SALDANHA BAY MUNICIPALITY LAUNCHES PARTNERSHIP WITH UNISA

Dignitaries were welcomed at the Vredenburg Public Library on Tuesday, 27 February 2024 to officially launch a partnership between the municipality’s Library Services and the University of South Africa (Unisa).

Driven by a common vision, the collaboration between Saldanha Bay Municipality and Unisa is a multiple-library initiative that, at its core, aims to create an environment for local students, prospective students and the public at large to access information and available technology that will support and equip users in the process of further learning and development.  The vision is to ultimately contribute to an informed, skilled and learned society.  A strong emphasis is placed on promoting the concept of “life-long learning” in the community and to unlock the potential of local human capital.

Saldanha Bay Municipality currently manages nine public libraries that lend books and provide access to electronic resources such as the Internet.  It also serves as a gathering point for certain community-based events.  The newly launched service, in collaboration with Unisa, will benefit enrolled and prospective students of the institution, across libraries, where, for example, an E-mail can be sent to Unisa to request a specific prescribed book or literature.  This item will subsequently be despatched via a dedicated courier to the library closest to the student.  Once the student has completed the borrowing period and returns the book or educational material to the library, the library will inform Unisa accordingly and Unisa will arrange for the item or items to be collected.  Students can benefit through this process by saving on time and expenses to obtain prescribed material.

It can be said that “libraries offer a voyage of discovery.”  Through this collaboration between the municipality and Unisa, it is envisioned that the partnership will indeed “open doors” for many and further encourage a culture of learning in a developing society.

The ceremonial signing of the partnership agreement was performed by Saldanha Bay Municipality’s Phumzile Mbaliswana, Director of Corporate and Public Safety Services and Michelle Frauendorf, Unisa Cape Town Campus Acting Regional Director.

For more information and assistance, visit or contact your nearest Saldanha Bay Municipality public library.  Visit the municipal Website at https://sbm.gov.za/libraries/ for contact details and library times.