Top > Regional Affairs > Africa > TICAD > Illustrative List Of Ongoing and Pipeline Projects/Programs For African Development As a Reference Document for TICAD II > I. Social Development and Poverty Reduction (1.1 Education) > State-of-the art Reference Library, Documentation and Information Management Facility

State-of-the-art Reference Library, Documentation and Information Management Facility
Project / Program Summary

I. Basic data

Sector(s): Education, Information, Natural Resources
Title: State-of-the art Reference Library, Documentation and Information Management Facility
Donor country/ organization:
Other donors / organizations involved: UN/ECA, FAO, UNDP, OAU/STRC
Beneficiary countries / regions: All African countries networked from central hub
Implementing agencies in beneficiary countries / regions: UNU & National Universities, Research Institutes
Duration: 5 years (1996-2001)
Starting Date: 1996
Project / Program budget: $1,612.000
Finance / Type of cooperation: grant / technical cooperation

II. Project / program description

An assessment by UNU/INRA in 1990, covering 35 universities and research institutions in 23 sub-Saharan countries, revealed very serious widespread deficiencies in the availability of and access to library, documentation and information management facilities on natural resources.

  1. Objectives
    1. Obtain expert advise on technical requirements, location, human resources and guidelines for operating regional center of excellence;
    2. Establish regional state-of-the art library and documentation centre devoted to natural resources for African and non-African academics/researchers linked through a network organized by the United Nations University, Institute for Natural Resources in Africa.
  2. Activities / contents
    Phase 1. Expert consultations to: 1. determine and advise on infrastructure, equipment, databases and human resource requirements (completed); 2. prepare capital and operational budgets (completed); 3. determine suitable location (completed); and 4. provide operational guidelines to ensure effective functioning of facility as regional center of excellence (completed).
    Phase 2. Establish regional reference Library, Documentation and Information Management Facility.
  3. Expected outcomes / impacts
    1. A regional state-of art reference library, documentation and information management center on Africa's natural resources;
    2. Centralized access, including by internet, to databases needed for quantitative analysis of Africa's natural resources by policy analysis and consultants providing advice to governments and private sector,
    3. Increased academic/research productivity for both African and non-African scholars working on Africa's natural resources.
  4. Features in line with the Agenda for Action
    Regional Cooperation, Promoting Human Development (Education & Poverty Reduction), Sustainable Development, Environmental Management

III. Contact point:

Rector, UNU Headquarters, 5-53-70 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8925, Japan
Fax: +81(3)3499-2828, Tel: +81(3)3499-2811

(End)

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