Trends, patterns, challenges and types of archival research in sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

In a study by Onyancha and Minishi-Majanja (2009), it was reported that throughout the entire period from 1971 to 2007, research in library and information science (LIS) in sub Saharan Africa (countries south of the Sahara desert) largely focused on topics such as information technology, information resources management, knowledge management, library science, the Internet, and information retrieval. In fact, most of the topics fell within the scope of library science. Archives, including records management, was a less researched area, although the topic featured among the top 30 subject terms between 1981 and 2007. The study also noted that among the LIS schools in sub-Saharan Africa, only a few placed emphasis on the provision of courses/ programmes in archives and records management (ARM), particularly at an undergraduate level. Built on two studies conducted by Onyancha and Minishi-Majanja (2009) and Onyancha and Mokwatlo (2011), this study presents the status of archives and records management education, training and research in sub-Saharan Africa. It aims to help formulate ARM research agendas and university curricula that address grand societal challenges such as a lack of accountability, e-government service delivery and preservation of archival heritage. This study focuses on informetrics analysis of the nature, patterns and trends of ARM research in sub-Saharan Africa. The informetrics method was chosen as it is unobtrusive and focuses on the products of human activity (reports, books, articles, web pages and so on). Data was extracted from the Library, Information Science and Technology Abstracts (LISTA) database. The search query combined the name of the country in sub-Saharan Africa and the topics ‘Archives’ and/or ‘Records – Management’ as subject terms. Data was analysed quantitatively using computerbased analytical technologies and software developed specifically for informetric analyses, namely UCINET for Windows, Bibexcel and Microsoft Excel. The results suggest that ARM research is lagging behind in sub-Saharan Africa. Given the challenges of technological developments, the study surmises that there is a need for change or a paradigm shift in not only the perceptions, but also the research into archives and records management so that the profession can keep up with modern societal needs. It is hoped that the study would establish a baseline in terms of the paucity and scope of ARM research in sub-Saharan Africa, and the inter-related need for more and stronger archival education and research training activities, as well as research collaboration in the region.