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Libraries and librarianship in Kuwait
ht. Libr. Rev. (1975) 7, 3-13
Libraries and Librarianship MOHAMED
in Kuwait
H. ZEHERY* GENERAL
BACKGROUND
Kuwait is located on the northwestern shores of the Arabian Gulf (Persian Gulf); it is bounded on the north and west by Iraq, on the south and southwest by Saudi Arabia, and the east by the Gulf. The country is not large in area, having only 6200 sq. miles and sharing with Saudi Arabia 2500 sq. miles of neutral zone administered jointly by the two countries since 1922.1 Politically, Kuwait is a constitutional monarchy headed by the Emir, a member of the Mubarak lineage of the al-Sabah family, elected by the family. Kuwait was under the British Protectorate from 1899 until it achieved its full independence on 19 June 1961, and became the onehundred-and-eleventh member of the United Nations in May, 1963. The total population of Kuwait at the 1970 census was 738661, ofwhom 347 396 or 47.0% are Kuwaitis. Estimated to be 858 300 by the end of 1972, the Kuwait population has nearly tripled in the last 10 years as the result of the increasing number of immigrants from neighbouring countries who have been attracted by higher wages and better working and living conditions, the highest in the Middle East. Trade, fishing, and pearling were the predominant economic activities of the country prior to 1950. The rapid development of the oil industry since the early 1950s has drastically changed the economic and social conditions in Kuwait. Oil revenues, which started on a modest scale in 1953, rose to over $570 000 000 in 1963, and reached an increasing magnitude with $1550 000 000 reported for 1972-3.2 Because of an intense emphasis on education, illiteracy in Kuwait is now under 47% of the total population, which is considered relatively low by the general standards of developing countries. In the 1972-3 * Mohamed H. Zehery, Associate Professor, School of Library Science, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina 27707, U.S.A. 1 The Middle East and Jvorth Africa (1973). 19th Ed., p. 465 London: Europa Publication. s The Planning Board, Kuwait (1973). Statistical Abstract, p. 163. Kuwait: Government Printing Press.
4
M. H. ZEHERY
school year, Kuwait had a total of 160 23 1 pupils attending kindergarten, primary, intermediate, secondary, and special schools, which comprise the public education system. Since 1967, school attendance has been compulsory for children between the ages of six and 14. The state also provides free vocational and technical training at the technical college and at various special institutes; a college education at Kuwait University, opened in 1966 and now taking the lead as the major centre of higher learning in the Gulf, is also granted to residents. Kuwait’s continuous effort to maintain a comprehensive and effective free medical service is directed primarily at the interrelated problems of health and public hygiene. A number of modern hospitals and a chain of government clinics are operating throughout Kuwait to meet the people’s needs for medical services. The urbanization of Kuwait has been growing at a more rapid pace than in any developing country. In two decades, in the area once known as the old town, nearly all of the mud dwellings and humble homes have been eradicated and replaced with modern “high-rises”, office buildings, shopping centres, and lavish homes which make up the ultra-modern city of Kuwait and its suburbia. Arab culture predominates among Kuwait’s inhabitants, who are mainly Muslims of the Sunni and the Shiite sects. With improved educational facilities, local culture has received wide support from the Government, which is reflected in the published Kuwaiti literature. Kuwait has six daily newspapers, of which two are in English, 22 magazines and professional journals, and a government-owned broadcasting and television station. LIBRARIES
IN KUWAIT
Libraries in the State of Kuwait are organized according to the types and functions of these libraries. In general, most of the libraries are controlled and financed by the Kuwaiti Government except in the case of a few special libraries that fall under private enterprise such as banks, corporations, and associations. Public and school libraries in Kuwait are administered by the Ministry of Education and the university libraries by Kuwait University. A few ministries in Kuwait have libraries even though, professionally speaking, they are still far from being special libraries. THE
NATIONAL
LIBRARY
The National Library in Kuwait is closely affiliated with Kuwait University. Since the state’s population is still under 1000 000, Kuwait
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
5
University has followed the same practices as smaller countries, such as Norway and Israel, which have University-National Libraries. The National Heritage Centre (Kuwait National Library) was established in 1971 as a result of a recommendation from the Kuwaiti Cabinet suggesting to the university that they establish a national archives centre responsible for collecting biographical information on prominent Kuwaiti figures. Kuwait University responded to the Kuwaiti Cabinet with a plan to establish the National Heritage Centre (the National Library) and to pass a legal deposit law that supports the function of the national library as well as a national bibliographic centre. In 1972 the Cabinet approved and authorized the university to establish the National Heritage Centre and to acquire the private library of Selim Zabbal with a collection of about 6500 items, including books, periodicals, newspaper clippings, files, and maps on Kuwait and Arabia. A committee was also designated by the University Council to study and recommend the necessary legislation for the legal deposit laws and allocate the necessary funds for the National Heritage Centre. The function of this centre is to collect, organize and make available, all print and non-print materials-including books, periodicals, archives, manuscripts, and microforms-published on Kuwait, Arabia, and the Gulf Area. The tasks of publishing the national bibliography and specialized bibliographies and of sponsoring research on the area were also assigned to the new centre. The centre will comprise departments for library collections, research and bibliography, and reference and information services. Archives and manuscripts, reprography, and publishing and translation departments will be added later to the centre.1 At the present time, the centre has approximately 10000 volumes. The development of the new National Library has been slow and unnoticed and its survival depends on the state’s recognition of its vital importance in developing bibliographic and information services in the country and the adequate resources and legislative measures that outline its responsibilities, functions, and objectives. UNIVERSITY
LIBRARIES
The history of higher education in Kuwait started with the inauguration of the first university of 27 November 1966. The planning for this university started in 1960 when the Ministry of Education invited a team of scholars and higher education experts from England, Lebanon and Egypt to study the feasibility for establishing a new university in 1 Al-Ibrahim, National Heritage
Bahaa (1973). Markaz al-TurZth Centre at Kuwait University).
al-QawmI bi-Jlmi Muktabat al-j%mi‘ah
‘ at al-Kuwait (The 2,45-59. (in Arabic.)
6
M.
H.
ZEHERY
Kuwait. At the present time, Kuwait University has a student body of approximately 3000 and a faculty of 300. It has six faculties (colleges) with varied library holdings totalling 192672 volumes, most of it duplicated between the faculties of women and the faculties of men, since co-education is not yet accepted in Kuwait. The collections differ widely in size and value. The three libraries of the faculty of women have a collection of 61500 volumes; the faculty of science has 23000 volumes; the faculty of law and Sharia, 8700 volumes; the faculty of commerce, economics and political science, 20500 volumes; and the faculty of arts and education, 66000 volumes. Other departmental libraries, such as that of the National Heritage Centre, has a special collection of 9000 volumes, and the United Nations publications library with a collection of 4500 volumes. The periodicals library has over 2000 journal titles and constitutes the largest periodical collection in the Gulf area. The functions of Kuwait University Libraries are similar to those of any other university: to provide adequate library services to the students and the faculty for study, research, and recreational needs, and also to provide library services to meet the community needs for cultural and scientific information.1 To achieve these library objectives, Kuwait University must review its library functions and objectives in relation to the total objectives and functions of the university. The university library, as an integral part of the academic community geared to the teaching-research functions of the university, should grant faculty status and adequate pay to professional librarians with graduate library degrees. Such measures will definitely attract librarians of high calibre and subject specialists in various fields who will upgrade and improve the quality of the present library services. The university libraries are organized under the Libraries Department, which is the central library with six branches and centralized divisions for acquisition, cataloguing and classification, bibliography and documentation, audio-visual, reference and information service, reprography, and personnel departments. The Libraries Department also maintains a separate library for periodicals, the National Heritage Centre, and a United Nations publications library. The university library is technically governed by a faculty library committee representing the various academic departments to advise on library policies and programs, collection development, book funds allocations, and on other library services activities. The director of Kuwait University Libraries 1 Badr, Ahmad Bulletin for Libraries
and Sulaiian 24, 79-82.
Kalander
(1970).
Kuwait
University
Libraries.
UJVESCO
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
7
is the chief library administrator for all university libraries and reports directly to the Secretary General of the university.1 Books are arranged by Dewey decimal classification for western materials and by the modified Dewey classification for the Arabic materials. Western books are catalogued according to Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules and Library of Congress printed card catalogue cards are obtained from the Library of Congress. The cataloguing of Arabic material varies from the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules whereby the book is entered under the first name of the modern Arab author. The Library of Congress List of Subject Headings is used for nonArabic materials and a new Arabic list of subject headings is already developed for Arabic material. The budget for the university libraries for 19734 is estimated at $300000 for library collections, programs, equipment, and services. Personnel salaries are excluded from this budget since they fall under the university total salary expenditures. The University Libraries staff is comprised of 80 employees, 15 with library education, 30 college graduates, and 35 with intermediate and high school diplomas. Among them is one Ph.D. in Library Science, four with Masters Degrees in Library Science and Library Science Diplomas, 10 with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science, 30 college graduates with library training in both Kuwait and abroad, and the remainder with intermediate and high-school diplomas.2 It is of vital importance at the present time for the university to consider establishing a library school to supply the university, school, public, and special libraries in Kuwait with trained library assistants and technicians on the undergraduate level and highly qualified librarians with a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science on the graduate level. A study of Kuwait University libraries is planned for publication this fall as a part of a research study for a Ph.D. dissertation on “The Development of Library Services in the State of Kuwait” by the author. SCHOOL
LIBRARIES
The school library system in Kuwait has 270 libraries with collections totalling over 1000000 books and several hundred periodical titles. These collections are serving approximately 200000 students in elementary, intermediate, secondary, and vocational and technical schools. 1 Kuwait University (1972). Taqwim j%mi’at Al-Kuwait, 1971-72 (Kuwait University Handbook, 1971-72). p. 245. Kuwait: Kuwait University. (in Arabic.) s Library figures for Kuwait University, public, school, and special libraries were obtained from questionnaires gathered by the author in January 1974.
8
M. H. ZEHERY
School libraries vary in their holdings according to the type ofthe school, its student population, and date of establishment. The School Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education was established in 1954 and charged with the responsibilities of providing school libraries with books and personnel, and with operating a book processing centre which distributes library material regularly to these school libraries. Technical supervision in school libraries is the responsibility of the head of the School Libraries Department, while the administrative supervision in these school libraries is the responsibility of each school principal. Arabic collections dominate library shelves in each school library with the exception of secondary, vocational and technical schools where there are a few hundred books in English. Books are shelved on open stacks and classified by a modified version of the Dewey decimal classification for Arabic books. The book processing operations are centralized in the School Libraries Department where acquisition, cataloguing and classification of books, and processing are done. Books are then distributed regularly to each school. The department has a staff of 300 employees, with various amounts of education and training, only 30 with library education, 20 college graduates with library training and the remainder with intermediate and high school diplomas and some library training. 1 In spite of the progress that has been made in school libraries, a serious staff shortage prevails. There is a need for approximately 300 professional and certified school librarians. New and modern quarters for some school libraries and the School Libraries Department, are needed. Standard bibliographies, new tools for book selection, weeding and inventory policies, and the integration of the book collection with audio-visual material in an instructional media centre are basic elements in enhancing school library services in Kuwait. PUBLIC
LIBRARIES
The first public library in Kuwait came into existence in 1923 when a group of enlightened citizens established the public library (al-Maktabah al-Ahliyah) which was absorbed with its collection in the Central Public Library that was established in 1936. The organization of Kuwait Public Libraries is centred in the Public Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education with a central public library and 18 branch libraries, mostly in the City of Kuwait and its suburbs where threequarters of the state’s population (738662 in 1970) are located. 1 op. cit.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
9
Public libraries in Kuwait have book collections totaling 172007 volumes in 1973, with the largest, 36031 volumes, in the Central Public Library. Hawalli has 15426 volumes, and Ahmadi 13 970 volumes. Only two public libraries have a small collection of non-Arabic books, mainly in English, the Central Public Library with 8706 volumes and Ahmadi with 2478 volumes. Books are arranged on open shelves and classified by a modified Dewey decimal classification for Arabic material. Acquisition, cataloguing and book processing operations are done centrally by the Central Public Library and books and catalogue cards are distributed regularly to each branch library. Periodicals are excluded from the Central Library processing and acquired separately by each library from an allotted fund of $75 per month. Branch libraries are located in each shopping centre in each district of the City of Kuwait with an average library collection of 7000 volumes.1 The present emphasis of public library service in Kuwait is mainly on reading inside the library because of the administrative restrictions and an outmoded storehouse regulation which curtails book circulation outside the library. A small collection of audio-visual materials are available in Hawalli Public Library, mainly comprised of recorded tapes of lectures presented at the library. The public library in Kuwait faces many technical and administrative problems such as the lack of clear objectives, identity, planning, standard bibliographies, and selection and collection development policies for books and non-book materials. The Public Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education in Kuwait has a staff of 80 employees, 10 of whom hold a Bachelors Degree in Library Science. Of these 10, two are working as librarians in the branches and eight in technical and supervisory positions. Aside from the 10 holding Bachelors Degrees in Library Science, there are 10 college graduates and 60 with intermediate and high school diplomas. LIBRARY
SERVICES
FOR
SPECIAL
GROUPS
Library services to the blind, physically handicapped, the shut-ins, hospital patients and prison inmates do not exist in Kuwait. Libraries do not provide such facilities as bookmobiles, book collections in Braille or in large print, talking books, special equipment, and the learning resources to adequately meet the needs of an important segment of the Kuwaiti society. The only library services for the blind and physically handicapped are available on a very limited scale at the Institute of Special Education for the elementary, intermediate and vocational 1 op. cit.
10
M. H. ZEHERY
pupils. Services for these special groups should be adequately for by the public library system in Kuwait. GOVERNMENT
AND SPECIAL
provided
LIBRARIES
Government libraries in Kuwait exist in a few ministries, with a moderate collection and few qualified librarians to manage and offer library services to the employees of these institutions. Important ministries such as the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry do not have libraries at all. Most of these ministry libraries have been in existence for more than 15 years but suffer from lack of adequate financial support, adequate collections, trained librarians, and library facilities and quarters. Ministries with sizable book collections are the Ministry of Education Library with 36500 volumes, the Ministry of Endowments with 19202 volumes, the Ministry of Information with 10072 volumes, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with 9500 volumes. Special libraries in general are in their early stages of development with the exception of some existing libraries which are converting to documentation centres. Among these special libraries are: the Arab Planning Institute; the Planning Board; the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research; and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development.1 A few corporations in Kuwait have adequate library services to meet their organizational needs for information, such as the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce with a collection of 12000 volumes, the Central Bank of Kuwait with 5000 volumes and the Kuwait National Petroleum Company with 5100 volumes. Associations such as the Kuwaiti Teachers Association and the Kuwaiti Medical Association have special libraries in education and medical sciences for their members. These special collections are organized and cared for by trained librarians on a parttime basis. LIBRARY
EDUCATION
AND TRAINING
Libraries in any country cannot function effectively without competent and qualified librarians with graduate studies in library and information sciences. Kuwait is no exception to such a premise, and a library science department is expected to be established at Kuwait University by 1974-5. The new program will offer an undergraduate degree with a major in library science for library assistants and a graduate program for college graduates to develop a core of trained professional librarians 1 Op. cit.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
11
KUWAIT
and subject specialists. The graduate studies in library and information sciences will eventually lead to granting a Masters Degree in Library Science to professional librarians and the undergraduate program will develop library assistants and technicians with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science. At the present time, Kuwait has only one librarian with a Ph.D. in Library Science, five librarians with a Masters Degree in Library Science from the United States, and approximately 60 librarians with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science, mainly from the Department of Library and Archival Science at Cairo University. The undergraduate library program in Egypt was initiated in 1951 and was modified twice (in 1956 and 1959). The curriculum for this library program involves four years of college education in library and archival science as well as liberal arts with emphasis on the social sciences and the humanities.1 New graduate programs are still in their early stages. Until Kuwait has its own library school, it will continue to rely heavily on the graduates of the library science department of Cairo University. Library training is conducted in two institutions periodically, at the Libraries Department of Kuwait University and the School Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education. The main objective of these training programs is to prepare library technicians and assistants. There is a special program for university graduates where participants receive practical training, courses in library organization and administration, technical and readers’ services, bibliography and documentation, and reprography. A few Kuwaiti graduates are on government fellowships in the United States and England for further training and graduate studies in library and information sciences. Another matter of immediate concern to the library profession is the absence of a library association to enhance library services and development in the country, as well as to promote the professional growth of its members and to participate effectively in setting up standards, encouraging education and publishing professional journals and library literature.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL
SERVICES
AND
PROFESSIONAL
LITERATURE
The legal deposit law in Kuwait is still pending along with the law which provides for the establishment of The National Heritage Centre (the National Library) and a copyright law whereby a printer or publisher must deposit five copies of any publication published with the National 1 Aman,
M. M.
(1969).
Libraries
in the United
Arab
Republic.
3. Libr.
Hist.
4, 158-68.
12
M. H.
ZEHERY
Library. Stipulations are also made for publishing a national bibhography which will include books, periodicals and other non-book materials published or produced in Kuwait. Provisions are made for a bibliographic information centre to provide services to library users, institutions, as well as libraries abroad. Kuwait University Library published the first volume in its bibliographic series Selected Bibliografihy on Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf, compiled by Soraya Kabeel, containing 1300 entries of foreign books and articles on Kuwait and the Gulf area. This may be considered the nucleus for the .NationaZ Bibliograpliy. The second volume in this series was published in 1970 and entitled Selected Bibliography on Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf, (Arabic sources). The university library has been active in publishing a “List of Books and Publications Received by Kuwait University Libraries Covering the period from July 1971 to July 1973.“1 This is a computer print-out compiled by Tbrahim ElKhazindar and Fathi Osman and is divided into two parts for foreign and Arabic holdings of Kuwait University Libraries. Entries of both parts are arranged by Dewey decimal classification and the list has an author index for each part. Other subject bibliographies published were: Selected Bibliography on Arab Civilization, compiled by Mahmoud Hashad and published in 1970; Selected and Annotated Bibliography on Yemen, compiled by Sultan Nagi and published in 1973; and Selected and Annotated Bibliography on Saline Water Conversion, compiled by Vakil Siddiqui and published in 1972. A list of periodical holdings arranged by subject was published in 1973 and includes over 2000 titles acquired by the university libraries. The Kuwait University Library is also the centre for promoting and publishing professional literature. An Arabic List of Subject Headings (QZ’ imat Ruiis al-Maw~ii‘at al-‘Arabiyah) prepared by T. El-Khazindar and covering the letter A (alif) was published in November, 1973. The Uniuersity Library Journal was the first professional journal published in Kuwait University and the first issue appeared in October 1971 with Sulaiman Kalander as editor, and Ahmad Badr as consultant. This journal is published in Arabic three times a year under Ma&abut alJEmi‘ah and contains articles by professional librarians in Kuwait and the Arab countries.2 CONCLUSION
In conclusion, 1 Bibliographical
library
development
Services in Kuwait
in Kuwait
(1973). Bibliograjly,
has been slow, although Documm tation
Tm*nolo~.
13,
81-3.
s Badr, Ahmad (197-). Kuwait, Libraries in. Encyclopedia New York: Marcel Dekker (a pre-print).
of Library
and Information
Science.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
13
some progress has been accomplished on the academic and school library level. The Kuwaiti libraries in general suffer tremendously, not from the financial strains (since the country can afford first-rate libraries and excellent library services) but from an identity crisis and recognition by top government officials as to the vital role of the library as a dynamic social institution. Library development in Kuwait needs an organized government agency-a library board, or the National Library-to take the lead and establish goals, objectives, and short- and long-range planning for library services for the nation. This organization should be empowered to develop legislation and adopt a national program that will enhance the development of libraries in Kuwait. The plan should provide for the right of the individual to free access to books whereby the library will no longer be a storehouse, but a public service institution giving greater emphasis to the dissemination rather than to the preservation of information. The plan should include a national inter-library loan system and a comprehensive network of library and information centres to foster cooperation and sharing of library resources. Working committees comprised of professional librarians and library consultants should be set up to formulate highly needed working tools, such as standard bibliographies for college, school, and public libraries, regional and national union catalogues, and to set up services to the blind and physically handicapped. A new library association is definitely needed to campaign for better library services and co-operate with other library agencies in recommending standards for library organization, book collections and instructional materials, resources, salaries and financing, and the minimum requirements of library education for librarians.
Libraries and Librarianship MOHAMED
in Kuwait
H. ZEHERY* GENERAL
BACKGROUND
Kuwait is located on the northwestern shores of the Arabian Gulf (Persian Gulf); it is bounded on the north and west by Iraq, on the south and southwest by Saudi Arabia, and the east by the Gulf. The country is not large in area, having only 6200 sq. miles and sharing with Saudi Arabia 2500 sq. miles of neutral zone administered jointly by the two countries since 1922.1 Politically, Kuwait is a constitutional monarchy headed by the Emir, a member of the Mubarak lineage of the al-Sabah family, elected by the family. Kuwait was under the British Protectorate from 1899 until it achieved its full independence on 19 June 1961, and became the onehundred-and-eleventh member of the United Nations in May, 1963. The total population of Kuwait at the 1970 census was 738661, ofwhom 347 396 or 47.0% are Kuwaitis. Estimated to be 858 300 by the end of 1972, the Kuwait population has nearly tripled in the last 10 years as the result of the increasing number of immigrants from neighbouring countries who have been attracted by higher wages and better working and living conditions, the highest in the Middle East. Trade, fishing, and pearling were the predominant economic activities of the country prior to 1950. The rapid development of the oil industry since the early 1950s has drastically changed the economic and social conditions in Kuwait. Oil revenues, which started on a modest scale in 1953, rose to over $570 000 000 in 1963, and reached an increasing magnitude with $1550 000 000 reported for 1972-3.2 Because of an intense emphasis on education, illiteracy in Kuwait is now under 47% of the total population, which is considered relatively low by the general standards of developing countries. In the 1972-3 * Mohamed H. Zehery, Associate Professor, School of Library Science, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina 27707, U.S.A. 1 The Middle East and Jvorth Africa (1973). 19th Ed., p. 465 London: Europa Publication. s The Planning Board, Kuwait (1973). Statistical Abstract, p. 163. Kuwait: Government Printing Press.
4
M. H. ZEHERY
school year, Kuwait had a total of 160 23 1 pupils attending kindergarten, primary, intermediate, secondary, and special schools, which comprise the public education system. Since 1967, school attendance has been compulsory for children between the ages of six and 14. The state also provides free vocational and technical training at the technical college and at various special institutes; a college education at Kuwait University, opened in 1966 and now taking the lead as the major centre of higher learning in the Gulf, is also granted to residents. Kuwait’s continuous effort to maintain a comprehensive and effective free medical service is directed primarily at the interrelated problems of health and public hygiene. A number of modern hospitals and a chain of government clinics are operating throughout Kuwait to meet the people’s needs for medical services. The urbanization of Kuwait has been growing at a more rapid pace than in any developing country. In two decades, in the area once known as the old town, nearly all of the mud dwellings and humble homes have been eradicated and replaced with modern “high-rises”, office buildings, shopping centres, and lavish homes which make up the ultra-modern city of Kuwait and its suburbia. Arab culture predominates among Kuwait’s inhabitants, who are mainly Muslims of the Sunni and the Shiite sects. With improved educational facilities, local culture has received wide support from the Government, which is reflected in the published Kuwaiti literature. Kuwait has six daily newspapers, of which two are in English, 22 magazines and professional journals, and a government-owned broadcasting and television station. LIBRARIES
IN KUWAIT
Libraries in the State of Kuwait are organized according to the types and functions of these libraries. In general, most of the libraries are controlled and financed by the Kuwaiti Government except in the case of a few special libraries that fall under private enterprise such as banks, corporations, and associations. Public and school libraries in Kuwait are administered by the Ministry of Education and the university libraries by Kuwait University. A few ministries in Kuwait have libraries even though, professionally speaking, they are still far from being special libraries. THE
NATIONAL
LIBRARY
The National Library in Kuwait is closely affiliated with Kuwait University. Since the state’s population is still under 1000 000, Kuwait
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
5
University has followed the same practices as smaller countries, such as Norway and Israel, which have University-National Libraries. The National Heritage Centre (Kuwait National Library) was established in 1971 as a result of a recommendation from the Kuwaiti Cabinet suggesting to the university that they establish a national archives centre responsible for collecting biographical information on prominent Kuwaiti figures. Kuwait University responded to the Kuwaiti Cabinet with a plan to establish the National Heritage Centre (the National Library) and to pass a legal deposit law that supports the function of the national library as well as a national bibliographic centre. In 1972 the Cabinet approved and authorized the university to establish the National Heritage Centre and to acquire the private library of Selim Zabbal with a collection of about 6500 items, including books, periodicals, newspaper clippings, files, and maps on Kuwait and Arabia. A committee was also designated by the University Council to study and recommend the necessary legislation for the legal deposit laws and allocate the necessary funds for the National Heritage Centre. The function of this centre is to collect, organize and make available, all print and non-print materials-including books, periodicals, archives, manuscripts, and microforms-published on Kuwait, Arabia, and the Gulf Area. The tasks of publishing the national bibliography and specialized bibliographies and of sponsoring research on the area were also assigned to the new centre. The centre will comprise departments for library collections, research and bibliography, and reference and information services. Archives and manuscripts, reprography, and publishing and translation departments will be added later to the centre.1 At the present time, the centre has approximately 10000 volumes. The development of the new National Library has been slow and unnoticed and its survival depends on the state’s recognition of its vital importance in developing bibliographic and information services in the country and the adequate resources and legislative measures that outline its responsibilities, functions, and objectives. UNIVERSITY
LIBRARIES
The history of higher education in Kuwait started with the inauguration of the first university of 27 November 1966. The planning for this university started in 1960 when the Ministry of Education invited a team of scholars and higher education experts from England, Lebanon and Egypt to study the feasibility for establishing a new university in 1 Al-Ibrahim, National Heritage
Bahaa (1973). Markaz al-TurZth Centre at Kuwait University).
al-QawmI bi-Jlmi Muktabat al-j%mi‘ah
‘ at al-Kuwait (The 2,45-59. (in Arabic.)
6
M.
H.
ZEHERY
Kuwait. At the present time, Kuwait University has a student body of approximately 3000 and a faculty of 300. It has six faculties (colleges) with varied library holdings totalling 192672 volumes, most of it duplicated between the faculties of women and the faculties of men, since co-education is not yet accepted in Kuwait. The collections differ widely in size and value. The three libraries of the faculty of women have a collection of 61500 volumes; the faculty of science has 23000 volumes; the faculty of law and Sharia, 8700 volumes; the faculty of commerce, economics and political science, 20500 volumes; and the faculty of arts and education, 66000 volumes. Other departmental libraries, such as that of the National Heritage Centre, has a special collection of 9000 volumes, and the United Nations publications library with a collection of 4500 volumes. The periodicals library has over 2000 journal titles and constitutes the largest periodical collection in the Gulf area. The functions of Kuwait University Libraries are similar to those of any other university: to provide adequate library services to the students and the faculty for study, research, and recreational needs, and also to provide library services to meet the community needs for cultural and scientific information.1 To achieve these library objectives, Kuwait University must review its library functions and objectives in relation to the total objectives and functions of the university. The university library, as an integral part of the academic community geared to the teaching-research functions of the university, should grant faculty status and adequate pay to professional librarians with graduate library degrees. Such measures will definitely attract librarians of high calibre and subject specialists in various fields who will upgrade and improve the quality of the present library services. The university libraries are organized under the Libraries Department, which is the central library with six branches and centralized divisions for acquisition, cataloguing and classification, bibliography and documentation, audio-visual, reference and information service, reprography, and personnel departments. The Libraries Department also maintains a separate library for periodicals, the National Heritage Centre, and a United Nations publications library. The university library is technically governed by a faculty library committee representing the various academic departments to advise on library policies and programs, collection development, book funds allocations, and on other library services activities. The director of Kuwait University Libraries 1 Badr, Ahmad Bulletin for Libraries
and Sulaiian 24, 79-82.
Kalander
(1970).
Kuwait
University
Libraries.
UJVESCO
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
7
is the chief library administrator for all university libraries and reports directly to the Secretary General of the university.1 Books are arranged by Dewey decimal classification for western materials and by the modified Dewey classification for the Arabic materials. Western books are catalogued according to Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules and Library of Congress printed card catalogue cards are obtained from the Library of Congress. The cataloguing of Arabic material varies from the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules whereby the book is entered under the first name of the modern Arab author. The Library of Congress List of Subject Headings is used for nonArabic materials and a new Arabic list of subject headings is already developed for Arabic material. The budget for the university libraries for 19734 is estimated at $300000 for library collections, programs, equipment, and services. Personnel salaries are excluded from this budget since they fall under the university total salary expenditures. The University Libraries staff is comprised of 80 employees, 15 with library education, 30 college graduates, and 35 with intermediate and high school diplomas. Among them is one Ph.D. in Library Science, four with Masters Degrees in Library Science and Library Science Diplomas, 10 with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science, 30 college graduates with library training in both Kuwait and abroad, and the remainder with intermediate and high-school diplomas.2 It is of vital importance at the present time for the university to consider establishing a library school to supply the university, school, public, and special libraries in Kuwait with trained library assistants and technicians on the undergraduate level and highly qualified librarians with a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science on the graduate level. A study of Kuwait University libraries is planned for publication this fall as a part of a research study for a Ph.D. dissertation on “The Development of Library Services in the State of Kuwait” by the author. SCHOOL
LIBRARIES
The school library system in Kuwait has 270 libraries with collections totalling over 1000000 books and several hundred periodical titles. These collections are serving approximately 200000 students in elementary, intermediate, secondary, and vocational and technical schools. 1 Kuwait University (1972). Taqwim j%mi’at Al-Kuwait, 1971-72 (Kuwait University Handbook, 1971-72). p. 245. Kuwait: Kuwait University. (in Arabic.) s Library figures for Kuwait University, public, school, and special libraries were obtained from questionnaires gathered by the author in January 1974.
8
M. H. ZEHERY
School libraries vary in their holdings according to the type ofthe school, its student population, and date of establishment. The School Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education was established in 1954 and charged with the responsibilities of providing school libraries with books and personnel, and with operating a book processing centre which distributes library material regularly to these school libraries. Technical supervision in school libraries is the responsibility of the head of the School Libraries Department, while the administrative supervision in these school libraries is the responsibility of each school principal. Arabic collections dominate library shelves in each school library with the exception of secondary, vocational and technical schools where there are a few hundred books in English. Books are shelved on open stacks and classified by a modified version of the Dewey decimal classification for Arabic books. The book processing operations are centralized in the School Libraries Department where acquisition, cataloguing and classification of books, and processing are done. Books are then distributed regularly to each school. The department has a staff of 300 employees, with various amounts of education and training, only 30 with library education, 20 college graduates with library training and the remainder with intermediate and high school diplomas and some library training. 1 In spite of the progress that has been made in school libraries, a serious staff shortage prevails. There is a need for approximately 300 professional and certified school librarians. New and modern quarters for some school libraries and the School Libraries Department, are needed. Standard bibliographies, new tools for book selection, weeding and inventory policies, and the integration of the book collection with audio-visual material in an instructional media centre are basic elements in enhancing school library services in Kuwait. PUBLIC
LIBRARIES
The first public library in Kuwait came into existence in 1923 when a group of enlightened citizens established the public library (al-Maktabah al-Ahliyah) which was absorbed with its collection in the Central Public Library that was established in 1936. The organization of Kuwait Public Libraries is centred in the Public Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education with a central public library and 18 branch libraries, mostly in the City of Kuwait and its suburbs where threequarters of the state’s population (738662 in 1970) are located. 1 op. cit.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
9
Public libraries in Kuwait have book collections totaling 172007 volumes in 1973, with the largest, 36031 volumes, in the Central Public Library. Hawalli has 15426 volumes, and Ahmadi 13 970 volumes. Only two public libraries have a small collection of non-Arabic books, mainly in English, the Central Public Library with 8706 volumes and Ahmadi with 2478 volumes. Books are arranged on open shelves and classified by a modified Dewey decimal classification for Arabic material. Acquisition, cataloguing and book processing operations are done centrally by the Central Public Library and books and catalogue cards are distributed regularly to each branch library. Periodicals are excluded from the Central Library processing and acquired separately by each library from an allotted fund of $75 per month. Branch libraries are located in each shopping centre in each district of the City of Kuwait with an average library collection of 7000 volumes.1 The present emphasis of public library service in Kuwait is mainly on reading inside the library because of the administrative restrictions and an outmoded storehouse regulation which curtails book circulation outside the library. A small collection of audio-visual materials are available in Hawalli Public Library, mainly comprised of recorded tapes of lectures presented at the library. The public library in Kuwait faces many technical and administrative problems such as the lack of clear objectives, identity, planning, standard bibliographies, and selection and collection development policies for books and non-book materials. The Public Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education in Kuwait has a staff of 80 employees, 10 of whom hold a Bachelors Degree in Library Science. Of these 10, two are working as librarians in the branches and eight in technical and supervisory positions. Aside from the 10 holding Bachelors Degrees in Library Science, there are 10 college graduates and 60 with intermediate and high school diplomas. LIBRARY
SERVICES
FOR
SPECIAL
GROUPS
Library services to the blind, physically handicapped, the shut-ins, hospital patients and prison inmates do not exist in Kuwait. Libraries do not provide such facilities as bookmobiles, book collections in Braille or in large print, talking books, special equipment, and the learning resources to adequately meet the needs of an important segment of the Kuwaiti society. The only library services for the blind and physically handicapped are available on a very limited scale at the Institute of Special Education for the elementary, intermediate and vocational 1 op. cit.
10
M. H. ZEHERY
pupils. Services for these special groups should be adequately for by the public library system in Kuwait. GOVERNMENT
AND SPECIAL
provided
LIBRARIES
Government libraries in Kuwait exist in a few ministries, with a moderate collection and few qualified librarians to manage and offer library services to the employees of these institutions. Important ministries such as the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry do not have libraries at all. Most of these ministry libraries have been in existence for more than 15 years but suffer from lack of adequate financial support, adequate collections, trained librarians, and library facilities and quarters. Ministries with sizable book collections are the Ministry of Education Library with 36500 volumes, the Ministry of Endowments with 19202 volumes, the Ministry of Information with 10072 volumes, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with 9500 volumes. Special libraries in general are in their early stages of development with the exception of some existing libraries which are converting to documentation centres. Among these special libraries are: the Arab Planning Institute; the Planning Board; the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research; and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development.1 A few corporations in Kuwait have adequate library services to meet their organizational needs for information, such as the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce with a collection of 12000 volumes, the Central Bank of Kuwait with 5000 volumes and the Kuwait National Petroleum Company with 5100 volumes. Associations such as the Kuwaiti Teachers Association and the Kuwaiti Medical Association have special libraries in education and medical sciences for their members. These special collections are organized and cared for by trained librarians on a parttime basis. LIBRARY
EDUCATION
AND TRAINING
Libraries in any country cannot function effectively without competent and qualified librarians with graduate studies in library and information sciences. Kuwait is no exception to such a premise, and a library science department is expected to be established at Kuwait University by 1974-5. The new program will offer an undergraduate degree with a major in library science for library assistants and a graduate program for college graduates to develop a core of trained professional librarians 1 Op. cit.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
11
KUWAIT
and subject specialists. The graduate studies in library and information sciences will eventually lead to granting a Masters Degree in Library Science to professional librarians and the undergraduate program will develop library assistants and technicians with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science. At the present time, Kuwait has only one librarian with a Ph.D. in Library Science, five librarians with a Masters Degree in Library Science from the United States, and approximately 60 librarians with a Bachelors Degree in Library Science, mainly from the Department of Library and Archival Science at Cairo University. The undergraduate library program in Egypt was initiated in 1951 and was modified twice (in 1956 and 1959). The curriculum for this library program involves four years of college education in library and archival science as well as liberal arts with emphasis on the social sciences and the humanities.1 New graduate programs are still in their early stages. Until Kuwait has its own library school, it will continue to rely heavily on the graduates of the library science department of Cairo University. Library training is conducted in two institutions periodically, at the Libraries Department of Kuwait University and the School Libraries Department of the Ministry of Education. The main objective of these training programs is to prepare library technicians and assistants. There is a special program for university graduates where participants receive practical training, courses in library organization and administration, technical and readers’ services, bibliography and documentation, and reprography. A few Kuwaiti graduates are on government fellowships in the United States and England for further training and graduate studies in library and information sciences. Another matter of immediate concern to the library profession is the absence of a library association to enhance library services and development in the country, as well as to promote the professional growth of its members and to participate effectively in setting up standards, encouraging education and publishing professional journals and library literature.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL
SERVICES
AND
PROFESSIONAL
LITERATURE
The legal deposit law in Kuwait is still pending along with the law which provides for the establishment of The National Heritage Centre (the National Library) and a copyright law whereby a printer or publisher must deposit five copies of any publication published with the National 1 Aman,
M. M.
(1969).
Libraries
in the United
Arab
Republic.
3. Libr.
Hist.
4, 158-68.
12
M. H.
ZEHERY
Library. Stipulations are also made for publishing a national bibhography which will include books, periodicals and other non-book materials published or produced in Kuwait. Provisions are made for a bibliographic information centre to provide services to library users, institutions, as well as libraries abroad. Kuwait University Library published the first volume in its bibliographic series Selected Bibliografihy on Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf, compiled by Soraya Kabeel, containing 1300 entries of foreign books and articles on Kuwait and the Gulf area. This may be considered the nucleus for the .NationaZ Bibliograpliy. The second volume in this series was published in 1970 and entitled Selected Bibliography on Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf, (Arabic sources). The university library has been active in publishing a “List of Books and Publications Received by Kuwait University Libraries Covering the period from July 1971 to July 1973.“1 This is a computer print-out compiled by Tbrahim ElKhazindar and Fathi Osman and is divided into two parts for foreign and Arabic holdings of Kuwait University Libraries. Entries of both parts are arranged by Dewey decimal classification and the list has an author index for each part. Other subject bibliographies published were: Selected Bibliography on Arab Civilization, compiled by Mahmoud Hashad and published in 1970; Selected and Annotated Bibliography on Yemen, compiled by Sultan Nagi and published in 1973; and Selected and Annotated Bibliography on Saline Water Conversion, compiled by Vakil Siddiqui and published in 1972. A list of periodical holdings arranged by subject was published in 1973 and includes over 2000 titles acquired by the university libraries. The Kuwait University Library is also the centre for promoting and publishing professional literature. An Arabic List of Subject Headings (QZ’ imat Ruiis al-Maw~ii‘at al-‘Arabiyah) prepared by T. El-Khazindar and covering the letter A (alif) was published in November, 1973. The Uniuersity Library Journal was the first professional journal published in Kuwait University and the first issue appeared in October 1971 with Sulaiman Kalander as editor, and Ahmad Badr as consultant. This journal is published in Arabic three times a year under Ma&abut alJEmi‘ah and contains articles by professional librarians in Kuwait and the Arab countries.2 CONCLUSION
In conclusion, 1 Bibliographical
library
development
Services in Kuwait
in Kuwait
(1973). Bibliograjly,
has been slow, although Documm tation
Tm*nolo~.
13,
81-3.
s Badr, Ahmad (197-). Kuwait, Libraries in. Encyclopedia New York: Marcel Dekker (a pre-print).
of Library
and Information
Science.
LIBRARIES
AND
LIBRARIANSHIP
IN
KUWAIT
13
some progress has been accomplished on the academic and school library level. The Kuwaiti libraries in general suffer tremendously, not from the financial strains (since the country can afford first-rate libraries and excellent library services) but from an identity crisis and recognition by top government officials as to the vital role of the library as a dynamic social institution. Library development in Kuwait needs an organized government agency-a library board, or the National Library-to take the lead and establish goals, objectives, and short- and long-range planning for library services for the nation. This organization should be empowered to develop legislation and adopt a national program that will enhance the development of libraries in Kuwait. The plan should provide for the right of the individual to free access to books whereby the library will no longer be a storehouse, but a public service institution giving greater emphasis to the dissemination rather than to the preservation of information. The plan should include a national inter-library loan system and a comprehensive network of library and information centres to foster cooperation and sharing of library resources. Working committees comprised of professional librarians and library consultants should be set up to formulate highly needed working tools, such as standard bibliographies for college, school, and public libraries, regional and national union catalogues, and to set up services to the blind and physically handicapped. A new library association is definitely needed to campaign for better library services and co-operate with other library agencies in recommending standards for library organization, book collections and instructional materials, resources, salaries and financing, and the minimum requirements of library education for librarians.