But the idea of a central co-ordinated microfilming programme was not abando ned. In 1988 a working part of experts was created to devise a strategy and work out concrete projects in collaboration with Unesco and from this the current International Microfilming Programme for Developing Countries has developed.49 It goes without saying that many effective international relations have been established outside the framework of ICA. A common history, the existence of similar institutions, a kindred language, these are factors which quite naturally cause bi- and multilateral archival relations to come into being. Some of them go back as far as the nineteenth century. To mention only a very old and illustrative one out of many examples of such a co-operation, that between the Scandina vian countries which is now expanding to include the Baltic region as well.50 Since the late sixties intraregional archival co-operation has been promoted by ICA by means of its Regional Branches in which archival institutions are united by a common geographical and frequently also cultural and linguistic background. The establishment of such regional organisations had already been possible under ICA's first constitution. Their coming into being, however, had been prevented firstly by the fact that ICA and its founding fathers -being Europeans- in the fifties and early sixties were primarily interested in profes sional issues and secondly that by that time, in a sense, the extra-European regions (except Latin America) were involved in a process of taking shape as a result of the wave of decolonisation. Building upon the above-mentioned report by Charles Kecskeméti,54 the Washington congress (1966) encouraged the founding of Regional Branches in all developing regions of the world, expecting that such organisations would contribute substantially to solving the whole range of archival problems. The first Regional Branch was SARBICA, the Southeast Asia Regional Branch, which was founded in 1968 as the result of a mainly Malaysian initiative. In 1993 the world -except good old Europe- was encompassed by a covering net of Regional Branches when in Beijing EASTICA was established. As to Europe, the Montreal congress (1992) allowed the creation of a Co-ordinating Board for the European Programme. The continuous struggle for money in order to enable international archival activities is in fact nothing more than an enlarged replica of the battle which every association of archivists must fight on a national level and in which every leading archivist is permanently engaged in his own environment. Complaints about lack of understanding on the side of the authorities (who seem to be rude all over the world) and, consequently, about the low status of archivists,52 lack of 170 money and so on are standard in archivists' conversations all over the world. When, halfway through the sixties ICA felt that the newly independent countries should be helped in designing and setting up their own archival struc tures, it was realised that major financial efforts would be necessary. In 1970 ICA's Executive Committee created a permanent working group in the field of archival techniques and related assistance to developing countries. This group, which should evolve into the current Commission on Archival Development (CAD), was ICA's prime instrument in dealing with under-development in the archival sphere. In order to expand the financial basis for development projects CAD pro posed the founding of a special fund. This International Archival Development Fund (FIDA) was established at the international conference on the planning of archival development which was held in 1975 in Dakar, Senegal. The prospects were promising. At that time the industrial world was reaching a level of unknown affluence. Not only the traditional suppliers of money in the public sphere, such as national governments and world-wide or regional inter governmental organisations, but also business companies, professional institu tions and associations, private foundations and individuals came into consideration as potential donors. The Fund would encourage the intended donors to contribute by combining a quick and flexible policy with high quality projects, to be developed by prominent experts. Under the responsibility of ICA and with help of the united specialised knowledge of the Fund, emergency situ ations would be identified and dealt with as quickly as possible. Regional projects, fact-finding missions, the preparation and publication of finding-aids covering particular regions, short-term consultant missions, regional training centres, overseas fellowships, conferences, seminars, all kinds of activities would be financed by the Fund, at least partly. Alas, the Fund did not remotely meet the high expectations. Response was low and the scarce income hardly outweighed the costs. Except Yugoslavia, Spain, Bulgaria, Germany and Sweden, no European country made a major donation. Only a small number of developing countries such as Algeria, Iran, and Nigeria brought in substantial donations. Not only the rich countries are to blame for the failure of the Fund, although their reluctance to pay was decisive. CAD also had difficulty in receiving information from national archivists in developing countries about their archives and holdings, and about the situation with respect to records management. Without this kind of information it was impossible to draw up the kind of development plans with which CAD could apply to intended donors.53 The differences between nations and the difficulty it takes to align them come also to the fore in ICA's most conspicuous activities: the quadrennial International Congresses on Archives, and, to a lesser degree, the CITRA 171 DE PROFESSIE 2.12 Intraregional self-help 2.13 Trying to fund development 49 Franz, "Mikrofilmprogramm", p. 16. 50 Information by courtesy of Mrs. Pirkko Rastas, Finland. 51 See note 40. 52 Comfort A. Ukwu, Janus 2 (1992), p. 22: "Unfortunately, there is the general feeling that technical [archi val] work is something for drop-outs"; according to NAB 91 (1987), p. 49 an archivist from a so called JAN VAN DEN BROEK FROM BRUSSELS TO BEIJING 2.14 Congresses and Round Tables developing country complained that in his country mothers and children preferred to keep silent about the fact that their husbands and fathers work in an archives. 53 A harsh judgement has been made by N.H. Kulkarnee, "The ICA and the Development of Archives", Archivum 29 (1982), pp. 174-177: "No suitable response can be expected from apathetic or illinformed non-professionals heading the archives".

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Jaarboeken Stichting Archiefpublicaties | 1999 | | pagina 87