No CrossRef data available.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 April 2022
It is a great honour to have been invited to participate in this first AEGIS Conference. I wish to acknowledge colleagues who conceived of the inclusion of librarians in the core of AEGIS - for it is only through the sharing of knowledge with scholars that the importance of libraries and collections in knowledge generation can be reinforced.
Improving the understanding of contemporary African societies is neither a luxury, nor a noble job for scholars, nor an easy occupation for librarians.
In the global world we live in, all societies are related. The fate, fortune and developments of one society have an impact on developmental and life processes of others. The understanding of this interrelationship of humanity is fundamental to building the Knowledge Society that the World aspires to. Understanding presupposes access to reliable sources of information, independent analysis of issues and open communication.
Plenary Lecture Africana Resources Day, First European Conference of African Studies (AEGIS), SOAS 2nd July 2005.