Unhiding African collections at the British Library for Development Studies

Extract

The British Library for Development Studies serves as the library of the Institute of Development Studies, but it also has a wider remit in supporting development research globally, funded by the UK Department for International Development. The collection has been built up over fifty years and consists of over two hundred thousand titles and over one million physical items, making it the largest collection of economic and social development materials in Europe. Over half of these items originate from developing countries, including development plans, budgets, national accounts, statistical yearbooks, and census reports for nearly all African and Asian nations. Much of the stock is believed to be unique - 42% of the catalogued holdings at BLDS do not appear elsewhere in WorldCat's global holdings.