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LIASA has 10 Interest Groups that serve as platforms for membership discussions that cover various areas of interest and specialisation. Members may choose to belong to two (2) Interest Groups at the time of registration. A national meet of each Interest Groups is convened at the annual LIASA Conference. Several Interest Groups have organised pre-conferences at the annual conference which has exposed members to further training and skills development by experts in the field.

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The Interest Groups are:

 
How to form an interest group

A precedent for the formation of new national interest groups within LIASA was set at the first Annual Conference of LIASA in November 1998. The following are the essential steps to be taken to form an Interest Group of LIASA.

  1. New interest groups at the national level

    1. A meeting of LIASA members and other persons interested in forming a new national interest group is held (for example, at an annual conference of LIASA).


    2. The meeting formulates a resolution which is submitted to the Business Meeting at the LIASA Conference. The resolution proposes the formation of a national interest group on a particular topic. The name of the proposed interest group and the name of a convener are proposed in the resolution.


    3. If the Business Meeting approves the resolution, it is the task of the convener to bring together the persons who, at the above-mentioned meeting, stated that they are interested in setting up the interest group, as well as other likely interested persons. These parties can meet physically at a convenient place and time, or be consulted by e-mail and correspondence, to work out a draft constitution for the interest group.


    4. In many cases there will already have been in existence a SAILIS division or affiliated association that was interested or involved in the field of the proposed new LIASA interest group. Some of the interest groups that were formerly under SAILIS have in the mean time reconstituted themselves as independent groups. There are also other independent specialised library associations which were not linked to SAILIS. In the interest of unity in the LIS sector, LIASA members tasked with setting up new interest groups should take cognisance of the existing groupings and make sincere efforts to bring these on board, so that we do not end up duplicating interest groups with the same areas of interest. They should therefore engage these existing interest groups in discussions, determine their needs and concerns, and attempt to address these in the draft interest group constitution, so that they will be prepared to disband and become part of the LIASA interest group.


    5. The draft constitution need not be elaborate, but it should state

      • the aims and objectives of the interest group
      • who the members of the interest group are
      • how it will be governed
      • how it will be funded
      • how it is to be dissolved, if this becomes necessary and, if this happens, how its assets are to be disposed of


    6. In terms of LIASA's Constitution the membership of an interest group should be restricted to members of LIASA. However, to cater for the cases where pre-existing interest groups are brought on board, Representative Council has agreed that for a period of three years starting with the formal admission of the interest group by LIASA's business meeting, all LIASA interest groups may have members who are not LIASA members. After three years this concession will be withdrawn, and from then on all interest group members must be LIASA members.


    7. LIASA members will be entitled to join two national interest groups as part of their basic subscription. If a member wants to join more than two national interest groups, he/she will have to pay an additional amount (to be determined from time to time by the Business Meeting) to cover administration costs (e.g. cost of mailing notices and interest group newsletters).


    8. The governance of a national interest group should be in line with the basic democratic principles which underlie the Constitution of LIASA. Specifically it should provide for regular democratic elections, preferably synchronised with those of LIASA's Representative Council, of a committee. One of the members of the committee is to represent the national interest group in LIASA's Representative Council. Note that only LIASA members may serve as office-bearers of a LIASA interest group (even if non-members of LIASA may be members of the interest group).


    9. The draft constitution is submitted to LIASA's Representative Council for approval.


    10. When the Representative Council has approved the interest group's constitution, the membership of LIASA is informed of its creation and those members interested are invited to notify the LIASA Head Office that they want to join it.


    11. The Head Office records this in the membership database and assists the convener in organising an election of the interest group's first committee.


    12. The committee is now responsible for organising the interest group's activities and the designated representative is now admitted as a member of the Representative Council.


    13. The Head Office supports the national interest group by maintaining a record of its members as part of its general membership database, from which it will, within reason, produce membership lists, supply address labels, do mailings, etc. for the interest group if required.


    14. LIASA's support for a national interest group will be mainly in kind as indicated in 1.12, but if its financial situation permits, it may provide national interest groups with an annual subsidy. The amount of the subsidy will be related to the membership of the national interest group, with the proviso that the Representative Council may provide additional assistance to newly established national interest groups. Note that only LIASA paid-up members will be counted for subsidy purposes.


    15. The interest group can raise its own funds to support its activities.
  1. New interest groups at the provincial branch (provincial) level

    The formation of interest groups at the branch level is to be encouraged, but is best dealt with at branch level. They should be dealt with more informally than national interest groups, provided that they operate in line with the basic democratic principles which underlie the Constitution of LIASA. At the branch level interest groups should be allowed to emerge but also to disappear with a minimum of bureaucracy. An interest group which flourishes at the branch level may expand or join forces with similar interest groups in other branches to become a national interest group. Such developments should not be forced but allowed to take place naturally, on the initiative of the interest groups concerned.


  2. Admission to LIASA of existing interest groups or specialised associations

    1. The steps outlined in par. 1.1 to 1.3 above do not apply in the case of existing interest groups or specialised associations operating nationally. Instead, the interest group or association decides through its existing governance mechanisms that it wishes to become an interest group of LIASA.
    2. The interest group or association applies to the Representative Council of LIASA and submits its Constitution to the Representative Council for approval. The Representative Council considers the application and constitution and may negotiate changes with the interest group or association if it considers this necessary to ensure that it is in line with the basic democratic principles which underlie the Constitution of LIASA.
    3. The Representative Council submits the application and constitution of the interest group or association, with its recommendation, to the Business Meeting at the next Annual Conference for a decision.
    4. The other guidelines set out in par. 1 above apply mutatis mutandis.

  3. Admission of existing interest groups or specialised associations operating at the local or branch levels

    Existing interest groups or specialised associations operating at the branch or provincial level only will be dealt with in the same spirit, but more informally, by the relevant LIASA branches.






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