I am pleased to say that during my term as the Director General of the Office of Libraries and Archives a lot of changes for the better has been achieved for the efficient delivery of Library and Archives services in Papua New Guinea.

OLA was established by an Act of Parliament in 1993. The Act established the Office of Libraries and Archives and made provisions for specific functions and responsibilities of the National Library and Archives Board, the Director General, the National Library Services and the National Archives and Public Records Services.

The plan paves the way for

1. The establishment of public libraries and district libraries throughout Papua New Guinea,
2. Creating partnerships with provincial governments, district development authorities & local level governments for the development of Library and Archives in provinces,
3. The establishment of school libraries and working towards getting them functional by 2025.
4. Ensuring there are teacher librarians in all schools throughout the country in order to maintain the sustainability and communication between the School Libraries, Public Libraries and the National Library in Waigani.
5. Forging partnerships with National Libraries in other countries to establish culture corners that will provide much needed services to the Government.
6. Establishing partnership with stakeholders and non-government organisations to further upgrade and restock the books on the shelves.
7. Ensuring there is awareness & training conducted this year on the importance of maintaining Government Records basically to ensure that Government Departments comply to the Laws of Record Management Safe Keeping of Records. And
8. Digitizing and managing Archives and Library services so that our records are accessible at the National and Provincial levels.

Our goal is to provide library and archival services to the general public through efficient structures, sound policies, effective processes and systems to enhance knowledge development for nation building.

Mr. Kakaito Kasi

Director General - OLA

The main function of the Library Services Wing is to develop and maintain a national collection, library materials and other important documentation related to Papua New Guinea, its resources and history.

The library wing consists of three divisions, they are; Technical Services, Advisory Services and Reader Services. The core functions of the wing are to develop and maintain a national collection of library materials including a comprehensive collection of library materials relating to Papua New Guinea, its people and its resources and to maintain and preserve materials acquired by Legal Deposits under the National Library and Archives Act 1993.

Library Services is obligated to support the National Government’s focus on improving the overall quality of education throughout Papua New Guinea in improving reading and writing skills of all citizens. The knowledge gap in this country is bridged through the delivery of quality and adequate library and
information services.

The National Library Archives and Records Services 10-Year Strategic Plan (2016 – 2025) paves the way for library services to reach the people and calls for provincial and district library services to be revived and school libraries to be further improved.

We have been slowly but surely implementing our 10-Year Strategic Plan (2016 – 2025) by: 

1. Launching the Kamuti Mobile Library Services which is being piloted by providing library services to schools in the National Capital District.
2. The setting up of electronic library services
3. The re-opening of the Mary Kairu Warus Public Library in Hohola; and
4. The signing of MOUs with 5 provinces to revive provincial library services, among others.

I welcome you to our website which will keep you up to date on the latest development and activities taking place in the National Library and throughout the country.

Mr. Robert Yalip
Director – Library Services

Archives and Records Services is charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records in PNG. It is tasked with increasing public access to these documents which make up the Archives and Records Services.

The core functions of the Wing are that we are responsible for the preservation of records of long-lasting value for Papua New Guinea and in addition as custodians we care and also take charge and or/control of the public records of the nation. We also play an advisory and educational role to government departments and statutory bodies in appraising records and recommending their permanent retention or destruction. For capacity building, government departments and statutory bodies records officers are trained in efficient archives and records management by Archives and Records Services Staff.

The Wing is promoting the establishment of Provincial Archives through our Lae Archives Branch as a means of increasing people’s access to archives and public records as information sources. It is responsible for handling archival collections and various formats of records such as photographs, maps in microfilm, microfiche and slides; Upon request we make them available for access by bona-fide (in-country and overseas) and departmental users. We are also responsible for repository management and lending of archival records.

Archives and Records Services Wing contains four divisions and six units/branches responsible for wide range of functions falling in the categories of Public Records Management Division; Records Center and Repository Division; Public Archives, Preservation, Storage and Access Division and Provincial Archives Services Division.