscripts was bequeathed to the library by the natural scientist Eduard Rüppell (1794-1884).

The material on Africa was then kept up-to-date by the acquisition of contemporary expedition and research reports. With the Addition of the "Bibliothek der Deutschen Kolonialgesellschaft" (Library of the German Colonial Society) in 1960 the scope of the collection was finally extended to include all related areas. These valuable original holdings (about 20,000 monographs as well as a great number of colonial periodicals) were enough reason to continue and intensify the ad hoc acquisition of African literature. The designation of this area as special collection no. 6,31, "Africa South of the Sahara", by the German Research Society in 1964 obliges the library to acquire German as well as foreign literature as comprehensively as possible. Geographically, this area covers Africa south of the Sahara; the subject matter covers all fields, with the exception of modern economics, law, medicine and natural sciences.

The present holdings are constantly being enlarged. In addition, we attempt to acquire as completely as possible all available research literature from Europe and Overseas, as well as material directly from Africa. The Africa collection has grown to over 100,000 volumes. Before World War II, we collected literature covering the entire African continent; since World War II, the emphasis has shifted to Africa south of the Sahara.

We consider it our duty to make our holdings known to the public: The titles can be searched in the OPAC (Internet catalogue) under http://webopac.server.uni-frankfurt.de

The Picture Archive of the German Colonial Society.

The University Library in Frankfurt / Main (Stadt- und Universitätsbibliothek Frankfurt am Main - StUB Ffm) owns the library and the picture archive of the German Colonial Society. The photographic archive totals some 50,000 pictures. It provides information on almost any topic, concentrating, of course, on the German colonies. The main emphasis in the picture archive is on expedition and scientific trips, geology and mining, vegetation and agriculture, countryside and animal studies, the settlement of local people and colonial servants, schools and missions, traditional commerce and transport as well as introduction of modern means of transport (docks, railways, roads), local and European architecture, the military and administration.

The regional parts documented are: German East Africa, now Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi; German Southwest Africa, now Namibia;. Kamerun; Togo; Kaiser Wilhelmsland/Bismarck-Archipel, now Papua New Guinea; Karolinen und Marianen, now Federation of Micronesia; Marshall Islands; Nauru; Palau; West-Samoa; Kiautschou, now People´s Republic of China. Furthermore, the German settlements in Latin America and Australia are documented and some pictures from English, French and Portuguese colonies exist too.

The pictures have suffered from long storage and ageing. Each time the original plates are used and handled they are at extreme risk of further damage. To preserve this historical photographic material it was necessary to secure its contents. The archive was filmed and then digitized. The picture archive is currently being indexed. About half of the 50,000 pictures are accessible in the internet under http://www.stub.bildarchiv-dkg.uni-frankfurt.de

In order to reduce the picture data to a minimum and to achieve a rapid loading time in the network, picture compression is carried out according to the JPEG technique. With this type of compression some loss of information within some of the pictures is to be expected, but as these pictures are only used for browsing purposes, the quality is sufficient. The pictures can be easily recognised on the screen with a resolution of 72 dpi. This resolution is not sufficient for a high quality printing, thus preventing illegal commercial use.

The internet presentation of our database uses a colour system to guide the user through each section. Yellow gives information on the German Colonial Society, Red on the Picture archive, Blue on the project sponsored by the German Research Council (here you will find several essays produced by our team), while Green brings you to the searching section. You may click either the text or on the specific part of the stamp. Besides that you have the possibility of writing to us.

Searching according to various criteria leads the user to individual data sets initiated by a table of results. In the data set display the photo can be shown to the full size of the screen. Lack of information for some pictures means that data cannot be coordinated. An additional input mask enables the user to interact and submit additions and/or alterations to the picture information and, after verification, these may be added to the database.

To enable a precise search, a thesaurus is linked to the individual search fields in the search mask. These can be called up by pressing the question mark in the button bar. A region can be selected independently of the thesaurus via a sensitive map which is activated by pressing K in the button bar. The starting point is a map of the World from 1914. In two zoom clicks the user can now search the specific countries.

Despite all this, our database is still under construction. At present, the list of code words in our database is only in German - but we have started to translate into English. An introduction in English on how to use the database is given in our home page (click "Einführung" (introduction) at lower left corner).

Pictures can be printed from the internet free of charge, but downloading is not very effective because the images are compressed in jpeg-format. Of course, you are requested to quote the code number and refer to our institution when publishing. Please note that we are only able to help you with your enquiries about a particular picture when you give the code number as your reference.

The original pictures are protected and not available for public use. Safety film measures and subsequent transfer to photo-CD with high resolution gives a satisfying result for almost any use. Prints in the quality of photos and high resolution digitized images can be ordered against payment.

We hope you enjoy your visit in our database http://www.stub.bildarchiv-dkg.uni-frankfurt.de

All our e-mail addresses can be found in our homepage when you click "Impressum".

ALC NEWS

African Newspapers Union List Project

A project meeting for the African Newspapers Union List was held on November 15, 2000 in Nashville during the annual meeting of the African Studies Association. Project members discussed the most recent developments in the creation of the online union list, which became live and interactive in the late summer with only Center for Research Libraries (CRL) holdings listed. In the early fall, data from the most recent issue of the print compilation "African Newspapers Currently Received by American Libraries" was added. The major topics of discussion at the Nashville meeting were analysis of the existing interface, accuracy of the data and search process and planning for member input of all holdings current and retrospective. The URL is http://wwwcrl.uchicago.edu/info/camp/afrinul.htm

-David L. Easterbrook

George and Mary LeCron Foster Curator

Melville J. Herskovits Library of African Studies

Northwestern University

2001 Africana Librarians Council Panel

The working title of an ALC panel for the 2001 African Studies Association (ASA) meeting is "The Electronic Measure of Africa: Issues in Electronic Resources for African Studies." The emphasis will be on quantitative data sets and geographic information systems (GIS) information, as such resources are becoming available to the disciplines and research issues in African Studies.

Several facets emerged in discussion in Nashville in the ALC Business Meeting and the 2nd Executive which followed: 1) Harmonizing census data catego-ries and definitions across national boundaries, to facilitate regional analysis and policy. Such an effort is underway in southern Africa. 2) Delivering census microdata to African agencies. 3) The University of California at Berkeley's electronic cultural atlas project. 4) With respect to another sort of electronic resource, audiotapes of the highly significant Voice of America interviews with African political, literary, and arts figures over the decades have been deposited with the University of California. This required congressional approval, insofar as USIA is barred by statute from disseminating its material within the USA. Both the legal complications of this resource and the informa-tion access complications of such a large non-print collection will be of interest to Africanists, not least librarians.

The timeliness of the topic is underscored by the post-Nashville announcement of a trial program for online access to the United Nations common statistical database, in which the University of Pennsylvania, at least, among ALC member institutions, will participate. The 4 topics or resources mentioned above are far from the only ones that may be included in the panel. The desertification atlas jointly produced by the US Geological Survey and USAID is another such product, as is the World Bank's African Development Indicators.

As the deadline for submission to ASA will be before the spring meeting in Bloomington, Indiana, the program planning group will further develop the program, with the electronic advice and consent of the Executive, in time to meet the March date with ASA in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Suggestions from others in ALC are always welcome as well. Strictly speaking, with respect to ALC Program approval procedures, what we're referring to as a panel will be submitted as a "round table," to ease the paperwork requirements.

-Greg Finnegan, ALC Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect

ASA-Funded Library Materials Donation Projects

The ASA makes available at least $3000 annually to assist groups with shipping costs for book donations to African libraries and schools. The Committee generally provides grants in amounts from $200 to $1000. Those applying for partial funding of a project should clearly show how additional funding will be solicited. The grants are intended to encourage innovative projects that incorporate essential elements, including:

1. Recipient participation

Ideally all book donation programs will be part of a broader academic liaison between institutions in Africa and the US. While large scale donations of container-loads of books can be effective, the ASA is trying to fill a perceived gap by increasing the number of small to medium-sized projects that focus on specific, articulated needs.

2. High quality materials

While books need not be new, they should be in good condition and relevant to the recipient's needs. Books can be procured from libraries' duplicates, personal libraries, books stores, students and publishers.

3. Attention to details of logistics

The project plan should include a place to store books as they are being collected, a means of reviewing the books for physical quality and relevance to the recipient's request, materials and staff for packing, a means of shipping to Africa, and all necessary paperwork for customs and shipping. The ASA cannot offer any services in arranging shipping or other logistics. Our role is to supply funding to the extent possible.

Applications for Funding

1. Project description

Send a 1-3 page description covering:

*the recipient and relationship to donor

*the materials requested (specific titles or subject areas)

*the number of books, and means of obtaining them

*shipping and other logistical plans

*status of the project----is it already underway, or just in the idea stage?

*who will administer the project? Who is the liaison in Africa?

2. Budget

*What are total costs of the project?

*How much is the request to the ASA?

*How will ASA funds be used?

*For partial funding requests, how will other funds be solicited?

3. Deadline

Applications are due in the ASA Secretariat, Rutgers University, Douglas Campus, 132 George St., New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1400 no later than July 1, 2001.

A report on the project and brief summary for ASA News are required at the project's completion.

For more information on Book Donation Programs, see http://www.albany.edu/~dlafonde/Global/bookdonation.htm

Africana Librarians Council, Book Donation Committee page

http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/amed/bkdncte.html

African Studies Association Book Donation Awards for 2000

1. $525 for the University of Virginia and University of the Western Cape, South Africa. This is a project to send materials to the new library of the UWC Anthropology/Sociology Departments. This is a sound project that meets all our criteria. The donor and recipient are both deeply committed and 11 boxes of high quality books await transit. The selection process seems appropriate and we note that 4 boxes of materials have been rejected as out-of-scope.

2. $120 for the University of Puget Sound and School of Occupational Therapy in Moshi, Tanzania. This is a grassroots project that is likely to have immediate and direct impact. The logistics are clear, there is ongoing liaison, and there is a precise selection of material.

3. $500 for the Friends of Malawi West Coast Book Project in Portland, Oregon for primary schools in Malawi. This tax-exempt organization has an excellent track record over the past 6 years. The organization has a working mechanism to identify appropriate schools. They have the logistics well worked out, and they have a careful book selection process.

Partial funding was received for the following two projects:

4. $927.50 for the Books for Africa project at Rutgers University and the Kakapel village library in Teso District in Western Kenya. This NGO has a long-term goal of establishing rural libraries in Kenya, one at a time. They have already collected 14,000 books, and have started educational programs at the Kakapel community center.

5. $927.50 for Cultural Survival in Cambridge, MA and a Maasai educational center in Narok, Kenya. Cultural Survival is an NGO established in 1972 to defend the rights of indigenous people and ethnic minorities. They have already collected more than 20 boxes of selected high quality materials. The library will serve the needs of 4 high schools, a teacher's college, and the community as a whole. The shipping logistics are in place and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has provided an air ticket for a U.S. volunteer to help set up the library.

Finally, the Committee has received two late inquiries for projects that are potentially fundable next year. We would like to encourage both to submit full proposals for the next cycle. These are from:

Cristi Benefield, Peace Corps volunteer in Sekhukhune, Northern Province, South Africa for 4 school libraries.

Patricia A. Vail, wife of the late Professor Leroy Vail of Harvard University, to ship Prof. Vail's books to Chancellor College Library at the University of Malawi.

Written by Alfred Kagan

Chair, ASA Book Donations Task Force 1999-2000

African Studies Bibliographer and Professor of Library Administration

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

The African Studies Association Presents the 2000 Conover-Porter Book Prize

PRESS RELEASE

Encyclopedia of Africa South of the Sahara, John Middleton, editor in chief, has been named winner of the 2000 Conover-Porter Book Prize.

The prize is awarded every two years during the annual meeting of the African Studies Association, held recently in Nashville, Tennessee, November 16-19, 2000. Established in 1980 to honor outstanding publications in Africana bibliography and reference, the prestigious award is named after two pioneers in African studies librarianship, Helen F. Conover and Dorothy B. Porter, who served in long and distinguished careers at the Library of Congress and Howard University, respectively. Award winners are selected every two years by the Africana Librarians Council of the ASA. The 2000 award is the eleventh since the inception of the book prize.

CONOVER-PORTER AWARD WINNER

Encyclopedia of Africa South of the Sahara. John Middleton, editor in chief. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1997. 4 vols.

The four-volume Encyclopedia of Africa South of the Sahara is an impressive work, unique in its coverage of its target region through a wide range of topics, and in its inclusion of diverse perspectives on contemporary knowledge about Africa and its peoples, their histories, and their cultures. The 896 signed entries include 878 separate articles, many richly illustrated with photographs, drawings and maps. Bibliographic references are included. Three introductory essays by eminent African scholars, J. F. Ade Ajayi, V. Y. Mudimbe, and Ali A. Mazrui, provide ample background on the development and evolution of African studies both within and outside the continent, and discuss the current state of scholarship on Africa. Three extensive appendixes provide a discussion of African studies outside Africa; a chronology of historical events by sub-region; and information on ethnic and identity groups and their geographic locations. An integrated name, title and subject index in the fourth volume facilitates access to the contents of the entire encyclopedia. The directory of consultants and contributors demonstrates the breadth of scholarship included in this work, yet the appeal of the encyclopedia reaches beyond the scholarly community to schools, public libraries, and people in the general public with an interest in learning about Africa and Africans. Professor John Middleton and his collaborators have given us an extremely valuable work, the benefits of which will continue to be reaped for many years to come.

HONORABLE MENTION

Kagan, Alfred, and Yvette Scheven. Reference Guide to Africa: A Bibliography of Sources. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1998.

The authors of this remarkable reference guide developed it from years of collective experience as African studies bibliographers, and more directly, from a graduate course they have each taught on Africana bibliography at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. While not the source for country-specific information, it is an excellent annotated guide to reference tools and primary sources on Africa and related subject areas, and major survey treatments of important topics in African studies. It includes Internet sources, as well as non-African resources with significant African content, a very useful feature for less specialized library collections and their users. The author/title and subject indexes complement the straightforward organization of the book's content, providing easy accessibility to the specialist and the novice alike.

CALENDAR OF FUTURE MEETINGS

ASA & ALC/CAMP

April 26-28, 2001 - Bloomington, Indiana - ALC/CAMP Spring Meeting

Fall 2001, Houston - ASA Annual Meeting

Fall 2002, to be determined - ASA Annual Meeting

Fall 2003, to be determined - ASA Annual Meeting

IFLA ANNUAL CONFERENCES

Boston, USA, 16-25 August 2001

Glasgow, UK, 2002

Berlin, Germany, 2003

ALA

Feb. 9-14, 2001, Washington, DC - Midwinter Meeting

June 14-20, 2001, San Francisco - ALA Annual Conf.

Jan. 18-23, 2002, New Orleans - Midwinter Meeting

June 13-19, 2002, Atlanta - ALA Annual Conference

Apr. 8-15, 2003, Charlotte, NC - ACRL National Conf.

June 19-25, 2003, Toronto - ALA Annual Conference

2004, Orlando - ALA Annual Conference

ZIBF AT THE LONDON BOOK FAIR

As in previous years, the Zimbabwe International Book Fair (ZIBF) will be exhibiting at the 2001 London Book Fair, 25-26-27 March, Olympia. Executive Director Moses Samkange will be attending the LBF and David Brine of the ZIBF London office will manage the ZIBF stand.

The Southern African Book Development Education Trust (SABDET) is organising two seminars on the Monday of the Fair in association with ZIBF, details as follows. The seminars are open to all attending the LBF, free of charge.

THE BUSINESS OF READING IN AFRICA

A two part seminar series at the 2001 London Book Fair on new initiatives and engaging the trade in promoting a reading and book buying culture in Africa.

Organised by the Southern African Book Development Education Trust (SABDET) in association with the Zimbabwe International Book Fair. Monday 26 March 2001, Club Room, National Hall, Olympia

Seminar One, 10am - 12 noon

BOOKSHOPS AND LIBRARIES

Seminar Two, 2pm-4pm

PRESS, MEDIA AND THE INTERNET

Speakers include KOLE OMOTOSO, Research Professor, University of Stellenbosch Department of Drama and Centre for Theatre and Performance, South Africa

ALL WELCOME - FREE ADMISSION

For further details and a seminar registration form, contact:

Margaret Ling, LBF2001 Seminar Programme

25 Endymion Road, London N4 1EE

Tel: (0)20 8348 8463 Fax (0)20 8348 4403

E-mail margaret.ling@geo2.poptel.org.uk

EXHIBITIONS

SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN ART, WASHINGTON, DC

· Identity of the Sacred: Two Nigerian Shrine Figures, through April 2, 2001

· Audible Artworks: Selected African Musical Instruments, through April 8, 2001

CALL FOR PAPERS

Electronic Journal of Africana Bibliography (EJAB),

http://sdrc.lib.uiowa.edu/ejab/, is a refereed online journal of bibliographies published by the University of Iowa Libraries. Coverage includes any aspect of Africa, its peoples, their homes, cities and economic development, creative literature, the arts, and the Diaspora. Send titles and queries to: Dr. Afeworki Paulos, International Studies Bibliographer, University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, email: afeworki-paulos@uiowa.edu

PEOPLE AND PLACES

New Field Director at the Library of Congress Office, Nairobi

Submitted by Judy C. McDermott, Chief, African/Asian Acquisitions and Overseas Operations Division, Library of Congress

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Paul J. Steere to the position of Field Director, Nairobi. He took up his duties in Nairobi on December 11, 2000. He will return to Washington, DC in mid-January for a planned field directors conference and additional orientation.

Mr. Steere is joining the Library of Congress staff from his current position as Dean of Learning Resources at the University of Guam. Mr. Steere has also served as Director of Library Services at the College of the Northern Marianas and as Commonwealth Librarian in the Northern Mariana Islands. From 1975 to 1991, Mr. Steere enjoyed a distinguished career with the USIA, serving variously as Regional Library Officer for East and Southeast Asia, based at the American Embassy in Bangkok; as Regional Library Officer for Eastern Europe, based at the American Embassy in Vienna; as Cultural Affairs Officer at the American Institute in Taiwan; as Chief of Library Programs, based in Washington; and as Regional Librarian for Middle East and South Asia, based at the American Consulate in Karachi.

Bennie Visher Joins Herskovits Library Staff

Bennie Visher III began a librarian appointment on October 2, 2000 in the Melville J. Herskovits Library of African Studies, Northwestern University. He returns to Northwestern where he received a masters degree in liberal studies with an African studies focus in 1998. Prior to his Northwestern degree, he completed graduate work in history at Howard University and in Black studies at Ohio State University. He received a masters degree in library science at SUNY Albany in 2000. While a graduate student at Northwestern, he presented a paper at the 1998 Midwest Graduate Student Conference in African Studies at the University of Wisconsin. During library school, he presented papers at the 1999 annual meeting of the African Studies Association and at the 2000 UCLA graduate student African studies conference. This position in the Herskovits Library is for one year only during the curator's part time leave as a fellow in Northwestern's Alice Berline Kaplan Center for the Humanities. Bennie Visher's office is room 5646 in the Herskovits Library, his telephone is 847.491.2935, and email is

i-visher@northwestern.edu.

-David L. Easterbrook

LITERATURE ON LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES

Sanford Berman, "Good Luck, Folks! Finding Material on "Those People" (and their Concerns) in Library Catalogs", MultiCultural Review, June 2000, vol. 9, no. 2.

Sanford Berman and James P. Danky, eds. Alternative Library Literature, 1998/1999: A Biennial Anthology, Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2000, includes:

Vivian Yenika-Agbaw, "Images of West Africa in Children's Books: Replacing Old Stereotypes with New Ones?"

Christine Stilwell, "Democracy and Its Emergence in South African Public Librarianship or Why Public Libraries Plus a Change of Name don't Equal Community Libraries."

Alfred Kagan, "Growing Gap Between the Information Rich and the Information Poor, both within Countries and between Countries: a Composite Policy Paper."

Diana Rosenberg, ed. Books for Schools: Improving Access to Supplementary Reading Materials in Africa. ABC, Oxford: 2000.

Ruth Makotsi, et al. Expanding the Book Trade Across Africa: a Study of Current Barriers and Future Potential. ABC, Oxford: 2000.

Gretchen Walsh, "African Newspaper Union List: low-tech resource/high-tech access," Library Hi Tech, vol 18, issue 3, 2000.

African Publishing Review, vol. 9, no. 2, 2000 includes "Education for All in Africa: The Challenges," "Perspectives on Education for All in Uganda," "Educational Publishing in India."

African Research & Documentation, no. 83, 2000, includes:

Ben Moran, "Written Conversations in a Global Nigeria: Nigeria and the Newsgroup."

Andrew Smith, "Imaginative Knowledge; Scottish Readers and Nigerian Fictions."

Theodora Akachi Ezeigbo, "The Dynamics of Literary Response: Students as Readers of African Women's Writing."

Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, "Reading Love Stories by Women from Ghana."

Lucy Charlewood, "Book Preferences, Conceptions of Books and Reading Practices among Urban Adults with a Basic Level of Literacy."

Thapelo Mashishi, "The Storage Place of Tradition: The Reading Experiences of Black adults in African Languages."

Mmashikwane Myambo, "'Sometimes Reading can be your Friend': Black Professional South African Women Readers."

Sheila Boniface, "Book Clubs in South Africa."

NEW BOOKS NOTED

FROM GREENWOOD PUBLISHING GROUP

Books from the Greenwood Publishing Group may be ordered by credit card at 1-800-225-5800.

The political economy of housing and urban development in Africa: Ghana's experience from colonial times to 1998, by Kwadwo Konadu-Agyemang. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger, 2000. $65.00 248 pp. ISBN 0275970035

Making the town: Ga state and society in early colonial Accra, by John Parker. A history of an African urban community, town politics, and the ways in which Ga political action shaped Accra from the 1860s to the 1920s. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2000. (Social history of Africa) $25.00 264 pp. ISBN 0325001901

African visions: literary images, political change, and social struggle in contemporary Africa, edited by Cheryl B. Mwaria, Silvia Federici, and Joseph McLaren. Westport, Connecticut ; London : Praeger, 2000. (Contributions in Afro-American and African studies ; no. 197). Price $24.95 ISBN 0275971023 280 p.

"I will not eat stone": a women's history of colonial Asante, by Jean Allman and Victoria B. Tashjian. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2000. (Social History of Africa) Price $24.95 ISBN 032507000. A hardcover edition is available 032507001 $65.00

OTHER BOOKS NOTED

African writing and text, by Simon Battestini. Ottawa: Legas, 2000. 472 pages ISBN 1894508068

This work presents the conclusions of more than three decades of research in Africa. By bringing African data into the sciences of writing and text, definitions, categories and reasoning about the writing-text relationship are examined. Translated by Professor Henri Evans from the French text published in May 1997, Ecriture et Texte, Contribution Africaine. Les Presses de l'Université Laval (Saint Nicolas, Québec, Canada).

A newly published book about Malawi, The great rift: Africa, Surgery, AIDS, Aid, by Michael and Elspeth King. Cambridge: Arco Books, 2000. 158 pages, 44 illustrations, ISBN 0-9539290-0-0 Available at DAUNT BOOKS, 83 Marylebone High Street, London W1M 3DE Price £6 (p&p £1) tel 020-7224-2295 orders@dauntbooks.com

Kinahan, Jill. Cattle for beads: the archaeology of historical contact and trade on the Namib Coast. Uppsala: Dept. of Archaeology and Ancient History,

Uppsala University; Windhoek, Namibia: Namibia Archaeological Trust, 2000. 119p. (Studies in African Archaeology; no. 17). ISBN: 91-1506-1335-9

Addresses: S:t Eriks Torg 5, S753 10, Uppsala; P.O. Box 22407, Windhoek.

Milne, Malcolm. No Telephone to Heaven: From Apex to Nadir - Colonial Service in Nigeria, Aden, the Cameroons and the Gold Coast, 1938-61, available from Gazelle Book Services Ltd., Falcon House Queen Square, Lancaster LA1 1RN UK.

Making democracy work in Liberia ; Constitution. Published by University of Liberia Press in cooperation with the United States Department of Justice, 2000. 91 pages.

Bernth Lindfors Black African Literature in English, 1992-1996. xlii + 654 pp. ISBN 0-85255-565-2 £90.00/US$140.00 casebound. Oxford: James Currey Publishers, October 2000.

This is the first title just published by James Currey under the Hans Zell Publishers imprint. The volume is a continuation of Bernth Lindfors' earlier volumes, the most recent of which was Black African Literature in English, 1987-1991 (London: Hans Zell Publishers, an imprint of Bowker-Saur, 1995), which was the joint winner of the 1996 Conover-Porter Award. The new volume lists 13,500 entries - some of which are annotated to identify the authors discussed - covering books, periodical articles, papers in edited collections and selective coverage of other relevant sources. Also included are a substantial number of African newspaper and magazine articles. Indexes by author, title, subject, and geographical index.

Orders to: James Currey Publishers Ltd., 73 Botley Road, Oxford OX2 0BS, UK.

Tel: +44-(0)1865- 244111; fax: +44-(0)1865-246454

Email: jamescurrey@dial.pipex.com Web site: http://www.jamescurrey.co.uk

AVAILABLE FROM SCANSOM PUBLISHERS, Box 6118, 17506 Jarfalla, Stockholm Sweden, Fax: 468-58360647, email: Scansom@hotmail.com (in North America: Mohammed Hasan, 10 Shendale Drive, Etobicoke, Toronto, M9W 2B3 Canada, Tel.: 416-749 2761)

Diiwaanka Gabayada-Gurmad 1 (A collection of Somali Poems, vol. 1); 1998; 80 selected poems from over 50 Somali poets; $14.99

Diiwaanka gabayada-Gurmad 2 (A collection of Somali Poems, vol. 2); 1998; 60 selected poems from over 40 Somali poets; $14.99

Diiwaanka Gabayada-Gurmad 3 (A collection of Somali poems, vol. 3); 1999; 64 selected poems; $14.99.

Diiwaanka Heesaha Soomaaliyed (A collection of Somali Songs, vol. 1); 1997; 134 songs from the most popular Somali singers and songwriters; $13.99

Diiwaanka Heesaha Soomaaliyeed 2 (A collection of Soamli Songs, vol. 2); 1999; approximately 195 songs; $15.99.

Diiwaanka Heesaha Soomaaliyeed 3 (A collection of Somali Songs, vol. 3); 2000; 193 songs; $15.99.

Silsiladda Guba (Guba Poems); classical poems from over 20 well known and prominent Somali poets in the 19th/20th century; 1999; $12.95.

FROM THE BASLER AFRIKA BIBLIOGRAPHIEN, Namibia Resource Centre, Southern Africa Library, Postfach 2037, CH-4001 Basel, Switzerland.

The Recovery of the West African past: African pastors and African history in the Nineteenth Century, C.C. Reindorf and Samuel Johnson, edited by Paul Jenkins. Reprinted March 2000. ISBN 3905141701

Catalogue of periodicals and newspapers in the library of the Basler Afrika Bibliographien, Namibia Resource Centre, Southern Africa Library, compiled and edited by Regula Iselin. ISBN isbn 3905141736

Schweizer im kolonialen Africka by Hans Werner Debrunner. (Beitrage zur Afrikakunde ; 9) ISBN 3905141515

"Afrika macht oder bricht einen Mann" : Soziales Verhalten und politische Einschatzung einer Kolonialgesellschaft am Beispiel der Schweizer in Ghana (1945-1966), by Rene Lenzin. ISBN 3905141728

VENDOR NEWS

Mr. Oluranti Olumoroty will be taking over the Nigerian part of Hogarth Representation's business sometime in 2001. If you have questions, please contact David Hogarth.

The URL for the new home page for the LC Nairobi field office is http://lcweb.loc.gov/acq/ovop/nairobi/

New Serial Titles from the Library of Congress, Nairobi Field Office

African Journal of International Affairs, Vol. 1, no. 1 (1998). A bi-annual journal of the Council for Development of Science Research in Africa offering a platform for analysis on contemporary issues in African international affairs. Codesria, BP 3304, Dakar, Senegal. Email: codesria@sonatel.senet.net Subscription: US$40 per copy.

The Analyst, Issue no. 001 (Dec. 1998). A monthly publication on topical economic issues in Kenya. Published by Kaizen Investments Ltd., PO Box 76529, Nairobi, Kenya. Subscription: US$190 per year.

Annales de la Faculte des Sciences Juridiques et Politiques, T. 1 (1997). An annual publication of Universite de Dschang, Faculte des sciences juridiques et politics on various legal and political issues. Address: L'Africaine d'Editions et de Services (A.E.S.-s.a.), BP 8106, Yaounde, Cameroon. Subscription: CFA 3000 per copy.

Directory of Ugandan Professional Women, 1999/2000. A directory of professional women to be updated annually. It brings women out, highlights their achievement abilities, diversities, and their contribution to national development. Address: Uganda Women's Network (UWONET), PO Box 27991, Kampala, Uganda. Email: uwonet@starcom.co.ug Subscription: Ushs 7500 per copy.

The Heritage Magazine, Vol. 1, issue 1 (Dec. 1999). A broad spectrum publication catering for all tastes and interests including politics, economic issues, social concerns, science, art, and culture. Address: The Heritage Magazine, PO Box 28444, Kampala, Uganda. Subscription: Ushs 1500 per copy.

MUARIK bulletin, Vol. 1 (1998). A research publication of the Makerere University Agricultural Research Institute, Kabanyolo. Address: The African Crop Science Journal Secretariat, Makerere University, Faculty of Agriculture, PO Box 7062, Kampala, Uganda. Email: acss@starcom.co.ug Subscription: US$ 25 per copy.

The Pan Afrikanist, Vol. 1, issue 1 (Sept. 1999). A monthly review of African political economy published by the Pan Afrikan Youth Movement, PO Box 7186, Kampala, Uganda. Email: paym@swiftuganda.com Subscription: Ushs 1500 per copy.

Revue africaine de defense, No 001 (Janv.-mars 2000). A quarterly publication on politics, conflicts, and security in Africa. Published by Editions CLE, BP 1501, Yaounde, Cameroon. Subscription: CFA 5000 per copy.

Sosongo, Vol. 1, no. 2 (June 1999). The Cameroon review of arts and social sciences issued by Universite de Yaounde I, PO Box 755, Yaounde, Cameroon. Email: tako@uydc.uninet.com Subscription: US$ 40 per copy.

WEBSITES OF INTEREST

Africa Focus: Sights and Sounds of a Continent

This online collection is maintained on the website of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries. It contains digitized visual images and sounds of Africa contributed over the years to the African Studies Program of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. These digital files are stored in an accessible database and provided for personal use or educational presentations. The project was developed through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The completion date was March 1, 2000, at which time the site contained in its searchable database the digital representations of more than 3000 slides, 500 photographs, and 50 hours of sound from forty-five different countries. To access the collection, point your browser to http://AfricaFocus.library.wisc.edu.

Africa's largest elibrary

Anyone who lives in Africa and has access to the internet can use the African Digital Library, which was jointly created by The Association of African Universities (AAU), Technikon SA (TSA) and netLibrary (NL). NetLibrary is an American company that specializes in setting up digital libraries for universities and companies.

Whereas libraries normally restrict access to their collections, this is the only known digital library of its size that opens its doors to such a large geographic region. To register, point your browser to

http://AfricaEducation.org/adl/

Angola's only daily news paper, the state-owned "Jornal de Angola", is now accessible on the Internet at this address:

http://www.ebonet.net/jornaldeangola

http://allafrica.com/stories/200010190241.html

Article by the Panafrican News Agency reporting from Niamey, Niger on 19 Oct 2000 about the finding of "the oldest Arabic and Ajami manuscript identified in Niger so far, [which] dates back to the 10th century of the Muslim era." Ajami refers to Arabic script used to right African languages.

Aequatoria Book Bank Online (ABBOLL) http://www.abbol.com/pages/fs_index_e.html

The goal of this site created and maintained by Centre Aequatoria, an Africanist research center situated around the Congolese city of Mbandaka, is to "develop an electronic library from which africanist students and scholars in sub-Saharan Africa can retrieve scientific publications free of charge."

From H-Africa:

Zimbabwe's ruling party, ZANU-PF, launched a web site, officially opened by President R. G. MUGABE on the 30 of October 2000: http://www.zanupfpub.co.zw/

The other main political site in the country is the Movement for Democratic Change (Zimbabwe) website http://www.mdczimbabwe.com

ALC BUSINESS

(12/9 abbrev. for ALN of draft of 11/22/00)

BYLAWS

The bylaws of the Africana Librarians Council of the African Studies Association were revised in November 2000 and can be found on their website at http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/amed/7bylaws.html.

ALC CATALOGING COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, NOV. 15, 2000, NASHVILLE, TN

Present: Beall, Bell-Gam, Bockie, Fung, Goral, Harper, Hughes, Lauer, Lesh, Lohrentz, Nam, Olson, Panofsky, Petroff, Sinnott, Walsh.

Revision of Dewey tables for traditional African religions (Beall)

Two key changes in 299.6 were proposed: 1) to provide more detail for specific aspects, replacing the three broad categories of "Mythology and mythological foundations", "Doctrines", and "Practices, rites, ceremonies"; 2) to change the citation order so that previously scattered aspects of the religion of a specific ethnic group will be brought together. There were comments on the use of "cults" for some religions and the splitting of religions on the basis of broad (e.g., Khoisan) language groups.

Revision of DT schedule for Indian Ocean islands (report by Lauer)

Joe Caruso has not had time to add to the work done in 1995-98. The major task remaining is to establish, where justified by literary warrant, additional historical time periods for Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles. Hughes expressed interest in participating in the revision process.

Directory of African Language Expertise (Walsh)

Elizabeth Plantz has compiled and sent to Walsh and Lauer a 13-page "African Language Expert Directory" of people willing to assist with the cataloging of African language materials. It will be loaded on web. Walsh would be willing to update.

New ALC secretary, Bob Lesh, at work

Northwestern Report (Lesh):

Plantz' October departure from Northwestern University is having an impact. They are advertising for the Africana Monographic Cataloger position, with the review of applications to begin immediately. Details available from: libpers@welles.library.nwu.edu.

Cataloging of LC-Nairobi Cooperative Acquisitions:

Olson wondered how other libraries were processing this material, which usually arrives with no-call number MARC records enclosed. He proposed to do a survey of other institutions. There is some potential for cooperation.

Africana Subject Funnel:

a. Status: Lauer agreed to serve as coordinator, after Plantz left Northwestern University.

b. Plantz report of Oct. 13, 2000: Since the Spring 2000 report, the funnel has submitted 20 new headings and 27 revised headings. Plantz had sent a message to the SACO coordinator, asking that Olson, Peoples of Africa (1996) not be used to establish Africana subjects; but LC was reluctant to drop it from their list of recommended sources.

c. To put the funnel in some context, Lauer reviewed the new headings approved by LC's Cataloging Policy and Support Office as reported on the Weekly List or the Tentative Weekly List (see http://lcweb.loc.gov/catdir/cpso). For 1999:42-2000:41, there were about 150 new Africana subjects, excluding name or place subjects. Of these, only 24 came via the funnel; about 75 were submitted by LC, and about 42 came from other libraries.

Library of Congress activities:

a. Kay Elsasser recently submitted classification proposals for Eritrea, Sierra Leone & South Africa.

b. Cooperative Cataloging: Highlights from the Annual Report, FY 2000:

SACO: Due to efforts of the African American funnel project, "Afro-American" is being changed to "African American". SACO production totaled 2681 new subject headings, with 621 revisions from 122 contributing libraries. Throughput time from the receipt of proposals has been reduced to 4-6 weeks.

NACO has 35 new members, with 18 libraries in South Africa forming two NACO funnels.

c. Voyager transition: While there are many positive aspects of the new system, keyword searching has become more difficult and there is more downtime.

ALA annual meeting (July 2000): reports from/issues for:

a) ALCTS-CCS: CCAAM (Cataloging & Classification: Asian & African Material Com.) (Report by Lauer, with information from Dawn Bastian): Mostly concerned with Pinyin conversion & other CJK issues. OCLC reported on its Arabic cataloging pilot. CC:DA (Committee on Cataloging: Description and Access) accepted Jim Agenbroad's alternative proposal to amend AACR2 to permit addition of optional nonroman access points to bibliographic and authority records.

20.5 NONROMAN ACCESS POINTS. Optionally, when technically feasible libraries whose collections include and whose clientele seek items in nonroman scripts should assign nonroman access points to records of such items. Apply the relevant rules of chapters 21-26 and the conventions of reference tools on persons, corporate bodies and titles using nonroman scripts to determine the choice and form of such access points and of cross references to them.

b) Africana in the North American Title Count (ex Shelflist)

Lauer distributed a list of the 10 lines of DT that were added in 1997. He plans to propose 2 amendments: 1) change DT1001-3415 to DT701-3415 (Southern Africa); 2) merge 3 lines into DT160-346 (North Africa). Other possible changes were mentioned.

BIBLIOGRAPHY COMMITTEE MINUTES

Los Angeles, CA, April 7, 2000 (corrected, November 15, 2000)

Present: Dorothy Ansart (Indiana U), Helene Baumann (Duke U), Ruby Bell-Gam (UCLA), Phyllis Bischof (UC Berkeley), Simon Bockie (UC Berkeley), Jill Coelho (Harvard), Greg Finnegan (Harvard), Karen Fung (Stanford), James Gentner (LC), Miki Goral (UCLA), Al Kagan (U. of Illinois Urbana-Champaign), Patricia Kuntz (Indiana U), Deborah LaFond (SUNY Albany), Joe Lauer (Michigan State U), Bob Lesh (Northwestern U), Ken Lohrentz (U of Kansas), Peter Malanchuk (U. of Florida), Pauline Manaka (UC Irvine), Lauris Olson (U. of Pennsylvania), Loumona Petroff (Boston U), Bill Pidduck (Adam Matthew Publications), Elizabeth Plantz (Northwestern), James T. Simon (CRL), Elisabeth Sinnott (NYU), Andrea Stamm (Northwestern), Ruth Thomas (LC Nairobi), Gretchen Walsh (Boston U), David Westley (Boston U), Marion Frank-Wilson (Indiana U), Dorothy Woodson (Yale), Joanne Zellers (LC)

I. Welcome

The meeting was called to order at 10:50 am by Chair Ken Lohrentz. Introductions were made.

II. Minutes of the November 10, 1999 meeting held in Philadelphia were accepted as corrected. They will be sent to the Webmaster at LC.

III. Interlibrary Cooperation

Bischof is presenting a paper on interlibrary cooperation in May at the Basler Afrika Bibliographien Symposium on cooperation. She wanted to get the Bibliography Committee's opinion about a proposal to create a bibliography of archival and commercial microform collections. Discussion centered on what to do with microform sets. The first step might be to identify existing collections and determine what kind of finding aids they have (good or inadequate). Other areas of cooperation were discussed. M. Frank-Wilson has been asked to be a liaison for the AAU/ARL German Resources Project. L. Olson suggested that consortiums might be the direction to take. R. Thomas said that LC Nairobi would accept voluntary indexing of Eastern and Southern African periodicals. The topic of what might be done with microforms will be put on the CAMP agenda to see if CRL can be involved in future activity. The discussion of cooperation will continue on the ALC list, with someone (undesignated) consolidating the messages.

IV. Bibliography Projects

1. J.Zellers is compiling a bibliography of LC holdings by Julius Nyerere, including book chapters, book introductions, etc.

2. D.Woodson has submitted to the University of the Western Cape for publication a catalog of Official South African Prison Files on Ahmed M. Kathroda.

3. P. Malanchuk announced the microfilming of the Kampala Monitor. Also, University of Florida has available for interlibrary loan videotapes of Zimbabwean poet-in-residence Charles Mungoshi.

4. R. Bell-Gam and David Iyam's revised edition of Nigeria (World bibliographical series ; v. 100) was published in December 1999.

5. Westley is working on a bibliography of Swahili language and linguistics.

6. Finnegan advised that when using Human Relations Area File on the Web, entries from the Encyclopedia of World Cultures serve as introductions to the site.

7. Stamm advised that the ABC-Clio World Bibliographical Series is online on netLibrary. (Scarecrow Press' Historical Dictionary series is also available.)

8. Coelho asked that anyone publishing a bibliography send an email announcement to her for inclusion in the African Book Publishing Record.

9. Lohrentz reported that asking Saur about mounting ABPR on the ALC website is in progress.

V. New Integrated Library Systems

The new systems are mostly better, but there have been problems adjusting to new input procedures and some features from old systems are, at least temporarily, unavailable. However, there are some features worth noting. Olson reported creating links to all volumes in a series. Zellers noted that Voyager does allow searching in the 043 field, which can be combined with keywords. This is an improvement over the old MUMS system.

VI. Conover-Porter Award Committee

Zellers reported on their activities. The committee is comprised of Zellers, Bell-Gam, and David Easterbrook. Seven nominations were submitted for this year's award. She reminded the group that all reference books, not just bibliographies, are eligible for consideration and asked that nominations be submitted throughout the year.

VII. New Business

1. Olson asked how institutions determine volume counts for Title VI applications. This will be addressed via the ALC discussion list.

2. Olson raised the possibility of ALC evaluating bibliographic sources that would identify serious flaws that may not be obvious from traditional reviews. Lohrentz will work on this issue with Olson.

VIII. ALC Web

Zellers reminded the committee that documents are to be submitted to the ALC Webmaster via the committee chairperson. Items can be sent in any format, preferably as an email attachment. The subject line should be one of four choices:

1. ALC Web - New Document

2. ALC Web - Replacement Document

3. ALC Web - Correction

4. ALC Web - Question

The meeting adjourned at 12:25pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Miki Goral

BOOK REVIEW

By Daniel A. Reboussin, Ph.D., (University of Florida, George A. Smathers Libraries).

The Electronic African Bookworm: A Web Navigator [Print version]. 2d rev. and updated ed., Zell, Hans M. (compiler). Oxford, UK: African Books Collective Ltd., 2000. ISBN 0952126982. About UK £ 10.95/US $18.95.

Online version: Hans Zell Publishing Consultants. The Electronic African Bookworm: A Web Navigator. http://www.hanszell.co.uk/navtitle.htm [updated August 5, 2000].(currently updated to Jan. 2, 2001, ed.)

The African Books Collective, Ltd. (ABC) is headquartered in Oxford, England. It is owned and governed by African publishers with support from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Swedish International Development Authority. This printed guide, first published in 1998, developed from the ABC Web project. As with the other titles in the ABC resource series (available free to African publishers and book professionals), its intended audience is African book and publishing professionals. The guide includes a set of introductory essays not found on the Web site, aimed primarily at assisting beginning users in connecting to the Internet, especially in using the Web and e-mail effectively for professional and business purposes.

The second edition of this guide represents changes and growth in the Internet, the Web, and related technologies since 1998, and updates the introductory essays. It describes itself as a "quick-access guide and pick-list" (p. x) for those interested in Africa, development, publishing, the book trade, and libraries. A primary goal of the volume is to assist beginning users of expensive Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and phone services (e.g., in Africa) to make more efficient use of their time online. As such it is a useful, well organized, and informative off-line guide to Internet resources related to publishing and the book professions, as well as to a wide range of Web sites useful for general research and reference related to Africa.

Some aspects of the introductory essays as well as the glossary of Internet terms were not as technically precise as this reviewer would have liked. However, none of the entries would seriously mislead readers. Most provide an easily understood, practical, and common sense approach to the most frequently encountered problems and issues related to getting online and using the Internet. More intractable problems always can be researched further to gain a better understanding of the technical issues involved.

The guide itself is a useful arrangement of Web links, most of which are accompanied by brief descriptive annotations. Two tables of contents (see pp. v and 75) provide the reader with a useful sense of overall structure. In the online version, a search function serves as a comprehensive index (there is no index in the printed guide). As with any printed guide, or any large Web-based directory, some URL links are outdated (the Book-worm's last up-date was three months prior to the date I visited). Generally these "broken links" do not outweigh the benefits of the printed or Web guide in a rapidly changing environment, but users should be aware of techniques for finding current locations should selected links not function as expected online. Some of these techniques are addressed in the introductory essays.

If further editions are published, I recommend a thorough technical review of the introductory essays and glossary, a single integrated table of contents, the addition of a subject index to the Web guide, and some elaboration of the site annotations. More frequent updates would of course be greatly appreciated by online users. As it stands, however, the guide is a useful resource for its intended audience, and can be a useful tool for anyone interested in African Studies, particularly in development issues and publishing as it relates to Africa.