Message from Chairman and Chief Executive

The year in review was a period of significant achievements for the National Library Board (NLB). Book and audiovisual loans registered a new record of close to 31 million, about 11 percent increase from FY2008/2009, and electronic visits rose to about 6 million, an increase of 12 percent from the previous year. The number of electronic retrievals last year was about 48 million, a tremendous 72 percent more than the previous year.

The record levels of library use demonstrated the enduring value of our libraries to lifelong learning. Over the past year, while grappling with the challenges of an economic downturn, Singaporeans continued to turn to our libraries as trusted sources of knowledge and information that would help them gain new insights, seize opportunities and achieve their aspirations.

On another level, the rising importance of our libraries is heartening proof that our progress towards Library 2010 (L2010) has had a meaningful impact on the lives of Singaporeans in this digital age. L2010 is the strategic roadmap to build a seamless 24/7 library system leveraging diverse digital and physical delivery channels.

In the past year, we continued to enhance our collections and expand our patrons’ access to both traditional and digital content. At the same time, we strived to meet the diverse needs of our patrons with a broad range of programmes and service initiatives.

Developing and Ensuring Access to Our Collections

Good collections and access to them are fundamental to the quality of knowledge that our libraries offer. In the year in review, we continued to enhance and refresh our print, digital and documentary materials through donations, acquisitions and digitisation. Notably, 53 donors contributed over 50,000 items to the National Library Singapore’s (NLS) heritage collection, while acquisition efforts yielded over 110 rare items of significant historical value.

As a guardian of the nation’s literary and cultural heritage, we have always ensured the public’s access to our heritage collection through well-curated exhibitions. Two well-received exhibitions were held: ‘S. Rajaratnam: The Singapore Lion’, which told the life story and vision of one of Singapore’s founding fathers, and ‘Vignettes in Time: Singapore Maps and History Through the Centuries’, which provided insights into Singapore’s history through cartographic materials.

NLS’s heritage programmes were not confined within library walls. One unique new project, Experience Singapore Literature, took participants on a series of immersive tours to the nooks and crannies of local places featured in poems and stories by Singapore writers. We also launched SG101, a programme covering a broad range of topics related to Singapore, from architecture to the National Anthem, through talks and workshops.

Digital Strategies and Milestones

Several digital initiatives that would deliver greater access to knowledge and information were also introduced in FY2009/2010.

We pursued digitisation rights through strategic alliances with various individuals and organisations. For instance, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with Dr Ivan Polunin for the digitisation of over 700 film reels and audiotapes documenting the sights and sounds of Singapore and the region from the 1950s to 1970s. A partnership was also struck with the Composers and Authors Society of Singapore (COMPASS) to digitise its music collection for the MusicSG project, which archives locally composed music from the 1940s onwards.

NewspaperSG, a digital archive of Singapore and Malayan English newspapers dating back to 1831, was successfully rolled out in January 2010. With the objective to collect, preserve and provide access to newspaper content – a vital source of Singapore and Southeast Asian history – NewspaperSG has received an average of 30,000 visits and 400,000 page views a month since its launch. In the near future, the archive will be enhanced with Chinese and Malay newspaper content.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 1 Given its expertise in content digitisation, NLS is well positioned to contribute in the area of digital content management to the Singapore Memory Project. This national project, spearheaded by the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, will build up a national collection of digital content for preservation and discovery.

With the proliferation of information in diverse physical and digital formats, information discovery has become a more complex undertaking. In tandem, we have developed NLB SearchPlus, a sophisticated information discovery engine that enables researchers and information seekers to navigate across all of NLB’s catalogues for library resources in various forms.

In our efforts to integrate social media technologies into our service delivery, we broke new ground with the myLibrary application on Facebook. This is the first application in the world to seamlessly integrate library accounts and services with the social networking site. Library members are able to access library resources and services on the Facebook interface while sharing recommendations with their social networks.

Encouraging Reading and Social Learning

Cultivating the habit and love for reading among Singaporeans remains a core focus of the Public Libraries Singapore (PLS). In recent years, PLS has organised an annual roster of reading campaigns and initiatives targeting different segments of the community. These include READ! Singapore for those 15 years old and above, 10,000 Fathers Reading! for father figures and their children, National kidsREAD programme for children from lower-income families, Read and Reap for primary- to college-level students and ‘Share-A-Story’ Storytelling Club for seniors, adults and teenagers.

At the same time, we recognise that reading trends are shifting amid today’s media and technological diversions, and learning needs have to be further segmented and addressed with customised initiatives. One tremendously successful initiative launched last year was Quest, which has made reading and book borrowing appealing to reluctant young readers with the use of collectible cards. A fantasy adventure story is narrated on the back of 60 collectible cards, which can be redeemed through the exchange of library loan receipts. To date, over 70,000 children have read the story of Quest and 1.5 million cards have been redeemed through loans of about 2 million books.

Another noteworthy initiative is the Gaming Learning Community, a series of gaming events that has drawn teenagers and their families to the library to play video and board games together and be introduced to knowledge and books related to the games. These learning experiences have helped to break down generational barriers and brought families closer together. They have also reached out to teenagers who might otherwise not be interested in library materials and services, and fostered collaborative learning among like-minded individuals in our library space.

Corporate Initiatives and Professional Development

During the year, NLB further elevated its operational efficiency with the completion of several corporate initiatives, including the upgrading of the Library Supply Centre (LSC), which has resulted in greater space optimisation and higher logistics efficiency. LSC has also adopted a new cellular manufacturing workflow for greater flexibility and productivity.

The Corporate Resource System (CREST), an integrated human resource, finance and administrative enterprise system developed in collaboration with four other statutory boards, was launched in October 2009. The system is expected to help NLB benefit from economies of scale.

The passion of our people, their spirit of innovation and uncompromising service standards have consistently driven the organisation towards higher performance. In reciprocation, we have strengthened our professional development initiatives. These include tailored training for our librarians on specific career tracks, and providing them with wider exposure through secondments and overseas attachments. We piloted the Professional Diploma in Library Management and Information Services (Foundation Level) to help entry-level and junior librarians develop the necessary competencies for the librarian profession.

Awards

NLB and its libraries have been able to serve over 35 million customers a year and yet consistently exceed expectations in the areas of customer service and innovation. We are deeply encouraged by the two major awards we received last year, namely the Service Excellence Award, which is the highest business excellence honour for customer service in Singapore, and the Singapore Innovation Class, which recognises our innovative culture.

Another accolade worthy of mention is the Japan Creation Award 2009 (Overseas Division) awarded by the Japan Fashion Association in Tokyo for our innovation in creating Verging All Teens (V.A.T.). V.A.T. is a conducive space at the Jurong Regional Library to engage teenagers in lifelong learning and reading activities.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 2 Challenges and Opportunities

While technology has opened up more possibilities for information discovery and knowledge acquisition, it also runs the risk of alienating the older generation. We will continue to strike a balance between the needs of a younger, technologically savvy generation and those who prefer traditional content and service delivery platforms.

Our libraries are thus continually challenged to deliver services that will meet diverse and evolving needs. We are confident that by monitoring emerging trends as well as anticipating Singaporeans’ changing needs and lifestyles, we will be able to design library services that create new value for Singaporeans.

In Appreciation

The spirit of service and innovation is deeply ingrained in our organisational DNA. To our staff, we would like to thank you for your passion and unyielding commitment to serve the public. We would also like to express our sincere appreciation to our library patrons, donors and partners – without your bedrock support, we would not be able to attain greater heights. We will continue to work hard to fulfil our mission to provide a trusted, accessible and globally connected library and information service for Singaporeans.

Ms Yeoh Chee Yan Dr N Varaprasad Chairman Chief Executive

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 3 Board Renewal On behalf of the Board, I wish to express our gratitude to Ms Lim Soo Hoon, who served as NLB Chairman from 1 January 2003 to 31 August 2009. Under her leadership and stewardship, the NLB Board has provided clear strategic directions and ensured good governance, enabling our libraries to become the innovative, service-oriented and well- loved public organisations that they are today.

My deepest appreciation also goes to the following Board Members who stepped down on 31 August 2009: Mr Tan Soo Jin, Mr Tan Teck Huat, Mr Wong Tui San, Mr Hogi Patrick Hyun, Ms Sylvia Yap, Mrs Lim Lai Cheng, Mr Idris Rashid Khan Surattee and Ms Wendy Chua.

I am glad to be able to have Prof Schubert Foo, Mrs Rosina Howe-Teo, Mr William Liu, Mr Desmond Lum, Mr Manogaran Suppiah, Mr Martin Tan, Ms Wu Choy Peng, Mr Yee Ping Yi and Mr Zahidi Abdul Rahman continue their stewardship on the NLB Board.

I would like to extend a warm welcome to our new Board Members who were appointed with effect from 1 September 2009. They are Ms Goh Ann Nee, Assoc Prof Christopher Khoo, Mr Kwa Chong Guan, Ms Lim Suat Jien, Mr Dhirendra Shantilal, Mr Tan Hang Cheong and Mr Timothy Teo.

I am confident that the new Board will guide NLB in achieving its vision to be an inspiring beacon of lifelong learning, bringing knowledge alive, sparking imagination and creating possibility for a vibrant and creative Singapore.

Ms Yeoh Chee Yan Chairman

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 4

Senior Director Organisational Finance Finance Deputy Director Angela Wong Doris Tan Judy Quek Lim Theam Siew People Management People Management & Development Director Seng Wee Teo Human Resource Management & Organisation Capability Development Finance & Administration Director William Tan & Facilities Properties Management Deputy Director Sandamurthi Rethinam Knowledge & Quality Management Deputy Director Lim Kwang Kok

Deputy Director Deputy Director Resources & Systems Resources Chan Ping Wah InfoComm InfoComm Director Lee Kee Siang & Service Research Innovation Deputy Director Chi Keung Tam CIO/CTO Office Officer/ Chief Technology Deputy Chief Information Officer Dr Leong Mun Kew Chief Information Officer Chief Information Officer Assistant Chief Executive; Assistant Chief Executive; Technology & Innovation Technology Audit Internal Finance Finance Library & Library & Committee Senior Director Beh Chew Leng SILAS Secretariat SILAS Secretariat Director Beh Chew Leng (covering) Services Professional Deputy Director Fun Wai Yee Logistics Services Client Services Professional Services Professional Tay Ai Cheng Tay Senior Director Senior Director Yeoh Chee Yan Yeoh Chairman, NLB Dr N Varaprasad Community Partnerships Community Partnerships & Outreach Director Jennifer Yin Reading Initiatives Director Kiang-Koh Lai Lin PLSG HQ Deputy Director Boudville Veronica Public Libraries Service Management Library Management Customer Relations / QSM Contact Centre Chief Executive, NLB Public Library Services

CREST Director (as of 31 March 2010) (as of 31 March Cheong Fu Yan Consultant Consultant Ngian Lek Choh National Library National Library Office National Library Office Deputy Director Gene Tan Heritage Collection Development National Reference & Special Libraries Deputy Director Judy Ng Publishing & Research Services Deputy Director Johnson Paul NL Marketing & Services Group Deputy Director Low Kwee Fah Pong Lai Yeen Deputy Chief Executive; Deputy Chief Executive; Director, National Library Director,

Chief Executive Rolf Johan Deputy Director Deputy Director Dr N Varaprasad Kwakkelaar Executive Office Partnerships & Development Library 2010 Office Corporate Development & Services Director Cheong Fu Yan Digital Resources & Services Director Raju Buddharaju Deputy Director Corporate Communications Deputy Director Amy Gay & Exhibitions Programmes Deputy Director Gene Tan & Professional International Relations Deputy Director Keat Fong Tan Tong You Tan Chief Executive’s Office Chief Executive’s Organisation Chart

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 5 Board Members

Top row, left to right Centre row, left to right Bottom row, left to right Ms Yeoh Chee Yan Mr Desmond Lum Siew Khuen Ms Goh Ann Nee Chairman Senior Fund Manager Chief Financial Officer National Library Board; Lion Capital Management Ltd City Developments Limited Second Permanent Secretary Ministry of Education Ms Wu Choy Peng Mr Tan Hang Cheong Group Chief Information Officer Principal Mr Yee Ping Yi Neptune Orient Lines Limited Singapore Polytechnic Public Service Division Nominee; Mr Manogaran Suppiah Assoc Prof Christopher Senior Director Project Director Khoo Soo Guan Strategic Policy Office Teacher Development Centre, Division Head Public Service Division Training and Development (Information Studies) Division Wee Kim Wee School Prof Schubert Ministry of Education of Communication Foo Shou Boon and Information Associate Dean (Academic) Mr Zahidi Abdul Rahman Nanyang Technological College of Humanities, Architect University Arts and Social Sciences Zahidi A R Arkitek Nanyang Technological Mr Dhirendra Shantilal University Mrs Rosina Howe-Teo Joo Lin Senior Vice President, Group Director & Asia Pacific Mr William Liu Wei Hai Chief Innovation Officer Kelly Services (Singapore) Chairman Land Transport Authority Pte Ltd Stream Global Pte Ltd Ms Lim Suat Jien Mr Kwa Chong Guan Mr Martin Tan Beng Chong Executive Vice President, Head, External Programmes Executive Director Programming and Production S. Rajaratnam School of Halogen Foundation Singapore Channel 5/okto International Studies MediaCorp TV Singapore Pte Ltd Nanyang Technological Mr Timothy Teo Lai Wah University Independent Director Guocoland Ltd and Lexicon Group Ltd

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 6 Senior Management

Top row, left to right Centre row, left to right Bottom row, left to right Dr N Varaprasad Mr Beh Chew Leng Mr William Tan Chief Executive Senior Director Director Library & Professional Services Finance & Administration Ms Ngian Lek Choh Deputy Chief Executive; Ms Tay Ai Cheng Dr Leong Mun Kew Director, National Library Senior Director Chief Technology Officer/ Public Library Services Deputy Chief Information Mr Chan Ping Wah Officer, CIO/CTO Office Assistant Chief Executive, Mr Cheong Fu Yan Technology and Innovation; Director Mr Raju Buddharaju Chief Information Officer, Corporate Development & Director CIO/CTO Office Services; CREST Digital Resources & Services

Mr Lim Theam Siew Mr Teo Wee Seng Mr Lee Kee Siang Senior Director Director Director Organisational Resources & People Management & InfoComm Systems Development

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 7 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Corporate Governance The National Library Board (NLB) is overseen by a Board comprising the Chairman, 16 non-executive members as well as an observer from the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts. Hailing from a diversity of backgrounds, ranging from academia to the finance, social and public sectors, the members bring with them complementary experiences and strengths to the Board and provide strategic leadership, direction and guidance to the organisation. Among other responsibilities, the Board approves the organisation’s vision, mission and objectives; reviews and oversees strategy and policy development as well as performance targets.

Assisting the Board in discharging its duties are five committees, namely the Establishment Committee, Finance Committee, National Library Advisory Committee, Public Library Advisory Committee and Infocomms Technology Advisory Committee.

A number of functions and initiatives further enhance NLB’s corporate governance process. The Internal Audit Unit, reporting directly to the Chairman of the Finance Committee and administratively to NLB’s Chief Executive, safeguards the organisation’s assets and helps ensure the efficient and effective use of funds according to the policies, regulations and guidelines set out by both NLB and the Government.

All NLB staff are also expected to abide by a Code of Ethics and Conduct, and potential ethical breaches can be reported confidentially to an Ethics hotline. The Board’s Establishment Committee investigates all reports.

The IT Governance programme, launched in 2008, aims to support NLB’s corporate governance by ensuring that the organisation’s IT investments are managed to meet current and future needs responsively and effectively. The programme will be implemented in four phases over 3–5 years. Phase 1 was completed in the year in review, consolidating the programme’s foundation with the following initiatives: defining the Chief Information Officer/Chief Technology Officer (CIO/CTO) Office’s IT governance function; raising the IT governance awareness of Senior Management and 100 middle-management staff; and approving the Business Case Management process for assessment of NLB’s returns on investment for implementation in 2010.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 8 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Library 2010 In 2005, the Library 2010 (L2010) blueprint was unveiled, mapping out NLB’s strategic framework to help Singaporeans meet the information and knowledge demands of a fast-changing digital age. The L2010 vision focuses on building a round-the-clock library system that delivers physical and digital content seamlessly through diverse channels. In FY2009/2010, NLB continued to make meaningful strides towards fulfilling the agenda in L2010.

Several initiatives to broaden NLB’s digital reach were rolled out. These included the myLibrary application on Facebook, which leverages the benefits of social networking. On trial since 30 December 2009, the application enables users to access and share library services and resources through their Facebook space. NLB also launched Library in Your Pocket, a mobile portal that facilitates convenient access to popular library services for people on the go.

NLB began the trial of NLB SearchPlus in November 2009. This one-stop search facility allows users to explore NLB’s physical as well as electronic resources. As an enhanced service, NLB SearchPlus offers more sophisticated features for search, navigation and personalisation.

The online NewspaperSG service began in January 2010, providing researchers with the gateway to digitised issues of The Straits Times from 1845 to 2006. Since its soft launch in March 2009, NewspaperSG has received an average of 30,000 visits and 400,000 page views a month.

Customer enquiry management has become more efficient, systematic and timely with the new Enquiry Management System (EMS). In use since February 2010, the EMS provides a seamless web-based process of tracking and handling enquiries submitted through various channels to the Reference and Public Libraries.

Besides online initiatives, NLB also made progress towards L2010 goals on other fronts. In August 2009, the Library Supply Centre adopted a cellular manufacturing concept in place of conveyor-belt-based work processes. The new concept is expected to help elevate productivity by reducing current workflow constraints and increasing the agility to respond to requirement changes.

The needs of the underserved remain a significant focus in NLB’s journey towards L2010. NLB continued to provide inclusive services such as Molly®, the Mobile Library, which reaches out to underprivileged children and those with special needs. In addition, NLB continued to enable learning communities through wide-ranging reading initiatives, as well as foster active citizenry through volunteerism and community programmes.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 9 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Corporate Social Responsibility Corporate Volunteerism Programme

In the year in review, NLB continued to grow as an organisation that cares, with staff chipping in their time, service and money to help the less privileged in society. About 60 percent of NLB staff participated in 20 corporate volunteerism projects. The highlights included:

• Book Exchange 2009 The Book Exchange 2009, held on 25 April in conjunction with World Book Day and under the auspices of Bookcross@ SG, aimed to promote a reading culture and the sharing of reading materials. A total of 221 staff assisted in the project, which saw 5,000 participants exchanging 57,000 used books.

• WasteMatter$ In June 2009, NLB staff collected 4,853 kilograms of newspapers and 787 kilograms of clothing to raise 2,427 packets of instant noodles and 262 kilograms of rice to help 100 needy families in Singapore.

• Community Project In October 2009, NLB staff collected a total of $12,007.50 for the victims of Tropical Storm Ketsana in the Philippines and the victims of the earthquake in Sumatra.

• Skipping Challenge NLB staff sweated it out with a total of 306,739 skips to raise 15,337 bowls of brown rice grains for needy families in Singapore. The Skipping Challenge, held on 12 November 2009, was organised by NLB together with the South East Community Development Council.

• Flea Market On 7 January 2010, NLB staff organised a flea-market sale at Marine Parade Community Basement, successfully raising $700 for the Handicaps Welfare Association.

• Blood Donation Drives Between January and March 2010, the Public Libraries jointly organised 27 blood donation drives with the Singapore Red Cross. A total of 158 bags of blood were collected at the libraries.

NLB staff skipped for a good cause during the Skipping Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (2 nd from right), and Challenge. Mr Christopher Chua, Secretary General, Singapore Red Cross Society, striking a pose with the respective mascots of NLB and Singapore Red Cross, Dino and the Blood Buddy, at one of the blood donation drives.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 10 Book Donations

NLB carries out a number of book donations in Singapore and overseas every year. These initiatives help extend NLB’s reading resources to the less privileged, who may not be able to gain access to knowledge and information easily. Through the Charity Book Donation held on 21 August 2009 and various requested book donations, NLB donated over 74,000 used books and magazines to 146 schools and voluntary welfare groups in Singapore.

In the year in review, NLB also made some significant book donations to libraries in Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Following Minister for Foreign Affairs Mr George Yeo’s symbolic donation of books during his visit to northern Sri Lanka in October 2009, NLB donated 500 used books in English and Tamil to the Jaffna Public Library in Sri Lanka. The Jakarta Arts Institute and Fajar Hidayah also received NLB’s contributions of 300 and 500 used books respectively. Fajar Hidayah is a boarding school in Aceh that looks after and provides education for 600 children who lost their families during the 2004 tsunami.

NLB staff (in blue) helping staff of the voluntary welfare NLB donated used books to the Jaffna Public Library. organisations to select the books at the Charity Book Donation.

Jakarta Arts Institute received a collection of used books from NLB.

Friends of the Library

NLB’s volunteer programme, Friends of the Library (FOL), boasts a total of over 23,300 volunteers who come from all walks of life. Collectively, they dedicated some 135,048 hours to 8,300 library activities such as user education, regular storytelling, community and school outreach, and assisting in major events such as the Book Exchange and the annual Asian Children’s Festival. Among these FOLs are some 22 taxi drivers under the Cabby Care group and 80 other individuals who are involved in delivering library materials to over 100 homebound beneficiaries under the Project Deliver Me outreach programme. Corporate volunteers include 150 staff from the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports, who read to children from special-needs schools and kindergartens at eight Public NLB staff and Friends of the Library manning a booth Libraries on 7 May 2009. at the Molly®, the Mobile Library First-Year Anniversary Celebrations.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 11 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Corporate Initiatives As a high-performing organisation, NLB continues to raise organisational effectiveness through a broad range of corporate undertakings, from library policy improvements to collaborations with external partners.

Library Policy Changes

In April 2009, NLB implemented a string of library loan policy changes to promote responsible library use and to benefit more library users. Under the updated policy, members with unpaid library fines and fees will have their borrowing privileges suspended until they pay up the outstanding amounts. This is to encourage members to return library materials promptly and thus make more library resources available to members.

While the policy of allowing each borrowed item to be renewed once remains unchanged, members now enjoy a one- time free renewal for all library materials. They are thus encouraged to proactively track and renew their loans as needed. Patrons can also subscribe to NLB’s email or SMS reminder for notification service.

In the year in review, NLB also introduced a loan quota increase for basic library members. From 1 July 2009, basic members may borrow six items – an additional two items, which includes a maximum of two audiovisual (AV) materials. To complement this increase in quota and to make it more convenient for library patrons to access AV collections, AV items are now available at all shopping mall libraries. Comics will also be added to the collections at these libraries to increase the variety for library patrons.

From 1 July 2009, patrons who desire greater access to the library collections can sign up for a new tier of library membership – Premium Plus. For just $42 a year, members can borrow 16 items at a time, which include a maximum of eight AV items.

NLB’s Family of Identities

Since 2008, the National Library Singapore (NLS) and Public Libraries Singapore (PLS) have been positioned as separate brands under the parent corporate brand, NLB. In the year in review, the refreshed family of identities was implemented for new collaterals and the brand identity manuals of the three entities were completed. NLB staff were also trained on the applications of the family of identities. The brand identity manuals for NLB, NLS and PLS.

Inaugural Electronic Annual Report NLB’s first-ever electronic annual report (e-AR) was unveiled in the year in review. Themed Choose A Life… A Life of Knowledge, Imagination and Possibility , the FY2008/2009 e-AR aimed to be more than a report of the year’s events. With high interactivity and visual appeal, it took readers on an engaging experience of NLB’s strategies, initiatives and achievements.

FY2008/2009 electronic annual report took readers on a journey of interactivity.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 12 Donation Section on NLB Corporate Website A new donation section, Support Us, was added to the NLB corporate website. It aims to raise public awareness on the opportunities to contribute to the causes and programmes of NLB and its libraries. At the same time, the section enables convenient, immediate contributions through a secure online donation facility. Donations can be in the form of time (volunteerism), heritage materials or cash and can be directed towards specific causes, such as programmes for children and teens, special needs, adults and seniors, or The Library Fund to provide support where it is needed most. This donation section dovetails the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts’ (MICA) Give2arts.sg donation portal, which was launched in February 2010. To access Support Us, click here. The donation section on the NLB corporate website.

Proposed Development Strategy

The Partnership and Development Division proposed and received the board’s approval for a development strategy for NLB. This strategy aims to enable The Library Fund, which has Institution of Public Character (IPC) status, with sustainable financial capability to support library programmes, events and activities over the long term. To implement this strategy, NLB will need to elevate the professionalism of its development work, garner organisation-wide support, nurture donor relationships, raise funds, market and publicise the causes worthy of support, and establish an endowment fund.

Enterprise Architecture Programme

In 2008, NLB’s Chief Information Officer/Chief Technology Officer Office embarked on a pilot study to determine the feasibility of adopting an enterprise architecture (EA) to manage complex IT issues. Following the establishment of a pilot business architecture for its digital library, NLB is embarking on a phased rollout of an EA programme to manage its IT and data architecture.

NLB had jointly organised the Public Service Enterprise Architecture Forum on 9 March 2009 and the Government Enterprise Architecture Forum on 17 November 2009 with Arise Consulting and the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) respectively. These forums aimed to foster an EA community within the Public Service sector. NLB shared its EA experience with the public sector at the two forums. IDA launched the EA Community of Practitioners with NLB as the co-chair.

Library Supply Centre Upgraded

The upgrading of Library Supply Centre (LSC), completed in February 2010, has resulted in better space optimisation and higher efficiency in materials movement, in addition to improved environmental and security controls for the storage of heritage materials. Following the revamp, LSC welcomed 12 official visits by 159 visitors, including MICA Parliamentary Secretary Mr Sam Tan, MICA Permanent Secretary Mr Chan Yeng Kit, NLB Board Members, and librarians from overseas libraries.

Visitors on tours of the upgraded Library Supply Centre.

Cellular Manufacturing at LSC

The operations at the Library Supply Centre (LSC) were given a further shot in the arm with the adoption of cellular manufacturing in August 2009. Supplanting the previous conveyor-belt-based processing, cellular manufacturing, which is based on cell-based processing, has resulted in productivity gains and cost savings. It has also reinforced teamwork at LSC.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 13 Customer Appreciation Day

NLS and PLS showed their appreciation to library patrons during the annual Customer Appreciation Day. The weeklong initiative was launched at the Woodlands Regional Library on 4 June 2009.

At the National Library, complimentary coffee and tea were served to visitors, who also went home with National Library mementos.

At various Public Libraries, a slew of entertaining activities, from henna painting to Japanese manga drawing workshops to dance performances, were presented as a show of appreciation to library patrons. Library members displaying exemplary library etiquette were also spotted and recognised with the ‘You are the One’ award.

Showing appreciation to a National Library patron on A young library patron receiving a token of appreciation Customer Appreciation Day. from Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB.

Collaborations with Local Partners

NLB continued to deepen and strengthen collaborations with local partners, including the Asian Film Archive (AFA), Composers and Authors Society of Singapore (COMPASS) and Marriage Central.

• Asian Film Archive Project In 2007, a tripartite agreement was signed between NLB, AFA and the Singapore Film Commission to draw on the resources and expertise of all three organisations to acquire, preserve, promote and provide access to Singapore’s rich film heritage. In FY2009/2010, NLB received 78 new titles under this partnership. These titles are available under the series Asian Film Archive: Singapore Collection at the library@esplanade. AFA also co-organised two screenings of the film Mat Bond for NLB’s Aspiration Pathfinder Programme (AsPI) in May and August 2009.

• MusicSG Project The MusicSG Project aims to digitise and archive Singapore-composed music from the 1940s and later, and make available these archives to the public through a website. A five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) sealed between NLB and COMPASS on 13 November 2009 will enable NLB to digitise COMPASS’s physical local music collection. COMPASS members were also urged to donate their published works to NLB’s music repository.

• Marriage Central Resource Points NLB inked an MOU with Marriage Central on 8 December 2009 to set Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (front row, 2 nd from up resource points at three Regional Libraries by 2012. Marriage Central right), with Dr Edmund Lam, Chief Executive Officer, is a one-stop portal by the National Family Council to promote stronger, COMPASS (front row, 3 rd from right) and MusicSG Advisory Committee Members and COMPASS Board of healthier and happier relationships. At these resource hubs, soon-to- Directors at the NLB-COMPASS MOU signing ceremony. wed and married couples will be able to get marriage-related resources that will help strengthen marriages, or sign up for marriage preparation and enrichment programmes. Marriage Central staff will also be on hand at the resource points to answer queries and make referrals to marriage counsellors. The first Marriage Central Resource Point opened on 9 December 2009 at the Jurong Regional Library. The first programme for the public, a financial talk to help couples understand each other’s money management habits, was organised by Marriage Central on 20 December 2009 at the Jurong Regional Library. Over 80 participants attended the talk.

The first Marriage Central Resource Point is located at the Jurong Regional Library. NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 14 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Service Initiatives NLB continuously seeks feedback and responds with innovative, effective initiatives to elevate its service standards and meet the demands of its patrons.

Virtual Tours of National Library Building

The iconic National Library Building receives nearly four million local and foreign visitors annually. Now NLB has introduced virtual reality tours of the building on its corporate website for the convenience of visitors who have not been able to drop by personally. These virtual reality tours feature both the building’s exterior and interior spaces. To visit the virtual reality tours, click here.

NLB SearchPlus

NLB SearchPlus, a one-stop information-finding service, is designed to facilitate more efficient and comprehensive searches across the entire catalogue of Virtual reality tours of the National Library NLB’s accessible resources, both physical and electronic. Its trial was launched Building are available on the NLB corporate on 3 November 2009. Earlier in May 2009, the MetaLib-powered Virtual Union website. Catalogue, which provides access to the catalogue records from public-funded libraries in Singapore, was rolled out. MetaLib, a meta search engine, is also implemented for NLB eDatabases. To access NLB SearchPlus, click here.

NLB eResources

A powerful research tool, NLB eResources aggregates and provides access to NLB’s collections of eBooks, eMagazines, eNewspapers and eDatabases. In the year in review, NLB promoted eResources to public servants at ministries and statutory boards through a series of 20 road shows. NLB eResources was also showcased at the Public Service Week Learning Day at the Civil Service College in May 2009 and the Ministry of Education National Education Seminar in November 2009. To access NLB eResources, click here.

Corporate Resource System (CREST) NLB’s eResources provides convenient access On 1 October 2009, NLB successfully rolled out the Corporate Resource to NLB’s digital materials. System (CREST). This new-generation, integrated human resource, finance and administrative enterprise system was developed in collaboration with four other statutory boards, namely SPRING Singapore, Health Promotion Board, Media Development Authority and Health Sciences Authority. Hosted on a common platform shared by the five agencies, CREST is set to help NLB reap the benefits from economies of scale. myLibrary on Facebook

The trial of the myLibrary application on the popular social networking site Facebook began on 30 December 2009. The application enables Facebook users to use and share library services on their online social space and helps NLB reach out to the younger library user segment. The application provides unique social features not available on traditional library service platforms. Users can recommend resources to their friends and networks, as well as save resources in their Facebook space.

CEPAS-Compliant Devices and Card Readers

CEPAS-compliant payment devices were introduced at the libraries’ customer service counters to facilitate payment with the new EZ-link cards. The eKiosks in the libraries were also upgraded with new CEPAS-compliant card readers.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 15 Facilities Rental

The National Library Building and the Public Libraries offer a range of spacious and well-equipped facilities for the public’s rental. In the year in review, NLB continued to market the availability of these facilities through various channels, including the corporate website. For more information on NLB’s facilities rental, click here.

A one-stop information portal on facilities rental for NLB’s network of libraries.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 16 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Human Resource Development NLB is an employee-centric organisation. Staff welfare initiatives and professional development programmes help staff realise their potential and shine through as successful individuals.

NLB Alumni Facebook Group

NLB has launched the NLB Alumni Facebook group, through which former staff can share ideas, stay in touch and be kept in the loop about NLB’s new initiatives and upcoming events. To date, 64 retirees and former staff have joined as members.

NLB Sponsorship Awards

In the year in review, the NLB Sponsorship Awards scheme was reviewed and expanded to include sponsorship for a wider range of programmes. The selection process and examination leave entitlements were also revised. Five staff members were sponsored for their Master of Science in NLB’s former staff can keep in touch with one Information Studies programme at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU). another through the NLB Alumni Facebook page.

NLB Scholarship Awards

In the year in review, five NLB scholarships for continuing education were awarded. This included three overseas post- graduate awards for library and information science master’s degrees at the University of British Columbia, Loughborough University and Monash University, a local post-graduate award for a master’s degree in information studies at NTU, and a mid-term award for a Bachelor of Business Management degree at the Singapore Management University/Master of Science (Information Studies) at NTU.

Re-employment Policy

In line with the Government’s efforts to help mature workers remain economically productive, NLB has formalised a re- employment policy and re-employed four staff members in the pilot run that began from 1 June 2009. NLB received a grant from the Singapore Workforce Development Agency’s ADVANTAGE! Scheme to defray the cost of creating a more mature-worker-friendly environment and re-employment-related staff training.

Chairman’s Farewell Get-together

Ms Lim Soo Hoon’s term as NLB Chairman ended on 31 August 2009. In appreciation of her leadership and contribution to NLB, staff organised a farewell get-together on 11 August 2009. More than 100 staff attended the event to thank and wish her well.

Ms Lim Soo Hoon, then Chairman, NLB, receiving a NLB staff came to bid farewell to and thank Ms Lim Soo memento from Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, at Hoon for her guidance and leadership. her farewell get-together.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 17 Career Fairs

In order to promote librarianship as a career of choice and attract talents to join the library profession, NLB participated in the Public Service Division Networking Session as well as the Job Central and NTU career fairs. A total of 4,500 people visited the booths.

Professional Diploma Programme

The pilot Professional Diploma in Library Management and Information Services (Foundation Level) was launched to equip Associate Librarians and new librarians with basic competencies required for library management and information services. Covering practical and functional applications, the core modules include organising library collection and collection policy, information search skills, and reference enquiry and tools.

Team Excellence Award

NLB launched the Team Excellence Award as recognition for team dedication to excellence. Three teams, scoring high for the effectiveness of their methodologies and processes and the impact of their results on the organisation, among other criteria, received the awards at Staff Forum 2010. The three winning teams were the Fine Team – Recovery of Outstanding Fines and Fees, which fine-tuned the recovery process; the Data Centre Relocation Project Team, which helped ensure a more secure and reliable data environment by migrating NLB’s Data Centre to the Government Data Centre; and the Best Sourcing Team, which best-sourced NLB’s shelving and shelf-reading functions.

Work-Life Balance

Throughout the year, NLB organised a host of activities to encourage work-life balance. For instance, Active Day was held on 2 October 2009 at The Plaza, National Library Building, to get NLB staff on their feet for a series of mass workouts and games. The occasion also provided the opportunity to encourage staff to exercise regularly and maintain a healthy diet. Family Day 2009, held on 31 October 2009 at the Singapore Zoo, was attended by more than 600 staff and their family members.

NLB staff worked out en masse on Active Day. NLB staff and their families had a fun day out on Family Day.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 18 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Awards and Accolades At NLB, excellence is a journey, not a destination. Fuelling the organisation on this journey are the multiple awards and accolades it receives each year. Highlights in FY2009/2010 included the Service Excellence Award, the highest national accolade for excellence in customer service, and the Singapore Innovation Class certification, recognising NLB for its penchant for innovation.

BCA Green Mark Platinum Award

The National Library Building was awarded the Green Mark Platinum Award under the Existing Building Category at the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) Awards 2009 held on 27 May 2009. It also clinched the honour of being the only existing building to be certified Green Mark Platinum in 2009.

Republic Polytechnic Customer Service Award

The NLB-managed Republic Polytechnic Library took the third spot in the Republic Polytechnic Customer Service Award in the corporate category. Mr R Sandamurthi, Deputy Director, Properties and Facilities Management, NLB (left), receiving the BCA Green Mark Platinum Award from Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister National Safety and Security Watch Group Award of State for National Development and Education.

For its good safety and security standards, the National Library Building was awarded the National Safety and Security Watch Group Award in the Individual Member Award category. Jointly established by the Singapore Police Force and the Singapore Civil Defence Force, the award aims to strengthen the partnership between the private and public sectors in the fight against crime and terrorism and elevate the level of emergency preparedness.

Knowledge Management Excellence Award Mr R Sandamurthi, Deputy Director, Properties and At the Knowledge Management Singapore 2009 Conference held on Facilities Management, NLB (right), receiving the National 13 August 2009, NLB was awarded the Knowledge Management (KM) Safety and Security Watch Group Award from Assoc Prof Excellence Award (Bronze) in the Culture category for its Knowledge Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Law and Ministry of Home Affairs. Champions programme by the Information and Knowledge Management Society (iKMS). The Knowledge Champions programme, aimed at developing a cohort of staff who are able to facilitate and proliferate KM awareness, activism and skills across NLB, impressed with its thoughtfulness and promise of a strong impact on NLB’s knowledge- sharing and learning culture.

NLB received the Knowledge Management (KM) Excellence Award (Bronze) for its Knowledge Champions programme.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 19 MICA Innovation Fiesta

The Library in Your Pocket team took the Silver Award while the Book Exchange team received the Top Staff Suggestion Award at the MICA Innovation Fiesta, held on 27 August 2009.

Public Service 21 ExCEL Convention

Library in Your Pocket was recognised as one of the top 12 Best Public Service (PS)21 projects, out of a nomination list of 43. It also won the Silver Award at the PS21 ExCEL Convention held on 2 November 2009 at HDB Toa Payoh Hub. The project team was also invited to showcase the project at the PS21 ExCEL Convention Exhibition from 2 to 5 November 2009.

Mr Chan Yeng Kit, Permanent Secretary, MICA, Library in Your Pocket was one of the top 12 Best presenting the Top Staff Suggestion Award to Ms Lim Yan Public Service projects recognised at the PS21 ExCEL Hong, Project Manager of Book Exchange at the MICA Convention. Innovation Fiesta.

Service Excellence Award

NLB’s unrelenting focus on customer service earned it the Service Excellence Award, which is the highest business excellence accolade given to organisations for customer service excellence. The award testifies to NLB’s success in providing the highest levels of service leadership and agility, and in delighting its customers.

Singapore Innovation Class

NLB is an organisation that thrives on innovation and continuous improvement. For its innovative culture and quest for excellence through innovation, NLB was awarded the renewal of its Singapore Innovation Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, receiving the Service Excellence Award from Mr Teo Chee Hean, Class (I-Class) certification. The I-Class recognises organisations for Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Defence and Minister achieving the high standards required under the Singapore Innovation in charge of the Civil Service. Class framework.

Japan Creation Award

Verging All Teens (V.A.T.), the Jurong Regional Library’s teenager-friendly space, received the Japan Creation Award 2009 (Overseas Division) from the Japan Fashion Association in Tokyo on 16 March 2010. The Award recognises creative works that contribute towards lifestyle improvement and creation of new culture in Japan and six Asian cities. V.A.T. was developed by a group of teenage volunteers and Public Librarians. It is a constantly evolving space that engages teenagers in lifelong learning and reading through the programmes held there.

Ms Tay Ai Cheng, Senior Director, Public Library Services, NLB (front row, 2 nd from right), representing NLB at the Japan Creation Award 2009.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 20 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

International Relations In the year in review, NLB’s international relations endeavours were marked by active staff participation in attachment programmes and international conferences. In addition, the organisation continued to facilitate knowledge exchange by hosting visits by specialists and industry professionals.

Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians

Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, and Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive, NLB, attended the 14 th Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians (CONSAL) Executive Board meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam on 20 April 2009.

Following the Executive Board meeting, the 14 th CONSAL General Conference was held on 21 and 22 April 2009, attended by a delegation of 20 NLB staff. During the conference, Dr Varaprasad was conferred a commemorative medal for lifetime achievement by Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for his contributions to the Vietnamese libraries and his guidance to the National Library of Vietnam for the th Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (centre), was CONSAL 14 General Conference. Mrs Kiang-Koh Lai Lin, Director for conferred a commemorative medal for lifetime Reading Initiatives, NLB, was awarded the CONSAL Silver Award for her achievement by Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and contributions to the library profession. Tourism at the CONSAL 14 th General Conference.

Dr Varaprasad, a member of the CONSAL Executive Board, also presented the keynote address on Leveraging on Volunteers for Sustainable Library Services . NLB’s Client Services Division presented a paper on Library Delivery Service: An Innovative Service Offered to Organisations by NLB. NLB’s Publishing & Research Services Division presented a paper on Driving Business Information Services: EnterpriseOne Business Information Services (EBIS) Challenges and Strategies and NLB’s Programmes and Exhibitions Division presented a paper on The Internet – Challenges and Opportunities for Southeast Asian Libraries. All papers were published in the conference proceedings.

At the same time, NLB donated 32 English titles on Singapore’s culture and people to the National Library of Vietnam’s Documentation Exhibition on ASEAN countries held in conjunction with the conference.

National Convention and Seminar of School Librarians

Mrs Tan Keat Fong, Deputy Director, Professional and International Relations, NLB, and Regional Manager, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Regional Office for Asia and Oceania, was invited to the National Convention and Seminar of School Librarians in Jakarta, Indonesia, from 27 to 29 May 2009. She spoke on The Role of the School Library and Competency of the School Librarian: The IFLA Perspective and the Singapore Experience and shared her experience in setting up college libraries. She also took the opportunity to introduce IFLA activities to the 150 attendees, consisting of school librarians and other participants from 33 provinces in Indonesia. Mrs Tan Keat Fong, Deputy Director, Professional and International Relations, NLB (on stage, 2nd from right), at the National Convention and Seminar of School Librarians in Jakarta.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 21 75 th IFLA General Conference and Council

Eight NLB staff attended the 75 th IFLA General Conference and Council in Milan, Italy, from 23 to 27 August 2009. They presented papers and participated in meetings and networking sessions. The IFLA Regional Office for Asia and Oceania also produced a poster entitled The Experience with Action for Development through Libraries Programme , which was presented during the two-day Poster Sessions from 25 to 26 August 2009.

IFLA Library Associations Capacity Building Programme

Pilot Workshop Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (far left), with NLB representatives at the 75 th IFLA General Conference and The IFLA Library Associations Capacity Building Programme Pilot Council. Workshop was successfully held in Singapore from 9 to 13 November 2009. The workshop aimed to assess and further develop the Building Strong Library Associations Programme training package, which is a component of the larger capacity building programme.

NLB, as the IFLA Regional Office for Asia and Oceania, hosted the 12 international participants, who also visited the National Library Building and the Woodlands Regional Library.

During the workshop, Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive, NLB, also shared with participants on Leadership Skills and Advocacy for Libraries: Best Practices in Library Association Management, the Participants of the IFLA Library Associations Capacity Singapore Experience in her capacity as the immediate past president of Building Programme Pilot Workshop. the Library Association of Singapore.

Thailand-Singapore-Taiwan Workshop on Library and Information Research

Eight NLB staff participated in the Thailand-Singapore-Taiwan Workshop on Library and Information Research held in Khon Kaen, Thailand, from 19 to 20 November 2009. The workshop was jointly organised by the Khon Kaen University and Mahasarakham University, together with the National Taiwan Normal University and the Nanyang Technological University, and coordinated by NLB’s Publishing and Research Services Division.

The workshop aimed to improve the quality and impact of library and information research in the region through collaboration and cooperation among researchers from the three countries. Following the workshop, NLB’s participants would produce research papers, to be published in a journal or presented at a conference, and share the learning points with other NLB staff through the Overseas Knowledge Sharing blog.

IFLA Regional Standing Committee for Asia and Oceania (RSCAO) Mid-term Meeting

The IFLA Regional Standing Committee for Asia and Oceania (RSCAO) held its annual Mid-term Meeting and a one-day conference on The GLAM Sector: Finding Common Ground for Shared Opportunities, in Beirut, Lebanon, from 1 to 3 February 2010. Two NLB staff representing the IFLA Regional Office for Asia and Oceania presented a progress report on the IFLA Regional Office and a financial report on RSCAO.

Participants of the IFLA Regional Standing Committee Mid-term Meeting in Beirut, Lebanon.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 22 IFLA IT Projects Meeting

An NLB staff was sponsored by IFLA to attend the IFLA IT Projects Meeting at IFLA Headquarters, The Hague, Netherlands, from 8 to 12 February 2010. Issues discussed included the uses of IT for IFLA’s projects and communications.

Memorandum of Understanding with Xiamen Library

NLB and Xiamen Library extended their partnership with the renewal of their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 1 October 2009. The renewed MOU included a new area of cooperation in collaborative reference services, especially on the subject of genealogy. Other areas of cooperation include exchange of library materials, staff attachment, digitisation of content and exhibitions.

Staff Exchange Programme

A staff delegation led by Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, attended the National Library of China’s 100 th anniversary celebrations and symposium on International Progress of Libraries: Global Knowledge Sharing, from 8 to 12 September 2009. The visit came under the NLB-National Library of China MOU Staff Exchange Programme. Dr Varaprasad also presented a paper on The International Collaboration Projects of National Library Board Singapore at National Library of China’s International Symposium.

Overseas Visitors

NLB’s international relations continued to be strengthened by visits by Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (4 th from left), presenting a gift to Mr Zhan Furui, Director of National foreign dignitaries and guests. In the year in review, NLB welcomed a total Library of China. of 177 visits by 3,114 overseas guests.

Among the dignitaries was Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand. Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, hosted the princess and her 20-member entourage on their tour of National Library Building on 24 April 2009. In appreciation, the princess presented NLB with gifts of books in the Thai language.

World-renowned film producer and international adviser to the Media Development Authority (MDA) Lord David Puttnam, accompanied by Mrs Puttnam and Dr Christopher Chia, Chief Executive Officer, MDA, visited the National Library Building on 1 June 2009. Dr Varaprasad, Lord David Puttnam (3 rd from right) and Mrs Puttnam (3 rd Chief Executive, NLB, and Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive, from left), Dr Christopher Chia, Chief Executive Officer, NLB, led the visitors on a tour of The Pod and NLS’s Rare Book, Social MDA (far left), and NLB staff. Sciences, and Science and Technology Collections. They were also given a demonstration on NLB eResources.

NLB extended warm hospitality to the spouses of foreign ministers attending the APEC Ministerial Meetings on 11 November 2009. Mrs Carole Crean, spouse of His Excellency Simon Crean, Australia’s Minister for Trade; Mrs Valorie Day, spouse of His Excellency Stockwell Day, Canada’s Minister of International Trade; and Mrs Chintana Piromya, spouse of His Excellency Kasit Piromya, Thailand’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, were given a tour of the Central Public Library and caught highlights of the Singapore, Southeast Asian and Donors’ Collections at the National Library. NLB’s Junior Reading Ambassadors and participants of the National kidsREAD programme also enlivened their visit with a talent show. The spouses of foreign ministers attending the APEC Ministerial Meetings had the opportunity to interact with young readers from the Junior Reading Ambassadors and National kidsREAD programmes.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 23 Brazilian Ambassador Paulo Alberto De Silveira Soares and Ms Tania Meulenberg, Trade Officer from the Brazil Embassy in Singapore, visited the National Library Building on 30 November 2009. They presented NLS with 10 copies of Its Time for Brazil in Singapore and 13 copies of Amazonia in Singapore.

Mr Jeremy Hunt, the United Kingdom’s Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, accompanied by Lord Chadlington, Chief Executive Officer, Huntsworth Group, visited the National Library Building and the Central Public Library on 11 January 2010. Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, presented an overview of NLB, its libraries and Brazilian Ambassador Paulo Alberto De Silveira Soares programmes. and Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive, and Director, National Library, NLB. On 21 January 2010, His Excellency Nopadol Gunavibool, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Royal Thai Embassy, and Professor Prasobsook Boondech, President of the Senate of Thailand, visited the National Library Building.

On 3 February 2010, His Excellency Paul Kayoboke, the Rwandan Acting High Commissioner in Singapore and senior infocomm technology government officials from Rwanda visited NLB to learn more about NLB’s reading programmes.

Mr Wang Meng, former Minister for Culture, People’s Republic of China, and one of China’s foremost contemporary writers, visited the National Mr Jeremy Hunt (far left) and Lord Chadlington (centre) Library Building on 5 March 2010. with Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB. Other overseas visitors included: ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Association, United States of America, 20 April 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ and his entourage of 22 education officials, 26 June 2009 ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Mr Megat Adnan Megat Mohamad, Director, Kelantan Public Library, board members and staff, 3 July 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Rwandan Acting High Commissioner His Excellency Paul Kayoboke and Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB. of Tatarstan, Russian Federation, and Mr Alexey V. Dakhnovskiy, Senior Counsellor, Embassy of the Russian Federation in Singapore, 8 July 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ UNESCO Bangkok, 15 July 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ a Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Technical Co-operation Programme run by PSB Academy, 15 September 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ 25 September 2009 ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Mr Wang Meng, former Minister for Culture, People’s October 2009 Republic of China, and Mrs Aileen Lau, President of The ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ China Society, Singapore. Japan, 21 October 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Baleinabuli, Director for Information, 5 November 2009 ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Mr Pham The Khang, 16 November 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 24 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Librarian (General References), Hong Kong Central Library, 29 January 2010 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Ethnological Museum, Berlin; Prof Dr Michael Eissenhauer, General Director, Berlin State Museums, 10 March 2010 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Matali, 11 March 2010

Visits to Overseas Libraries

Two NLB staff from the InfoComm Division and Research and Service Innovation Division visited the National Library of China and Library of Chinese Academy of Sciences from 18 to 20 November 2009 to learn about their service innovations and IT strategies.

Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive, NLB, visited the National Library of Cambodia on 11 December 2009. She also attended the library’s fundraising book and exhibition launch on 11 December 2009, at the invitation of its director, Ms Khlot Vibolla.

On the invitation of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Singapore, a delegation of NLB’s Senior Management, led by Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, embarked on a tour of seven key university libraries and public libraries in Riyadh and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from 20 to 31 December 2009. The group also visited two libraries and a library services company in Egypt. NLB’s visits have opened up opportunities for increased interactions between the libraries in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Singapore.

Dr Ahmed M. Darwish, Minister of State for Administrative Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (5 th from left) with NLB staff Development (5 th from right), Board Members of the and senior management of the Imam Mohammad University of International School of Information Science and Dr Ismail Islamic Studies, Riyadh. Serageldin, Director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina (2 nd from right) hosted the NLB delegates.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 25 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Professional Relations

Professional Talks Series

In FY2009/2010, NLB continued to support the development of library professionals and NLB’s growth as a learning organisation. A key initiative was the Professional Talks Series, which invited industry experts and specialists to share their expertise and experience with NLB staff and Library Association of Singapore (LAS) members.

In total, 223 NLB staff and 123 LAS members attended the talks on topics ranging from marketing strategies to technological applications.

NLB’s guest speakers in the year in review were: ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, presenting University, Singapore Ms Sylvia Yap, University Librarian from the NUS Libraries, ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ with a token of appreciation. Digital Library, National Library of New Zealand, New Zealand ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ United States of America

Visits to Local Institutions

In the year in review, NLB strengthened its professional relations with other libraries and heritage institutions in Singapore. In total, 94 NLB staff and 33 LAS members participated in these visits, which provided them with valuable and beneficial networking and knowledge exchange opportunities. The institutions visited were: ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀

NLB staff learnt more about the archival process of heritage materials at the National Archives of Singapore.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 26 NATIONAL LIBRARY BOARD SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Cybrarian Ventures Private Limited Cybrarian Ventures Private Limited (CVPL) is NLB’s wholly owned company that exports the organisation’s library development and management expertise, experience, products and services to libraries worldwide. Drawing on NLB’s resources and expertise, CVPL provides a complete suite of solutions, comprising library design and planning, capability development and library consulting services, which are customised to meet clients’ unique needs.

In FY2009/2010, CVPL continued to widen its global network through consultancy projects, partnerships and exchange.

In September 2009, the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) appointed CVPL to provide consultancy services to develop a prototype library to be showcased at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair from 2 to 7 March 2010. A highlight was the segmentation of the prototype library into various zones such as Do-It-Yourself, Lifestyle, Digital Library and Mobile Library Zones, catering to different types of library users.

At the book fair, CVPL also showcased NLB’s products such as the radio frequency identification (RFID) machine, eKiosk, Smart Dispenser, book Cybrarian Ventures Private Limited-conceived prototype drop, book dispenser and Molly ®, the Mobile Library. library at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair.

ADACH has also expressed its intent to appoint CVPL as its consultant for its Abu Dhabi Libraries project in a Letter of Instruction in January 2010 and a Letter of Intent in March 2010. With this, the team commenced the feasibility studies of the Abu Dhabi Libraries project and presented the deliverables to ADACH.

CVPL inked a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the Dubai-based Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation on 3 September 2009 for the ‘Reading Strategy’ project. Under the SLA, CVPL will customise reading initiatives for Dubai, followed by the United Arab Emirates and eventually the Arab World. The project will also include a series of scientific Cybrarian Ventures Private Limited signed a Service Level studies to determine readers’ age segmentation and the focus of the Agreement with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum reading initiatives. Foundation to customise reading initiatives for Dubai.

In 2009, CVPL also hosted visitors from overseas organisations including: ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀

Mr Abdullah Turaifi, Vice President of Arabian Advanced Systems taken on tour by NLB staff at the Central Public Library.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 27 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Heritage Initiatives A key priority of the National Library Singapore (NLS) is to build and preserve the shared heritage of Singapore and Asia. Beyond this, NLS also ensures that researchers and the community have access to the intellectual and cultural assets it has collected through curated exhibitions and heritage programmes.

Singapore Memory Project

The Singapore Memory Project (SMP) is a national project to build up a national collection of digitally preserved content that is also made available for discovery and research. Spearheaded by a Steering Committee chaired by RADM (NS) Sim Gim Guan, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, SMP will be officially launched in the first quarter of 2011.

NLS serves as the Steering Committee’s secretariat and contributes to the project in the area of digital content management, including information gathering, collection development, content management, metadata creation, basic digitisation, newspaper and microfilm digitisation, and digital preservation.

Under Phase 1, called the Singapore Digital Content Project, SMP will collect, preserve and make available 500,000 historically significant items in digital format. SMP’s partner organisations have pledged over 300,000 items, including the private papers of Singapore pioneers such as David Marshall, S. Rajaratnam and Alex Josey, oral history recordings on various topics like the Japanese Occupation, ethnic associations and Singapore’s political and economic development, as well as heritage photographs from the Singapore Press Holdings’ collections.

‘Vignettes in Time: Singapore Maps and History Through the Centuries’ Exhibition

In collaboration with the Singapore Heritage Society and Mr Lim Shao Bin, a map collector, NLS organised the ‘Vignettes in Time: Singapore Maps and History Through the Centuries’ exhibition from 1 August to 31 December 2009. The exhibition, opened by Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, was the largest showcase of Singapore maps ever, featuring 120 historical maps. Attracting over 110,000 visitors, the exhibition offered glimpses into how cartographers, mariners and town planners saw Singapore through the island’s history, beginning from the arrival of the British to the post-World War II period.

Mr Lim Chen Sian, curator for the ‘Vignettes in Time: Heritage Road Show IV Singapore Maps and History through the Centuries’ exhibition giving a guided tour to Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Launched by Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts (front row, 2nd from right) and invited guests. Communications and the Arts, Heritage Road Show IV, held on 1 August 2009, saw members of the public contributing their personal stories and experiences of significant events that took place from 1959 to 2009. This initiative was held to celebrate the 50 th anniversary of Singapore’s self- governance, and to build up a collection of Singapore memories based on Singaporeans’ life experiences. More than 1,200 contributions were received for www.iremember.sg, the Heritage Road Show IV web portal which also geographically tags the stories and photographs, allowing visitors to see how Singapore has evolved through the times. To drum up publicity for Heritage Road Show IV, a series of pre-event activities were organised, including a photography workshop, an archaeology workshop as well as a photography competition with the theme of Singapore Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (right) presenting memories from 1959 to 2009. Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, with the front page of The Three heritage programmes were held in association with Heritage Road Straits Times published on his birthday. Show IV. They were Singapore Maps 101: Maps and Charts of Singapore from the Archives of Continental Europe, a talk held on 15 August 2009; AsPI Singapore 1960s, a special edition of NLB’s Aspiration Pathfinder initiative, which guided participants on an immersive heritage trail through historical landmarks related to Singapore in the 1960s; and SG101 Anthem, a talk on how Singapore’s National Anthem was composed and chosen, held on 22 August 2009.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 28 Experience Singapore Literature

NLS, in an effort to create greater access to Singapore literature through experiential encounters, organised a series of two-hour literary tours themed around poems and stories by Singaporeans. Participants were led to places featured in Singapore literature, from the concrete jungle of Shenton Way to community heartlands like Toa Payoh. The series of tours culminated in the very first breakfast symposium in Singapore on 30 October 2009. Singapore writers and poets such as Catherine Lim, Colin Cheong and Ng Yi Sheng shared their insights at the symposium.

‘S. Rajaratnam: The Singapore Lion’ Exhibition Singapore writers convened at the Experience Singapore Literature Symposium. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong launched the ‘S. Rajaratnam: The Singapore Lion’ exhibition on 4 February 2010. Using the late S. Rajaratnam’s personal photographs, diaries, books and excerpts from his speeches and interviews, the exhibition wove a story on his life as well as his vision for and contributions to Singapore’s development. Held in conjunction with the launch of the book The Singapore Lion: A Biography of S. Rajaratnam authored by Ms Irene Ng, Member of Parliament, Tampines GRC, the exhibition drew from NLS’s collections and those of supporting partners such as the Institute of Southeast Asia Studies, National Archives of Singapore, National Museum of Singapore, MediaCorp and Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong graced the launch of the ‘S. Rajaratnam: The Singapore Lion’ exhibition. ‘Singapore Chinese Drama and Other Performing Arts’ Exhibition ûಱൔྔࡍ௨߆მߌझთఊ෷ѝဍၣඓᅡü

The exhibition ‘Singapore Chinese Drama and Other Performing Arts’ ಱൔྔࡍ௨߆მߌझთఊ෷ѝဍၣඓᅡ , launched on 28 November 2009, offered a window into Singapore’s culture and history. Jointly organised by NLS and the Tropical Literature and Art Club, the exhibition traced the development of Chinese drama, dance and music in Singapore from the 1920s to 1990s, with a display of 360 performance souvenir magazines, 700 photographs, and rare 1970s hand-drawn promotional posters and unpublished local drama scripts. The exhibition was well received, attracting nearly 10,000 visitors and 50 written compliments. An exhibition guide 50 Years of Singapore Chinese Performing Arts Souvenir Publications ྔ߆ဍԢาृ50 ୔ᛔল was published in conjunction with Visitors at the ‘Singapore Chinese Drama and Other the exhibition. Three talks on Chinese performing arts were organised from Performing Arts’ exhibition. November 2009 to January 2010. In addition, about 1,300 photographs, posters and souvenir magazines related to Singapore Chinese drama were donated to NLS for preservation and research purposes.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 29 ‘Yesterday’s Newspapers’ Exhibition

The exhibition ‘Yesterday’s Newspapers’ was opened on 28 January 2010 in conjunction with the official launch of NewspaperSG, NLS’s online digital archive of Singapore and Malayan newspapers. The showcase featured a selection of articles retrieved from NewspaperSG, giving visitors glimpses into issues which have affected the daily lives of Singaporeans, such as politics, economics, public housing, public transport and national campaigns.

Heritage Development

Mr Koh Seow Chuan, a major donor of heritage materials to NLS, was named Distinguished Patron of Heritage at the Patron of Heritage Awards, organised by the National Heritage Board on 17 April 2009. NLB nominated Mr Koh for the award in reciprocation of his continuous support. Mr Lee Kim Long, Ustaz Taha Suhaimi and Missions Etrangères Paris also contributed new donor collections to the Donors’ Gallery.

Mr Seow Choke Meng, Executive Vice-President, Singapore Press Heritage Programmes Holdings (left); Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB; and Mr Philip Koh, NLS held a broad range of heritage programmes to augment its role of preserving and then Managing Director, MediaCorp providing access to Singapore’s heritage. Press Ltd (right), posing for a photo at the entrance of ‘Yesterday’s On 29 April 2009, NLS jointly organised a talk on The Fate of Neutralism in Cambodia Newspapers’ exhibition. and Laos, with the National University of Singapore’s Asia Research Institute and The History Channel.

NLS also launched SG101, a new initiative showcasing Singapore. From May to August 2009, the spotlight was on Singapore heritage, with a new series of heritage talks and workshops held: ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ 20 June 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ 5 November 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ 30 November 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀

Legal Deposit Seminar

Many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) publish a wide range of materials, such as newsletters and yearbooks, which are important materials that enrich the documentation of a country’s social heritage. Two Legal Deposit seminars were thus held, on 16 November 2009 and 10 March 2010, to share with NGOs such as clubs, societies and associations the importance and benefits of depositing print and digital publications with NLS. The former session was conducted in English and the latter in Chinese.

Deposit Network (DNet©) Ms Ngian Lek Choh, Deputy Chief Executive and Director, © National Library, NLB, addressing participants of the The Deposit Network, or DNet , is a reward network that recognises and Legal Deposit Seminar. encourages publishers, organisations, donors and content developers such as authors, music composers and self-publishers to actively deposit and donate their materials to NLS. The inaugural list of 71 DNet© members was posted on the Deposit Web.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 30 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Donations and Acquisitions As a key steward of the country’s literary and cultural legacies, NLS is committed to continually deepen and widen Singapore’s national memory by expanding its heritage collection through donations, acquisitions and digitisation.

Donors’ Collections

During the year in review, NLS successfully enlarged its collections with contributions from 53 donors. Twenty-four new and 29 repeat donors contributed a total of 3,935 publications, 12,801 manuscript pages, 29,920 photos including slides and negatives as well as 3,790 ephemera items.

Among the major donations was a valuable 19,500-item collection from the family of Mr Lee Kip Lin. This consists of 1,322 monographs including early Raffles Institution (formerly known as Singapore Institution) annual reports, East India Company letters, and the Straits Settlements Blue Book; 630 rare photographs, including a very rare album by Sachtler & Co; 17,337 slides and negatives featuring old Singapore roads and houses; and 291 rare Singapore and Southeast Asian maps dating from the 17th century.

Another significant contribution was Mr Geoffrey Edwards’ donation of an 1869 Indian-ink silk painting, which depicts the view of Singapore town from Telok Ayer Hill. Of great historical and research value, this painting was first presented to the Duke of Edinburgh by a group of some 80 Singapore merchants, including pioneering merchants like Tan Kim Ching, Cheang Hong Lim, Seah Eu Chin and Hoo Ah Kay.

NLS’s long-standing supporter Mr Koh Seow Chuan donated 1,714 heritage items to NLS in FY2009/2010. Among his collection are Swatow-bound remittance letters and envelopes dating from the 1930s to 1950s, original documents from the Japanese Occupation, legal documents of prominent Arab and Chinese pioneers from the late 19 th to early 20 th century, and original photographs of Singapore, Southeast Asia and East Asia from the late 19 th to early 20 th century. His donation also included 55 paintings and calligraphic works by renowned Singapore artist and Cultural Medallion recipient Mr Lim Tze Peng.

NLB and Dr Ivan Polunin signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 24 March 2010 to digitise his collection of over 500 film reels and 200 audiotapes. The collection is a visual and audio documentation of early Singapore and the region from 1950s to 1970s, covering various disciplines such as the natural and social sciences, as well as urban and architectural studies. It is the single largest collection of documentary footage on Singapore of TV broadcast quality, filmed before the introduction of colour TV in Singapore in 1974.

Other donations included the following: ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ publisher’s draft for his autobiography, Never In My Wildest Dreams , books on general interest and personal files of newspaper clippings and articles from the 1970s ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Medallion winner for music ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Macbeth, Animal Farm, Sarugu (2 volumes), and a radio play, Thanga Thambi ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ from the family of the late Mr V T Arasu, former Chief Editor of Tamil Murasu ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Durai ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ the publication Singapore River: A Living Legacy , from her husband Mr Michael Berry, former Canadian High Commissioner to Singapore ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ ฀ It Ki Mui/Chit Kiam Chapsahnh Kiap and It Ki Mui/Chit Kiam Chapsahnh Seng series, from Mr Heng Bak Leng ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ the family of the late Mr Murugu Seenivasan

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 31 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ Koon, from Dr Chua Soo Pong ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ from Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀

Rights and Loans

Mr Michael Berry, former Canadian High Commissioner, granted to NLS the rights to digitise the book Singapore’s River: A Living Legacy , published by his late wife Mrs Linda Berry. This book captures images of life along the river, accompanied by short anecdotes and poems compiled by the author.

The following were loaned to NLS for digital preservation: ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ family of the late Mr Murugu Seenivasan ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ the Diocese of Singapore ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀Bamboo Green series

Acquisitions

As at March 2010, 111 rare items were acquired for the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library. These included titles on travels and explorations in the Southeast Asian region, as well as a collection of seven letters written by Sir Stamford Raffles from the year 1817 to 1823.

Other significant titles acquired included: ฀ Voyage pittoresque autour du monde , a sailor’s account of travels around the world, including Southeast Asia, published between 1834 and 1835 ฀ Gids ter beoefening van het Maleisch; voor alle standen. Bevattende den omvang dier taal in LXIII hoofdstukken , a guidebook on the Malay language, published in 1836 ฀ On the Zoological Geography of the Malay Archipelago, written by Alfred. R. Wallace, published in 1860 ฀ Exploration de la presqu’île malaise (royaumes de Pérak et de Patani), a collection of 14 articles by J. de Morgan on his travels and exploration in the Malay Peninsula, published between 1884 and 1886 ฀ The India Directory For the Guidance of Commanders of Steamers and Sailing Vessels...From Singapore through the China Sea, published in 1891 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ Modern History; or, The Present State of All Nations, describing their Respective Situations, Persons, Habits, Buildings, Manners, Laws and Customs, Volume 2, published in 1725 ฀ Bijdragen tot de flora van Nederlands Indië. Parts 1–17, published between 1825 and 1826 ฀ Insula Indiae Orientalis, hand-coloured original copper engraved map, c.1630 ฀ Sixth Annual Report of the Anglo-Chinese College, published in 1828 ฀ Directions for Sailing to and from the East Indies, China, New Holland, Cape of Good Hope, and the Interjacent Ports, published in 1809 ฀ Die Missionsgeschichte späterer Zeiten, oder gesammelte Briefe der katholischen Missionare aus allen Theilen der Welt. Ein wichtiger Beytrag zur Natur- Länder- und Völkerkunde , a compilation of letters from missionaries who worked in the East Indies, published in 1795 ฀ A Bill for Transferring to the East India Company Certain Possessions Newly Acquired in the East Indies , published in 1824 ฀ An Account of the Malay ‘Chiri’, a Sanskrit formula, published in 1881 ฀ Reistogt Naar En Door Ostindien, Waar in De Voornaamste Landen, Steden, Eilanden, Bergen, Rivieren, Enz , travel account, published in 1780 ฀ It Ki Mui atau Chit Kiam Chap-Sanh Kiap, Peranakan literature, published in 1936

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 32 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Reference and Research NLS ensured its continued relevance to the needs of researchers with the launch of new research initiatives while building on its existing resources and tools. At the same time, it also reached out to various groups of researchers, from students to academic scholars, through different programmes.

Learning Journey Sessions

The Social Sciences and the Science and Technology collection teams conducted two Learning Journey sessions for over 20 students from National Junior College on 15 April 2009. This programme introduces both print and non-print resources to JC students who undertake research in the social sciences as well as science and technology. They were also given reference support from librarians over the course of their research. Riding on the success of these sessions, the Learning Journey programme will be further developed to engage and nurture budding researchers, who are one of NLS’s target user groups.

NLB also conducted a Learning Journey session during PS21 ExCEL Mr Ian Bain, Senior Communications Associate II, National Convention on 27 July 2009 for over 20 staff from the National Parks Library Marketing & Group Services, NLB (far left), sharing Board. The participants toured the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, and with participants on eResources services. were orientated on the services of the Public Libraries and NLB’s human resource best practices.

‘Adapting Singapore’s Experience – Commemorating the 15 th Anniversary of Suzhou ᇢ୔ࢀനن၃ჺ౼ा܄Industrial Park (1994-2009)’ Exhibitionûࣀࡲྔࡍ௨ࣣမḩࡇ୘ෑᇣ !!!ሮਟᅡü

The Lee Kong Chian Reference Library curated the bilingual exhibition ‘Adapting Singapore’s Experience – Commemorating the 15 th Anniversary of Suzhou Industrial Park (1994-2009)’, with the support of Suzhou Center (Singapore Representative Office), Suzhou Industrial Park Administrative Committee and the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Development Cooperation Ltd. The exhibition was held at the National Library Building from 15 May to 15 June 2009. The exhibition text in both English and Chinese, along with other relevant resources, was made available on the online NLS Resource Guides. The exhibition received good media coverage in Suzhou, China, while the online resource guides attracted Chronicling Singapore’s story in Suzhou in the ‘Adapting many viewers from China. Singapore’s Experience – Commemorating the 15 th Anniversary of Suzhou Industrial Park (1994-2009)’ Exhibition. Teacher Work Attachment Programme

Teachers are an important user group that the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library serves, as they are constantly seeking resources for their lesson plans and directing their students to the materials available at the reference library. During the June and December 2009 holidays, the reference library hosted six teachers in its new Teacher Work Attachment Programme. This programme aimed to familiarise teachers with the reference library’s collections and services, while giving the participants the opportunity to try their hand at using the library’s resources to work out an actual lesson plan.

NLB Research and Scholarly Writing Programme

The NLB Research and Scholarly Writing Programme, which began on 31 July 2009, aimed to prepare more staff to contribute papers for professional journals. Held over four sessions, the programme was conducted by lecturers from the Division of Information Studies, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University. NLB staff learned about systematic research and writing on their subject matter expertise or service area.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 33 NLS Resource Guides

NLS joined over 1,000 libraries all over the world in engaging LibGuides (www.libguides.com) as a platform for librarians to share knowledge and collaboratively author and update online guides on various subjects. NLS patrons can now search NLS Resource Guides (http://libguides.nl.sg), provide feedback, sign up to receive email alerts and share their favourite guides on social bookmarking tools such as delicious and Digg. Launched on 26 September 2009, NLS Resource Guides is also available on Facebook via the LibGuides app (http://apps.facebook.com/libguides).

Ideapolis

Soft launched on 3 March 2010, Ideapolis is an online platform for researchers to share ideas, make connections and collaborate with fellow researchers with similar interests. It aims to foster new knowledge creation and provide researchers with relevant resources, tools and services to facilitate their research.

Arts Alive

Arts Alive documents Singapore’s performing arts, namely music, dance and theatre, and preserves primary source materials for reference and research. The initiative records live performances and rehearsals, and collects films and videos of past productions and accompanying materials such as printed programmes, scripts and sound recordings. In FY2009/2010, priority focus was given to dance and theatre productions. The materials collected will be archived and made available for reference at library@esplanade and the National Library.

NORA

NORA, or National Online Repository of the Arts, is a collaboration between NLB and the National Arts Council. It provides an online platform showcasing works by prominent Singapore artists. In FY2009/2010, the project gained further progress. Research work on Cultural Medallion recipients Mr David Lim Kim San and Dr Wong Meng Voon was completed while research work on eight more Cultural Medallion recipients commenced. It also achieved 29,000 e-retrievals, an increase of 2,500 from year 2008.

Your Best Friend for Research Campaign

NLS embarked on an integrated campaign to market itself as Your Best Friend for Research in February 2010. The campaign conveyed to the public the rich array of research and reference materials available through channels such as NLB eResources and Singapore Pages, and highlighted tools and services such as NLB SearchPlus and Reference Point.

Lee Kong Chian Research Fellowship Programme

The Lee Kong Chian Research Fellowship Programme aims to promote NLS as a centre of research and enable the creation of new knowledge assets for the nation, leveraging support from the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library’s content on Singapore and Southeast Asia. Since the programme started in FY2006, 19 Research Fellows have published their research articles in BiblioAsia, presenting readers with in-depth knowledge of their research specialisations. During the year, nine Research Fellows published their articles in BiblioAsia.

Lee Kong Chian Research Fellow Dr Tan Chee Lay gave a public presentation in Mandarin of his research findings on A Comparative Study of Critical Essays on Post-1965 Singapore Films in Local Journals and Newspapers, and its Possible Application in Chinese Education on 4 July 2009 at the Singapore Centre for Chinese Language (SCCL). Dr Tan also presented his findings in English to the staff of Lee Kong Chian Research Library on 28 May 2009.

In the year in review, two fellowship agreements were signed respectively with Dr Mahani Musa, from Malaysia, on 29 July 2009, and Dr Julian Davison, on 16 November 2009. During her fellowship, Dr Mahani took on research on Women, War and Anti-Colonial Struggles in Southeast Asia with reference to Malaya and Singapore 1942–1989, while Dr Davison commenced his fellowship on 16 November 2009, focusing on research on 1920s and1930s Singapore.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 34 Flagship Publications

During the year, NLB published two major titles in collaboration with external partners. Sharing Borders: Contemporary Singaporean- Malaysian Literature (I and II) is a two-volume anthology of critical essays on Singaporean and Malaysian literature in Malay and English written in the mid-20th century and later. The title was produced by NLB in partnership with the National Arts Council (NAC) and edited by Emeritus Professor Edwin Thumboo. The book was launched at The Arts House on 26 October 2009 by Mr Edmund Cheng, Chairman, NAC, and Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB.

The Chronicle of Singapore 1959–2009, published by NLB and Editions Sharing Borders was launched by Mr Edmund Cheng, Didier Millet, was launched at the Istana by President S R Nathan on Chairman, NAC (4 th from left) and Dr Varaprasad, Chief 6 November 2009. The book documents Singapore’s efforts and struggles Executive, NLB (2nd from left). during the nation-building and national development years with over 2,200 newspaper and magazine reports covering various issues from culture to health to the economy. Additional material that is not covered in the book is captured in the DVD edition.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 35 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Conferences NLS, as the cradle of Singapore’s knowledge, supports the sharing and exchange of knowledge by hosting conferences and seminars. In the year, its librarians also presented their insights at international fora.

Seminar on Na Govindasamy

Literary pioneer Na Govindasamy (Na Go) was a creative writer who also created his own Tamil fonts and introduced Kanian, the first Tamil software, to all schools in Singapore. He was also a trailblazer in introducing Tamil on the Internet and organised the first Tamil Internet Conference in Singapore. At the seminar on Na Govindasamy held on 15 November 2009, speakers from Malaysia and Singapore critically explored and analysed his creative works and his role as a writer, playwright, educationist and contributor to a digital renaissance. The presenters’ presentations will be published in a book under the Literary Pioneer Series.

Design Thinking Symposium

The Design Thinking Symposium, held 18–19 November 2009, was an avenue to educate the public on the application of design thinking across various fields and industries. More than 300 teachers, designers, students and members of the public participated in the symposium and its workshops, which featured speakers from Businessweek, IDEO, Stanford D-School, Parsons the New School of Design, and Nueva School.

An Orientalist’s Treasure Trove Talk

Senior Librarian Ms Bonny Tan presented a paper on The Gibson-Hill Collection: A Malayan Treasure Trove at the 6 th International Convention Spreading the word about design thinking application at the Design Thinking Symposium. of Asia Scholars, which was held in Daejeon, South Korea, 6–9 August 2009. Her presentation was part of a panel with four other presentations on Singapore in World History headed by Dr Derek Heng, an assistant professor of history at Ohio State University in the United States of America. She also gave a talk on An Orientalist’s Treasure Trove , which highlighted the Gibson-Hill Collection at NLS, at the Asian Civilisations Museum on 20 August 2009.

National Education Seminar

Senior Librarian Ms Ivy Lee represented the Lee Kong Chian Reference Library at the National Education Seminar held at the Nanyang Polytechnic on 4 November 2009. She introduced NLB eResources, such as Singapore Pages, Infopedia and NewspaperSG, as well as Reference Point Services and other National Library functions to some 800 teachers at the seminar.

Research Collaboratory Client Series – Policy Making 2010: Emergent Technologies

Over 100 public servants attended the seminar on Policy Making 2010: Emergent Technologies , which was organised as part of the Research Collaboratory Client Series, on 18 December 2009. The participants benefited from the insights presented by six guest speakers, who spoke on various topics ranging from Singapore’s social policy development to technology’s societal impact. They were also orientated on the new services offered by the Research Collaboratory project.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 36 EBIS Conferences, Seminars and Workshops

EnterpriseOne Business Information Services (EBIS) in collaboration with external partners rolled out a series of forums and workshops to benefit Singapore’s business community. These provided business professionals with networking platforms while serving as channels through which EBIS enabled enterprises to access its business-critical resources and research support.

With the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, EBIS jointly organised the Surviving the Economic Downturn: Business Financing & Market Opportunities for Singapore SMEs conference on 7 May 2009. Speakers at the one-day conference included Mr Freddie Low, CEO, Baker@Asia, and DBS economist Mr Irvin Seah. About 150 participants attended the event.

EBIS also held two Business Continuity Management conferences to highlight the business intelligence available through EBIS to help enterprises manage business continuity. Attended by 300 participants each, the conferences were held on 22 April 2009 and 25 June 2009.

The following EBIS Business Networking Seminars and EBIS Knowledge Transfer Workshops were held in the year in review: ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀Control & Reduce Cost in Dealing with Disputes by Individuals and Elements of Business Contracts, 29 May 2009 ฀ Social Engineering in the Business World, EBIS-MediaBuzz Joint Seminar, 9 July 2009 ฀ ฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀ ฀ Secrets and Strategies of a Successful Regional Expansion, 27 January 2010 ฀ Improve Your Business Performance and Reduce Cost with Lean Six Sigma , jointly organised with Kaizen Consulting, 19 May 2009 ฀ ฀ ฀ Data Loss Prevention, Protecting the Information Centric Community, jointly organised with Mediabuzz, 13 August 2009 ฀ ฀฀A Vision of Hope in Challenging Times – New Technologies to Help in Your Business , jointly organised with Pericom Imaging, 4 September 2009 ฀ ฀฀The Keys to Your Successful Integration in Singapore , jointly organised with French Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, 18 September 2009 ฀ ฀฀In Celebration of Lawyers, jointly organised with Bizibody, 21 January 2010

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 37 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Building Bibliographies NLS has gained tremendous strides in enlarging its collections. To ensure these resources are made more widely accessible, NLS persists in efforts to produce timely, pertinent and research-friendly bibliographies.

Xing Ying Bibliographyûྥႜ–– ෷҉߽࠿ଙü

The bibliography Xing Ying: Literary Pioneer of Singapore ྥႜ–– ෷҉߽࠿ଙ was launched on 6 June 2009. Xing Ying was the editor of Nanyang Siang Pau’s literary supplements for some 20 years, during which he nurtured many emerging writers who would become some of today’s most established writers. The bibliography, listing the reprints of his correspondences, selected works and the indexes of articles published in the literary supplements, is a useful resource guide for research on Singapore Chinese literature and literary pioneers. About 200 people, including a few guests who flew in on their own from Sarawak, attended the event.

Sustainable Cities – Infrastructure and Technology for Water

The online bibliography Sustainable Cities – Infrastructure and Technology for Water: A Select Annotated Bibliography on Water Related Resources was produced for the 2009 Singapore International Water Week (SIWW), held 22–26 June 2009. The bibliography covers a spread of resources including books, journal articles (from databases), web articles, websites and patents. It is available on the SIWW website and NLS Resource Guides website (http://libguides.nl.sg).

Singapore Artists: A Select Annotated Bibliography, Vol. 1 The Nanyang Artists

Singapore Artists: A Select Annotated Bibliography, Vol. 1 The Nanyang Artists is the first-ever bibliography dedicated to the Nanyang Art Movement. The select annotated bibliography, compiled by NLS’s Arts Collection team, identifies the various sources in NLS’s collections that document the evolution of the Nanyang art style and the careers of pioneer artists after World War II. Mr Choo Thiam Siew, President, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, launched the bibliography on 26 September 2009. Following the launch was the forum on Rethinking the Nanyang, with art historian Prof T. K. Sabapathy, artist Mr Koeh Sia Yong and NUS Museum Curator Mr Ahmad Mashadi as speakers.

Mr Choo Thiam Siew (left), President, Nanyang Academy The online Sustainable Cities – Infrastructure of Fine Arts, and Mr Gene Tan, Deputy Director, National and Technology for Water bibliography. Library Office, NLB, at the launch of the Singapore Artists bibliography.

Clean Energy: Sustainable Solutions for Urban Cities

NLS put together a bibliography entitled Clean Energy: Sustainable Solutions for Urban Cities: A Select Annotated Bibliography on Sustainability and Clean Energy in conjunction with the Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW) held 16–20 November 2009. It aims to give the interested reader a flavour of the technological and economical issues surrounding clean energy technology today. The bibliography was published on NLS Resource Guides and SIEW website.

Singapore’s Public Housing

The Singapore International Housing Conference was held 26–29 January 2010. A select annotated bibliography on Singapore’s public housing history, policies and programmes was created and made available on NLS Resource Guides, which is also linked from the conference website.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 38 NATIONAL LIBRARY SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Digitisation Initiatives Technology enables NLS’s preservation of fragile historical content. Through digitisation, NLS is able to build digital archives, which are a boon to researchers and ensure a shared legacy for future generations.

NewspaperSG

Researchers can now enjoy convenient access to the digital archives of Singapore and Malayan newspapers through NewspaperSG. Officially launched on 28 January 2010, the online resource enables users to perform keyword searches for the news content of 17 Singapore newspapers published 1831– 2006, including The Straits Times (1845–2006) and the S ingapore Chronicle and Commercial Register (1831–1836), the earliest newspaper in Singapore. Since its launch, the website has attracted an average of 30,000 visits and 400,000 page views a month, from Singapore as well as other countries such as Australia, the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States of America. NewspaperSG has especially been useful for research on genealogy and Southeast Asian history and society. The digital archives of the English daily TODAY and its weekend version, Weekend TODAY , will be made available soon. The next phase of digitisation will NewspaperSG currently provides users with convenient access to the digitised archives of include papers in Chinese and Malay. 17 English language newspapers.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 39 PUBLIC LIBRARIES SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Community Outreach Public Libraries Singapore (PLS) integrates its services and programmes into the lives of various segments of the community, from storytelling enthusiasts to the underserved.

‘Share-A-Story’ Storytelling Club

The inaugural ‘Share-A-Story’ Storytelling Club, with sessions conducted in English, was launched in December 2008 following the ‘Seniors Tell It Their Way’ Storytelling Competition in November 2008. This programme welcomes seniors, adults and teenagers interested in storytelling to share techniques and tips during the bi-monthly sessions. Members also had opportunities to volunteer as storytellers for the National kidsREAD programme and at Public Libraries, as well as to facilitate in NLB- organised activities. Riding on the encouraging interest in storytelling from the community, PLS introduced Mandarin, Malay and Tamil sessions to the Storytelling Club in March and November 2009 and January 2010 respectively. In the past year, the Storytelling Club met over 12 sessions Members of ‘Share-A-Story’ Storytelling Club putting across the four languages, attended by a total of 504 participants. The up an entertaining bilingual English and Tamil storytelling total membership to date is 203. session at The Pod.

Meet-the-Customer Sessions

As part of PLS’s efforts to continually enhance customer service, a series of meet-the-customer sessions were organised in FY2009/2010. During these sessions, patrons voiced their feedback and concerns to library managers and service personnel, who in turn took the opportunity to build rapport and share about new library policies and general functions and services with the community.

CCTV Service for the Visually Handicapped and Seniors

Since July 2009, senior citizens and people with low vision have been able to benefit from a CCTV video magnifier at the Toa Payoh Public Library. This assistive reading device was set up in collaboration with the Retinitis Pigmentosa Society, Singapore, as a result of discussions with the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped on improving library access for the visually challenged.

Perkasa Keluarga, Baca Bersama

Eighty-eight parents and 143 children graduated from the Perkasa Keluarga, Baca Bersama (‘Empowering Families, Reading Together’) reading programme for disadvantaged families in FY2009/2010. The three-month programme culminated in a graduation ceremony graced by Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Home Affairs, at the Tampines Regional Library on 19 July 2009. Initiated in 2008, this reading programme, a collaboration between PLS’s Malay Language Services and MENDAKI, has to date benefited 162 parents and 244 children from the Malay-Muslim community. Parents are taught storytelling techniques and skills for engaging their children in storytelling sessions and hands-on activities to enhance their reading A Children’s Librarian engaging children in a lively ability and understanding. In addition, parents learn how to select age- storytelling session. appropriate books for their children and to motivate them to read.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 40 Molly® Storybooks and Commemorative Book

NLB celebrated the first anniversary of Molly®, the Mobile Library at The Plaza, National Library Building, on 23 July 2009. Mr Lui Tuck Yew, Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts graced the occasion. He also launched the children’s picture-book series Adventures of Molly and the commemorative book Molly’s Memories, Milestones & Moments: Celebrating Mobile Library Services in Singapore , both of which were published in conjunction with the anniversary.

The picture-book series provided an avenue for PLS to engage the community. Sixty children from five special education schools contributed story ideas on the adventures of Molly® and her friends. These children’s books also help personify Molly® so children can identify with the mobile library service better. The commemorative book, on the other hand, offers valuable insights into the history of mobile library services, which first originated in the 1960s, was discontinued in the 1990s and revived in 2008. It also chronicled how NLB reinvented the library concept with cutting-edge technologies to spread the joy of reading to underserved communities.

Molly® makes onboard transactions possible using equipment that can be typically found at the Public Libraries, such as the borrowing stations and e-kiosks. Molly® has to date reached out to 58,000 people, including 1,400 people who have signed up as library members, and facilitated 75,000 loans. Molly® also provided comprehensive access to the library experience by bringing some 185 programmes such as storytelling workshops and user education sessions to its patrons.

Molly® is personified in the Adventures of Molly storybooks.

ASK! Chat

PLS conducted a three-month trial from 1 December 2009 to 28 February 2010 on ASK! Chat, a reference enquiry service tapping the potential of an instant messaging social tool. The online chat service enables library users to communicate with and seek help from the librarians based at the information desks at the Tampines, Woodlands and Jurong Regional Libraries, using chat widgets available on selected NLB websites and catalogue terminals in the libraries.

Seminar on Deaf Culture

In partnership with the Singapore Association for the Deaf (SADeaf), PLS held the first-ever public Seminar on Deaf Culture, attended by both deaf and hearing participants, at the Woodlands Regional Library on 5 December 2009. Held in conjunction with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the event was graced by Ms Yeoh Chee Yan, Chairman, NLB, and Second Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education. Attracting both deaf and hearing participants, it aimed to encourage social integration between the two communities. A highlight was the book discussion with deaf participants, conducted in sign language with the help of SADeaf’s sign language interpreters, which drew attention to the challenges faced by the deaf community. The event was also in line with Ms Yeoh Chee Yan, Chairman, NLB (front row, 2nd from PLS’s objective of providing social learning spaces for the community, left), and Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB (front row, rd including the underserved. 3 from left), at the Seminar on Deaf Culture.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 41 Sports@Public Libraries

In celebration of the inaugural Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games (YOG), PLS launched a series of activities collectively called Sports@ Public Libraries, in January 2010, to promote reading and learning related to sports. The initiative aimed to inspire sporting values such as excellence, friendship and respect, among the community. Each Public Library set up thematic displays, featuring one or two of the 26 YOG sports and showcasing books related to the sports. Other programmes included ‘Stories Next Door’, which encouraged the public’s nominations of community champions or submissions of photographs that displayed the sporting values. Sports@Public Libraries also reached out to youths through a nationwide ‘Design a Card Game’ contest, whereby secondary- A Sports@Public Libraries display at the Sengkang Public school students were challenged to produce card games featuring the 26 Library. sports and sports-related trivia. Children, on the other hand, could refer to the Sport Fiction Map, a resource guide which listed recommended reading and helped them pick up knowledge about various sports by tracing their countries of origin.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 42 PUBLIC LIBRARIES SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Reading Campaigns and Activities PLS strives to build self-sustaining learning communities through wide-ranging creative initiatives, from book exchanges and gaming events to reading campaigns and language promotion movements.

Book Exchange and World Book Day

Some 5,000 book lovers turned up at the inaugural Book Exchange at The Plaza, National Library Building, on 25 April 2009, and exchanged 57,000 used reads. This activity aims to promote a reading culture among Singaporeans and give used books a new lease of life. It is also in line with NLB’s objective of building self-sustaining learning communities through reading and the sharing of books. Book Exchange 2009 was held in conjunction with World Book Day 2009, which attracted 13,750 participants to 23 events held at libraries and other venues like community clubs, schools and cultural organisations between 18 April and 2 May 2009. Highlights of World Book Day included reading sessions in 21 schools on 23 April 2009 and a talk by Tie Ning, one of China’s most Book Exchange gave the Singapore public a chance to established female writers, which attracted over 400 fans. exchange and share used books.

READ! Singapore

READ! Singapore 2009 was held from 22 May to 31 August 2009. This annual nationwide reading campaign, in its fifth year, drew enthusiastic response from the community, with some 29,000 people participating in 300 activities. Themed ‘Dreams and Choices’, it was aimed at encouraging Singaporeans to stay focused on their goals despite the challenging times.

Eight novels and eight short stories in the four official languages, revolving around the campaign theme, were selected as recommended reading. Each chosen short story was translated into the other three official languages and compiled into four anthologies to support reading across Some 400 people pitched in for READ! Singapore’s cultures and communities. The short stories were also produced as audio reading marathon. books, which enabled Singaporeans who were not able to experience the joys of reading books due to age, illiteracy or handicap, to participate in the READ! Singapore book discussions. Three thousand copies of the audio books were distributed free to voluntary welfare organisations.

READ! Singapore 2009 also introduced a number of new initiatives to promote fiction reading. These included a record- breaking 144-hour reading marathon, which had over 400 participants reading continuously over six days from 3 to 9 July 2009 at The Plaza, National Library Building. The Youth Writers Awards Asia 2010, a new short-story writing competition, was organised in partnership with Reader’s Digest , to uncover talented young writers from the region. Thirty winning entries based on the theme ‘Dare to Dream: Stories of Imagination, Passion and Sporting Excellence’, will be published in a book in celebration of the 2010 YOG in Singapore.

Other highlights included a ‘Reading Superstar’ competition, organised in conjunction with the Committee to Promote Chinese Language Learning, to encourage students to read in Chinese; a two-day Reading Conference on promoting multi-literacy; and a series of book discussions with regional and international authors such as India’s Vaasanthi, Malaysia’s Faisal Tehrani and Britain’s Robert Shearman.

The profile of READ! Singapore has been consistently raised among Singaporeans. A survey found that over half a million Singaporeans have heard, seen or read about the campaign, including 89,000 who have attended the events and 12,000 who have actively participated in the activities.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 43 10,000 Fathers Reading!

The 10,000 Fathers Reading! campaign aims to encourage fathers to bond with their children through reading. The third year running, 10,000 Fathers Reading! was launched on 14 June 2009 at The Plaza, National Library Building. It targeted fathers as well as other father figures like grandfathers and male guardians, who could play important roles in the lives of children. For the first time, 15 reading ambassadors from all walks of life, including author Neil Humphrey and Mr Seah Kian Peng, Member of Parliament, Marine Parade GRC, were appointed to inspire fathers and father figures to read with their young charges. Activities such as storytelling sessions and parenting workshops further engaged and empowered these father figures in their learning journeys with children. NLB also worked with Dr Varaprasad, Chief Executive, NLB, and Mr Seah Kian partners such as Women’s Initiative for Ageing Successfully (WINGS), Peng, Member of Parliament, Marine Parade GRC, one of the 10,000 Fathers Reading! Ambassadors, read aloud to primary schools and PAP Community Foundation kindergartens, on the young participants. ‘Read A Story With My Dad!’ Book Review project, where children and fathers were encouraged to jointly review the books they read together. Some 36,000 participants have benefited from this initiative since it was launched in 2007.

Speak Good English Movement and Six Lives

The Speak Good English Movement (SGEM) was launched on 28 August 2009 by Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean at Campus Green, LASALLE College of the Arts. The 2009 campaign, centred on the theme of ‘Impress. Inspire. Intoxicate.’, featured highlights such as free British Council workshops for parents and school teachers, English-language workshops, and pronunciation awareness workshops. A pathfinder entitled Improve Your English to Express Yourself Better , with a list of useful resources selected by librarians, was also published.

SGEM also partnered with STOMP, The Straits Times’ citizen journalism website, on the ‘Fix That Sign’ initiative to promote good English in the Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean launched the environment. Over a three-month period, the public submitted almost 2009 Speak Good English Movement. 400 entries on badly worded public signs along with proposals for grammatically correct versions. The public was invited to vote for the worst or most glaringly incorrect sign. More than 9,000 votes were received.

SGEM also tied up with the Inspiring Teacher of English Award, which honours teachers who have been effective in sparking their students’ love for the English language and helping them speak and write better. At the awards ceremony, held on 22 October 2009 at The Pod, National Library Building, 10 winners received their awards from Mr S. Iswaran, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Education. Nineteen winners of the Inspiring Teacher of English Award have formed a support group to share their best teaching practices with one another.

Six Lives , a 12-episode online drama series about six friends planning a wedding, was also rolled out in conjunction with SGEM. Targeted at youths, Six Lives conveys that good communication is beyond just being understood. Over 12 weeks, about 27,000 visitors logged on to the Six Lives microsite to read the story and interact with the online characters.

Speak Mandarin Campaign and The Chinese Challenge

The Speak Mandarin Campaign celebrated its 30 th Anniversary on 17 March 2009 with Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew as the Guest-of-Honour. A new key initiative, ‘The Chinese Challenge’ (TCC), was launched in April 2009 to encourage Chinese Singaporeans to deepen their appreciation and knowledge of Chinese culture as well as increase their proficiency in the language.

TCC ran a nationwide online Chinese language and culture contest, which attracted the participation of 14,832 registered users over three months. The finale of this contest was telecast on MediaCorp Channel 8, garnering a viewership of 880,000 and nominated as ‘Best Variety Special’ in MediaCorp’s Star Awards. A subsequent contest, ‘You Set the Challenge’, invited Singaporeans to submit suggestions on questions for the next round of TCC. Over 6,000 entries were received.

Other highlights of the campaign included Yang Sheng, The Chinese Way to Wellness , a series of workshops which attracted 1,300 participants over a three-month duration. The workshops were also featured in My Paper and Razor TV to reach out to more Singaporeans.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 44 Gaming Learning Community

To encourage the use of libraries as social learning spaces, PLS initiated a series of gaming events for children, teens, young adults, families and seniors during the 2009 year-end school holidays. The first event was held on 14 November 2009 at the Jurong Regional Library’s Verging All Teens (V.A.T.) space, where about 30 teens and young adults came together to play video and board games. During these sessions, librarians engaged the participants by sharing tidbits on the games, and books related to the games were made readily available.

th 10 Asian Children’s Festival The Gaming Learning Community was an opportunity for families to get together for another kind of fun at th The 10 Asian Children’s Festival (ACF) was launched by Mr Baey Yam the library. Keng, Member of Parliament, Tanjong Pagar GRC, on 21 November 2009. In line with the festival theme ‘Kids In Charge’, children took on various roles, from hosts to facilitators, at the main festival event KidsASIA!, which was held at The Plaza, National Library Building, from 21 to 22 November 2009. Over the nine-day festival, a total of 76 activities provided 9,331 participants with opportunities to discover Asian content and cultures. Key highlights were Kids Got Talent , a talent performance event, and Kids Create Zone, where children participated in a wide range of hands-on workshops such as making Japanese garden models and Asian mask- making. A rich array of fun and educational fringe activities were also held at various Public Libraries. A craft session at the Asian Children’s Festival.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 45 PUBLIC LIBRARIES SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Outreach Programmes for Children Lifelong learning journeys begin from an early age, and PLS aims to inculcate the interest for learning and the written word among the young ones through various inspiring and motivating initiatives.

Ministry of Education (MOE) STELLAR Programme

Children’s Services produced a Joy of Reading Guide, which lists reading tips and recommended books for beginning to independent readers, to complement MOE’s Primary School Strategies for English Language Learning and Reading (STELLAR) programme. Equally useful were the Raise-A-Reader workshops, conducted by Children’s Librarians, which helped equip parents with the relevant skills to understand their children’s development and engage them in reading. In FY2009/2010, a total of 37 sessions were held and attended by nearly 2,800 participants.

National kidsREAD Programme

The National kidsREAD programme aims to promote the love of reading and cultivate good reading habits among 4- to 8-year-old children from lower- income families. Since its launch in 2004, the programme has successfully formed 109 reading clubs islandwide, including 19 new ones established in FY2009/2010, reaching out to about 10,000 children. In the past year, a total of 1,260 children benefited from a total of nine excursions, including a trip to a museum, storytelling performances and cartoon shows.

To date, some 4,000 volunteers have been trained in reading stories to children. In the past year, over 900 volunteers upgraded their skills in storytelling, puppetry and child management through 40 training sessions. National kidsREAD participants celebrating their A volunteer appreciation programme was also organised for 250 volunteers graduation from the National kidsREAD programme. and partners on 1 August 2009.

Junior Reading Ambassadors

Junior Reading Ambassadors (JRAs) play an important role in promoting library services and reading to their peers. In the last year, they continued to do so through regular storytelling sessions at the Public Libraries and as emcees for NLB events and contributors to NLB blogs and newsletters. They also reached out to young readers through events at suburban shopping malls, such as SPH Kids Fiesta, as well as The Esplanade’s Octoburst. In November 2009, the JRAs put up a talent showcase for 250 disadvantaged children.

Babies Can Be Members Too! Promotion Junior Reading Ambassadors spread the joy of libraries and reading among their peers. Aiming to foster reading habits and literacy skills from an early age, PLS held a ‘Babies Can Be Members Too!’ promotion from June to December 2009, to get parents to register their children as library members as soon as they receive their birth certificates. The promotion rewards the youngest boy and girl at the point of registration with a ‘Baby’s First Library’ worth $500, consisting of a bookshelf and a collection of baby books specially selected by Children’s Librarians.

A baby library member and her family with the bookshelf she has won and a collection of baby books selected by Children’s Librarians.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 46 Quest

Quest is an innovative initiative to cultivate the love for reading among reluctant young readers with the use of collectible cards. Quest of the Celestial Dragon, the first of this four-part fantasy adventure story written by Children’s Librarian Felicia Chan, is narrated on the back of 60 collectible cards. The cards can be redeemed through the exchange of library loan receipts. This programme succeeded in increasing book loans among the 7- to 12-year-old library users by 30 percent. Since its launch in June 2009, over 70,000 children have read Quest and redeemed 1.5 million cards with about 2 million book loans. Young Quest fans also frequent the website to read the story and join in the promotions. On 1 October 2009, the Woodlands Regional Library hosted a first-of-its-kind card exchanging session.

Young readers sharing their excitement over Quest The Quest website. collectible cards.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 47 PUBLIC LIBRARIES SINGAPORE HIGHLIGHTS

Engaging Teen Learners PLS continues to broaden its youth-friendly programmes beyond books to encourage teens to delve deeper into their learning journeys and grow as engaged members of society.

Design-in-Demand

Design-in-Demand is a project under the Library 2010 Active Citizenry programme. It aims to facilitate design and art collaborations for youths within the premises of the Public Libraries. Two major wall murals were completed at the Marine Parade and Sengkang Public Libraries by Victoria Junior College and Holy Innocent’s High School students respectively.

Read and Reap

The Read and Reap programme aims to promote reading for pleasure among primary to college students by providing easy access to extracts from fiction and non-fiction works. A ‘Power of Fiction’ Competition for teens was organised and saw some 150 teens from over 30 schools taking up the challenge of designing a poster inspired by an interesting extract. Other themes included ‘Nationalistic Ideals’, introduced in conjunction with PLS’s ‘READiscover Singapore’, a reading initiative and loan promotion organised in conjunction with the National Day Celebrations 2009. To tie in with the Seminar on Deaf Culture organised to encourage social integration between the deaf and hearing communities, deaf- themed fiction extracts were introduced.

Students from Holy Innocents’ High School working on a mural at the Sengkang Public Library.

An excerpt featured in Read and Reap.

Book Gig

Since July 2009, a new outreach programme, Book Gig, has been bringing popular and award-winning fiction to life through skits performed by librarians. Each Book Gig is accompanied by a Mass Borrowing activity, where books are made available at the schools for borrowing. From July 2009 to March 2010, the Book Gig team performed at 13 schools, reaching out to about 10,010 students.

What I’d Like the World to Read

What I’d Like the World to Read (WILTWTR) is a programme where teens make use of media like videos, podcasts and slideshows to recommend books to their peers. It aims to promote reading among teens, highlight the Teen Collections at the libraries and establish a clear identity for PLS’s Young People’s Services. In FY2009/2010, WILTWTR collaborated with The September Project, a US-based grassroots effort to encourage events focused on freedom in all libraries in all countries during the month of September. Teens were invited to share books related to freedom, democracy and issues that matter to their communities. A total of 53 teens from 11 schools took part in the initiative.

A slideshow shared by a participant of What I’d Like the World to Read.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 48 CLIENT LIBRARIES HIGHLIGHTS

Client Libraries The National Library Board (NLB) extends its library solutions and resources to external client libraries in government agencies and educational institutions. With its experience and expertise in library planning, set-up and management as well as collection services, it is able to help customers build and operate quality libraries that are customised for their users’ specific learning and knowledge needs.

In FY2009/2010, NLB continued to service a total of 21 client library contracts. Among these, 12 are renewed contracts. NLB will continue to provide library application maintenance and hosting services for the Singapore Sports Council, for one plus two optional years from 1 April 2009. For Anglo-Chinese School (International), NLB will provide Leased Collection Service (LCS) for another two years from 19 October 2009, while the Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies will continue to benefit from NLB’s professional library services for two years from 12 January 2010. NLB was also awarded the project to set up a centralised library at the Singapore Girls’ Home in January 2010.

Anglo-Chinese School (International)

Since 2005, NLB has been providing LCS to ACS (International). This service enables the school to enjoy a comprehensive collection by supplementing its existing collection with a leased collection of books. The leased collection can be refreshed every six months, thus furnishing the school with a consistent supply of new titles.

Attorney-General’s Chambers

The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) Library is currently housed at The Adelphi. As a major resource centre for AGC, the AGC Library acquires, maintains and provides the legal resources and services necessary to support the organisation’s work. The library also provides statutes amendment service, reference and information services, loans and interlibrary loans, document delivery services and processing of requests for the reproduction of Singapore Legislation on websites, CD-ROMs and print publications, both local and foreign.

Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies The AGC Library offers legal resources for the organisation. Under an LCS contract, NLB leases a total of 3,000 books to the Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies (CSIT), along with Machine Readable Cataloguing (MARC) records, which CSIT uploads to its Library Management System. The leased collection can be refreshed half-yearly, thus enabling CSIT’s access to new titles. NLB also purchases, processes and catalogues library materials and delivers them shelf-ready to CSIT.

Civil Defence Academy

The Civil Defence Academy (CDA) Resource Library, located at the Singapore Civil Defence Force’s (SCDF) Civil Defence Academy, is a unique library focusing on fire-related training and safety awareness. It serves staff and course trainees comprising Civil Defence regulars, National Servicemen and Civil Defence NSmen as well as other local and overseas course participants. Its collection comprises 14,000 items, including print and non-print materials covering subjects such as fire-fighting, urban search and rescue, and hazardous materials. Other services include reference enquiries, loans and interlibrary loans, and document delivery services. In FY2009/2010, the Resource Library participated in an ongoing project of converting SCDF’s in-house productions from videotapes into DVDs, as well as the NLB Charity Book Donation on 21 August 2009.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 49 Civil Service College

The Institute of Public Administration and Management Library was relaunched as the Civil Service College Resource Centre (CSC RC) on 20 May 2009. It now supports the information, research, programming and capability development needs of CSC and Public Service Division staff. Its core collection of about 7,000 items covers subjects such as governance, public policy, leadership and organisational development. CSC RC is also building up a repository of CSC staff-authored materials such as research papers, conference proceedings, discussion papers and training manuals to enable knowledge sharing and repurposing. Services provided include reference enquiries, loans, interlibrary loans, document delivery services, and monthly new arrivals and journal alerts. In FY2009/2010, CSC RC held a three-day charity book sale from 10 to 12 June 2009 for CSC staff, with all proceeds donated to the Community Chest and Salvation Army. In March 2010, CSC RC also invited and administered the NLB Mass Borrowing service from the Queenstown Public Library during the launch of the CSC Business Lounge. A total of 99 loans were achieved.

The CSC Resource Centre supports the learning needs of CSC and Public Service Division staff.

Home Team Academy

Boasting a collection of over 11,000 titles, focusing mainly on homefront security and safety, terrorism, counter-terrorism and law enforcement, the Home Team Academy Resource Library is a one-stop knowledge hub that meets the research and learning needs of all Home Team departments in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore

Since 2004, NLB has been providing Library Delivery Services to the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA). NLB holds IDA’s The Home Team Academy Resource Library is a one- collection, which IDA staff can browse and make selections from an online stop reference for knowledge on homefront security. portal. The selections are then delivered to IDA staff. NLB also provides value-added services such as weekly alerts highlighting new titles with synopses via the online portal.

Legal Aid Bureau

The Legal Aid Bureau Resource Centre holds a collection of about 8,000 volumes, including law statutes, reports, serials and books as well as CD-ROMs, covering mainly family law and family law-related subjects. On its shelves are government annual reports, Gazettes, Bills and Acts Supplements as well as materials on subjects unrelated to law, such as counselling and personal development. The library’s services include loans, interlibrary loans, current awareness and book enquiries.

The Legal Aid Bureau Resource Centre holds a large collection of specialised materials on family law.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 50 Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports

The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) Resource Centre (RC) is a one-stop information centre dedicated to the information needs of MCYS staff. It offers loan, document delivery, information and reference services and also sends out informational alerts on social issues to MCYS staff. Its collection focuses on subjects related to the ministry’s work, such as social work, childcare, ageing, disability and juvenile delinquency. It also oversees the Central Repository, which tracks and collects policy and research papers within the ministry. It also set up an Innovation Booth, where the RC2012 vision was presented, at MCYS PS21 Day. The centre is currently exploring new platforms to enhance the sharing of knowledge and information. This includes launching new The MCYS Resource Centre meets the reference and online systems and revamping its current intranet portal. It has also learning needs of the ministry’s staff. reconfigured the library space to encourage users to conduct research in this knowledge-rich environment.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Library serves the information and research needs of staff at MFA Headquarters and over 40 Overseas Missions worldwide. By leveraging information and communication technology, MFA Digital Library Services enables remote, round-the-clock access to the library’s electronic collection, providing timely and quality information to MFA officers. It also sends personalised email alerts to officers on new items that are available. The library holds a 30,000-volume print collection comprising books and serials that focus mainly on international relations, as well as academic databases and foreign language learning media. The library staff also provide services in reference enquiry, document delivery and information packaging, loans and interlibrary loans. In FY2009/2010, the library implemented an email notification service for the confirmation of item returns, and facilitated NLB’s clearance from MFA to archive the Diplomatic and Consular List on MFA’s website.

Ministry of Home Affairs

Since 2008, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has benefited from NLB’s LCS, which leases 500 books to MHA, together with Machine Readable Cataloguing (MARC) records that can be uploaded to MHA’s Library Management System. LCS provides MHA with access to a comprehensive, regularly refreshed collection that complements its existing collection.

Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts

The Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts Reference Service (MICA RS) focuses on specialised core subjects such as history, heritage, arts, culture, infocomm and media, with access to non-core titles provided by NLB and other libraries. In FY2009/2010, MICA RS streamlined its services, downsized its onsite hardcopy collection and expanded its e-databases and e-research paper collection. It also revised its policy and guidelines covering collection, loans and the handling of complimentary materials and weeded materials, and promoted greater awareness of its service offerings. In the year ahead, MICA RS plans to procure more digital resources and provide training for e-database usage to help MICA staff improve their information search and retrieval.

The online gateway to the MICA Reference Ministry of Trade and Industry Service.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) Resource Centre (RC) is a one-stop information source for all MTI officers. Its services are also extended to other tenants in The Treasury building, such as the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Law. It handles reference and research enquiries, and provides loans, interlibrary loans and document delivery services. Informational alerts on the various regions, industries and general alerts like Spotlight and Journal Alerts are also provided to meet MTI’s growing information needs. In FY 2009/2010, the RC started using a new platform, Sharepoint, to provide its users with 24/7 access to the most relevant information sources. All MTI officers can access these reports from office and home. Sharepoint also serves as an information portal that facilitates information sharing.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 51 Parliament

The Parliament Library provides efficient and effective reference and information services to meet the unique needs of Members of Parliament, legislative assistants and parliamentary staff. The library is actively involved in collection development, reference and lending services and information dissemination. The library has over 20,000 volumes of books, journals, parliamentary publications and papers, legislation and a collection of press clippings.

Prime Minister’s Office

NLB has been providing LCS to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) since Members of Parliament and parliamentary staff depend on the Parliament Library for their research and reference 2008. LCS has provided PMO staff with access to a regularly refreshed needs. collection of 500 books, which augments the existing collection to fulfil their information and knowledge needs.

Republic Polytechnic

The Republic Polytechnic (RP) Library is designed as a ‘living room library’, with less structured and adaptable specifications, to complement the institution’s Problem Based Learning (PBL) approach to education. The library boasts a collection of some 76,000 items and online databases of over 54,000 e-journals and e-books.

Apart from providing standard library services, NLB library staff set up a The Republic Polytechnic Library – in alignment to the polytechnic’s Problem-Based Learning pedagogy. Games Study Space@RP Library in April 2009 to provide students with more opportunities to learn about gaming through games study-related activities. Other value-added initiatives included organising visits for School of Engineering students and staff to NLB’s Library Supply Centre and the Library Innovation Centre on 27 May 2009 to learn more about library logistics and innovation; and developing a two-hour loan collection intershelved with reference materials, to provide students with easier access to recommended titles for their daily PBL activities.

School Library Services

School Library Services manages two school library clients, namely Temasek Junior College and Millennia Institute. Each of these sites is served by a seconded NLB library officer, who manages the library operations and provides onsite services such as reference services, collection acquisition and processing, library user education, collection highlights and promotions, and circulation services. In addition, the officer also suggests relevant NLB reading initiatives to the schools.

Singapore Sports Council

NLB has provided the Library Management System Subscription Service to the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) since 2003. This service enables SSC to manage circulation and cataloguing and provides access to an online catalogue.

Singapore Tourism Board

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) Tourism Resource Centre (TRC) aims to be a one-stop service centre providing strategic tourism business information for STB staff, industry partners, students and the general public. It has over 15,000 resources, which include market studies, reports and statistical data that are published by authoritative sources such as STB, Pacific Asia Travel Association, World Tourism Organisation, National Tourism Organisations, and Travel and Tourism Intelligence. TRC provides reference enquiries on site as well as remotely via the eLibrary platform. Other services include loans and interlibrary loans, document delivery, quarterly highlights of the new titles on the TRC website, as well as customised information services like the publication of the daily Worldwide The STB Tourism Resource Centre is the go-to place for Tourism News for STB staff and TRC members. tourism materials.

NLB Annual Report FY2009/2010 52 Subordinate Courts

The Research and Resource Centre (RRC) has been under the purview of the Strategic Planning and Training Division (SPTD) since 1 October 2008. RRC plays significant and proactive roles in supporting SPTD’s strategic thrusts. Its mission is to provide the Courts and their staff with efficient, effective and timely access to relevant information and resources, as well as to provide and build up research capabilities in the area of justice administration. RRC’s critical services include environmental scanning of the international legal landscape and judicial developments. It also provides current awareness services that aim to keep the Subordinate Courts at the forefront of legal knowledge and promote the development of well-informed, skilful and effective court professionals, with regular email A book display enhancing access to relevant materials at alerts such as News Highlights, RRC Info Alert, Weekly Digest and Times the Research and Resource Centre at the Subordinate Law Reports. Courts.

Other services include reference enquiry, loans and interlibrary loans, document delivery services and regular book displays. RRC also supports SPTD in compiling the Judicial Officers Training Compendium by identifying relevant courses/workshops/conferences for the three Justice Divisions, namely Criminal, Civil and Family. In FY2009/2010, RRC, together with the other two units in SPTD, conducted three SPTD road shows for the three Justice Divisions. At the road shows, RRC highlighted its functions, services and collections and showcased how it can be an asset to judicial officers in their work to administer and deliver justice.

Supreme Court

The Supreme Court Library is a specialist law library that aims to provide library services that support the dispensation of justice in the Supreme Court. The library has a collection of essential and up-to-date materials, including a collection of 45,000 volumes of law reports, legislation, reference books and established journals, as well as an extensive range of electronic databases. Its users include the Chief Justice, Judges, Judicial Commissioners, Justices’ Law Clerks, judicial officers and Supreme Court staff. Legal officers of other government departments and members of the Bar also enjoy access to Supreme Court Library services. Other services include loans and interlibrary loans, reference and information, document delivery and current awareness. Since January 2008, the library has also The Supreme Court Library’s services support justice maintained a website, where users can access CD-ROMs, the Current dispensation. Awareness Bulletin , new arrivals, online databases and OPAC directly from their desktops.

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