The Asociación de Bibliotecólogos del Perú (ABP) sent an official letter to Culture Minister Alberto Beingolea asking him to appoint a trained librarian as head of the Biblioteca Nacional del Perú (BNP).
The letter, signed by ABP president Yessica Mercado Bolívar, described the BNP as one of the most important institutions since the founding of the Republic and the country's main authority on bibliographic and documentary heritage. The association said the institution's top leadership has long lacked technical expertise in the field.
History of unqualified appointments
According to the letter, most of the BNP's institutional chiefs throughout history have come from outside librarianship. The document said these were generally well-intentioned people who lacked knowledge of the field and its development, which it called essential for an institution of such importance.
The ABP also said Peru still lacks genuine decentralization of cultural policy. It urged the minister to reactivate a genuine National System of Libraries with better reading services to meet citizens' information needs.
Candidate proposed for the role
The association asked Beingolea to take the lead in naming a professional specialized in Library and Information Science as institutional chief of the BNP, through a process that includes prior consultation with the guild.
For that role, the ABP formally proposed Olinda Graciela Rengifo García, whom it described as a librarian with extensive experience and background, calling her a suitable candidate for the position. Rengifo García graduated in librarianship from the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, holds a master's degree in Information and Documentation from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, and previously served as institutional chief of the Archivo General de la Nación.
