Official name of the country:
Republic of South Africa / Republiek van
Suid-Afrika
Official languages: English,
Afrikaans as well as 9 African languages
Official name of Parliament:*
Parliament of the Republic of South Africa /
Parlement van die Republiek van Suid-Afrika
Member of the Inter-Parliamentary
Union
Member of the ASGP
-Bicameral -
For the parliaments of the Provinces of the Republic of South Africa see World directory of parliamentary libraries of federated states and autonomous territories
Official names of Chambers:
The National Council of Provinces
(1)
National Assembly (2)
The Library serves both chambers of the Parliament
2. Address
Parliament of the Republic of South Africa
The Library of Parliament
Parliament Street
P.O. Box 18
8000 Cape Town
Tel.: *(27)(21)4032140/3
Fax: *(27)(21)4614331
3. Details
on the Library
Year of foundation: 1857
Person in charge: Mr Albert
Ntunja
Position or official title: Chief
Librarian
Number of library staff: 45
Number of professional librarians:
22
Number of secretarial and support
staff: 23
Size of collection: 80.000
Number of annual accessions:
2.470
Annual acquisitions budget: R
358.000
Number of current periodicals:
2.518
Periodicals indexed for relevant
articles: No
Number of current newspapers:
30
Press cuttings: Yes, but the Library
does not process press cuttings but subscribes to an effective
press cutting service provided by the Institute of Contemporary
History (INCH) of the University of the Orange Free State,
Bloemfontein. The Library has direct access to a computerised
indexing database maintained by INCH and receives regularly updated
classified sets of microfiched cuttings taken from 60 of South
Africa's leading daily newspapers and news journals
Indexing of Parliamentary Papers:
Yes, the Library is responsible from 1991 for the compilation and
maintenance of a computerised index of official documents tabled in
Parliament. A printed version of this index has not been produced
to date. The departments of the Secretariat, which are responsible
for the production, e.g. reporting,
editing, translation and publication, of the Debates and Minutes of
Proceedings of both chambers of Parliament, are also
responsible for its indexing
Library in charge of the archival materials
of the Parliament: Yes
Library uses a thesaurus or a classification
system for subject indexing: Classification system
Automation of cataloguing: Yes
Is the automated library catalogue
accessible as an online catalogue to outside users?:
No
Clientele: Members, parliamentary
staff; State Residency, Government, judges of the Supreme Court;
scholars (by special permission)
Number of reading rooms: 1 (30)
Number of loans per year: 5.000
Reference services: 4.500
Current bibliographies: 1
Retrospective subject bibliographies:
No
External database searches:
2.500
Analysis and research: No
Right to deposit: The Library is
entitled by law to receive a copy of every South African
publication, but uses the legal deposit privilege selectively.
While the Library's acquisition programme concentrates on the
subject area of the social sciences, particularly political
science, legislative systems, parliamentary procedure, economics,
public finance, law, goverment and administration, general works
are also acquired
Depository library: United Nations,
World Health Organization, International Labour Organization
Other special collections of the
Library: Mendelssohn Africana collection, parliamentary and
official documents collection
IFLA membership: Yes
4. Publications published by the Library
New accessions
4 to 6 times p.a.
5. Publications concerning the Library
Report of the Committee of
Enquiry into a research service for parliamentarians : RP
35/1986
6. Parliamentary documents
Parliament
Committee
reports
Mainly the reports, with evidence, of committees dealing with
public accounts (financial matters)
- Debates of joint sittings of both Houses
of Parliament : (Hansard)
Minutes of proceedings of
joint sittings of both Houses of Parliament
The National Council of Provinces
Debates :
(Hansard)
Published in a hard-bound multivolume sessional edition and a
paperbound weekly edition. - Contains the full text of speeches
delivered in the National Council of Provinces. - In addition to
lists of names of Cabinet Ministers, office bearers of Parliament
and Members of the Senate it also contains a separate list of
members of the National Council of Provinces arranged according to
the provinces that are represented. - The sessional edition
includes a separate index volume which contains indexes of speeches
arranged according to speakers and subjects as well as a volume for
Interpellations, questions and
replies. - The weekly edition contains basically the same
information and differs only with regard to the indexing which is
less comprehensive and is limited to an index of proceedings
arranged according to broad subject headings and an index to
speeches arranged according to speakers, both cumulating from the
start of each session
Order papers
Minutes of
proceedings
Standing rules
The National Assembly
Debates :
(Hansard)
Published in a hard-bound multivolume sessional edition and a
paperbound weekly edition. - Contains the full text of speeches
delivered in the National Assembly. - In addition to lists of names
of Cabinet Ministers, office bearers of Parliament and Members of
the National Assembly it also contains separate lists of the
Members of the National Assembly who serve as a national
representatives and as regional representatives. - The sessional
edition includes a separate index volume which contains indexes of
speeches arranged according to speakers and subjects as well as a
volume for Interpellations, questions and
replies. - The weekly edition contains basically the same
information and differs only with regard to the indexing which is
less comprehensive and is limited to an index of proceedings
arranged according to broad subject headings and an index to
speeches arranged according to speakers, both cumulating from the
start of each session
Order papers
Minutes of
proceedings
Standing rules
(updated in November 1995)
