Acquisitions by Different Routes
Librairie du Vaima – one of the largest bookshops in
Imprimerie Officielle – the government printing office, located in
Lire en Polynésie –
Rarotonga
National Library of the

Ministry of Agriculture – one of many Government departments visited on the
Government offices building, Avarua,
The Pacific region has long been a priority collecting area for the Library, but in practice it has often been difficult to maintain a research level collection due to problems with supply. There are only one or two library suppliers operating in the area and virtually no regional bibliographies or databases listing publishing output. In the early 1990s it was decided to supplement traditional methods of supply with acquisitions trips to the Pacific by library staff members. A number of very successful trips have since been undertaken. The purpose of such trips has been three-fold: to purchase or acquire publications, to establish contacts, and to gather information about publishing in the region.
With these aims in mind, I visited French Polynesia and the Cook Islands in May. The last significant visit to these countries had been made over 10 years earlier by Adrian Cunningham. His trip was notable for a number of reasons, not the least of which was that Cunningham got caught up in riots over the resumption of nuclear testing at Moruroa Atoll. Nothing so dramatic occurred this time.
A survey of databases, such as Libraries Australia, revealed gaps in the National Library’s holdings. It also indicated that publishing in French Polynesia was more active than other areas of the Pacific, including the Cook Islands. However, as a whole the Library’s holdings were not vastly different from those of the Library of Congress or other Australian libraries. This left the question of how much was being published in these countries largely unresolved. Only by visiting the region and establishing personal contacts with publishers could this question be answered.
I spent a week in Tahiti, the main island of French Polynesia, and three days in Rarotonga, the largest island in the Cook Islands group. These two visits turned out to be very different. In Tahiti, there was no national library to assist with contacts or planning an itinerary. Moreover, the official languages spoken in Tahiti are French and Polynesian, making language a barrier. Despite these difficulties, over 30 institutions, including government departments and bookshops, were contacted. Advantageously, the visit also coincided with an annual book fair at which most of the major publishers and booksellers were represented.
There is a significant amount of commercial and government publishing in French Polynesia. There are at least five major commercial publishers in the region and government publishing is also quite stable. Internet publishing is increasing, but is mainly confined to government circles at present; although two or three of the commercial publishers also have websites and offer online ordering.
Rarotonga proved to be quite a different prospect. A pre-arranged itinerary had been organised with the generous assistance of the Chief Librarian of the Cook Islands and, as English is commonly spoken, there were no language difficulties. However, it quickly became apparent that little commercial publishing is undertaken on the islands. Nevertheless, there are a number of important serials and monographs being published by the Cook Islands Government. Many of these titles were acquired for the Library, as well as a number of commercial publications about the Cook Islands, published elsewhere, which the Library did not hold. As in French Polynesia, online publishing is generally limited to a few government websites which supplement, rather than replace, print publications. While most government departments have a website, the currency of these varies greatly. It was frequently commented that ‘we would like to update it, but don’t have the expertise required’. In total, 18 institutions or government departments were visited on Rarotonga.
The generosity and genuine helpfulness of the people encountered in both French Polynesia and the Cook Islands cannot be overstated. It was a fascinating experience to meet with locals in their place of business and learn about publishing and library operations in the Pacific. The contacts and insights into publishing gained from both countries should prove useful in months to come. The trip was also successful in terms of the number of publications acquired: over 70 monographs and 100 serial issues, as well as five maps. Much of this material is not yet held by other overseas libraries. However, the actual trip is only a small part of the acquisitions process. Over the next few weeks there will be follow-up letters to write, websites to investigate, ongoing orders to establish and, of course, the cataloguing of all the material acquired.
Meredith Batten
Manager
Overseas Serials