Final Evaluation of the “Library Books and Training for Historically Disadvantaged Institutions Programme”

Detailed description of project Back

The programme to be evaluated is the €13 million Library Books and Training for Historically Disadvantaged Institutions Programme designed to build capacity in the libraries and departments of Library Science in the 17 Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDI) of the South African Higher Education sector.

The Programme addresses the imbalances of the past with respect to the libraries in the higher education sector. Through the upgrading of resources and the development of the capacity of those individuals working in the libraries, the HDI libraries will be able to keep pace with the transformation that is currently taking place in the HE sector.The Programme covers four components:

• Materials;
• Textbooks;
• Information Technology and
• Human Resource Development. It focused on key subject areas for the economic development of the country – science and technology, economics, management and business studies. It commenced in May 1997 and the initial timescale was 3 years.Due to delays in the implementation process, this was extended to 30 June 2003.

The broad purpose of the evaluation is to assess whether the assistance provided by the Programme has had any impact on the quality of services being delivered in the libraries and departments and the nature of this impact.

Type of services provided

PROMAN provides the expertise of 4 highly qualified local evaluators, who examine the extent to which the programme succeeded:

• In establishing sustainable, institutional interventions in textbook provision in Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDIs);
• Improving information technology (IT);
• Enhancing the ability of library staff in Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDIs) to deliver an effective library and information service;
• Providing library books, audiovisual materials and other library resources to targeted institutions.

The evaluation is carried out according to the PCM methodology. PROMAN is responsible for the backstopping of the mission and overall quality assurance.