ANNUAL REPORT

The GOALS of the Directorate as set out in the Strategic Plan are:

To provide free, equitable and accessible library and information services.

To promote the use of library and information services.

The STRATEGIES use to reach these goals are:

Upgrading and revitalizing services rendered at libraries

Increasing access to services

Strengthening staff capacity

Raising public awareness of services

Strengthening the infrastructure for service delivery.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Library, Information and Technology Services consists of 3 Subdirectorates, namely Professional Support Services, Community Library Services and Technology Services.

Achievements of 2002 include:

A Flemish delegation visited the Free State during January 2002 as part of a joint agreement between the Free State Provincial Government and the Ministry of the Flemish Community and took part in a workshop for public libraries on 29 January 2002.

The computerised library system Prolib was updated and implemented in April 2002.

The Strategic Plan of the Directorate for the 2002-2005 cycle was workshop in February 2002.

The Directorate succeeded in obtaining a grant of approximately R6 million from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to develop library and information services in Qwaqwa for the 2^nd year. The grant, to be paid over a period of three years

(1 July 2001 – 30 June 2004), will be used to achieve the following objectives:

expansion and strengthening of the library infrastructure;

expansion and revitalizing of service delivery; and

expansion and strengthening of staff capacity.

The services of the Directorate were publicized and promoted at the following events:

During Library Week with the theme "Free your mind….. read!" from 18-23 March 2002 the focus of the celebrations was on library users of special institutions in our communities, eg prisons, old-age homes, hospitals etc.

World Day of the Book was celebrated at various venues on 23 April 2002. In Bloemfontein approximately 300 people viewed inter alia a cultural bookshoppe consisting of the 100 best books published in Africa and the works of a medley of Bloemfontein authors at the André Huguenet Theatre.

STATISTICAL REVIEW OF THE SCOPE AND USE OF

LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES

Number of service points

*2002*		*2001*
140	Public libraries	133
14	Public library depots	15

Use of library service

	*2002*	*2001*	Perfor mance target**	Actual Perfor *m ance*	Deviation from planned perform *ance*
Membership People using the library Visitors Book Stock Book Circulation Periodical circulation Enquiries Story hours and children’s p rogrammes Reading circles Book displays Library programmes	354 184 3 591 238 3 891 361 4 626 139 123 779 475 001 3 045 715 3 167 1 626	380 993 3 779 605 3 899 656 4 673 346 117 249 459 298 2 955 543 3 157 1 707	5% new members/ ■10% of population 1% increase 5% increase 2% increase 12 per library 4 per library	-7.04% 13,2% -1.01% 5,51% 3,05% 23 per library 12per library	12,04 % less than target 3,2 % over target #-4,98% 2,01% less than target ,51% over target #3,42% 1,05% increase #31,7% 11 over target 8 over target

** As determined in Stragegic Plan of the Directorate for 2002-2005

■ Calculation based on membership

# Decrease/increase in comparison with 2001

SPECIAL INFORMATION SERVICES PROJECTS

The Directorate is continuously busy with various projects to upgrade and revitalize services rendered at libraries and to increase access to services.

The development of the structured Community Information Services received continuous attention at the public libraries concerned. During 2002 a total of 114 770 enquiries were received by libraries which kept records of these enquiries. 68 723 books were utilised to answer 59,88% if the enquiries, while 40,12% of the enquiries were answered by using other sources of information, e g pamphlets, newspaper clippings, etc, which the libraries indexed themselves.

Support of literacy training and services to newly literates

The libraries in the Province are committed to rendering library and information services to the total community which include support services to literacy actions. During 2002 611 literacy training classes were held in libraries in the Free State and 9 089 books were issued to literacy groups in communities.

Government Information Service

This service which was implemented in 2000 at 12 libraries to make government information as a specific collection available to communities was extended to an additional 11 libraries and new promotional material on the service were put up in libraries. In 2002 3 696 documents were utilized to answer enquiries on government information. 2 420 Documents utilized were on information of National Departments and 1 276 on information of Provincial Departments.

In-house use of library material.

It becomes more and more important to indicate the in-house use of library material when the performance of a library is measured in total. Statistical records kept by some libraries indicating the in-house use of their library material reflected that 43 577 non-fiction material, 59 602 juvenile non-fiction items and 64 7476 periodicals were used in the libraries.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

2002/2003

2001/2002

Personnel

Administrative expenditure

Stores

Equipment

Professional services

Transfer payments

Miscellaneous expenditures

TOTAL

R 8 970 000

R 394 000

R 3 506 000

R 496 000

R 945 000

R 500 000

R 35 000

R 14 846 000

R8 178 000

R 396 000

R3 393 000

R 181 000

R 301 000

R 500 000

R 51 000

R13 000 000

STATISTICAL INFORMATION

2001

2002

Service points

Public libraries

Library depots

Special libraries

133

15

4

140

14

4

Membership

Public libraries and depots

Gender: Male

Female

Abled

Disabled

Race: Black

White

380 993

180 900

200 093

380 582

411

221 137

159 856

354 993

167 924

186 260

353 759

425

189 366

164 818

Book circulation

Public libraries and depots

4 673 346

4 626 139

Visitors to the

Public libraries

3 779 605

3 591 238

Book stock

Total book stock

Copies ordered and received

Titles ordered and received

Donations

Copies discarded

3 899 656

19 424

1 640

8

14 302

3 891 361

29 162

1 969

255

37 457

Books in stock at service points

2 075 173

2 113 943

Books supplied to service points

55 637

49 295

Books withdrawn from service points

48 287

24 840

Public libraries

Circulation – sound recordings

Circulation – periodicals

Special requests received

Film / Video shows

Story hours

Children’s programmes

Reading Circle meetings

15 758

117 249

4 820

291

2 039

916

543

11 923

123 779

2 684

291

2 080

965

715

Other activities

Organised by the library

Organised by other organizations

Book displays

Other displays

Enquiries

1 707

7 299

3157

1 168

459 298

1 6261

7 553

3 167

1 353

475 001