Speeches
29 November 2010 - SWARBICA Inauguration Ceremony (Colombo, Sri Lanka)
Speech by the President of the International Council on Archives
Martin Berendse, National Archivist of the Netherlands, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 9 November 2010
Your Excellency, Minister for National Heritage and Cultural Affairs
Your Excellencies the Ambassadors
Distinguishes invited guests and workshop participants
Dear Saroja,
I convey my sincere apologies for not being able to attend this inauguration ceremony today. Sometimes I have to choose between my role as president of ICA and my role as National Archivist of the Netherlands. Today my presence in the Netherlands is required, but I will join you during the SWARBICA meeting, which will be held in a couple of days.
I am very happy that such an important workshop on ‘electronic records management’ is going to take place the next two days. In our efforts to develop and modernize our archival system we have to go a long way.
We must work in partnership to ensure the authenticity, reliability, integrity, and ongoing usability of records. Education and training provision must evolve to fulfill the needs. Worldwide we are on the right track, and if we can continue our journey seriously and dedicatedly through this path we shall surely achieve our goal. The present workshop/seminar is a part of that effort.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we are grateful to all of them who are helping us in our efforts. I express thanks and gratitude to the Director and officials of the National Archives of Sri Lanka for their hospitality and help in organizing this workshop. I also express my gratitude and thanks to the workshop members for their presence and participation in this. Your work on information issues, particularly as it relates to good governance and accountability is of critical importance.
I also express our gratitude and thanks to all the authorities who have sent their officials to this meeting. I wish the participants a happy and fruitful two days of training and practical experience. The knowledge that they will gather will go a long way to develop the archives in this region.
Thank you very much Ladies and Gentlemen for your patient hearing.