History of the association

 

Zambian Profile

 Zambia is found in southern part of Africa; it has an estimated population of13million people. Zambia has 10 provinces and its people are predominantly Christians, with different 72 tribes. The country has many tourist attractions; wild animals, traditional ceremonies and has one of the greatest wonders of the world “Victoria Falls” which attracts tourists from all over the World.

 

Library Development in Zambia

Prior to changing its name to the Library Association of Zambia in 2013, it was first established as the Zambia Library Association in 1963. The name change was necessitated include other categories of information professionals such as the Archivists, Records Managers, Documentarists among many others.

 

The origins of libraries in Zambia can be traced to the colonial period. Early library services were mainly geared to cater for the minority settlers and expatriate white community who lived along the line of rail (from Livingstone in Southern Province to Kitwe in the Copperbelt). Over time, different types of libraries evolved including; public libraries, school libraries, academic and special libraries. Each type of library was designed to serve the needs of a particular clientele. At independence in 1964, the newly independent nation inherited a legacy of a public library service which was only serving an urban minority.

 

The state of libraries in Zambian

The fight for the enactment of legislation to support the development of Library and information services in Zambia continues.

Despite the absence of the Legislation there has been a number of community Libraries established by individuals and NGOs, to carter for less privileged in society. One such a Library is the Lubuto Library project run by Ms Jane Meyers and her management team, which opened its second community Library at a local basic school in one of the high density compounds in Lusaka. Another community library is in Kabanana, a suburb in Lusaka city. Room to Read has also established a number of School libraries though they have not networked well with the Association.