The Internet in Swaziland: Services Under Transformation
The Kingdom of Swaziland is a small land locked country in the east of Southern Africa with a land area of 17,364 km2, a population of approximately 900,000, sixty-nine percent of whom live in rural areas, and a telephone density of 2.5 per 100. The economy is based on agriculture, which accounts for about eleven percent of gross domestic product. With a GNP of just over one million U.S. dollars, the World Bank classifies Swaziland as a lower-middle-income country.
Prior to the attainment of Swaziland's independence in 1968, volunteer housewives drawn from the community of colonial officials operated the few libraries that were available. Professional librarianship in the Kingdom only took root in the 1970s and 1980s. This ushered in a new era of service enhancements among which were information technology (IT) applications. However, progress on library IT initiatives has been slow due to pressing financial, human resources, and socio-economic challenges. It is against this background that the Internet experience in Swaziland should be viewed. This paper describes trends in the manner in which IT, particularly the Internet, is transforming library and information services in Swaziland.
Swaziland's IT Situation: A Helicopter View
A study published in 1996 established that the first computer was introduced in Swaziland in 1974. Public sector computerization has been slow, with more than half the sector remaining manual as late as 1989 - the IT function is either absent or weakly developed in many organizations. Most library and information centers in Swaziland fall within the public sector realm and therefore reflect the same general low level of development in their IT infrastructure.
In addition to a file server at the Swaziland National Library Services (SNLS), Mbabane, there are approximately twenty-two personal computers (PCs) distributed among the country's six key libraries. Fourteen PCs are housed in the SNLS and used mainly for word processing and in-house database management. These figures do not cover the IT situation in special libraries such as the United Nations Development Program, United States Information Service, British Council, United Nations Children's Fund, etc.
As of April 1999, only the University of Swaziland Libraries (UNISWA) had automated some of its functions, mainly cataloguing and circulation. Most of the libraries are still in the automation planning stage. However, the basic IT and ever improving telecommunications infrastructure in libraries, and in Swaziland as a whole, has expedited Internet connectivity.
Internet Service Provision
Full Internet access was introduced in early 1996 and Swaziland now has three major Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Currently, there are four Internet cafes evenly spread throughout the two major towns of Mbabane and Manzini; a fifth one recently opened in the industrial heartland of Matsapha. It is estimated that Swaziland has 397 Internet hosts and 900 Internet users. To date, there is no regulatory body in Swaziland. The spread of the Internet has seen the growth of such services as email, ecommerce, bibliographic and information searches, downloading and printing, online conferencing facilities, training courses for Internet users and Internet advertising and publishing services in Swaziland. The Internet cafes offer a full range of computer services, such as hardware and software sales and installation, support and training, as well as photocopying services. Some of the cafes also host public telephone booths.
Excluding special libraries, few institutions have achieved Internet connectivity. The Mbabane and Manzini Public Libraries, UNISWA, SIMPA, and SCOT Libraries are all connected to the Internet. However, exploitation of Internet information resources and services is not yet optimal.
Internet Information
Of all the major catalogs of library materials in Swaziland, only the UNISWA catalog is currently accessible on the Internet at http://library.uniswa.sz, but is not yet linked to other Internet information resources. Further, none of the other major libraries have established their presence on the Internet. Most of the Swaziland information on the Internet is a result mainly of efforts outside the library community. Thus, the popular Swaziland on the Internet web site: http://www.realnet.co.sz/, which promotes local business, tourism, traditions and culture, is maintained by the ISP, Real Image. Real Image also maintains the official government site: http://www.realnet.co.sz/business/ as well as other commercial sites and publications, including the newspaper, Swazi Observer: http://www.swaziobserver.sz/.
The results of a Yahoo search covering terms and subjects popular with Swaziland users in academic and public libraries, show that search times are slow, information is scanty and hardly relevant to the search subject terms. Only a limited amount of indigenous text available is presented in the local language, SiSwati. There is, however, informative discourse on civil liberties and the political system of Swaziland.
The Internet is therefore creating a crisis of expectations that cannot be met during the short term. Having said that, it is evident that it has in some ways come to represent the high water mark of information access in Swaziland.
Advances Towards Unrestricted Access
Censorship laws have historically restricted access to materials considered unorthodox. The advent of the Internet in Swaziland has however resulted in wider dissemination of both orthodox and unorthodox viewpoints. Documents articulating the political orientation of opposition groups such as People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) and the Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO), which, hitherto, were not readily available, are now accessible on the Internet. This, together with official Swaziland government documents presents information consumers with diverse viewpoints. Similarly, a multiplicity of pornographic web sites depicting traditionally censored sexually explicit materials, are accessible through the various Internet hosts in Swaziland.
The public at large now has access to the online UNISWA catalog, including the Swaziana index, which previously was restricted to the University of Swaziland community and its allied users. Students pursuing studies through the recently established Institute of Distance Education at the University of Swaziland can search online catalogs at Internet cafes and other hosts without necessarily having to physically visit the Kwaluseni, Luyengo, and Mbabane campus libraries.
Regarding e-commerce, Internet users now have access to many services that were previously difficult to access. Among other things, online Japanese car showrooms offer affordable vehicles, resulting in tangible improvements in quality of life. Surpassing the achievements of the telephone system, email has revolutionized communication, the results of which are, improved cooperation in research, business efficiency, and the promotion of social networks, transcending Swaziland's borders. Overall, the Internet has resulted in major breakthroughs towards the vision of unrestricted access to information in Swaziland. However, some lingering hurdles remain.
Obstacles
Key drawbacks to unrestricted access to Internet information in Swaziland include limited user access in libraries. Policies on public access are still on the drawing boards and are heavily influenced by limited financial resources. User access charges are also an issue. For the ordinary citizens, these charges are not easily affordable. Demands on generally low household incomes are high with the result that the value attached to information is low relative to the provision of basic necessities.
The various services available from Internet cafes attract considerable traffic, compromising user privacy. Digital library catalogs provide bibliographic details of hard copy texts, which may not be available locally or in a timely manner. This is further complicated by logistical, financial, and staffing constraints. The predominance of English on the Internet denies Swaziland users the benefit of accessing and interpreting information resources in SiSwati language terms that are understandable and more appealing to them.
Basic computer literacy is lacking among the ordinary citizens and public Internet services are restricted to the major urban, industrial, and commercial centers of Mbabane, Manzini, and Matsapha. Rural communities do not have ready access to Internet information. Unreliable power supplies and limited telecommunications, especially during summer thunderstorms, disrupts Internet services for averages of up to two days per occurrence. Equitable access to information therefore remains a challenge in Swaziland. Presently, the Internet boom is arguably benefiting a few.
Beneficiaries
Internet use in Swaziland is restricted to the elite, which have the requisite basic computer skills. For example, it is Real Image's policy to provide free access only for schools and at the University of Swaziland; access is restricted to the campus community. Also, availability of the Internet in Swaziland offices and cafes is shaping the thinking of select civic groups, including women's and children's rights groups, the youth, academia, politicians, government officials, students, and entrepreneurs, perhaps more than the analog library ever did. The result is an Internet information explosion restricted to the elite. The global widening gap between the information rich and poor is being replicated in Swaziland. The other side of the coin is that by empowering youth and pivotal civic groups with information, the Internet is sowing the seeds of a deeper social transformation, which in the long term will benefit all Swazi citizens. Nonetheless, it is imperative that libraries in Swaziland promote Internet information access so that it touches the lives of all citizens to include the ordinary, the rich, the poor, and the disadvantaged, etc.
Extending Internet Information Access
To accelerate the long cherished vision of realizing equitable access to information, libraries in Swaziland should:
Take advantage of the training programs run by the ISPs and related institutions to develop the requisite Internet skills.
Launch broad based development programs to empower communities with computer skills to conduct independent information searches.
Develop library web sites linked to other relevant Internet information resources.
Use digital imaging technology to convert SiSwati texts and other seminal works for access on the Internet.
Develop and implement a SiSwati subject thesaurus for use in classifying Swaziland Internet information.
In cooperation with other development agencies, advocate for the inclusion of IT components in development projects earmarked to provide basic services to disadvantaged communities.
Consult with Internet café authorities to influence office redesign to provide for privacy in Internet surfing.
These measures will add relevance to Internet information and help diffuse the initial crisis of expectations that the technology has created. The ethnic and linguistic homogeneity of Swaziland eases this task.
Conclusion
The considerable Internet penetration in Swaziland is widening access to information especially by the elite. Resource constraints are impeding optimal access to, and utilization of Internet information. Proactive approaches by library, information, electricity, telecommunications, and education and training experts in cooperation with the Swaziland government, donor agencies and civil society are required to realize the vision of equitable access to information.
Works Consulted
Borgman, C.L. "Will the Global Information Infrastructure Be the Library of the Future? Central and Eastern Europe as a Case Example." IFLA Journal 22 (2): 123, 1996
Gunthorp, D. (Ed.). The Commonwealth yearbook. London: Hanson Cooke for the Commonwealth Secretariat, 1998
Kluijfhout, E. Information technology in the developing world: the case of Swaziland. Amsterdam: Center for Development Cooperation Services, 1996
Mkhwanazi, N.V. Report on the Swaziland proposed library networking project, April 1999
SADC Consultative Conference. Theme document: SADC in the next millennium: the opportunities and challenges of information technology. Gaborone: Southern African Development Community, 1999
Swaziland Business Year Book. Mbabane: Christina Forsyth Thompson, 1999
Swaziland. Image, status and reputation of librarianship and information science profession: a country report presented at the IFLA pre-conference seminar, New Delhi, 1992
Paiki Muswazi is currently Special Collections Librarian at the University of Swaziland Libraries. He may be reached via e-mail at paiki@uniswac1.uniswa.sz.
by Paiki Muswazi
University of Swaziland Libraries
Private Bag 4
Kwaluseni
SWAZILAND
Tel.: (0268) - 51 - 84011
Fax.: (0268) - 51 - 85276
E - Mail : paiki@uniswac1.uniswa.sz
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