[Bangladesh] Implementation of Virtual Library Information System (VLIS)

["Irfan Khan" <khania@super.net.pk>]

Implementation of Virtual Library Information System (VLIS)

Background 

SDNP Bangladesh [http://www.sdnbd.org/ ], a UNDP funded project of 
BIDS (one of the component of SEMP, GoB) has been working to promote 
sustainable development through information networking. Among many 
activities, mass information dissemination forms a major task of the 
project. The project has developed a web site for this purpose with 
content, data and information related to development activities in 
Bangladesh. 

Apart from these activities, the project has taken an initiative to 
include available resources from reputed libraries and transform them 
to be accessible through web. BIDS library has more than 100,000 
publications in the form of books, booklets, and journals. This lead 
the web team of SDNP to develop a virtual library information system 
(VLIS) and already several libraries have been included in this 
system. 

To promote the product, its usage and include more participants a 
workshop was held on April 5, 2002 at the BIDS conference room with 
participants from about 15 organizations. Each organization sent two 
of their personnel, including the librarian and a personnel actively 
involved in library database. 

<...>

RECOMMENDATIONS 

The following recommendations came out of the workshop: 

- Establish one or more cyber kiosks in the central public library or 
similar places in addition to the prescribed centres as indicated by 
the project. 

- Enter into a long term partnership programme with the Library 
Association of Bangladesh (LAB). (LAB is organizing a training 
programme for about 100 librarians from different colleges around the 
country and SDNP agreed to provide technical assistance to them. In 
this regard, a batch of 25 librarians participated in a demonstration 
session on April 11, 2002 at SDNP training room). 

- Include more organizations in the database (a few of the 
participants including ICDDRB agreed to host their library database 
in the virtual library. 

- Held similar interactive workshops at regular interval with 
involvement of diversified organizations with library facility and 
assist them to computerize their library database utilizing available 
software like, CDS ISIS. 

- Develop a complete library management system to be used by all 
libraries. 

 

read complete report at
http://www.sdnbd.org/sia/partners_profile/sdnp/vlis/vlis-workshop.htm