The previous issue of this newsletter announced that the project to be conducted on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Population Information Network with funding from UNFPA calls for ESCAP's role as Network coordinator to be transferred at the end of 1998 to three subregional networks functioning on behalf of the national POPINs in their respective subregions.
As mentioned in that issue, it also calls for the transfer of ESCAP's resource bases, and certain information services and products to appropriate channellers and disseminators during this time-frame, as had been discussed during the Asia-Pacific POPIN Consultative Workshop held in June 1995.
Below are the results of an interview with representatives of two active members of the South Asia POPIN subregional network, Professor K.B. Pathak, Director of the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), at Mumbai (Bombay), India, and Dr. A.T.P.L. Abeykoon, Director of the Population Division, Ministry of Health and Social Services, and of the Sri Lanka Population Information Centre, giving their views about the future in light of these developments.
Q. UNFPA plans to cease funding the post of the Asia-Pacific POPIN coordinator in ESCAP at the end of 1998. Therefore, the functions currently carried out by the secretariat in coordinating Asia-Pacific POPIN will be transferred at that time to three subregional networks covering the national members in their respective subregion. As you will recall, the possibility of this development was mentioned a during the Consultative Workshop held at Bangkok in June 1995. Of course, ESCAP will not abandon Asia-Pacific POPIN, but its role will necessarily be quite limited. Could you please outline for the readers of this Bulletin what you think your Centre would be able to do to continue to foster population information networking both in-country and subregionally and regionally?
A. India: We think that IIPS could play a role in fostering population information networking. As your readers may be aware from the profile of IIPS contained in the publication "Asia-Pacific Population Information Network: a directory and profile of the secretariat and members", our Population Data Centre Unit is equipped with the latest technical devices for information-handling and transfer. We can use it for resource sharing at the national and international levels, as well as subregionally.
Sri Lanka: The Sri Lanka Population Information Centre will continue its work as the focal point for the in-country POPIN network. At the regional and subregional levels, it will continue to share information and participate in TCDC exchange programmes and provide technical assistance.
Q. In the area of population information, some of the major goals of Asia-Pacific POPIN have been the establishment of standards for the effective sharing of data and information as well as the development of databases and directories for the benefit of the clients served by the national centres. What do you think are your centre's strong points in this regard?
A. India: The Institute has its own rich library with 60,000 books, 13,000 reprints/pamphlets and 9,000 bound volumes of journals on population and its related disciplines. The Institute has acquired the "SLIM" software package for computerizing its library in a way that makes it compatible for resource sharing.
Sri Lanka: We too are committed to the effective sharing of data and information; this is a strong point for us. Another is the development of directories.
Q. What are you doing to set up or expand an in-country network that includes policy-making offices and those implementing your country's programme in family planning and maternal and child health?
A. India: As recommended by the Government of India, INFLIBNET has been set up at Ahmedabad in line with the National Information Policy to interconnect all the universities and deemed universities in the country in order to create a national database. Our library which focuses on population, family planning and related topics will be a part of this national database upon completion of the computerization work.
Sri Lanka: Among our in-country activities is a series of information seminars being conducted for Parliamentarians and elected members of provincial councils and local bodies. This is an on-going activity. Our information centre also provides technical support to the Sri Lanka Branch of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development. Networking in this sense directly involves the very people making policies that have an impact on the implementation of our overall population programme.
Q. Could you give us a brief description of your current population information products and services, i.e. what you provide for your country and for others regionally or internationally?
A. India: Besides those listed in the publication I referred to previously, I should mention that the Institute recently completed the NFHS (National Family Health Survey), the reports of which are made available to policy makers and researchers. The Institute also brings out a bi-annual publication on the "Dynamics of Population and Family Welfare" as well as other titles in our research report series.
Sri Lanka: We produce a range of material in country, publishing items in the two national languages, Sinhala and Tamil, and in English, which is well understood by specific users at higher levels. There are also certain items we produce mainly for regional and international audiences. I'll name a few of these: Population Bulletin (bi-annual), Population Data Sheet (annual), Population Statistics of Sri Lanka (annual booklet) and various occasional publications ranging on topics as varied as population and education to ethno-religious differentials in contraceptive accessibility and use. Some of these are published in Sinhala, others in Tamil, still others in English, or in the two national languages, or in all three of the ones I mentioned.
Q. What kind of information could your centre share with others in the region through the Asia-Pacific POPIN Bulletin? Please elaborate on the steps you plan to take in this regard.
A. India: Depending on interest, we could provide the results of demographic surveys and on-going research projects as technical articles for readers of the Bulletin.
Sri Lanka: We could provide news and feature articles for publication in the Bulletin. Another activity we could undertake is the in-country distribution of this newsletter.
Q. Last year, ESCAP's work in information development over the previous five years was assessed by two internationally known information specialists. One of their recommendations was that some of the training activities normally conducted by ESCAP be subcontracted to various members of Asia-Pacific POPIN, according to their level of expertise. Do you think your centre has any particular expertise in this regard? Would you be interested in hosting an English-language training programme for other members on a TCDC-basis? If not, which of the national POPIN centres do you think could best conduct such training? Please discuss.
A. India: Yes, as a deemed university we think we do possess expertise that would be useful to other members of the Network. Subject to the availability of funds, we could undertake various training programmes.
Sri Lanka: Last year in November-December the Sri Lanka Population Information Centre organized a training workshop for various members of the Network. This was very well received by the trainees. So the Centre would be pleased to again host an English-language training programme for other members depending on the availability of funding. The TCDC approach is particularly useful in this regard.
Q. What area of population information work do you find most difficult? Would it help if you could send one of your staff to be trained in that field at the ESCAP secretariat, understanding of course that you may have to obtain the funds yourself from government or donor sources to cover the cost of air fare and room and board etc.?
A. India: The area of difficulty that we find particularly trying is the time-gap we face in obtaining the latest data and information on events, population projects and programmes within India. This is not the ordinary type of information problem that other members may experience, because it relates to our research functions. So I am not sure that training of our staff would enable us to solve this problem as it not one under our control. And, of course, obtaining funds for air-fare, and room and board is not without difficulty because of financial constraints.
Sri Lanka: We face a difficulty in speeding up the development of computer-based bibliographic databases. Therefore, training of staff members in this field would be useful to the Centre, but we face financial constraints.
Q. You are aware of some of the benefits that can be obtained through the utilization of telecommunications technologies for population information work. What plans does your centre have to use telecommunication facilities such as the Internet for information access and dissemination? And CD-ROM? Multi-media?
A. India: Once the process of library computerization has been completed, we plan to establish interconnections with others through INFLIBNET and NICNET. Such a development involves the use of telecommunications. I should mention that our Data Centre is already equipped with CD-ROM, e-mail and fax facilities.
Sri Lanka: Although the Centre has access to POPLINE through CD-ROM, some of the other facilities are currently limited. However, we plan to obtain telecommunication facilities such as Internet, because we have seen through Asia-Pacific POPIN training courses and meetings how useful this technology is for information work. Our first priority is e-mail, although other Internet services such as the World Wide Web would be very useful, too.
Thank you very much, Prof. Pathak and Dr. Abeykoon for taking the time to answer these questions; as leading Network members in your subregion, our readers will be very much interested in your views.