The Standing Conference of Eastern, Central, and Southern African Library Associations (SCECSAL) XXIII 2018: lessons learned

This paper reports on highpoints of some of what emerged at the XXIII Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern African Library Associations (SCECSAL) conference held in Entebbe, Uganda. It presents narratives that evolved from selected presentations from over 40 papers scheduled for presentation at the conference and experiences of librarians working with people in different libraries within or outside the SCECSAL region in line with the theme of the conference. The purpose of this paper is to ascertain lessons learned by delegates at the conference, session delegates found most memorable, number of times respondents have been to SCECSAL and intent to attend the SCECSAL conference again.

The paper presents viewpoints from the conference and adopts a quantitative approach to ascertain specific lessons learned by delegates. The survey method was used to obtain data from library and information services (LIS) professionals who attended the conference. The population for the study was drawn from delegates met by the author at the conference. An online questionnaire created with the SurveyMonkey software was used for data collection. In total, 60 delegates were invited to voluntarily participate in the survey. A nine-item questionnaire was emailed to respondents. Of all, 27 people responded within the time limit for the study, giving a total response rate of 45 per cent.

Findings revealed that over half of the respondents were attending SCECSAL for the first time. Respondents indicated that the sessions that were the most memorable were Inclusive Library and Information Services for National Development; SDGs and Library and Information Services in the SCECSAL region; and Indigenous knowledge and the preservation of cultural heritage. LIS professionals who participated at the conference dispersed with the following lessons among others: there is need for inclusive LIS and domestication the Marrakesh Treaty. Another lesson is that librarians have a major role to play in the attainment of the United Nations 2030 agenda on sustainable developmental goals (SDGs).

With SCECSAL, LIS professionals in southern, eastern and central Africa are increasingly gaining access to information, exchange of ideas, skills and collaboration in the region. However, the future of the LIS sector depends on the determination by delegates to put into practice all the lessons that have been learned so as to meet the needs of the community where they find themselves. The XXIII SCECSAL has exposed LIS professionals in the region and beyond to services and trends that should be embraced in the SCECSAL region and beyond. This paper implies that effort put into organising the SCECSAL conference is worthwhile.