By DOH JAMES SONKEY
African countries have been advised not to entrust their archives in the hands of foreigners because archives are testimony of the people’s life and history.
The piece of advice was dished out to African governments by the Chief Executive Officer of Bibliotheque et Archives nationals du Quebec, Jean-Louis Roy during a key note address at the opening of the 8th Annual Conference of the International Council on Archives (ICA) that took place at the Yaounde Conference Centre from November 26 to 30, 2018.
Speaking at the occasion, Arts and Culture Minister, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi expressed government’s gratitude to the International Council on Archives for choosing Cameroon to be the first ever African country to play host to the Annual Conference.
Minister Mouelle Kombi said the government of Cameroon cherishes national archives as outlined in the growth and employment strategic paper.
speaking at the conference
For close to one week therefore, Yaounde was temporally transformed into a strategic venue for international brainstorming on the future of archives in the world.
Before separating from Yaounde, the over 500 participants from some 60 countries in the world recommended that archives be given its due value and importance.
Holding under the theme “archives, governance, memory and heritage,” the conference placed on the distinguished patronage of the President of the Republic, Paul Biya was opened by his representative, the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Philemon Yang.
Moderated by the President of the International Council on Archives, David Fricker, the event was also marked by roundtable discussions on pan African issues such as Documentary Governance in Africa (modern record management ie, a culture that ensures quality records in repositories and enhances service delivery, archives and the battle against the embezzlement of public funds in Africa, archival buildings and security; an example of the Edea city archives, transfer of colonial archives to France; the example of Madagascar, face-off between independent Africa and its archives; a mixture of challenges and opportunities, Cameroon’s displaced colonial archives, not just a duty of memory, but one of reconstituting cultural heritage etc.
Participants including a delegation of archivists from the National Oil Refinery, SONARA also listened to exposes on how the Universal Declaration on Archives can contribute to governance, memory and heritage, how archives can be used to put memories back on even keel and building common heritage.
As if to scale up Cameroon’s demonstration of archives importance, the august guests at the ICA annual conference last November 26, 2018 assisted at the oath-taking ceremony of some 386 archivists and records managers at the Mfoundi High Court.
In a show of Cameroon’s hospitality to the speakers and invitees at ICA annual conference, the Minister of Arts and Culture, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi offered a gala night last November 27, 2018 at the esplanade of the National Museum in Yaounde.