§ Mr. Costainasked the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what progress has recently been made with the scheme to assist the development of library systems in Colonial Territories announced in June, 1959.
Dr. HillIn addition to the grants I announced on 7th November, 1960, in reply to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, South (Mr. Clark Hutchison) grants of £35,000 and £22,820 were made by the British Council to Sierra Leone and Tanganyika respectively during 1960–61.
The grant of £35,000 to Sierra Leone was towards the capital cost of a Central Library and Headquarters in Freetown. The total capital cost is estimated at £45,000, towards which the Sierra Leone Government is contributing £10,000 as well as meeting all recurrent costs. This project is part of an overall plan by the Sierra Leone Library Board which also envisages the operation of a mobile book van in the Provinces and the opening of branch libraries in the larger towns.
The grant of £22,820 to Tanganyika is towards the first year's costs of a three-year short-term library development scheme, which incorporates an extension of the existing services of the East African Literature Bureau Library in Tanganyika, including a substantial 75W increase in book stock and the operation of a mobile book service in the Dares Salaam area.