Blue Trunk Libraries
Regional Offices
The Blue Trunk Libraries project has provided an opportunity to demonstrate the Organization's unity. In the two regions in which the project has been set up, it was made possible by the active involvement of the Regional Office.
In Africa, the Regional Director has promoted the project from the very outset by writing to all the Ministers of Health of the countries of the Region in order to introduce the Blue Trunk Libraries project. Librarians from the Regional Offices carry out training courses in the countries with their colleagues from headquarters. This close involvement at Regional level is then carried on to country level, where the Offices of WHO Representatives play the vital role of catalyst.
The WHO Office for the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMRO) has taken the opportunity to adapt the project to its region. Thanks to the enthusiasm shown by the WHO Representative in Egypt, it has been possible to obtain funding from UNICEF, UNFPA, from Italian Cooperation and from Plan International, with the result that 200 Blue Trunk Libraries have been ordered for Egypt. The EMRO library services have begun to put the modules together themselves, adding publications in Arabic. It is a significant breakthrough for the project to be an integral part of the Regional Office's activities.