Joel Tsvakwi
THE Zimbabwean Society of Archivists(ZIMSA) says the enactment of cyber laws and freedom of information are to an extent positive developments towards the management of electronic records in Zimbabwe as there is clear recognition for need.
The current state of records management in Zimbabwe is still physical format which was largely inherited from a strong recordkeeping system foundation laid out by the philosophies of Sir Hilary Jekinson and Theordore Schellenburg, fathers of conventional records management.
Post-independence the Zimbabwean government constructed one of the biggest records centre in sub-Sahara Africa to cater for public sector management.
Speaking ahead of the digital archiving seminar to be held in Kadoma from October 2 to October 7, ZIMSA Secretary General and Archivist for Afrixem bank which is based in Cairo, Egypt, Marvin Rasara said the country needs to improve recognition of records.
“Records management in Zimbabwe is at the lower end of recognition in terms of the level of importance placed by organizations to that function.
“There is a long way to go because the general trend has been that organizations are reactive rather than proactive to records management as they only place importance to it after facing problems like lack of evidence in court cases or after they lose revenue due to poor record keeping or when they face heavy fines from regulatory authorities after failing to justify certain transactions or decisions,” he said.
Rasara is however impressed by some local institutions of higher learning in their effort of attaching value to records management.
“There is however great improvement over the years with Universities like NUST and ZOU offering learning programs from undergraduate to master’s level something which is improving the skills base and general awareness,” noted Rasara.
Responding to questions on strides made so far on electronic records Rasara believes the country needs to intensify its efforts.
“There is quite significant progress with several organizations using electronic documents and records management systems (EDRMS) in the private and public sectors.
“However, costs of purchase and implementation of such systems have been a hindrance for many organizations to make progress. Most of these systems are available from suppliers outside Zimbabwe something which is a challenge in terms of cost.
“A simple implementation in a mid-sized to large organization can cost up to a hundred thousand United States Dollars and that is quite steep in the face of the economic situation in Zimbabwe.
The enactment of cyber laws and freedom of information are to an extent positive developments towards the management of electronic records in Zimbabwe as there is clear recognition for need of having effective and efficient records management systems,” he said.
Rasara is of the view that the present scenario towards records management presents a lot of challenges to the country.
“Corruption so many cases fall away in the courts because of lack of evidence. This comes from poor records management practices where perpetrators take advantage of the poor controls and can even temper with records.
“With regards to accountability people are not taken to account as there is no record of their previous actions in business or in society.
“Also loss of Information of economic and other developmental issues, and the government and other stakeholders end up relying on NGOs and other international institutions for data on Zimbabwe which can be available locally,” he added.
Sharing some snippets of the upcoming digital seminar, Rasara shared that the country needs concerted awareness towards records management.
“Bringing together professionals from all sectors to chart the next steps for records management in Zimbabwe and to bringing awareness to professionals on the existence, purpose, and goals of the Zimbabwe Society of Archivists
Amos Bishi ZMSA Chairman and lecturer of Archives at Harare Polytechnic College and Fellow archivist of the International Council on Archives together with the National Archives colluded with Rasara in that stakeholders in the records management should seriously come together.
“The private and public sector records management professionals must interact and share notes while at the same time bridging gaps between theory (Academic Institutions) and practice (those practicing in industry),” he said.
He added: “There is need to reform the National Archives Act so that it covers modern day records management and empower the NAZ to have more authority for records management in Zimbabwe in private and public sectors Government to support voluntary organizations like ZIMSA in driving such initiatives for the benefit of the nation.”
