Libraries of the
Institute of Jamaica
The
Institute
of
Jamaica
, the cultural agency of the government, charged with the mandate of promulgating
the advance “For the Encouragement of Literature, Science and Art in
Jamaica
”, operates four Special Libraries, each attracting its own target audience. These
are The Science Library, The African Caribbean Institute of Jamaica (ACIJ) Library,
The Garvey Research and Reference Library and the Junior Centre Library.
The Science Library, which forms part of
the Natural History Division, maintains an effective and efficient collection of
resource material on the flora and fauna of
Jamaica
. The library provides among other services, rich textual images of Jamaican animals
and plants and maintains an efficient collection of resource material, scientific
books and access to over 10,000 volumes, many of which are rare publications.
The African
Caribbean Institute of Jamaica/Jamaica Memory Bank Library boasts a wide collection
of reference and audio visual materials as it pertains to African retention in Jamaica
and the wider
Caribbean
. The facility, which is widely utilized by secondary and tertiary students and
other researchers,
is a reference library and therefore materials from the collection may only be used
in-house. It features a reference collection of approximately 6000 volumes and an audiovisual
collection of over 300 videotapes and over 4000 audiotapes; all showcasing Jamaica’s
heritage. The ACIJ itself has authored several
publications based on research undertaken on different aspects of the Jamaican culture.
The Garvey Research and Reference Library, located at
76 King Street, Kingston, features manuscripts, books, CDs, cassettes,
articles and others publications about the life and work of former Pan-African Leader
and National Hero of Jamaica, Marcus
Mosiah Garvey. The library also holds publications on the work of other African
leaders and people of African descent within the African Diaspora.
The Junior Centre Library, established in 1939
as the chief cultural centre of the youths and
Jamaica
's first lending Library, extends membership to
students aged 6-18 years.
It aims to foster the
intellectual, aesthetic and cultural growth of youths and provides
all the services of a public library, granting access to literature of
all sorts.