Ixopo Public Library opening
11 September 2007
"The doors of learning and culture shall be opened, all the cultural
treasures of mankind shall be open to all by free exchange of books, ideas and
contact with other lands." This is a bold statement made by men and women at
the height of apartheid in 1955. This statement is made in the Freedom Charter
the document that formed the foundation of our country's constitution. What
makes this statement important today is that it was made by people who had high
hopes for our country at a time when the rest of the world had lost all hope.
Those men and women wanted the doors of learning and culture to be opened.
That is exactly what we are doing today; we are opening the Ixopo Public
Library a centre of information, learning, and culture. This is the fourth
Library opening for the department this month. We have been to Sezela on the
South Coast, Impendle and Bulwer in the Midlands and now we are here,
witnessing our government delivering on the promise of a better life for all.
As a parent I have always understood the importance of libraries but this month
I have learnt that libraries are an essential part of life.
Libraries are essential institutions in a democratic society because they
play a non-partisan role in providing the information that allows citizens to
make informed decisions. Libraries are crucial to the educational process
because they support curricula, teach information literacy and foster critical
thinking skills. Libraries can also be important partners in creating educated
communities because they provide opportunities for self-education, life-long
learning and general self-improvement.
Libraries are certainly essential places of opportunity because they level
the playing field making the world of information available to anyone seeking
it. The Department of Arts, Culture, and Tourism invested R4,5 million in this
library and we consider that a worthy investment because one cannot put a price
on the return of this investment. This library will benefit every member of the
family, it has a children's section which means caregivers can use the library
and at the same time start their children on the culture of reading.
Isintu sithi ugotshwa usemanzi and it is important for us as parents to
encourage our children to start reading as early as possible. This library also
has material for new readers or what we call literacy support books. These are
books for newly literate adults. As a department we are trying to build a
reading nation because a developmental province such as ours needs people who
have access to information. We have several campaigns aimed at giving us a head
start as we build this reading nation. We have 'read and grow,' an initiative
targeting children aged nine to fifteen. We have reading clubs for adults and
we also work closely with the Department of Education on its Masifundisane
Campaign. These are all initiatives aimed at encouraging our people to read.
One of the challenges faced by our libraries today is technology which is
developing easier answers for everything including books.
Books have also become expensive making libraries even more important if we
are to ensure that reading does not become a hobby for the rich. When I came
into office last year, our province had 164 libraries and today we have 170.
Only three municipalities are without libraries but that will soon be history
because this department is committed to ensuring that our people have access to
a library. Our libraries are truly centres of information and I want to urge
the people of Ixopo to use them because they are free. We have just started
equipping our libraries with computers so that our people can have access.
I have seen businesses charging up to R60 to type Curriculum Vitae (CV). We
want our people to be able to come to the library to type their own CV for
free. In conclusion I would like to urge you to look after this facility; our
libraries require all the love and care we can give them. Libraries do not just
preserve the wisdom of the past but they also contain the seeds of a better
future. Once again let us ensure that reading does not become a hobby for the
rich, our libraries are free, let us use them.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial
Government
11 September 2007
Source: KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government (http://www.www.kwazulunatal.gov.za)
