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21 January 1997
UNESCO's assistance provided to the Library during the war was of particular importance to this institution providing immediate relief through the provision of basic publication and equipment and re-establishing international contacts.
In general, the post-war situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the new èlan of Bosnian Librarians are an important momentum for the reconstruction of the Library. In addition to technical support in planning and implementation of activities, UNESCO shall continue its fund raising efforts, particularly for the reconstitution of collections (reference material, bibliographies, handbooks of library sciences, basic periodicals, etc.). The funds raised by UNESCO since January 1994 amount to US$510,000 (UNESCO contributions US$220,000; donations US$290,000);
A decision as to new premises of the Library has not yet been taken. Its Director presently negotiates the allocation of ca 400 mē sqm in the centrally located building. Funds from UNESCO Library Fund will be made available for the refurbishing and equipping of these premises.
The Library can only resume its function as the central national library institution if it rapidly offers services such as the publishing of a national bibliography and the establishment of an automated library network for cataloguing and retrieval. The Library must take a leading role in the establishment of the network of the faculty libraries of the University of Sarajevo. A decision concerning the use of the appropriate software has to be taken as soon as possible. UNESCO recommended to closely examine the integrated library software UNILIB developed by the National Library of Croatia in view of its use in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Necessary funds for soft- and hardware and for basic training by experts from Croatia will be covered by the UNESCO Library Fund.
As to the reconstitution of Bosniaca the UNILIB software should be used for the establishment of a data base of Bosniaca holdings of institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina and abroad. Budgetary provisions for identifying these holdings were made available within the framework of the contract recently established with the Library covering a contribution of US$50,000 made available by UNESCO. Additional funding will be foreseen in the UNESCO Library Fund, particularly for microfilming.
Contact were established with the United Nations INTERNET Project (UNIP) which is setting up an INTERNET access for the Electrotechnical Faculty of the University of Sarajevo as pilot project for the use of modern communication facilities in Bosnia and Herzgovina. Co-operation with UNIP with a view of allowing the National and University Library and other libraries in the country to access INTERNET will be established.
The Library must play a key role in the establishment of a national integrated library system using common standards and compatible hard- and software. The various library institutions in the country must be closely involved in the decision making process as to the planning and implementation of the system. Funds necessary for regularly bimonthly meetings of librarians in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be provided under UNESCO Library Fund.