The Pedro Henríquez Ureña National Library (BNPHU) and the General Archive of the Nation (AGN) signed a cooperation agreement to facilitate the exchange of publications, books, information, and training in the area of Library Science and Archiving.
The agreement was signed by Rafael Peralta Romero, general director of the BNPHU, and Roberto Cassá Bernaldo de Quirós, general director of the AGN.
Both institutions pledged to join efforts to facilitate the exchange of information from online consultation services and those contained in databases, library management systems and digitized resources.
In addition, to increase the exchange of those publications that are of interest to both institutions and to mutually donate the copies of the monographic and periodical publications that they publish.
The National Library promised to “provide support, technical assistance and guidance in automated library systems, especially in the SGB-“koha”, as well as on other topics, at the request of the AGN”.
The agreement also establishes that the BNPHU will facilitate the participation of the personnel of the General Archive of the Nation in the specialized courses that are offered in the Department of Training in Library Science (DECABI).
It will also offer facilities to the AGN in the use of the BNPHU halls for the celebration of events that it sponsors, prior coordination with the Division of Events and Protocols of the institution directed by the writer and academic Peralta Romero.
While the General Archive of the Nation promised to “donate Dominican works that are in the AGN and of which they have copies that exceed their collection development policy and that are not represented in the National Library funds, with the aim of complementing their heritage collections”.
Through the agreement, the AGN will provide advice to the BNPHU for the restoration of heritage documents and collaborate in the digitization of documents of interest to both institutions.
Likewise, to offer the National Library the possibility for its technical staff to participate in the courses on Archiving, Document Conservation, Cataloging and Document Management, organized by the AGN.
To follow up on the agreement, the National Library appointed Julio César Morel, in charge of the Public Library Network, and the General Archive of the Nation Izaskun Herrojo, in charge of the Newspaper-Library department.
Peralta Romero stressed that the agreement seeks to unite wills and resources to advance in the exchange of cultural strengthening efforts, a fundamental element for the progress of Dominican society.
While Cassá Bernaldo de Quirós said that for the AGN the agreement is fundamental because the National Library has a strategic scope in Dominican culture, and it will also allow maximizing the bibliographic heritage of both institutions.
