PADIS Newsletter
Vol. 8, no. 3

September 1993

PADIS News

General Assembly action urged
On 30 July the United Nations Economic and Social Council(ECOSOC) meeting in Geneva, Switzerland approved a resolutionrequesting the United Nations General Assembly which will meet inNew York in the fall of 1993 to ensure "adequate staffing andresources" for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa'sactivities in information systems development. According to theresolution, these resources should be provided beginning with theorganization's 1994- 1995 programme budget.

At the same time the resolution also called on PADIS to buildelements of cost recovery into its delivery of information servicesand products and urgently appealed to the donor community tosupport the UNECA's activities to strengthen developmentinformation capabilities in the African region.

This is the second time that ECOSOC has passed resolutionsregarding PADIS and UNECA's programme activities in informationsystems development. In the first resolution 1992/51, passed lastyear entitled "Strengthening the Economic Commission for Africato face Africa's development challenges in the 1990s" the Councilrequested the Executive Secretary of the Commission to ensure thatits activities were fully grounded in sound data and informationsystems through the strengthening of the Pan-African DevelopmentInformation System (PADIS), which should be provided with adequatefinancial resources. Copies of both ECOSOC resolutions areavailable from PADIS at the address indicated in the box on theleft.

Regional Management Workshop
PADIS conducted a workshop on information managementstrategies and information technology in Nairobi, Kenya from 5-9July. Representatives from institutions in the following countriesparticipated in the workshop: Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mauritius,Namibia, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia. The workshop was opened by the Assistant Minister for EconomicPlanning and National Development on behalf of Vice-President ofKenya and Minister of Planning and National Development, Prof.George Saitoti. In his speech the vice-president stated that forAfrica to achieve its socio-economic development goals and createan African Economic Community, it must give priority to thedevelopment of its information infrastructure. Modules wereprepared on the following topics were reviewed at the workshop forsubsequent publication:

Tools for managing development information

Strategies for promoting the use of information for planning and decision making in Africa

Characteristics and prospects of major information technologies

Application and limitations of specific information technologies in Africa

Organizational and management issues for information technology acquisition and utilization in Africa

Principles for the management of information, information centres and systems

The workshop was organized in Nairobi by PADIS staff membersMr. Francis Inganji, Training Co-ordinator; Mr. Makane Faye,Information Programmes Development Officer; and Ms. Asrat Tadelle,Senior Secretary.

The report of the workshop is available upon request from PADIS at the address listed on p.1.Trade information training On behalf of the International Development Research Centre,PADIS developed and delivered several modules for a training courseon trade information at the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce andIndustry in Nairobi from 15-21 September. The course was part ofIDRC's project to assist chambers of commerce and industry ineastern and southern Africa in setting up a trade information network.

The modules delivered by PADIS Information ProgrammesDevelopment Officer Mr. Makane Faye covered the following topics:

Development information systems and multi-sectoral networks; Introduction to standardization; Compatibility in information systems; Trade information and related networks; Development of trade information services; and Data base management with special reference to micro CDS/ISIS software.

One of the recommendations made by the participants at theworkshop was that there be a co-ordinating point to ensure the useof compatible standards for information processing and to promoteoptimum exchange of information between members of the network. Itwas suggested that PADIS could play the role of such a centre. Itwas also suggested that chambers of commerce in eastern andsouthern Africa become part of the PADISnet electronic network inorder to accelerate the exchange of information between thechambers in these countries.

Participants at the workshop came from Kenya, Lesotho andZimbabwe. A copy of PADIS' report on the workshop is available fromPADIS at the address indicated on p.1.Training in Bamako.

In its role as the MINISIS Resource Centre for Sub-SaharanAfrica PADIS undertook a training mission to Bamako, Mali from 5 to25 June 1993 to train the data base manager and documentalists from the Sahelian Documentation and Information Network (RESADOC)[Reseau Sahelien de Documentation et d'Information] in the use ofthe MINISIS software. The training emphasized solving technicalproblems related to RESADOC data bases.

The mission was undertaken by Mr. Teffera Woldeyes, PADISSenior Documentalist in PADIS. MINISIS is the bibliographicdatabase management software developed and distributed by theInternational Development Research Centre.

Informatics Policy Studies

From 24-25 August PADIS held a two-day consultative meeting onseries of studies it is conducting on the effectiveness ofinformatics (information technology) policy instruments in Africa.

UNECA regarded this meeting as a vital step towards thepreparation of its next conference of ministers meeting, to be heldin 1994 on the theme "Building critical Capacities in Africa forAccelerated Growth and Sustainable Development" in light of theimportance of information technology to African development.

In view of the different approaches of different languageareas, the studies are being undertaken in a total of tenanglophone and francophone countries, notably:
Francophone: Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Congo, Madagascar and Senegal
Anglophone: Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Zimbabwe

The purpose of the August meeting was to initiate the seriesof ten country studies to assess the effectiveness of nationalinformatics policies in Africa by: surveying national informatics policy instruments used in a sample of sub-Saharan countries obtaining empirical data on the objectives of these policy instruments and the extent to which they have achieved their objectives, along with the reasons for success or failure to do so.

The overall co-ordinators of the studies are Mr. MariusFrancisco, Minister of Culture and Communications in the Governmentof Benin and Dr. Eliott Zwangobani, Managing Director, OmegaInformatics, Inc., who are both regarded as leaders in the study ofinformatics policies in the Africa region. The countrycorrespondents are noted experts in the computer field in thesecountries.

The results of the studies will be presented to a meeting tobe held in Addis Ababa in 1994.

Meeting in Maseru

In order to bring its methodologies into line with those usedat national and institutional participating centres, PADIS will beholding a technical meeting to review its information processingtools in Maseru, Lesotho from 29 November through 2 December.

The idea for the meeting arose from the recommendations of theworkshop PADIS organised in Lusaka, Zambia in May 1993 oninformation processing tools, norms, standards and modalities forthe subregional exchange of development information (see PADISNewsletter vol. 8, no. 2). Participants at that meeting hadrecommended review of the PADIS manual for document analysis, inputsheet and the OECD Macrothesaurus in respect of local and proposeddescriptors, in order to update them and bring them more in linewith the needs of participating centres.

Meeting participants will include experts drawn from PADISparticipating centres. It will be hosted by the Institute ofAfrican Studies of the University of Lesotho. The results of themeeting will be presented to the next meeting of the StandingCommittee on the Harmonization of Documentation and InformationSystems in Africa in the hopes that they will be acceptedthroughout the region.PADIS attends

UNESCO meeting

PADIS attended the Meeting of High Level Informatics Expertsin Africa and RINAF organised by the United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in Nairobi from 12-16July.

Among the topics considered by the meeting were: trends in informatics education trends in informatics applications informatics research telematics prospects for Africa review in progress of RINAF.

Representatives

of African countries presented their nationalexperience with to the informatics situation in their respectivecountries. This exchange led to active sharing of technicalknow-how. Copies of the report of the meeting are available fromUNESCO Intergovernmental Informatics Programme (IIP), 7 place deFontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France; fax: + 33 42 73 30 07.

PADIS' representative at the meeting was Mr. Makane Faye.

Information TechnologyINET '93

At the invitation of the organizers of INET'93 developingcountries workshop, PADIS participated in the INET'93 conferenceand workshop organised by the Internet Society and held in SanFrancisco, USA from 12-20 August 1993. Internet is the worldwidemeta network connecting many low cost networks through gateways andothers running the TCP/IP protocol. All regions of the worldincluding Africa are now part of the Internet. Two countries inAfrica - South Africa and Tunisia- connect to Internet via highspeed link over TCP/IP while others connect both through Uucp andFido links. Internet Society is the international networkingsociety which coordinates Internet activities.

The INET'93 conference gathered major network players from allover the world including those using low cost technology as well asthose utilizing sophisticated high speed links. INET'93 alsoorganised a workshop on electronic networking developing countriesprior to the main INET'93 conference to train trainers in networkinfrastructure, transport and services and to increase all levelsof cooperation between users in developing counties in order toexpand their existing networking activities leading to Internetconnectivity. The workshop was not only an opportunity to discusscritical technical issues on low cost technology but also helpedparticipants to gain a clear picture of the steps to be followed toupgrade from low cost networks to full Internet connection.

PADIS presented a paper entitled "Lessons in network buildingin Africa: The need for development of supportive networkinfrastructure" which detailed physical and technical issuesrelated to African environment and suggested possible steps tobuild robust networks in the region. In addition PADIS participatedin round table meetings which brought together participantsinterested in networking in Africa. PADIS also participated in theAssociation for Progressive Communication (APC) meeting at the endof INET'93 which discussed cooperation issues between APC nodesworldwide. Copies of PADIS' mission report to INET'93 and its paperpresented at the INET'93 conference are available upon request fromthe address listed on p.1. PADIS' representative in San Franciscowas Mr. Lishan Adam.World Vision meet PADIS participated in an electronic mail conference organisedby World Vision International at the International Red CrossSociety training center in Addis Ababa on 18 June. The conferencegathered more than fifty participants from World Vision fieldoffices in Africa and their headquarters in Washington, D.C. (USA).PADIS made a presentation on Fido networks and existing networkinfrastructure in Africa. It was stressed that through researchprojects over the last four years, Africa had embarked on Fidoelectronic networks, and more than fifty percent of Africancountries had either a working Fido node or were in the process ofsetting up electronic links.

PADIS described the Association of Progressive Communications(APC), a network connecting non-governmental organizations involved in rehabilitation, environment and development. World Vision participants indicated their interest in joining the network. In line with the newly funded project for "Capacity Building in Electronic Networking for Development of Africa" (CABECA), PADIS indicated its readiness to provide training, ongoing technical support, software and international linkages to World Visionoffices in Africa.

PADIS was represented by Mr. Lishan Adam, CIBECA projectmanager.Networking workshop

The American Association for the Advancement of Science will organise a Workshop on Electronic Networking for West AfricanUniversities, to be held in Accra, Ghana from 15-17 December. The purpose of the workshop is to focus on opportunities for WestAfrican universities to participate in the benefits afforded byelectronic networking technologies, including fast, efficient,reliable and cost-effective communications, and of special interestto the researcher, unprecedented access to colleagues andinformation resources throughout the world.

Mr. Lishan Adam, PADIS CIBECA project manager will be one ofthe resource persons conducting the workshop.

More information is available from the Sub-Saharan Africa Program, AAAS, 1333 "H" Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005 USA.

CD-ROM

An entire agricultural research library is available onCD-ROM, through the Consultative Group on InternationalAgricultural Research and the World Bank 17-disc CompactInternational Agricultural Research Library: Basic RetrospectiveSet 1962-1986 (CIARL BRS). Consisting of one master disc and 16text/image discs, the CIARL BRS contains documents which togethercomprise the essential basics for agricultural research. The totalset consists of 190,000 pages of research materials under 1350titles and with 52,000 colour and monochrome images. Although theprice is high (US$1950), it provides an entire core collection foragricultural research. Further information is available from WorldBank Publications, Box 7247-8619, Philadelphia PA 19170-8619 USA;tel. +1 (202)473-1155; fax +1(202) 675-0581.New CD-ROM

Following the success of their 1991 prototype, UNESCO hasissued a new CD-ROM containing ten UNESCO databases, with some96,000 bibliographic references; plus listing of 9200 researchinstitutes and information services. Among the databases areUNESBIB: a bibliographic database of UNESCO documents andpublications and IAUDOC, with 4500 references to literature onhigher education. All user messages are in English, French andSpanish.

Copies of the new CD-ROM are available at the price of US$200from UNESCO, 7 place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France; fax:+33 42 73 30 07.News and ViewsCDS/ISIS Interface.

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbeanhas developed a user friendly interface for CDS/ISIS which allowsall databases to be viewed and facilitates searching and printing.The interface can be obtained by writing to ECLAC SubregionalHeadquarters for the Caribbean, PO Box 1113, Port of Spain,Trinidad and Tobago; tel; +1 (809) 623-5595; fax +1 (809) 623-8485.PublicationsPublication exchange.

Any organizations that regularly send their publications tothe National Agricultural Library (USA) are eligible to receive theNAL's surplus publications, which include a number of otherwiseexpensive scientific publications. Among the current list ofsurplus materials available through this programme are the Journalof Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Crop Science and theSoil Science Society of America Proceedings.

Further information on the exchange is available from theNational Agricultural Library, Gift and Exchange/JAM, Room 002,10301 Baltimore Boulevard, Beltsville MD 20705-2351 USA; e-mail[Internet]: jmaier@nalusda.gov; fax +1 (301) 504-5471; tel. +1 +1(301) 504-5208.African Studies

Association papers

PADIS receives the entire set of African Studies Associationannual meetings papers for indexing and abstracting in its PADdevbibliographic database. Copies of titles which do not fall withinthe scope of PADdev are available at no charge to readers of thisnewsletter. Among some of the subjects covered by the surpluspapers are linguistics, culture, politics, history and religion.The list of available papers is available from PADIS at the addresslisted on p.1.Special Issue on Development Information

The August 1993 edition (vol. 1, no. 2) of Development PolicyManagement in Sub-Saharan Africa Bulletin is a special issue on"information for policy management or a policy for information?" The theme of the issue is " Changing paradigms of economic policy(role of markets, role of the private sector) and of politicalpolicy (pluralism, democracy) need to be paralleled by a rethinkingof policy for information." Among the articles of interest arethose by Graham Eele entitled "A Review of Information to SupportDevelopment Policy Management is long Overdue," and by Jerry Silverman, "Information as a Public Good." (Single copies of thesearticles may be requested from PADIS at the address listed above.) Copies of the special issue can be obtained from DPMNBulletin,c/o ECDPM, Onze Lieve Vrouweplein 21, 6211 HE Maastricht,The Netherlands; fax +31) 43 253636.OECD

Publications

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development incollaboration with the Council for the Development of Economic andSocial Research in Africa (CODESRIA) has published an updatedRegister of Development Research Projects in Africa, providinginformation on 881 development research projects in 42 Africancountries. (The first edition was published in 1986.) OECD andCODESRIA have also jointly issued the Directory of DevelopmentResearch and Training Institutes in Africa which gives informationon 641 research and training institutes in 49 countries.

Copies are available at a cost of US$58 for the Register andUS$40 for the Directory from OECD Publications Service, 2 rueAndre Pascal, 75775 Paris, Cedex 16, France. Payment may also bemade in French francs, pounds sterling and Deutsche marks.

OECD is also offering free of charge to NGO's and developmentinstitutes in developing countries its Directory ofnon-Governmental environment and development organisations in OECDmember countries. The directory describes some 649 NGOs. Requestsfor this directory should be sent to OECD Development Centre(External Co-operation), 94, rue Chardon Lagache, 75016 Paris,France.

HIID Development Discussion Papers

The Harvard Institute for International Development has issueda series of discussion papers that may be of interest to readers ofthis Newsletter. They are: #445. S.B. Peterson. "Financial Reform in Kenya." #446. G. Glenday. "Perspectives on the Computerization of Tax Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa." #447. S. B. Peterson. "Making It Work: Implementing Effective Financial Information Systems in Bureaucracies in Developing Countries." #452. J. Clark Leith. "A Simple Measure for Evaluation of Trade Policy Options with Application to Botswana."

Copies are available by writing to Ms. Nancy Hamlin Soukup,HIID, One Eliot Street, Cambridge MA 02138 USA.Marketing CD-ROM

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)has published a very attractive booklet entitled Marketing CD-ROM Services: A Manual for African Research Librarians. Based on theworkshop held at the University of Ghana in January 1993, thepublication includes material explaining CD-ROM technology,promoting CD-ROM services , conducting literature searches andsupplying documents delivery. Much other useful information isincluded in multiple appendices, including an inventory oforganizations funding and implementing CD-ROM projects andsuggestions for solving technical problems in CD-ROM operations.

Copies are available upon request from the Sub-SaharanProgram, AAAS, 1333 "H" Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005 USA.Views on Africa

In the first of a new series on the developing world, TheLibrary Association (UK) has published a study entitled Informationand libraries in the developing world: I. Sub-Saharan Africa(edited and compiled by Michael Wise and Anthony Olden, ISBN0-85365-888-9). Among the topics included are the computerizationof library systems in Kenya and Nigeria, research and informationservices for politicians in Tanzania and services to thedisadvantaged in Zambia.PADA Review

The Pioneer Agency for Development in Africa (PADA), adevelopment consultancy firm based in London (UK) announces a newjournal on African development, PADA Review. The aim of the journalist is to promote positive images of Africa, with contents centering onAfrica in the world economy and politics, development issues in all fields. The journal's emphasis will be on "steering Africans totake charge of their lives and development processes." Articles ofnot more than 5000 words, book reviews of 800 words or less andnotices of forthcoming events can be sent to The Editor, PADAReview, 21 Addington House, Stockwell Road, London SW9 OTZ; tel.+071 274 5252; fax +071 233 1747. PADA also publishes WIDA News, anewsletter which aims at networking African women and publishesarticles on women and development. Contributions for WIDA NEWS arealso solicited; they may be sent to the Co-ordinator, WIDA News, atthe above-mentioned London address.

Info Scientists Directory

The Center of Studies and Professional Development inInformation Sciences (PROINFO, Cuba) is preparing an updatedinternational Directory of Professionals in Information and LibrarySciences. Those interested either in information from the directoryor being included in the expanded edition, should write: Mr. WelserTorres, PROINFO specialists, Capitolio Nacional, Aptdo. 2019,C"digo postal 10200, Havana, Cuba (telephone +(0537) 62-6502; fax:(0537) 33-8237). Copies of the data collection form are alsoavailable upon request from PADIS.

Make a Date

Meetings in Cuba

In 1994 and 1995 Cuba will be hosting two meetings of interestto the information community in Africa.

An international conference on the impact of informatics onsociety: key issue for developing countries will be held in Havana,Cuba from 21-23 February 1994. Sponsored by the National Institutefor Automated Systems and Computer Technology, the conference willcover information technology strategies and policies and impact ofinformation technology applications in developing countries. Moreinformation can be obtained from Prof. Ruben A. Lopez Santana; fax:+53-7-331233; e-mail: insac%ceniai@web.apc.org.

From 25-29 September the Institute for Scientific andTechnological Information (IDICT) of the Cuban Academy of Scienceswill host the International Information Congress, including thefollowing topics: information and cooperation for development,information resource management, information networks and the roleof the information professional in social development. Officiallanguages for INFO '95 are Spanish and English. Further informationis available from Mr. Humberto Arango Sales, Organizing CommitteePresident, Aptdo. 2019, C"digo postal 10200, Havana, Cuba(telephone +(537) 62-6501; fax: +(537) 33-8237).Grey Literature Conference The first international conference on Grey Literature will beheld in Amsterdam from 13-15 December 1993, co-sponsored by GreyLiterature associations from Europe, Japan and the NationalTechnical Information Service USA.

Exhibition space will be available for producers anddistributors of Grey Literature. Among the topics to be covered areinformation networks of grey literature. Contact: GH'93/Tran-sAtlantic, Koninginweg 201, 1075 CR Amsterdam, The Netherlands;tel. and fax: +31 20 671 818.

African TELECOM 94

Egypt will be hosting the Third Africa InternationalTelecommunication Exhibition and Special Session of the WorldTelecommunication-Africa TELECOM 94, in Cairo from 25-29 April1994. Africa TELECOM 94 is meant to bring together policy makers,planners, operators, industry experts, regulators, financialinstitutions and specialists in telecommunications. Participationis possible as exhibitors, speakers, delegates or visitors.Honorary co-chairperson of the event is Mr. Layashi Yaker,Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission forAfrica and Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. Further information is available from Africa TELECOM 94Secretariat, International Telecommunication Union, Place desNations, CH-1211 Geneva 20 Switzerland; fax: + 41 22 730 ; tel. +4122 730 58 11.Tunis meeting The Arab Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization(ALECSO) will organise a seminar on "Strategies on information anddocumentation in the Arab World" in Tunis from 7-10 December 1993to develop Arab strategies for: the promotion of archives management library development in the Arab world human resource development in information science development of statistical data bases microcomputers and electronic networks Further information on the meeting is available from ALECSO atB.P. 1120, Tunis, Tunisia; telex 13825 tn and fax +216 17 8465.

Training opportunities

At the Hague . . . The Department of Library and Information Studies (DLIS) of the Hague Polytechnic offers an annual international post-graduateskill- upgrading course in library management for librarians andinformation specialists. To be taught in English, the course lastsfour months, including a four-week internship in Europe.Participants are expected to be middle or higher level librariansor information science instructors from developing countries.

Information is available from Haagse Hoogeschool, Departmentof Library and Information Studies, Paramaribostraat 21, 2585 GLThe Hague, The Netherlands, tel. +31 70 3631935; fax +31 703563302.In Belgium . . .

STI Management

Twelve participants from developing countries are eligible forfree tuition, accommodation and return airfare for the secondinternational training course on the management of scientific andtechnological information (STI), with special emphasis oninformationrelated to water and the environment to be held inBrussels from 2 February-28 May 1994. Sponsored by the BelgianAdministration for Development Cooperation and UNESCO, the courseis organised by and conducted at the Free University of Brussels.Included in the curriculum are introduction to microcomputersystems, flow of scientific information, telematics, datacommunication and computer networks, online information retrieval,bibliographic databases on water and the environment, training inCDS/ISIS and Geographic Information Systems. There will also be anumber of study visits to STI sites. Those who successfullycomplete the course will receive a certificate. The course will beconducted in English. Copies of the registration and applicationform are available from PADIS or the Free University. Theapplication deadline is 30 November 1993.

Further information is available from Paul Nieuwenhuysen, MIST2, University Library, Free University of Brussels, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium, tel. +32-2-641 2429; fax + 32 2 6412609/2282; telex 610 51 vubco-b,; e-mail: pvouplin@vub.ac.be.

C A B Course

Librarians and other information professionals in developing countries are invited to join the CAB International training course on information on agriculture and the biosciences to be held from 17 July-5 August 1994. Training will be provided in the use and management of information on agriculture, the biosciences and related disciplines. An appropriate professional qualification is required, either in library science or in the relevant scientific discipline. The course requires fluency in English. Prior to this course, there will be an three-day course on operating personalcomputers. Further information is available from The Courses Administrator, Training Services, CAB International, Wallingford,Oxon OX10 8DE UK; telephone +(491) 932111; fax +(491) 833508.

1994 Courses

The Panafrican Institute for Development [Institut Panafricainpour le developpement] has announced its 1994 courses ininformation science. They are: Documentary techniques and management of documentation services, 31 January-4 March.

Communications and audio-vidual techniques for development management, 2-27 May Microcomputers and documentation, 30 May-1 July Management of documents and administrative information, 31 October- 2 December All courses are residential and take place at the campus ofthe Institute's West African centre in Ouagadougou. Furtherinformation is available from IPD/AOS, 01 BP 1756 Ouagadougou 01,Burkina Faso; tel. +(226) 30 03 90; fax +(226) 30 12 96.FellowshipsHofman Study Grant

Librarians from developing countries who are prepared todisseminate their experiences through lectures are eligible for a4-6 week study programme in Europe administered by theInternational Federation of Library Associations (IFLA). Candidatesin general should be under forty years of age.

Further information on the programme is available from theIFLA Secretariat, P.O. Box 95312, 2509 CH The Hague, Netherlands;tel. +31 70 3140884; fax +31 70 3834827.

New Entries in PADdev

The following are some recent entries into the PADdevbibliographic data base on social and economic aspects ofdevelopment in Africa. New entries in PADdev are printed as acurrent bulletin for subscribers to DEVINDEX-AFRICA. Microfiches orphotocopies of the documents are available upon request from PADISat the address listed above.ECA, Addis Ababa, ET. A critical evaluation of trade and balance ofpayments problems in the African least developed, island andland-locked countries. 44+40p. tables. 18 Mar 1992.Intergovernmental Committee of Experts of African Least DevelopedCountries, 10th meeting, Addis Ababa, ET, 9-10 Apr 1992.Conference of ministers of African least developed countries, AddisAbaba, ET, 17 Apr 1992. DOC.NO. E/ECA/LDCs.11/EXP/10/4.

Attempts a definition of the balance of payments problem.Undertakes a critical assessment of the commodity composition of exports and imports, including the direction of trade. Discusses the structure of the invisible account and that of the capital account. Focuses on policies and actions for mitigating thedeficit in the balance of payments of African least developed countries. /Trade*/, /balance of payments*/, /least developedcountries*/, /islands/, /landlocked countries/, /experts/,/coffee/, /cocoa/, /cotton/, /minerals/, /imports/, /fuels/, /foodaid/, /manufactured products/, /debt/, /Africa/.Zayd, A.A. ECA. Public Administration, Human Resources andSocial Development Division, Addis Ababa, ET. University ofSwaziland, Mbabane, SZ. Association of African Universities, Accra,GH The private universities in Africa: what lessons and role in the1990s and beyond. 29p. May 1992. Workshop on the theme strengthening the viability of the African University in the 1990sand beyond, Mbabane, SZ, 25-29 May 1992. Describes private universities in Africa and explains theorganizational structure of Omdurman Ahlia University of Sudan asa case study. Points out the problems of running privateuniversities in Africa and indicates that discipline is found amongprivate university students due to the substantial fees paid. Discusses attraction of the private university which the public university lacks and lessons to be learnt in creating a private university. /Universities*/, /private education*/, /students/, /fees/,/higher education/, /Africa/.Lungwangwa, G. (University of Zambia, Lusaka ZM). The impact ofstructural adjustment on the quality of basic education in Zambia.21p. tables. 1992. Institute of African Studies, Lusaka, ZM. Discusses Zambia's structural adjustment programme which was aimedat liberalizing the economy and allowing market forces to play agreater role in the allocation of resources. Defines basiceducation as primary education and non-formal education activitiesfor out-of-school youth and adults. Concludes that theimplementation of structural adjustment measures need notnecessarily lead to a decline in the quality of social services andthe state of basic education in particular. /Structural adjustment*/, /basic education*/, /Zambia/.

PADIS Calendar,

October-December 19934-6 October, Paris, Second General Meeting Informal Study Group onExchange of Development Information 4-8 October, Niamey, PADIS Subregional workshop information processing tools and information exchange1-26 October, Addis Ababa, Needs assessment mission for computerization of Ethiopian Television (ETV)7-13 October, Addis Ababa, Visit to UNECA Dr. Margaret Snyder,founding Director, United Nations Development Fund for Women18-20 October, Addis Ababa, Electronic networking training workshop for Addis Ababa University4-8 November, Addis Ababa, Workshop for ECA Executives on managingchange in a catalytic organization4-19 November, Addis Ababa, Visit Eskinder Abebe to install SatelLife in Ethiopia23-24 November, Addis Ababa, CABECA training workshop for non-governmental and international organizations29 November-3 December, Maseru, Technical meeting to review PADISinformation processing tools6-8 December, Addis Ababa, CIBECA training workshop for Governmentministries8 December, Boston (USA), Annual meeting of the African Studies Association 13-17 December, Accra, American Association for the Advancement ofScience Workshop on electronic networking.