Libraries asked to draw public by advertising

Libraries asked to draw public by advertising

JAKARTA (JP): Libraries must try to sell themselves more to the public, by placing advertisements in newspapers, radio and televisions, an expert said.

Agus Rusmana, the head of the library department of the Bandung-based University of Padjadjaran, said in a seminar on Tuesday that libraries are not attracting enough readers because the public is unaware of their existence, and the services they offer.

The reason for this, he added, was that most administrators of libraries take it for granted that the public already know about their facilities.

"With this assumption, we rarely see libraries and their services being promoted or advertised to the public. Libraries are often treated like working offices by their administrators," he said.

Neglected

More than 500 members of the Indonesian Librarians Association are taking part in the two-day seminar which was opened by President Soeharto. The event preceded the National Librarian Congress, which was opened yesterday.

There are more than 15,000 government-run libraries throughout Indonesia, hardly sufficient to cater to the needs of the country's population of 195 million. Some of these libraries, however, have been left neglected, partly because of their failures to attract the public, and partly because of financial problems.

Agus proposed that libraries place advertisements in the country's electronic and print media to promote their services.

"Through the mass media, librarians can familiarize the public with the function of library services, and the benefits of using them" he said.

He pointed out that the public has become accustomed to getting their information from newspapers and television, but they do not realize that libraries can offer them access to more information than is available in the mass media.

"People don't know that they can learn more from the information that the libraries provide," he said, adding that given the huge cost of running libraries, such investment would be wasted if the public does not take full advantage of the services.

Agus also proposed that in order to make libraries attractive to the public, their administrators should pay attention to interior design, location and a host of other factors.

He admitted however that another major drawback to the development of libraries in Indonesia is the generally poor reading habits of the people in this country.

"Instead of reading, most people here prefer to get their information from other people, rather than trying to find it themselves. This is known as a 'listening society'," Agus said.

Another speaker, Ratna U. Widodo, head of the library of the National Atomic Energy Agency Research Center, said it is no secret that the authorities do not provide enough funds to improve the quality of libraries.

"The librarian association should take on the role of a 'liaison' agent between potential investors and the libraries," Ratna said.

The librarian congress which got underway yesterday is to elect the new executive board and discuss ways of forging closer cooperation between the various libraries in the country. (31)