Restricted Technical Report RP/1986-1987/VII.2.1 EGYPT

Library Development

Feasibility Study for the Revival of the Ancient Library of Alexandria FIRST PHASE

by Jean-Pierre Clavel Jacques Tocatlian

Serial N o . F M R / P G I / 8 7 / 1 0 2

tint United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Paris, 1987

EGYPT

FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR

THE REVIVAL OF THE ANCIENT LIBRARY

OF ALEXANDRIA - FIRST PHASE

by Jean-Pierre Clavel Jacques Tocatlian

Report prepared for the Government of Egypt by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

UNESCO

Technical Report RP.1986-1987/VII.2.1 FMR/PG1/87/102 (Clavel, Tocatlian) 1 March 1987

(cT) UNESCO 1987

Printed in France

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SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

1. In 1986, the Government of Egypt requested UNESCO's assist­ance in drawing up a feasibility study before the end of 1987 and in investigating to what extent UNESCO could participate in the project.

2. At the close of this mission, which represents the first stage of the feasibility study, it would appear that the project "Revival of the Ancient Library of Alexandria" can and must be carried out, since it is absolutely necessary to the intellectual community of Alexandria, deprived as it is at present of the bibliographic resources it needs.

3. The project should be carried out in several stages, as much as far as the construction of the library itself is concerned as the building up of the collection of books. To begin with, only a small number of disciplines should be dealt with : human sciences in the Mediterranean world and the Middle East, from the Ptolemaic era to the present day.

A. The implementation of the project implies taking on a great number of professional librarians. Given the importance of this profession in the future, the recruitment and training of a large number of young students should be encouraged as from 1987/1988.

5. The architectural brief, drawn up by two UNESCO consultants (one an architect, the other a librarian), should allow an archi­tectural contest to be set up so as to select the best project.

6. The status of the new library must ensure it a great degree of autonomy under the control of a governing body and the direc­tion of a head librarian. The latter should play a part in the construction work and building up of collections as soon as possible (1987/1988).

7. The Government of Egypt will provide the necessary funds for the construction of the library building and the acquisition and processing of its collections.

8. In April 1987, UNESCO will partially finance a study tour for three persons attached to the project, providing them with the opportunity of visiting some of the more successful current European achievements in the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Switzerland and France. This mission will be accom­panied by Mr. Ahmed HELAL, Director of the University Library in Essen.

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9. UNESCO will finance the feasibility study and take the necessary steps for its completion in 1987. The University of Alexandria takes responsibility for printing the report.

10. From 1988 onwards, UNESCO will give the project moral support, and will actively encourage and seek foreign contribu­tions for equipping the building, for the acquisition of books, and for study grants for future librarians.

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CONTENTS

Page

Summary of the report i

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 : Basic options 3

Chapter 2 : Organization of the Library 11

Chapter 3 : Detailed studies 13

Chapter 4 : Staff training 18

Chapter 5 : Architectural brief 21

Chapter 6 : Architectural contest 23

Conclusion 25

Annex I - Meetings with dignitaries and visits

to libraries 27

Annex II - Estimate of the cost of acquisitions 29

Annex III - Organization chart 30

Annex IV - Examples of library management budgets 31

Annex V - List of problems to be solved in view of the second stage of the feasibility study 33

1

INTRODUCTION

The Egyptian request in 1986 "Memorandum presented to the UNESCO by the University of Alexandria on the "Revival of the ancient Library of Alexandria"", accompanied by a booklet en-tilled The New Alexandriana, contains the main lines of the project : on the one hand, the work which is presently being carried out by the University of Alexandria on a site measuring 45,000 m2 placed at its disposal by the Government of Egypt, that is a Conference Centre, which will at the latest be completed in two years time, and on the other hand, the idea of creating a large library for research workers interested in Mediterranean culture over the last two thousand years, plus a guest house in order to facilitate accommodation of foreign researchers.

The present mission, carried out by Mr. Jacques TOCATLIAN, Director of UNESCO's General Information Programme, and Mr. Jean-Pierre CLAVEL, a UNESCO consultant, took place from 26 January to 10 February in Alexandria and Cairo. The object of the mission was :

1. to establish the necessary contacts with officials of the Government of Egypt and of the University of Alexandria, as well as with the originators of the project, to visit some existing libraries, to discuss the project in order to define its limits and clarify its objectives. This initial contact was thought necessary to determine the extent of the aid UNESCO might pos­sibly provide. We have listed in Annex I the persons with whom we met.

2. As it was impossible to collect all the necessary data during the mission, namely those concerning financing and for­mulating realistic objectives, this report poses a certain number of questions which should be answered by the Egyptian authorities so that UNESCO may usefully undertake the feasibility study. These questions concern basic options as to the type of library, the kind of documents to be gathered therein, the number of disciplines to be covered, the size of collections and the range of services to be provided to users. All of these notions will allow the calculation of investment costs for the building itself, the constitution of collections, and professional train­ing, together with the estimate of running costs immediately after inauguration.

When the Egyptian authorities have decided upon the options mentioned in Chapter 1 of this report, UNESCO will be able to complete the feasibility study, which it will finance. The study will be conducted by a team of consultants on the basis of the present report and of replies to questions posed therein. The visit to some recently built research libraries in the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Switzerland and Paris by a delegation from the University of Alexandria, accompanied by

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Mr. Ahmed HELAL, Director of the University Library in Essen (FRG), should facilitate the choice of basic options. This study tour, to be undertaken this Spring, will end with a day at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris to discuss the situation.

The feasibility study will include a phased workplan, with a description of the tasks entrusted to each participant in the project : the governmental and local authorities, executing agents, architects, librarians, consultants, UNESCO, concerning the various stages of the project up to the opening of the library.

The feasibility study might include a section on the archi­tectural brief, as well as an outline of the library tasks to be carried out as early as 1988 to render the library operational as soon as it opens. It should be remembered that the aim of the project is not solely the building of a library, but the initia­tion of a structure to prepare and ensure that the institution is in proper working order as soon as the building is ready, and even during the preparatory period.

Special studies should also be carried out during 1987 and 1988 concerning various matters with which the feasibility study will not have time to deal.

A Steering Committee has already been set up by the Egyptian authorities. Under the Chairmanship of H.E. Dr. Fathi SOROUR, Minister of Education, it includes a certain number of Egyptian high-ranking officials, to which it would be advisable to add a representative of UNESCO's General Information Programme to facilitate operational coordination.

An Executive Committee, under the Chairmanship of Mr. M. Lotfy DOWIDAR, Honorary Dean of the University of Alexandria, will also be responsible on the spot for following the project's progress, the Chairman being in charge of coordina­tion with the Steering Committee. This should ensure that opera­tions are carried out smoothly.

The Executive Committee will have two types of assistance : the first, essential and permanent, will be provided by an Egyptian librarian ready to give wholehearted support to the work in hand, and possibly even becoming Director after inauguration. He will be provided with administrative support. The second will consist of studies carried out by external consultants. It would be helpful, when the time comes, to envisage setting up a tech-

, nical group to assist the two Committees, giving them the neces­sary information for the smooth progress of operations, namely ensuring concomitance of parallel action : the construction of the building and the constitution of collections. It would be ideal to have a consultant architect and a consultant librarian to follow the project through to its final stage.

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Chapter 1 - BASIC OPTIONS

The construction of a library depends on several variable factors which must be defined before the architectural brief is drawn up and before undertaking the acquisition of collections. Each of these factors includes various options among which a choice must be made. The financing of the operation as a whole is one of the most important of these options. One of the first steps to be taken therefore consists in fixing an order of grandeur of costs envisaged, and examining the appropriateness of these costs in relation to the library in question. This report therefore makes a point of assessing the cost of the options, of justifying the proposed recommendation, while of course leaving the responsibility of choice to the authorities. This choice will form the basis of a document containing the commitment of the Egyptian Government, which is necessary for launching further studies. The questions which require a reply before launching phase two of the feasibility study are summarized in Annex V.

1.1. The first option concerns the type of library. All parties concerned agree that the library must encourage research while at the same time being readily open to the public. One could there­fore consider it as a Public Research Library. On the archi­tectural side, the building could be constructed along three different lines, corresponding to three different types of management :

1.1.1. The simplest library consists of one or several book stacks to which the public are not admitted, one or more reading rooms and staff working premises. Construction and management are relatively simple, thus incurring less expense that any other type. The major drawback is the waste of the public's time, since they have to be served as in a restaurant. Besides, con­sultation of catalogues is less practical than direct search on bookshelves. Today, this type of library is considered outdated.

1.1.2. On the other hand, we have the open-access library, where all books are on shelves in rooms open to the public, who thus no longer need help in obtaining a volume. This type of library has found a great deal of favour in the public's eyes. The disadvantage is the cost : about twice as much floor space is needed for the same quantity of books. And through the years, one doesn't know where to house obsolete books which encumber the shelves.

1.1.3. Between these two types there is a compromise which consists in a building housing both closed book stacks and open-access areas. The construction is more complicated than for

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1.1.1. and 1.1.2., its cost is lower than 1.1.2. and higher than 1.1.1., service to readers has the advantages of 1.1.2. while at the same time partially limiting running expenses. Reader satis­faction is close to the level of 1.1.2., and greatly superior to that of 1.1.1.

Recommendation : Solution 1.1.3. seems the best suited to the needs of the new library in Alexandria.

Decision : The Steering Committee must indicate its choice.

1.2. The second option concerns types of documents to be col­lected. A research library contains the following :

books, reviews, microforms replacing printed versions ; manuscripts, correspondence, archives, etc. ; musical scores, sound recordings, etc. ; geographical maps and plans ; iconography, in the form of photographs, prints, reproduc­tions, etc. ; audiovisual material, negatives, slides, video tapes, films ; computerized data bases.

Ideally, all the above-mentioned sections should be func­tioning at the inauguration of the building. But the task would be huge and it seems to us wiser to proceed in stages. We shall see later that staggering operations over a period of time could have repercussions on construction, which could also be carried out in stages.

Recommendation : Sections should be opened in stages :

1.2.1. Printed material Manuscripts Maps

1.2.2. Iconography 1.2.3. Music

Audiovisual materials and equipment 1.2.4. Computerized data bases.

Implementation could be spread over about twenty years. This procedure will better ensure the bases of the new library and will allow progressive financial commitment, doubtless corres­ponding to needs which will unfailingly increase over the years.

Decision : The Steering Committee must decide on the order of sections and the calendar for setting them up.

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1.3. The third option concerns the disciplines for which the new library will endeavour to hold complete documentation. Re­creating the library of Alexandria could be interpreted in two ways : seeking out works which in times past constituted the basis of its collection, or reviving its erstwhile brilliant reputation. It is obvious that all parties concerned rejected the first interpretation. But those promoting this project are well aware that it is impossible to create in Alexandria the largest library in the world, such as it was in Graeco-Roman times. There must therefore be a limit to ambition. This limit must intervene in the choice of disciplines covered. And the key idea which the promoters have followed is to choose the era of the great library of Alexandria as the main hub of research to be conducted in the new library. And it would appear that this solution is absolutely suited to the University of Alexandria's imperatives concerning library development. We have in fact noticed that scientific, technical and medical libraries are relatively well supplied, in particular as far as periodicals are concerned, that they have professional librarians at their dis­posal and that the new central scientific and medical library is admirably equipped for research workers. These efforts doubtless stem from the fact that 40 per cent of Egypt's industry is con­centrated in the region of Alexandria.

The University of Alexandria is very badly equipped, how­ever, in the field of human and social sciences. At present, the Faculty of Arts has an embryonic library , but not a really organized one. It would even seem that there is no professional librarian, though the Faculty includes a Department of Library and Archives. Since libraries are to the human and social sciences what laboratories are to science and medicine, one can imagine the progress that has to be made. The promoters have therefore well understood the essential needs of Alexandria's intellectual community and have given priority to the following disciplines :

Egyptian history from the Ptolemaic era to the present day. Graeco-Roman archaeology, epigraphy, papyrology, palaeo­graphy. Graeco-Roman languages and literatures. Coptic history, oriental monachism, oriental patrology. Coptic language, literature, culture and civilization. Middle Eastern ancient geography and geography of the Middle Ages. Islam, Arabic history and civilization, language and litera­ture. Transmission of classical heritage, history of sciences and medicine in the Ancient World and the Middle Ages. Modern and contemporary history of the region.

As far as this option is concerned, we propose that matters should proceed in two stages :

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1.3.1. The Steering Committee should agree in principle to the limitation of disciplines as enumerated above.

1.3.2. An in-depth study should be launched within the frame­work of the feasibility study to fix definite chronological limits and to avoid overlapping, given that there are no doubt libraries in Cairo specializing in some of the subjects mentioned in' the above list. This study may be carried out during 1987/1988 and be linked to the study on acquisition policy sug­gested in Chapter 3.

In order to allow the Steering Committee to come to an agreement in principle this Spring, we have given in Annex II an estimate of global costs for 1985 for the Library of Congress in Washington, one of the largest libraries in the world, of the disciplines enumerated above, roughly ponderating these costs for the new library of Alexandria. The detailed study could be made later.

Recommendation : It is proposed that the Steering Committee adopt the principle of limiting the disciplines to be covered in the new library and launching a detailed study to determine exact limits.

Decision : The Steering Committee must communicate its decision on this matter.

1.4. The fourth option concerns the desirable quantity of docu­ments to be acquired each year, and the annual growth rate to be assigned to the new institution. This decision has direct reper­cussions on size of staff and the building's surface area. Table I below gives the ratio usually accepted for 10,000 volumes a year.

Table I

Operation Number of qualified Number of un-librarians qualified staff

"Book selection 1 Book ordering 3 Receiving, checking, accounts 2 Cataloguing and indexing, computer input and correction 5 Preparation of bookbinding 1 Labelling 0.5 Handling 0.5

TOTAL 12

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This table should allow a rough estimate of global acquisi­tion and processing costs for 10,000 volumes, not including the price of binding. The mean volume purchase price is at present around $50 a piece. It is possible that the Alexandria library will receive books as gifts, especially initially. But one should not delude oneself, gifts are often worthless and encumber libraries more than they enrich them. A library must be able to dispose, in the legal sense of the term, of books which it is given in order to avoid costly hours of work if the books are never to be consulted. Furthermore, the average price of the books that libraries collect, that is works of erudition, is ever on the increase. One must therefore count on a minimum of $500,000 for 10,000 volumes.

As for expenditure on qualified personnel, we are unaware of present salaries or of what they will be in ten or so years time when the library has been built.

Finally, Table I only mentions the staff needed for the acquisition of 10,000 volumes. A number of staff are necessary to the running of a library, and the bigger the library, the smaller the ratio of buying in books against the overall budget. The Library of Congress and the British Library, for example, only use 12 per cent of global expenses for acquisitions. Medium-sized libraries (between 50.000 and 80.000 volumes per year) spend 20 per cent of their overall budget on acquisitions. Some libraries manage to spend 30 per cent on acquisitions. The following table can thus be drawn up :

Table II

Percentage of budget spent on acquisitions

Acquisitions 12 to 25 per cent

Staff 35 to 45 per cent

Overheads 35 to 45 per cent

This proportion will doubtless be favourable in Egypt due mainly to salary levels, which are far from those in industrialized countries. Were we to take the example of the Alexandria Municipal Library which, for an annual acquisition budget of 1,000 Egyptian pounds employs about 200 staff members, of which more than 15 are qualified librarians, the percentage in Table II would even be considered favourable. We should therefore not be too optimistic until professional training has reached a higher level, as well as the spirit of consecration to work.

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The other aspect of the question of the quantity of volumes to be acquired each year is growth rate. Were one to take the hypothesis of the acquisition of 10,000 volumes the first year, with an annual sustained growth rate of 4 per cent (which is high !), in the year 2050 one would expect the library to possess 2,0-00,000 volumes. Here a variety of scenarios are possible, progress may be made more rapidly initially and proceed there­after by leaps and bounds when financial circumstances and per­sonnel recruitment allow. It is therefore probable that we shall start with an acquisition of less than 10,000 volumes for the first few years, with a growth rate of over 10 per cent, and that the curve will thereafter flatten out. In very large libraries, the annual growth rate is less than 3 per cent. But these scenarios can only be studied seriously when the experts know the extent to which the Egyptian Government is prepared to finance the new library. Given the importance of this factor, as much later for current expenditures - namely in foreign currency - as for the size of the building, a clear reply is necessary.

Decision : The Steering Committee is invited to give its defini­tion of the order of grandeur of the budget it is prepared to commit each year :

to acquisition of books and documents ; to ensuring an annual growth rate of 3 per cent, 3.5 per cent, A per cent, or over 4 per cent ;

The Steering Committee is also invited to reply to the following question :

At what date does it consider that collections should reach 4,000,000 volumes, as foreseen in the promoters' booklet ?

N.B. : It should be emphasized that the growth rate mentioned in this chapter does not take account of problems of inflation or currency devaluation. In France, for example, the growth rate of Collections has become negative during the last twelve years due to acquisition budgets being blocked and the devaluation of the French franc. With the same budget, one acquires only half, then a third, then a quarter of the number of volumes... while the number of publications increases incessantly throughout the world.

Comment : It should be noted that whatever the Steering Com­mittee's reply, acquisitions will have to be made gradually not only during the preparatory period (up to the opening of the library), but also during the first few years due to the problem of qualified personnel needed to handle the volumes.

Neither should it be forgotten that during the preparatory period, accommodation will have to be found for personnel

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handling acquisitions and storing books acquired. The recently opened Central Science Library of the University of Alexandria should help provide an inexpensive solution to this problem. The feasibility study should look carefully into this aspect.

1.5. The fifth option concerns the services to be provided in the new library. These may be various and more or less developed. Here again, stages must be foreseen which will affect current expenditures and building work, considering that the stages of the latter correspond to the implementation stages of the library's various functions.

Priorities could be as follows :

1.5.1. Lending, interlibrary lending, on-the-spot consultation, photocopying and microform-reading facilities, access to foreign data bases.

1.5.2. Assistance with bibliographic research, recent acquisi­tions lists, dissemination of information, automated bibliogra­phies, etc.

1.5.3. Use of audiovisual equipment, special rooms for listening to music or viewing films, etc.

1.5.A. Creation of a host centre for data bases (see para. 3.2.2. below).

Recommendation : Services should be developed as the need for them arises and as a function of space available in the building, if it is to be built in stages.

Decision : The Steering Committee must communicate its decision on this point.

N.B. : Stages 1.5.1. and 1.5.2. only affect number of staff and general costs. Option 1.5.3. may be included in a later stage of construction, which should be accounted for in the architectural brief.

1.6. The final option concerns the ratio to be applied to work­places offered to researchers. This public library will simul­taneously be the central library of the faculties of human and social sciences of the University of Alexandria. The ratios used in the construction of university libraries in certain indus­trialized countries are as follows :

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USA 1 : 2 (= one workplace for two members of the university community)

United Kingdom 1 : 3

Federal Republic of Germany 1 : 3

France 1 : 6

This ratio is the one applied to the libraries of human and social science faculties where recourse to books is essential. The University of Alexandria has several tens of thousands of students. Even a ratio of 1 : 10 would seem illusory and might nip the project in the bud. Maybe here again one should proceed in stages. The feasibility study will shed light on this matter.

Recommendation : It is suggested that the architectural brief be established on the basis of a 1 : 20 ratio, providing about 2,000 workplaces.

Decision : The Steering Committee is invited to communicate its decision.

This option is affected by the norm to be adopted concerning the surface area allotted to each public workplace. This norm varies from 2.3m2 to 3m2 depending on the country. Multiplied by 2,000, the figure can evidently vary considerably and hence increase construction costs. The only advantage in choosing the higher figure from the outset is that the surface area will be there and could, in the course of events, house further tables and chairs.

Recommendation : It is therefore suggested that preference be given to the 3m2 norm for each reader place foreseen.

Decision : The Steering Committee must make its choice known.

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Chapter 2 - ORGANIZATION OF THE LIBRARY

This chapter will consider two aspects : the institution's legal status and internal organization.

2.1. The library's legal status must situate it with regard to relationship with government as well as local authorities or the University of Alexandria. This status must allow the library to enjoy a great degree of independence. It could be set up as a public foundation, with a management board (the present Steering Committee, for example). The Ministry under which the library will come should preside over this body.

But inspite of this special situation, it should not be forgotten that the library is to be in Alexandria and that it has an essential role to play vis-à-vis the University's faculties of human and social sciences. Regulations should govern this re­lationship.

But the new institution could also play the role of a con­servation library for volumes which the University no longer needs when they are replaced with more up-to-date editions. In order that the deposit of such volumes in the new library should not become a source of extra work, it would be ideal if all the libraries of the University of Alexandria were integrated into the same system of computerized management, so that the volumes could go from one book stock to another without changing anything but a note of their location.

Recommendation : The library's status must provide it the greatest possible degree of autonomy while ensuring that the University of Alexandria receives the services it needs. An integrated computerized system would guarantee uniformity of -service while at the same time maintaining the autonomy of the various participants. This status could usefully be tested during the preparatory period (1988/1995).

2.2. The internal organization of the library, that is its ad­ministrative and scientific structure, must be studied carefully. It in fact at least partially determines the distribution of space within the building and the hierarchy of personnel. There are several types of organization chart, all of which take account of internal divisions by task and by the nature of docu­ments collected, the handling of which implies different needs. The main internal units of the library are as follows :

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Administration (Secretariat, Accounts Department, Bureau of Personnel, Computer Department)

Division of Printed Materials

- " Division of Manuscripts (of which Rare Books usually form part )

Division of Maps and Plans

Division of Iconography (Photographs, Prints, Reproductions, etc.)

Division of Music (Scores, Recordings, Music Archives)

Division of Audiovisual Materials

Division of Technical Services (Bookbinding, Photography, Printing, etc.)

Division of Public Services (Lending, Reference, Management of reading rooms and book stacks, Information, etc.)

The organization chart corresponding to these internal divi­sions is a framework which must be adapted to the needs of the library. It should retain a certain flexibility, especially if all tasks or types of documents are not yet represented. This means that when a new Division is introduced, it will not be necessary to change internal organization. A new box is simply added to the organization chart.

As far as construction is concerned, however, some Divisions require specialized accommodation. If one wishes to create such a Division at any given time, this accommodation must already have been foreseen and left vacant up to the moment the Division is introduced. If this has not been done, the implementation of a new Division will have to await the second stage of construc­tion. The feasibility study could consider this problem in greater detail.

Recommendation : An internal organization chart must be drawn corresponding to the chosen structure. Its role is essential to the architectural brief and the phasing of the building.

Decision : The Steering Committee must indicate its preference.

N.B. : Annex III gives an example of an organization chart.

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Chapter 3 - DETAILED STUDIES

Several studies should be carried out either within the framework of the feasibility study, or, because of their scope, during the following year (1988). In a chronological order of priority, we suggest the two following studies :

3.1. Acquisitions policy

This study must include all problems inherent in the consti­tution of collections. It must be carried out fairly rapidly since it may have an influence on the options suggested in 1.2., 1.3. and 1.4. It is a fact that works worth purchasing vary in number and in price from one discipline to another and even from one language to another. The study must therefore determine the following points :

3.1.1. In which languages is it desirable to acquire the books ? Certain languages such as Arabic, English and French are a must, considering the prominent role played by Anglo-Saxon and French researchers in the disciplines chosen. But German is also very important in the archaeological domain, for example. And what about the Romance languages such as Spanish, Italian, Romanian or Portuguese ? Are they widely enough used to justify the expense ? Finally there are other European languages which have a direct bearing on the Graeco-Roman world : modern Greek, or the Turkish period : Turkish. Interesting works have been brought out in all these languages, but are they accessible to researchers, and, by the same token, useful ? The question we should ask is therefore : should works be collected on principle whatever the language of production, or should they be chosen with the users in mind ?

-3.1.2. The level of publications varies : certain studies are so specialized that it is difficult to suggest their acquisition when financial resources are not inexhaustible. It would be a good thing to establish principles which tend to exclude popular­izing works in languages other than Arabic or English (possibly also French), to avoid buying paperbacks (the paper of which does not last) or books which have been glued (and are impossible to bind). Such a study should be made for each of the disciplines concerned.

3.1.3. When a new collection is constituted, a decision should be taken as to how far back in time one should go. Should any idea of aquiring volumes published before 1980, or 1950, or 1900 be abandoned ? Should microfiche copies be made of works which are out of print ? Here again a policy decision must be taken, in consultation with the persons responsible for the various

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disciplines studied at the University of Alexandria. The im­portance of retrospective acquisitions also varies from one dis­cipline to another, being greater in archaeology or patristics than in linguistics.

3.1.4. The study should also assess the distribution of the annual budget among the various disciplines. This quota should be based on statistics of publications per discipline as well as mean price per discipline.

Recommendation : A study on acquisitions policy concerning the language and level of publications, retrospective acquisitions as well as key budget distribution between the various disciplines should be undertaken within the framework of the feasibility study.

3.2. Data processing

This subject may be divided into several sections.

3.2.1. The first problem to be solved concerns a computerized system of management. This system must allow the automatization of a majority of management tasks, especially the establishment of a catalogue, the control of book movements, the administration of acquisitions, periodicals accession and reader information services. Several systems exist on the market, often linked to a given make of computer, such as DOBIS-LIBIS for IBM, or GEAC (a Canadian firm), while others are the product of individual libraries and are adaptable to others with slight modifications due to local conditions. The feasibility study should allow the Steering Committee, together with the librarian in charge of the future library, to make a choice, taking into account those makes of computer which are well established in Egypt and for which computer personnel capable of running the system and competent technicians for software and hardware maintenance may be found. "The study should also examine the possibility of using the CDS/ISIS software package which works on large, mini- and micro­computers. This system should form the heart of the Alexandrian network, with faculty libraries also having the possibility of using the data base from terminals installed in their buildings. This type of system with a local network, capable later of being linked to a future national scientific library network, demands a good team of computer experts (a systems engineer, project leader, programmer-analysts, operators) and a few librarians with knowledge of computers to prepare the analyses of products to be developed. Their training should be backed up in an American or European computerized library, depending on the system chosen.

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In this specific and sophisticated type of work, the con­tinuity of the team dealing with the implantation of the system and the desired modifications or improvements is essential. This must be encouraged by the working conditions and salary. In any case, it is useless to think of creating a library of the size of that foreseen in Alexandria without adopting computerization at the outset, with all its attendant consequences, as much concerning running costs as those of personnel training. Upwards of a certain size, computerization becomes inevitable and if internal management techniques are initiated on a traditional basis, this will only involve catching up on lost time at a later stage. And this can be very costly. It is, however, essential when choosing a system to ensure that it can later be integrated into a network, since the future of libraries is intimately linked with bibliographic networks.

Reconmendation : A special study should be made to facilitate the choice of a system well-adapted to the needs of the new library and to the data processing environment in Alexandria, to avoid future flaws in the library's administration.

3.2.2. Computerization is at the moment the most appropriate method of data storage and retrieval, especially for scientific and technical data. The new library should therefore offer as soon as possible access to a medical, scientific and technical, as well as human and social science data base. The cost of on­line access is high. It may be divided into three component parts :

the telephone link between the library and the data base host computer ; . the cost of accessing the data base, which is based on the time duration of the connection (this cost may reach as much as $50 to $100 an hour); royalties to be paid to the owner of the data base (from $50 to $200 per hour of interrogation, depending on the type of data base).

To start with, the library will have to use the nearest host computers, primarily in Frascati (Italy). In order for this service to function correctly, the library's specialized person­nel aids researchers by helping them to formulate questions in accordance with each data base's thesaurus, thus reducing con­nection time (and diminishing the cost of the operation at each of the three levels : telecommunications, connection and royal­ties). Overlengthy replies of little (noise) or no (silence) significance are also avoided in this manner. Personnel of this type should therefore receive special training in existing centres in Egypt or abroad. Librarians should also have some knowledge of research areas so as to be able to choose appro­priate data bases for interrogation and to formulate researchers'

16

questions exactly. This is therefore a mediurn-term project, but one which could be operational when the building is inaugurated.

In the longer term, the installation of a host computer should be envisaged in Alexandria itself, for Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries, in order to reduce the cost of tele­phone links abroad. This type of project should form part of Egypt's general information policy and requires negotiation with the Egyptian P&T given the importance of telecommunications, as well as with data base owners who agree to download their data bases onto a new host computer and ensure a regular service so that the host computer has at its disposal the latest information or the latest edition of the data base. This is therefore an extremely important, ambitious project which can only be en­visaged in the long term. But it follows the project promoters' line of thought in wishing to restore Alexandria to its former prominent role on the international scene. Alexandria could become the site of a host computer for the Middle East, or at least make an essential contribution to another possible host computer in the Arab region.

Recommendation : A section on the introduction of a service offering access to foreign data bases should be included in the feasibility study.

A second study on the creation of a regional host computer in Alexandria could be envisaged in ten years or so.

3.2.3. Given that the library in Alexandria will specialize in certain disciplines forming a coherant whole and that it will endeavour to be as comprehensive as possible in all areas con­cerning the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, the crea­tion of a data base covering these subjects should be envisaged in the medium term. This data base would not only include bibliographic data, but also analytical abstracts, carried out with the help of a specific thesaurus or even the full text of "the documents themselves. It should be accessible to libraries abroad, unless it is initially downloaded onto a Western host computer, against payment of royalties by those accessing it.

Recommendation : A study of the establishment of a data base specific to the library in Alexandria, devoted to those disci­plines it especially covers, should be undertaken during 1989/1990.

3.2.A. Two further problems arise in the area of data proces­sing : the first concerns the possibility of having a bilingual system on the same screen, that is, to display data simul­taneously in Arabic and in a European language. We believe that

17

this problem has been technically solved 1. It may cause certain difficulties when a system of internal management has to be chosen, since those on the market are not generally bilingual. Consultations will have to be conducted with an Egyptian spe­cialist, perhaps Professor Usama F. Mahmoud of the Department of Librarianship of Cairo University. The study suggested in 3.2.1. should take this problem into account.

The second problem relates to cataloguing techniques, es­pecially concerning the acquisition and incorporation into col­lections of works from the West. A study should be carried out within the framework of the feasibility study or immediately afterwards, to determine to what extent the use of Western bib­liographic data bases (OCLC, PICA, SIBIL) would allow reduction of cataloguing costs and speed up the handling of acquisitions during the preparatory period. This type of a solution would palliate the lack of qualified librarians. Other relatively inexpensive systems are to be found on the market, which read compact disks containing the catalogue of the Library of Congress in Washington and, shortly, that of other libraries. The connec­tion of this type of system to the library's central system would also facilitate cataloguing.

Recommendation : A study on the inclusion of supplementary cata­loguing systems should be undertaken at the same time as the choice of the library's central management system.

Unesco. Maroc - Assistance à 1 'Institut d'Etudes et de Recherches pour l'Arabisation ( I ERA ) : Résultats et Recommandations du Projet. Paris, 1985 (FMR/PGI/OPS/85/256/FIT).

18

Chapter 4 - STAFF TRAINING

This is without doubt the most difficult problem to be solved in the relatively short space of time up to the opening of the library. Not only is it a question of money and equipment, but also of human beings who must be attracted into the profes­sion. At present, before the new library is even begun, Alexandria lacks qualified librarians. It would seem that part of those who have obtained a diploma from the schools of librarianship in either Cairo or Alexandria prefer to work abroad where salaries are higher than those offered in Egypt. It could be referred to as a 'brain drain'. At the moment (1987), the Department of Library and Archives in Alexandria trains al­together 130 students, that is about 30 for each of the four study years. There are besides about 40 post-graduate students in the Department seeking a higher degree. The Department is distinctly under-developed since it only has two full-time professors and can only carry out the programme with the help of teachers from the Cairo Faculty of Arts who come to Alexandria each week.

The programme is fairly comprehensive, except perhaps in the area of data processing. But the Department only has space for four study years, and students must therefore work in relays. Furthermore, since there is no library for working between classes, they are obliged to remain in the corridors. They have neither reference works for their bibliographic studies nor a laboratory to practise data processing. It is difficult under these conditions to hope to train the numerous librarians neces­sary for the new library, as indeed for existing libraries, when one thinks that the library of the Faculty of Arts has no quali­fied librarian and is^in a remarkable state of shabbiness.

The solution which seems to us the most favourable in Alexandria is to house the Department of Library and Archives .within the new library. This cohabitation could be nothing but profitable to both institutions : the students would be able to carry out their bibliographic exercises and practical work in the library, which would by the same occasion have the advantage of being able to use a workforce during its training period, thus already competent, and free of charge. Besides, it would not be necessary to have two sets of reference collections, since the students could use those of the library. These advantages far exceed the drawbacks which might arise from the presence of numerous students in a research library. They would not, how­ever, be just any students, they would be future librarians who would know how to respect the rule of silence so essential to research work. From their third year of studies onwards, they could help to provide assistance to researchers.

19

Recorrmendation : It is recommended that the Department of Library and Archives of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Alexandria should be housed in the new library and that the architectural brief should take its needs into account.

In the meantime, until the building is completed, a solution must be found for the Department's lack of space in the present building in order to encourage the recruitment of new students to this discipline and to train the dozens of librarians needed for running the library.

For the moment, we have only a few suggestions to make. The feasibility study will need to look further into their implemen­tation.

4.1. During the preparatory period (1988 to 1995), foreign librarians should be recruited, with an excellent level of pro­fessional training. Agreements could be drawn up with certain countries to facilitate the recruitment of librarians, especially for the first four or five years of the preparatory period.

4.2. Scholarships should be granted to young graduates to allow them to perfect their professional and linguistic knowledge abroad. UNESCO will assist Egypt as far as possible on the question of study grants.

4.3. A student recruitment campaign for the Department of Library and Archives should be undertaken to increase the number of candidates. This should be organized as soon as possible so that this greater output of qualified librarians may be active in the profession as from 1993 to 1995.

4.4. At a later stage-, it would be desirable to increase the numbers of professors in the Department of Library and Archives and to give them the opportunity of spending study periods abroad to examine more closely the teaching methods used in schools of "librarianship, either in Sheffield or Aberystwith, or in Lyons or Morocco for those who speak French.

As can be seen, some of these actions must be initiated this year and be repeated over at least a ten year period (especially as far as recruitment is concerned). Knowing how necessary and precious information is in today's world, one can measure the extent to which the promotion of professional training is indis­pensable. Countries without information specialists - of which librarians are the main artisans - will be entirely dependent on industrialized countries for scientific and technical informa­tion.

In order for these actions fully to reach their goal, two measures should be adopted :

20

4.5. Those who win scholarships should undertake to work for the new library or in one of the libraries of the University of Alexandria for at least three years.

4.6. The Egyptian authorities should review librarians' salary scales. Their salary should be competitive with regard to those offered in industry, and in other Arab states which have no facilities for professional training in their country and are therefore forced to offer higher salaries in order to attract librarians. Young people should be given the impression that they are embarking upon a career with a future which pays as well as the technical professions.

N.B. : Professional training also concerns other areas of the library : it must employ good bilingual secretaries, an excellent accountant, a Director of Personnel used to dealing with the problems of a medium-sized business, qualified photographers, printers and book-binders. All these problems will have to be broached during the preparatory period.

Recommendation : A considerable and urgent effort must be made :

to recruit young people desirous of dedicating themselves to the profession of librarian ; to offer scholarships to young graduates to enable them to gain further experience abroad, either in a school of librarianship, or through a training course in an automated library ; to promote the career of librarian, concerning salary as well as the level of the reputation it should enjoy with the public at large; to allow the Department of Library and Archives in Alexandria to carry out its training mission to the full.

21

Chapter 5 - THE ARCHITECTURAL BRIEF

One of the aims of this report is to elicit replies to the questions asked in chapters 1 and 2, allowing the architectural brief to be drafted. Once decision-makers have given their opinion concerning basic options, the necessary surface area may be calculated and the space essential to the proper running of the library organized.

This architectural brief - which in our opinion forms part of the feasibility study - will include :

the exact and quantified description of the project's ob­jectives ; plans for internal organization emphasizing priority rela­tions between the different parts of the building ; the list of all desirable premises with their net area, the number of people they are intended to house (public and staff), the number of books they will contain, as well as certain special features such as electric power supply, water supply, watertightness, special soundproofing, etc. ; technical considerations : modules, construction materials, strength of paving stones, differentiated temperature of various premises, hygrometry, fire alarm system, etc.

A certain number of principles should be set out in this brief : facility of access, possibility of extending the build­ing, flexibility of surfaces, separation of walkways, safety of people and goods, compactness and shape of the building, distri­bution of public and private premises, car parking facilities, etc.

The brief must also give details of the nature of the site, the water table, local building regulations (fire protection and earthquake standards, number of storeys allowed, hold over the site, etc.). A plan of the site and the place forseen for the library, the materials preferred, the local style.

Finally, if the Steering Committee agrees, construction in stages should be an important element of the architectural brief, which should specify the scope of each of the stages foreseen. The drafting of the architectural brief should be entrusted jointly to an architect and a librarian, who should both already, if possible, have had experience of library construction. UNESCO will finance this work if the Egyptian authorities supply the information requested in the present report concerning the finan­cial commitments necessary to the construction of the building and the constitution of collections, and determine the size of institution they wish to create.

• 22

Recommendation : It is recommended that all the elements neces­sary for drafting the architectural brief be pooled in the shortest possible time so that UNESCO may launch the second stage of the feasibility study this summer, namely the drafting of the architectural brief.

23

Chapter 6 - ARCHITECTURAL CONTEST

If the Egyptian authorities decide to implement the project for a new library along the lines suggested by the promoters, that is, restoring to the town of Alexandria the former central position it occupied, thanks to its library, in Graeco-Roman times, the construction of the new library will represent a major endeavour.

The fact that UNESCO's aid has been requested emphasizes the desire to give an international dimension to this project. One way of accomplishing this is to organize an international archi­tectural contest with the support of the International Union of Architects (IUA). UNESCO and the IUA would both provide ideal channels for publicizing the contest and, thereby, the project itself.

If a contest were to be organized at international level, the Secretariat of the IUA would determine its rules in agreement with the Egyptian authorities, especially concerning the rules governing anonymity of participants, the role and powers of the jury, as well as the composition of the latter. These rules should be set out in the architectural brief. Failing an inter­national contest, a national contest might still be organized, governed by the same stringent rules. The results obtained would not, however, offer as wide a range of projects as those of an international contest.

It is our opinion that no architect should be brought in without a contest. The importance of this building merits the organization of a contest.

Whatever the level of the contest, projects should be ex­hibited in Alexandria in a building large enough for the jury to judge all projects, and for the public who so wish to come and "admire them. The rules of the contest should contain a list of documents to be provided, their size, scale and nature, so that all projects are presented in uniform fashion. In past events of this kind, the number of contestants has sometimes been so great that a technical committee (comprising the authors of the pro­gramme and the future director, for example) have had to make a pre-selection, eliminating those projects which did not abide by the rules of the contest (anonymity) or of essential elements of the architectural brief (surface area, internal volume, laws concerning the heights of buildings, extensibility, phasing, etc.).

Prize-giving - a sum of $100,000 should be set aside in order to attract good architects - could take place during a

24

brilliant ceremony, in the presence, for example, of the Head of State.

Recommendation : It is recommended that an international archi­tectural contest should, if possible, be organized, in order to give the project the importance it deserves and to be able to choose from a great number of architectural projects.

25

CONCLUSION

This initial study, carried out after a two-week mission to Egypt, is a preamble to the feasibility study which UNESCO is to launch. It was impossible during this visit to Egypt to gather all the data necessary for the second stage, but this mission report asks precise questions to which replies no less precise should be given by the Egyptian authorities in order for UNESCO to launch the feasibility study. Table III below gives an out­line of the ideal phased workplan, which would allow the feasibility study to be undertaken reasonably soon.

The authors of this report have both come to the same con­clusion : the new library can and must be built, for Alexandria's intellectual community has need of it.

The problem of financing must be solved before the feasibility study and other special studies linked to it are undertaken. It is initially the task of the Egyptian Government to endeavour to solve this problem, because there is no doubt that international support can only be limited and will not replace that of the Egyptian Government. Having given financial and technical support to the feasibility study in 1987, UNESCO will, from 1988 onwards, lend the project its moral support and will endeavour to encourage and incite foreign contributions for equipping the building and constituting collections, as well as for study grants for future librarians. The new library will perhaps one day have the prestige of the ancient library in Alexandria, but it is designed, at least initially, to be used by Alexandria's intellectual community. Its regional and inter­national role cannot be given primacy, but must be considered as a bonus, in the near future if the Egyptian Government agrees to supply the necessary funds, or in the more distant future were this not the case.

The size and subsequent expansion of the new library are in the hands of the Egyptian Government which has already expressed its desire for action by declaring the project to be in the interests of the Nation and by allocating a site in a prestigious setting. It is to be hoped that future decisions continue to promote this exciting and useful endeavour.

26

Table III - OUTLINE OF THE IDEAL PHASED WORKPLAN

1986

1987

Egyptian request to UNESCO

/

TOCATLIAN - CLAVEL Mission report

Study tour of an Egyptian delegation

Governmental decisions concerning basic options

1988

-1989

1994

Architectural brief financed by UNESCO

Architectural contest

Choice of best project with IUA assistance

Steering

Committee1s

verification

and decisions

S

Contracts with the architect and wi'th building firms

z Equipment and supplies Assistance from UNESCO

Feasibility financed by

study UNESCO

Special studies

Implementat ion Report

Study grants with UNESCO support

Initiation of the preparatory phase

Choice of a data processing system

Start of acquisit ions

1995 Opening of the library

27

ANNEX I - MEETINGS WITH DIGNITARIES AND VISITS TO LIBRARIES

List of dignitaries met with during the mission

His Excellency, Dr. Fathi SOROUR, Minister of Education Mr. Fawzi ABDEL-ZAHER, Secretary-General of the UNESCO National

Commission Mr. Ahmed RUSHDI, Assistant Secretary-General of the UNESCO

National Commission Mr. Kamal SAAD, UNESCO Representative in Egypt Mr. MOSTAFA, Dean of the University of Alexandria Mr. Abdel-Aziz ABOU-KHADRA, Vice Dean of the University of

Alexandria Mr. M. Lotfy DOWIDAR, Honorary Dean of the University of

Alexandria Mr. Mohsen ZAHRAN, Professor of Architecture at the University of

Alexandria Mr. MOUGAHED, Professor in charge of the Central Science Library The Deans of the Faculties of Medicine, Dentistry, and the Arts The Professors in charge of the Departments of Ancient History,

Archaeology, Library Science, and Arabic Linguistics The Professor in charge of the Institute of Graduate Studies and

Researches

Libraries visited

Department of Environmental Studies Faculty of Medicine Faculty of Engineering Faculty of Dentistry, Faculty of Arts ^ Graeco-Roman Department Central Library for Sciences and Medicine Municipality Library of Alexandria

These visits brought to light very varied stages of develop­ment ,

The Municipality Library of Alexandria dates back to the 19th century, and has remained in that century. The books are well looked after, apart from a few exceptions on which repair work should be undertaken. The working conditions, on the other hand, as much in the staff offices as in the rooms open to the public, are deplorable. The card index is impractical. A serious attempt at modernization is needed, before any further funds for acquisitions are granted.

The libraries of the Faculty of Medicine are better equipped and well managed. The best one is obviously the new Central

28

ANNEX I - page 2

Library for Sciences and Medicine, which only collects periodicals. Thanks to the University of Essen (FRG), it pos­sesses good basic bibliographic works. It has an annual alloca­tion of $500,000 for acquisitions, and renders great services to the scientific and medical sector. It is living proof of the possibility of creating a modern library in Alexandria.

It is difficult to remain silent concerning the state of the two libraries of the Faculty of Arts. We mentioned it in our report. One of them has a book stack which is closed to the public and premises reserved for on-the-spot reading, next to a minute staff desk. It is very difficult to go and borrow a book, the card index hardly being conducive to consultation. In the other library, a few hundred volumes have been displayed on an open-access basis. There is no desk for the staff, who are obliged to remain in a corner of the room.

Neither of these libraries are inviting to work in, even though one of the tasks of a library should be to stimulate students. In the libraries of this Faculty, everything needs to be redone. And it would be much better to concentrate efforts on the new library, to create an atmosphere naturally conducive for students1 work in and with the library.

29

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31

ANNEX IV EXAMPLES OF LIBRARY MANAGEMENT BUDGETS

1.- BRITISH LIBRARY LONDON 1984/1985

1.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 122 6,862,000 £ (= 210,000 volumes)

1.2 Salaries and Wages 422 25,167,000 £ (1,296 full-time)

1.3 Recurrent Expenses 41$ 24,657,000 £ (Binding, printing,

computer, etc.)

1.4. Other Expenses 5$ 3,024,000 £ (Patent Office, Sound

Archives, Grants, etc.)

2 . - There are 106 American university libraries. We give below the budgets of the

richest (Harvard), of a medium-sized library (Johns Hopkins) and of the poorest

(Oklahoma State) 1984/1985

HARVARD

2.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 20? 6,872,000 $ (= 192,000 volumes)

2.2 Salaries and Wages 48$ 16,109,000 $ (310 prof.; 516 non-prof.;

175 stud.)

2.3 Recurrent Expenses

(incl. Building) 32$ 10,755,000 $

JOHNS HOPKINS

3.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 29$ 2,533;000 $ (= 65,000 volumes)

3.2 Salaries and Wages 51$ 4,369,000 $ (82 prof.; 179 non-prof.;

42 stud.)

3.3 Recurrent Expenses 20$ 1,720,000$

OKLAHOMA STATE

4.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 43$ 1,653,000 $ (= 35,000 volumes)

4.2 Salaries and Wages K 44$ 1,676,000 $ (41 prof.; 55 non-prof.;

54 stud.)

4.3 Recurrent Expenses 13$ 502,000 $

5.- Swiss libraries, both public and university, would come under the second half

of American libraries. We give below the budgets of two of them.

ZURICH ZENTRALBIBLIOTHEK 1985

5.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 20$ 2,858,000 SFR (= 90,000 volumes)

5.2 Salaries and Wages 66$ 9,342,000 SFR (131 full-time)

5.3 Recurrent Expenses 14$ 2,023,000 SFR

BIBLIOTHEQUE CANTONALE ET UNIVERSITAIRE LAUSANNE 1985

6.1 Purchase of Books and Periodicals 19$ 2,130,000 SFR (= 55,000 volumes)

6.2 Salaries and Wages 68$ 7,346,000 SFR (114 full-time)

6.3 Recurrent Expenses 13$ 1,377,000 SFR

1$ = 1.55 SFR = 1.36 Egyptian £

32

ANNEX IV - page 2

N . B . As one can see, there is a great difference in percentages between American and Swiss libraries. This may be explained by the higher level of salaries in Switzerland, and by the fact that American libraries have at their disposal bibliographic information supplied by the Library of Congress, which is not the case in Swit­zerland.

33

ANNEX V

QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED IN VIEW OF THE SECOND STAGE OF THE FEASIBILITY STUDY

Chapter 1.1

Chapter 1.2

Chapter 1.3

Chapter 1.4

Chapter 1.5

Chapter 1.6

Chapter 1.6

Chapter 2

Chapter 6

Type of library chosen ?

Types of documents to be collected, list of priorities and dates proposed for their inclusion ?

Disciplines covered, list of top priority disciplines, and date proposed for the inclusion of the following level of priority ?

Quantity of documents to be collected per annum at the time the library is opened ?

Annual acquisitions budget ?

At what date should the library reach 4,000,000 volumes ?

Which services are to be offered to the public ? Indication of priorities and their date of inclusion.

Which ratio for the number of reading places -1 : 10, 1 : 15, 1 : 20 ?

Which surface area per reading place should be adopted : 2.3m2 , 2.5m2 , 2 .7m 2 , 3m2 ?

Type of internal organization ? Organization chart ? (see Annex III)

Should the architectural contest be held at inter­national level or at national level ?