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Purpose - The purpose of this article is to help librarians interested in developing a basic understanding of Sub-Saharan African cinema and increase awareness of the resources available when building a collection of sub-Saharan African films for their library. A general review is provided to help become familiar with the history and nature of the four regions discussed. Design/methodology/approach - A collection development project to expand a mid-sized university's collection of sub-Saharan African films is discussed. Includes brief historical information and core titles, selected for their historical role and/or ease of purchase. Findings - A list of core films is recommended for academic and public libraries representing four geographic regions of sub-Saharan Africa: Nigeria, South Africa, West Africa, and East Africa. Research limitations/implications - Unfortunately, many of the titles referenced in academic literature and winners of African film awards are not available for purchase outside of Africa, making it impossible to accomplish our goal of collecting a core list as intended. Practical implications - The paper increases awareness of African cinema and value inclusion in library collections. Originality/value - While there are general articles on the topic of African cinema, there are no recent articles on the topic of collecting African films for libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of the study is to investigate the digital preservation practices in institutional repositories (IRs) in Africa.Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from the IRs developed in university libraries in Africa, and it was done in two phases. The phases are website investigation to identify the university libraries in Africa that have developed IR and online questionnaire.Findings Results from the study showed that the majority of IRs in Africa used DSpace software to manage their digital contents, and more than half of the IRs engage in information migration. The study also revealed that the majority of the responding institutions provide long-term digital preservation in their IR. Interestingly, the majority of the IRs has developed digital preservation policy to guide the implementation of digital preservation for IR contents. Finally, the majority of the respondents indicated that they do not have long-term funding and lack the necessary technical staff with required skills to handle and manage the IR.Research limitations/implications Because of language barriers, data were collected from only universities in English speaking countries in Africa.Practical implications The findings of this study will make librarians in universities in Africa and other developing countries understand the key issues relating to digital preservation and longevity.Originality/value The findings of this study will inform information professionals, librarians in developing countries that are planning to create IRs and provide long-term digital preservation of electronic resources in their institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the extent and nature of the digital divide as it applies in a developing Arab country. Design/methodology/approach – The method used is an innovative form of document availability test developed to measure the extent of the digital divide between a service offered by a university library in a developed (Western) tertiary education system (Curtin University of Technology, Western Australia) and one offered by a university library in a developing Arab country (Yarmouk University, Jordan). The method tests differences in capacity to deliver content according to format (digital or print) and tests for differences in digital access to both "international" and "local" content experienced by users of the two libraries. Findings – The findings indicate the existence of a digital divide, but also suggest that the availability of digital content has helped overcome the substantial scholarly information divide. Research limitations/implications – The research has implications for academic libraries in developing Arab countries as they attempt to redress the effects of the digital divide. Originality/value – The paper uses an innovative methodology for measuring the digital divide, and represents the first attempt to quantify the effects of the digital divide as it impacts upon the users of an academic library in a developing Arab country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]