The National Archives and Library reviews the amendments to the executive regulations of Federal Law No. 7 of 2008
Abu Dhabi, 20 November / WAM / The National Archives and the National Library organized a virtual symposium for the benefit of government agencies in which it reviewed the amendments that occurred in the executive regulations of Federal Law No. 7 of 2008 regarding the Archives and the National Library, with the aim of aligning the provisions of the regulations with the modern changes and strategies of the United Arab Emirates, and compatibility with applicable legislation.
Dr. Hamad Al-Mutairi, Acting Executive Director of the National Archives and Library, explained in his opening speech that the updated regulations set clear frameworks for technical procedures in the areas of transfer and destruction, sorting and classification, and preservation and availability of documents.
He pointed out that the amendments included adding a new section related to the affairs of the National Library and enhancing the country’s cultural stock.
Al-Mutairi pointed out that the new policies support national trends by adopting modern technologies and accelerating work procedures in a way that reduces time and at the same time takes into account the conditions for the proper preservation of paper and electronic documents. He stressed the connection of these amendments to efforts to zero out government bureaucracy, as precise control of documents provides accelerating access to information and promoting sustainability and green environmental practices.
Archiving expert, Mr. Ahmed Mojib, reviewed the amendments, confirming the possibility of viewing the list through the website of the Archive and the National Library, indicating that the amendments came as a natural response to the process of merging the National Archives and the National Library.
Mujib called on holders of public documents or those related to state interests to hand them over to the archives and the national library to ensure their optimal preservation, stressing the importance of having an organizational unit for documents in every government agency to ensure effective coordination with local authorities concerned with permanent preservation.
For his part, Dr. Sofiane Bouhrat, the technical expert, discussed the aspects related to the management of confidential documents, indicating the periods of confidentiality according to the categories of documents, which range between 20 and 60 years depending on their nature and their connection to security, judicial issues, or personal privacy. He reviewed the technical classification standards for documents useful for historical and scientific research, rare documents, in addition to documents related to human resources and personnel affairs.
Bouhrat touched on the joint document preservation plan developed by the Archives and the National Library, and government agencies were trained to implement it, stressing the importance of the external transfer of documents from government agencies to the Archives and the National Library as part of the national responsibility.
He explained the destruction procedures, which are considered one of the most sensitive operations and are subject to the approval of a specialized committee and are implemented in the presence of a representative of the Archives and the National Library.
The expert highlighted the management and archiving of electronic documents, the private documents owned by individuals, families and companies, and the importance of collecting and preserving them in the archive and the national library.
The symposium emphasized that the success of the national project for document preservation depends on the integrated partnership between the archive, the national library, and government agencies, describing documents as part of the state’s property and the responsibility for preserving them is shared.
The symposium witnessed broad interaction from participants, and was characterized by interventions and inquiries that focused on the practical aspects of the amendments to the executive regulations.
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