the silent crisis of SA's libraries

IN RECENT research travelogues of the Eastern Cape, a colleague and Urban Planner, Professor Alan Mabin, shared through the aegis of Facebook his sincere concerns about the poor overall state of the Municipal Library at Gqeberha where 40 years ago he spent considerable time in researching for his doctoral thesis.

- PROFESSOR DHIRU SONI

The infrastructure, governance and service delivery collapse of the library ecosystem at Gqeberha, though, is not unique. It reverberates throughout South Africa.

In every democratic society, libraries stand as quiet but powerful symbols of civilisation, memory and intellectual freedom. They are among the few public institutions that ask nothing of citizens except curiosity and a willingness to learn. In South Africa, however, libraries increasingly stand neglected, underfunded, and, in some instances, deliberately diminished.

This is not merely an administrative failure. It is a national crisis that speaks to how we value knowledge, history and the future of our democracy. Libraries, whether in municipalities or universities, are national public assets and must be treated as such.

Across the country, public libraries are deteriorating. Buildings are falling into disrepair, budgets are shrinking, collections are not being updated, and trained librarians are disappearing from the system. Many communities, especially poorer and rural communities, depend on libraries not only for books, but for internet access, educational support, research facilities, literacy development and safe public spaces for young people.

When a library closes or declines, the damage extends far beyond the walls of the building itself. Entire communities lose access to opportunity.

The tragedy is that this decline often unfolds in silence. Roads with potholes provoke public outrage. Electricity failures dominate headlines. Yet the slow destruction of libraries rarely generates the same urgency, despite the fact that the long-term consequences may be equally devastating.

A society that ceases to invest in libraries gradually weakens its intellectual foundations. Without spaces dedicated to reading, research and critical inquiry, democratic culture itself becomes impoverished.