Assessing the implementation of the National Archives and Records Service Act at Eduardo Mondlane University in Mozambique

Abstract

Archival legislation is a crucial tool for the public sector to ensure the management, preservation and access of a country’s national documentary heritage. In Mozambique, archival legislation which has been enacted sets the scene for records appraisal and disposition, as well as classification schemes and retention schedules for administrative records of governmental bodies falling under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Services Act No. 36 of 2007 (NARSA). Despite this, the records management processes of many public entities in Mozambique have remained ineffective and inefficient. This article presents the data from a study conducted by Pereira (2017), which utilized the record life cycle concept as a framework to assess the state of implementation of the NARSA at Eduardo Mondlane University (EMU) in Mozambique. The study applied a quantitative research approach with triangulation of data collection tools, namely, questionnaire and document analysis. Data collected in the study revealed that EMU has established only one central records appraisal, destruction and transfer committee for its directorate units, which has not coped with the records management demands from other academic units such as faculties, schools and research centres. In most of the academic units, the records management staff were not involved in the training, records appraisal, destruction and transfer processes as required by legislation. Data analysis concludes that most EMU units do not comply with archival legislation, resulting in few prescriptions of the Act being implemented. The study recommends that the records management department at EMU should put in place the basic procedures of control for records management systems with the leadership taking a proactive role in strategic planning, budgeting and monitoring. Furthermore, it is recommended that another empirical study focusing on the assessment of implementation of the NARSA throughout the entire public sector in Mozambique should be undertaken.