Overview


The Universal Service Fund(USF) has been supporting the Jamaica Library Service in its quest to become a well-resourced and technology-enhanced organization. The Fund has made significant contributions to the JLS over the past decade. Outlined below are some of the major contributions the USF has made to the JLS.

 

Provision of Public Access Computers:

In January 2009 the USF donated computer systems and supporting software in the amount of US $440,176.00. The donation included 349 public access computer systems which at the time represented more than a 100% increase in public access computers. The details of the donation are:

  • 333 Desktop Computers
  • 16 Notepads
  • 160 UPS
  • 349 licenses of Microsoft Office Suite
  • 349 Antivirus Software
  • 349 copies of computer reservation software.

The provision of the items was critical in the organization’s quest to implement free computer and internet access to the public.

In 2013 as the JLS sought to offer greater levels of service to public the USF donated approximately JA $ 5.2 million to purchase computers and supporting software. These items constitute approximately 30% of the organization’s current inventory of public access computers and included:

  • 400 Computers
  • 400 UPS
  • Microsoft Office Suite licenses

 

Wide Area Network connectivity

The USF has also provided Wide Area Network (WAN) connections to 44 of the major public libraries island-wide.   The initiative which commenced 2012 resulted in high speed fiber connections installed in 13 parish libraries and 31 branch libraries island-wide. The Network provided interconnection between branches as well as high-speed access to the Internet.  JLS has benefited tremendously from this initiative and to date it remains the most significant contribution USF has made to the library.

 

Integrated Library Management System 

The USF has also contributed to the Implementation of the JLS Integrated Library Management System: KOHA. Installation of the system which was in the planning stage for many years got underway with a donation from the Fund. Funds from USF was also used to purchase computers and barcode scanners to aid with the implementation of the library management system.