Ghana risks losing rare documents due to neglect at PRAD
Almost two years after e.tv Ghana news exposed the embarrassing nature of the nation’s only records and archives department, the Public Records and Archives Department (PRAD), the condition of the department is still in a deplorable state.
The department has now become a subject of public discussion following another report by the Daily Graphic which indicates that no serious attention has been given to the department.
Six months after its initial airing, e.tv Ghana news continued to monitor any likely attempts to fix the problem. It was revealed that conditions at the department had not changed; it had rather worsened.
Minister of Information, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, in an interview commended e.tv Ghana news for its efforts in unraveling some difficulties confronting the country.
He admitted the problems facing the nations’ only archival department was due to neglect.
He noted that, as a country, we have failed to keep up with technology and made reference to some ministries, departments and agencies which are also facing the same fate in terms of record keeping.
“We are still storing our history in a very old format. We should be looking at digitization and using the computers largely in storing our records but we have not done that.”
He explained that one reason for the deplorable state of the archival department was due to the lack of resources. He added that it was quite costly to do the conversion from the old records to the digitized format which is not only durable but also has the ability to store more data conveniently.
Mr Okudzeto Ablakwa also stated that little attention had been paid by previous governments to secure funding for the rehabilitation of the department, adding that because of the NDC government’s commitment to have the Right to Information Bill passed, it would no longer have excuses to ensure that PRAD was in a good condition.
He also added that the poor state in which PRAD found itself had become a serious topic of discussion especially before the floor of parliament.
However, two years on, conditions at PRAD still remain the same. When e.tv Ghana news revisited the offices of the department, it revealed a rather worsening state.
As it is, workers of the department are fighting hard to salvage the few documents left from the dilapidation. Henry Aryee works at the repository and was here when the news team first visited the place.
He tells e.tv Ghana news that the department is still facing the problems because it had not received any funding after the news team’s first visit.
He explains that documents such as the colonial African map which demarcates the various boundaries were kept at the department, adding that when boundary issues rose between Ghana and Ivory Coast the archives department was consulted to solve the issue.
Taking a look around the department, it was discovered that the situation is getting even worse as the documents are getting more brittle with malfunctioning air conditioners and leaking roofs.
The poor state of the Public Records and Archives Department (PRAD) indicates that proper record-keeping remains a monumental task in Ghana because of the lack of modern logistics.
Some of the documents at the department can never be replaced when they are destroyed.
By: Naadi Bitlegma
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