In the wake of the recent devastating earthquake, Nepal has lost a lot—lives, culture, historic monuments; the list goes on. The 7.6 magnitude quake and its numerous aftershocks have also destroyed many of the Capital’s libraries: many that house antique manuscripts dating back 200 years. As the monsoon approaches, it is going to be a challenge to preserve these invaluable pieces of history.
United Nations Information Center, a prime source of UN publication and a reference library to the public, has also had to temporarily cease library operations to make room for emergency teams. However, through UNIC’s initiative to create an inventory of United Nations Knowledge -- a unique digital collection of all the United Nations reports and documents related to Nepal, from 1951 till date—all documents are available to the public at http://www.un.info.np. Although the official launch was planned for later in the year, the UNDRN has been opened to the public in light of recent occurrences.
known as the United Nations Digital Repository in Nepal (UNDRN), this scheme is first of its kind in Nepal and follows an extensive process known as Knowledge Management to collect, develop and share the wealth of data available. An online repository is an ideal way to preserve the growing volume of publications produced by UN agencies each year and ensure efficient accessibility without cost to everyone from anywhere, especially after a natural disaster. The repository currently has 3.7 K out of which more than 700 documents are related to the earthquake and disaster.