Constitution

Article 1: Name and Status

  1. The name of the Committee, subject of these statutes is the African Regional Committee for the Memory of the World Program (ARCMoW);
  2. Under the UNESCO Memory of the World (MoW) Program, ARCMoW is the Regional Committee for Africa;
  3. Africa means all the African countries outside the States of the Continent belonging to the Arab Group, member countries of the Electoral Group of UNESCO 5 (a). Consequently “African (s) and “Region” relate to this Electoral Group;
  4. ARCMoW complies with the provisions of the texts governing the MoW Program, in particular the 2015 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the preservation and accessibility of documentary heritage including digital heritage, the General Directives and the Memory of the World Program Register Companion.

Article 2: Objectives

  1. Promote, facilitate and ensure the monitoring of the MoW Memory of the World Program in the African region, as defined in point (iii) of Article 1.
  2. Represent the African Region at the international level within the framework of MoW activities.
  3. Encourage adequate representation of African documentary heritage in the Memory of the World International Register.
  4. Support and facilitate nominations from the Africa Region for inclusion in the International Register and nomination for the Jikji Prize
  5. Support and complete the work of national Memory of the World committees.

Article 3: Terms of Reference

ARCMoW's missions are:

(i) Raise awareness of the importance of documentary heritage including digital heritage;

(ii) Contribute to its identification and its preservation;

(iii) Enable its accessibility;

(iv) Encourage States to adopt coherent public policies adapted to the reservation of their documentary heritage;

(v) Develop cooperation between states;

(vi) Promote the sharing of resources, and examples of best practices in terms of preservation and accessibility of documentary heritage and the optimal use of resources in the African Region;

(vii) Mobilize political, economic, social and cultural and economic support for then MoW Program for the African Memory of the World Program, in the structures of the African Union, with sub-regional, regional and international institutions.

(viii) Encourage and support transnational applications for shared documentary Heritage;

(ix) Encourage and support collaborative projects and links on shared heritage and other valuable shared collections;

(x) Encourage the use of common, shared, or displaced heritages and related collections between various countries of the Region and in the world;

(xi) Facilitate the creation of national committees and the establishment of national Memory of the World registers;

(xii) Create and manage the African Regional Register of Memory of the World Documentary Heritage;

(xiii) Identify selection criteria, taking into account MoW Program governing texts, and any other matter determined by the Memory of the World program;

(xv) Mobilize resources and support for Memory of the World projects/activities in the African region;

(xvi) Facilitate the integration of heritage into all national policies and programs, paying particular attention to its infusion into the formal school curriculum at all levels of education.

Article 4: Membership

(i) ARCMoW shall be composed of:

- National MoW Committees in member states in the Africa Region, each represented by their appointed delegate for four years,

- the Executive Committee of ARCMoW

- Heads of Memory Institutions at the National level.

(ii) An obligation of membership is the submission of an annual report in terms established by the Executive Committee.

Article 5: Termination of membership

  1. If a member fails to attend three consecutive meetings that specific member will be expelled and the National Committee of his or her country will be requested to nominate another member for the remainder of the term.
  2. A member will be allowed not more than two proxies per his or her term (4 years).

Article 6: Voting

(i) Each country in the general assembly shall have the right to exercise one Vote.

(ii) In the case of a tie, the President shall have a casting vote.

(iii) The voting shall be done by secret ballot.

Article 7: Meetings

  1. ARCMoW shall meet in general assembly once every two years. It may meet in extraordinary session, if it decides to do so, or if summoned by the ARCMoW Executive Committee.
  2. The Executive Committee shall draw up the agenda for the meetings of ARCMoW and shall circulate it to members at least two months in advance of the meeting.
  3. Meetings shall normally be in-person at a specified place.
  4. Meetings shall be on rotational basis to all countries in the Africa region
  5. Efforts shall be made by ARCMoW to raise funds for the organization of general Assembly meetings.
  6. Meetings shall be conducted in the UNESCO languages, mainly, English and French.
  7. As much as is possible Costs of accommodation and meals shall be funded by the host country.

Article 8 The Extraordinary Assembly

An extraordinary Assembly may be called under the same conditions as the ordinary one whenever the Executive Committee deems it necessary. It can also be done on written request signed by at least one third of the ARCMoW members. It can validly deliberate according to the voting and quorum procedures provided for in Article 9.

Article 9: Quorum

  1. A simple majority of members at a meeting of ARCMOW and any of its subsidiary committees will constitute a quorum.
  2. A State empowered by proxy may validly represent the State which authored the said proxy, established in accordance with the point (ii) of Article 5.

Article 10: Observers

(i) The countries without National Committee may be Observers.

(ii) The President, on the recommendation of the Executive Committee, may invite or admit observers at specified meetings of ARCMOW.

(iii) Observers shall not have the right to vote.

Article 11: The Executive Committee

  1. ARCMOW shall elect a President, three Vice-Presidents, from the Southern, Western, Eastern, and Central Sub Regions, a Secretary General, a Rapporteur and three members to comprise its Executive Committee. The list of Vice-Presidents with their functions are established in Appendix A.
  2. The distribution of seats on the Executive Committee is rotated within ARCMoW Sub-Region.
  3. The Executive Committee shall have the power to co-opt or appoint sub-committees whenever it deems it necessary.
  4. The term of office of the Executive Committee shall be four years. This mandate is renewable once. The Committee is renewable by half every two years. This provision is applicable after the first term of the initial committee.
  5. The Executive Committee shall establish its “Rules of Procedure” and “Code of Conduct” which shall be submitted to ARCMoW for approval. These documents may be revised as and when necessary by a new Executive Committee and re-submitted to ARCMoW for approval.

Article 12: Budget and Finances

  1. On behalf of the Executive Committee, the Vice-President in charge of Finances must :

  • establish a biennial budget;
  • submit requests for subsidies to possible donors, to patrons who are friends of documentary heritage, to international, regional, and sub-regional organizations, etc;
  • receive all donations/grants from international, regional, sub-regional, and other organizations and associations or individuals;
  • compile and present an audited annual statement of account;
  • provide copies of the audited annual statement of account to ARCMoW members during the General Assembly.

  1. At each renewal of the post of President, the Vice-President in charge of Finance and two (2) members of local staff appointed by the National Commission for UNESCO of the new President’s country, will open a bank account in collaboration and co-management with the said National Commission. This team will monitor expenditures made from said bank account at the request of the Vice-President in charge of Finance, in accordance with the directives of the Executive Committee.
  2. The Vice-President in charge of Finance shall present to the Executive Committee a Statement of the audited annual accounts, a copy of which will be given to members of ARCMoW during the General Assembly.

Article 13: Amendment

  1. Amendments to the Constitution may be made at a general meeting of ARCMoW if two-thirds of the full members present and represented so decide.
  2. Proposed amendments must be circulated to all members in writing at least two months in advance of the meeting where they are to be presented for decision.

Article 14: Dissolution

(i) The dissolution of ARCMoW can only be pronounced by the General Extraordinary Assembly convened specially for this purpose under the conditions provided for in Article 8.

(ii) The Extraordinary General Assembly shall appoint one or more commissioners responsible for the liquidation of ARCMoW assets for the the benefit of any declared sub-regional association having a similar purpose or to any public or private establishment recognized as useful for the preservation and enhancement of Documentary Heritage.

Article 15: Commencement

This Constitution takes effect at the conclusion of the ARCMoW meeting of 27 May 2021.