PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Marie K. Thompson
DATE: December 11, 2002
IFDC Contributes to
the Restoration of Afghanistan's Library Collections
In the foreword to a publication, the President of the Afghan
Cultural Association had this to say: "During these long
years of war, some Afghans-for the majority exiled-chose to carry
out the combat differently: by the writing and the publication
of works, with an aim of preserving the identity and the integrity
of their country, Afghanistan."
During the Taliban regime, all of the libraries in Afghanistan were
destroyed. According to the Afghan Minister of Information and
Culture, Syed Makhdum Raheem, "the Taliban wanted to destroy
our culture, our past, and our national pride." It is
calculated that 80% of the country's arts and culture infrastructure
was destroyed and that many historic sites were in danger.
Raheem says that the new Afghan government is committed to reviving
the arts and culture, which "for thousands of years were an
integral part of our life."
In an effort to assist the Afghan people in their quest to restore
their libraries, IFDC, along with the Potash and Phosphate Institute
(PPI), the Fertilizer Institute (TFI), and the Sulphur Institute,
recently donated more than 300 publications to the library of the
Afghan Ministry of Agriculture.
The Ministry of Agriculture Librarian, Ghulam Abbass, was recently
interviewed concerning the donation of the publications.
"Many of our library patrons are from the Research Department
of the Ministry, the Faculty of Agriculture, and the nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs)," says Abbass. "Before IFDC
donated these publications, we had only very old books. The
new material has really solved many of the problems faced by our
readers within the Ministry and those coming from outside."
The Ministry's Librarian hopes to further rebuild the collection of
scientific publications. "We need many more books,
especially in Persian," he says. "Since many of our
readers are not fluent in English, they have difficulty
understanding the subject."
The Afghan Ministry's Library values their holdings so much that
they do not allow patrons to use the new books outside the library.
"It is unbelievable but sometimes we have more than ten patrons
requesting the same book in a day," says Abbass.
The donated books were received so well that IFDC decided to make a
similar donation to the University of Kabul Library. Perhaps
this action will encourage other organizations to make their
scientific publications available to the Afghan libraries.
IFDC—An
International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural
Development—is a public, international organization (PIO), which
was founded in 1974 to assist in the quest for global food security.
The nonprofit Center’s mission is to increase agricultural
productivity through the development and transfer of effective,
environmentally sound plant nutrient technology and agricultural
marketing expertise.
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