Vital Partnerships Fueling the Dynamic Development of Libraries for Young People in Zambia

Partnerships are so fundamental to Lubuto Library organization that this year our name was changed to Lubuto Library Partners. The new name underscores the fundamental importance of the partnership between libraries and the communities they serve. Since Lubuto was established 10 years ago, partnerships helped define and animate our work. Lubuto’s partnerships with others in the library profession ensure sustainability and effectiveness. It has been especially important in an environment that previously offered no children and youth library services or training that, through cooperation and partnership, youth services be understood, owned and sustained. Private and public sector partnerships are needed, in tandem, with Lubuto’s organization in Zambia and the U.S., as well as with each individual library Lubuto creates. Major partnerships finance the creation of libraries and the operations of our organization. Partnerships with local businesses and community members, especially through library committees, help sustain the libraries. Partnerships with arts, health, ICT and other organizations enrich libraries through development of new programs, services and resources. In turn, those agencies gain by using the library as a platform to reach their intended audiences. Everyone wins in an effective partnership. Lubuto’s activities beyond the libraries’ walls, such as preservation and promotion of the creation of local language children’s literature, are also nurtured by partnerships. One example is a unique partnership with the Zambian Education Publishing House that shows how a digitization project is forging a new partnership between a publishing house and a library, to the benefit of all. This paper describes a wide array and variety of partnerships that brought the Lubuto Library Partners into existence and expanded its scope and activities, along with partnerships that make Lubuto Libraries rich places that play a central role in the lives of their users.