Cap. 477 Art. 6Functions and duties of the NationalArchivist. deposited in the Archives. Deferment of transfer.

(1) The National Archivist shall be the chief executive officer of the National Archives, and he shall also be responsible for the preservation of all public records of enduring value other than any records whose transfer may have been deferred under article 8(5), and shall in particular:

(a) provide professional assistance, advice and guidance on the establishment and management of filing and registry systems in public offices and on the training of the staff of public offices in record keeping;

(b) inspect the record keeping practices and systems of public offices which are obliged to deliver records to the National Archives;

(c) agree with the heads of public offices on, and ensure the implementation of, the retention and disposal schedules relating to records specific to each such office, which schedules shall be sufficient authority holdings and provide appropriate finding aids to facilitate access to them;

(f) ensure that reasonable facilities are available to the public for inspecting and obtaining copies of public records in the National Archives, insofar as such records are open to inspection under article 10;

(g) give advice to users on the use of the preserved records and documentary material of the Archives, and increase the knowledge of national history and support studies in it;

(h) establish a reference library on archival theory and practice;

(i) make the holdings of the National Archives known by organising outreach events and the lending of public records elsewhere subject to conditions which he may specify in line with article 9;

(j) prescribe rules to be observed by those wishing to consult public records in the National Archives or any other archival repository under his control;

(k) dispose of public records in his custody if in his opinion they do not warrant preservation by the National Archives or the preservation by the National Archives of copies of them in such form as he may determine will suffice;

(l) enter into arrangements with other institutions for the joint management or conservation or restoration of archives, and for the provision of reprographic or other technical facilities; and

(m) prepare and sell publications or objects related to the functions of the National Archives.

(2) The National Archivist shall furthermore -

(a) assume full responsibility for the administration and organization and the administrative control of the officers and employees of the National Archives and for such purpose assign to each officer or employee such duties as may be required;

(b) develop the necessary strategies for the implementation of the objectives of the National Archives;

(c) advise the Minister and the Council on any matter they may refer to him or on any matter which he considers necessary or expedient;

(d) perform such other duties as the Minister may assign to him from time to time. shall be the public records listed in the Second Schedule.

(2) Archives of a particular nature which are regulated by any other law, in force from time to time shall be kept and shall be regulated in accordance with that law provided that such archives are preserved and made accessible according to standards agreed upon with the National Archivist.

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-article (2), the Minister may in concurrence with the Minister responsible for a particular archive, order the transfer of documents kept in such archives to the National Archives, and this under such conditions as may be agreed upon by the Minister and the Minister responsible for those Archives; and where any such document is transferred to the National Archives, for the purpose of any law regulating the deposit of that document in the existing archives, such document shall be deemed to be properly deposited in accordance with such law, and all responsibility relative to such document, including the issue of copies and extracts therefrom, as well as the authentication thereof, shall upon the transfer of such documents vest in the National Archivist.

(4) The National Archivist may certify that particular departmental records which are more than thirty years old do not warrant transfer to the National Archives for preservation, and any records so certified shall be retained in the appropriate public office or, as the case may be, returned to that public office, where they may be retained, or disposed of, subject to the granting of an authorisation under article 6.

(5) The National Archivist may defer the acceptance of the transfer of records and archives into his custody if accommodation for them is not available or other arrangements for their reception cannot be made.