South African Library Week highlights the value and impact of libraries

South African Library Week is the biggest annual event on the library calendar. It is an event which highlights the value of and celebrates the impact of libraries on the communities that they serve. the Week is celebrated every year during the week of March 20, a significant day in the history of libraries in South Africa. this year’s Library Week is being celebrated from March 20 to 26, 2023 with the theme “Libraries - telling powerful stories”. Libraries are synonymous with books, the art of storytelling, and the preservation of stories and while many things have changed in the world of libraries, these facts remain fundamental to the identity of this venerable institution.

Libraries in the modern world have, however, evolved to include many other roles beyond the traditional one of days gone by, and at their core are providing services and programmes that are needed and relevant to the communities that they serve, be it an academic, public or school community. While books and stories remain central to libraries, it is often the stories that people tell about libraries that speak to their longevity in a world that has often written off libraries as irrelevant and where we can seemingly Google anything and everything. We see the decimation of libraries in the uK, for example, the attacks on libraries and librarians in the uS and on our own shores, the criminal underfunding of these institutions. It is, however, at these moments of crisis that we see people coming to the fore to defend libraries, speak of their importance and relevance in society and laud the impact of libraries on their own lives as well as the broader communities that they serve. Libraries play an important role in all facets of society, as can be seen in reports on the contributions made to the Sustainable Development Goals. Every day libraries create, facilitate and contribute to the needs of their users and it is in this way that they continue to be a driving force for development in society.

No library is however complete without the library staff that makes this enduring institution more than just the structure that houses all the materials and tools that foster its users’ road to success. Librarians are the backbone of libraries, the ones who show up every day and commit to creating a better future for all who enter the doors of the library.

As we gear up to celebrate South African Library Week, let’s tell, preserve and promote the stories of impact that the library has had on us and our communities, ensuring that decision makers know the value of the library and continue to fund and support these most democratic of institutions.