SCECSAL XIX CONFERENCE

XIXth Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern Africa Library and Information Associations (SCECSAL)
7th - 10th September 2010
Gaborone, Botswana

Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance through Effective Information and Knowledge Services

XIXth Standing Conference of Eastern, Central, & Southern Africa Library and Information Associations (SCECSAL) 2010 Conference will take place in Gaborone, Botswana starting from 7th September to 10th September 2010.

Call for Papers

This is the first call for papers for the SCECSAL XIX Conference in September 2010. Papers should address the Conference theme: “Enhancing Democracy and Good Governance through Effective Information and Knowledge Services”

Through the contribution of libraries and information services free effective information and knowledge services do prevail in Africa. Free flow of Information can play an important role in contributing to democracy, good governance, social equality and economic growth within nations. In order to promote transparency and accountability on a national scale, every government needs to establish mechanisms to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens to secure access to information. Democracy requires an informed citizenry and transparency of information which are vital to national functioning and also to contain corruption and to hold Governments and their instrumentalities accountable to the governed. Information and knowledge creates a receptive, opened and questioning nation that forms the basis for strong democracy. In today’s technological environment much can be done by libraries, media and other information outlets to promote the principles of free and democratic societies. It has been observed that, democracy depends both on freedom and accessibility of information and on an informed public. African governments must ensure that nationals have easy access to information more than ever before so as to promote the principle of good governance, democracy, social equality, and economic growth.

The conference organisers are calling for abstracts on a range of themes, but not limited to:

Sub-Themes:

1. Libraries, democratization process and promotion of sustainable good governance in Africa
2. Freedom of access to information, censorship to information, Internet monitoring, and good governance
3. Information privacy and confidentiality
4. Libraries, human rights and democracy
5. Advocacy and smart partnerships between libraries and government in national development
6. Information for poverty alleviation and social justice
7. Libraries, social equality and economic growth
8. Social inclusion/exclusion, democracy and good governance
9. Digital divide and achievement of democracy
10. E-governance/e-government and libraries in Africa
11. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and good governance
12. Universal access to information and disadvantaged groups
13. Information literacy and democracy
14. Local content, knowledge management/services, and good governance
15. Intellectual property rights and democracy
16. Information services and community/national development
17. Learning organizations, democracy and good governance

Submission of Abstracts and Completed Papers

1. Names of speaker(s), institution, city and country, e-mail address
2. Title of paper
3. Abstract of not more than 150 words
4. Abstracts and papers must be written in English

Important Deadlines (Dates)

All the abstracts and papers should be sent to: Dr Priti Jain (jainp@mopipi.ub.bw)

or to:

Reason Baathuli Nfila (nfilar@mopipi.ub.bw)

Registration and exhibition details can be obtained from Dikgangb@mopipi.ub.bw, Tel. (267) 355 2459; Cell. (267)71827118, Faculty of Science, University of Botswana.