Members of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), including Brazil, created the institution’s National Archives Network (RAN-CPLP), which will function as a cooperation instrument to reinforce ties between the National Archives and/or equivalent entities of member states. The intention is, through a space for permanent dialogue, to preserve, value and publicize the historical and documentary heritage of the countries that make up the community.
The network was created during the International Conference on Historical Archives held by the institution in Luanda, with the participation of the National Archives (AN) of Brazil, Dataprev and the secretariat of the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services (MGI).
General Director of the National Archives, Ana Flávia Magalhães Pinto. Photo: Tomaz Silva/Agência Brasil
The general director of the National Archives, Ana Flávia Magalhães Pinto participated in the drafting of the Declaration of Commitment and Statutes.
“The creation of the CPLP National Archives Network is an important step towards establishing international cooperation actions attentive to the challenges of digital transformation and focusing on promoting the right to memory, considering the similarities and differences between member countries. In addition language, cultural elements and the fact that we are, for the most part, geopolitically positioned in the Global South, we also have in common impasses generated by the trauma of colonialism, slavery and racism”, highlights Ana Flávia.
“This is a sensitive but unavoidable topic. Specifically, the archives agenda offers interesting ways to deal with all this without slipping into fruitless antagonisms or dangerous silencing. We are two years into the CPLP’s 30th anniversary and the consolidation of this network has the strategic potential to present solutions to relevant problems.”
Other focuses of the network include encouraging the National Archives to adopt best practices in document preservation and management; create and promote a multilateral cooperation structure based on interknowledge, seeking collaboration between the national archives of the CPLP Member States.
Next steps
The RAN-CPLP Annual Activity Plan prepared for the period 2024-2025 defines continuous cooperation and the development of joint actions, such as the creation and implementation of a common digital space on the CPLP page; training and technical training program for archives professionals; the development of multilateral cooperation projects, promoting the sharing of resources and knowledge; and carrying out a comprehensive study on the situation of the National Archives of CPLP members.
The network’s meetings will take place in periodic meetings that will evaluate the progress of the initiatives and discuss new opportunities for collaboration. For 2025, the second General Assembly of the RAN-CPLP is already planned within the framework of the Capital of Culture of the CPLP, in São Tomé, and an International Cooperation Seminar on Archives.
The CPLP brings together countries that have Portuguese as their official language. In addition to Portugal, this group includes nations that, throughout their history, were colonized by the former Portuguese Empire.
In addition to Brazil, the group comprises the African countries Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe, and the Asian East Timor.
