UNESCO inscribes Guyana on Memory of World Register
GUYANA is being recognised internationally, as well, for its rich collection of archival materials and, as such, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has inscribed this country on the Memory of the World Register. Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony made this announcement, yesterday, while addressing those gathered for the 2011 Archives Week Workshop, at the Walter Rodney Archives, Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown.
UNESCO inaugurated the Memory of the World Programme in 1992, to guard against collective amnesia, by preservation of the valuable archival holdings and library collections all over the world and ensuring their wide dissemination.
Eleven countries entered the Memory of the World Register for the first time with the new inscriptions, Bulgaria, Fiji, Ireland, Japan, Mongolia, Morocco, Panama, Suriname, Switzerland, Tunisia and Guyana, for its documentary heritage of the Indian indentured labourers.
The inscriptions were recommended by the International Advisory Committee for the Memory of the World Programme, which met in Manchester, United Kingdom (UK) from May 22 to 25.
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, in his address on the historic occasion yesterday, lauded the efforts of Minister Anthony and all those who made the achievement possible.
Mr. Hinds said the preservation of our history is imperative, if we, as a nation, are to understand the intrinsic differences inherent in each of us to “become one in Guyana”.
Minister Anthony acknowledged that this achievement is a very “important thing” for Guyana in the efforts to keep the history of the world alive.

UNIQUE RECORDS
“We have some very unique records and this is not the first project that Guyana has been involved in. We were involved in the Inscription of the Indentureship records and the Records of the Dutch West Indian Company,” he revealed.
In addition, Anthony pointed out that the workshop conducted yesterday formed part of the extension work at the Ministry of Culture to preserve our national records
Anthony said: “We want to use the occasion of the week, not only to highlight the importance of archives but to educate persons and advocate for better archival practice. That’s why the workshop is important.”
Alluding to the strides made to improve the keeping of records, he disclosed that a number of advances have been made, including the construction of the relatively new building on Homestretch Avenue.
He declared: “We have moved from a place where our records were poorly kept to this building. We felt that this building would have adequate space but we have already run out of space and we are thinking about expansion of the facility to house the growing numbers of records.”
The minister also revealed that efforts are, currently, being made to expand on the existing collection of archival materials and records and would include sourcing from other countries, including the U.K.
In his remarks, member of the National Archives Advisory Committee, Mr.Tota Mangar reiterated that the National Archives is an extremely important institution in Guyana, the mission statement of which is to acquire and preserve all public records that are required for administrative  purposes and historical research.
“The unveiling of the plaque for the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, documents our heritage of the Indian indentured labourers. This is a very significant achievement for Guyana,” he acknowledged.
After the speeches, the audience joined Prime Minister Hinds and Minister Anthony as they unveiled the UNESCO plaque.