Taming the bibliographic universe: proposed bibliographic centre for the Muslim world

Abstract

Bibliographic control covers activities pertaining to the organization of bibliographic resources that facilitate discovery, management, identification, and access to resources. Much has been discussed on the peculiarities of Islamic information resources that deserve careful considerations. With the changing landscape of information industry today, mainly due to the proliferation of information resources in various formats, and expanding of user communities, the role of bibliographic control becomes more crucial than ever before. How are these changes affecting libraries in Islamic countries? In January 2008, the Library of Congress Working Group on the Future of Bibliographic Control produced an important report that among other things redefined the concepts of bibliographic control and bibliographic universe. It is envisioned that the future of bibliographic will be that of collaborative, decentralized, international in scope, and web-based. Fostering bibliographic cooperation among libraries in Islamic countries can be materialized by having a central agency that addresses issues relating to bibliographic control of Islamic information resources. Based on the recommendations made by the Library of Congress, this paper will provide and overview of how the bibliographic centre can actively serve the library and information communities by: increasing the efficiency of bibliographic production and management; enhancing access to rare, unique, and hidden materials; positioning technology for the future; positioning library community for the future; strengthening the Library and Information Science profession.