What is Electronic Records

Poor records management has caused serious impediments in several aspects of public sector. This has negatively affected prompt payments and employment practices, revamping of government functions and organizational structures, strengthening of financial management and the national legal and regulatory framework. In the absence of a culture of records management, monitoring and evaluation, quality control, and verification cannot proceed as a well-kept record provide the basis for all these, which also engender the rule of law and accountability. They are the foundation upon which a nation may build programs for good governance, poverty reduction, equitable justice, financial accountability, enforceable civil rights, etc. It is imperative, therefore, for government officials to adopt good records keeping practices, since this will support effective, transparent and accountable government. Accessible and reliable records will show what decisions were made, actions taken, people who were involved and the rights and responsibilities that exists. African countries are faced with several challenges in managing records, particularly electronic records. These border on technology obsolescence, inadequate trained personnel, policy formulation and implementation, etc. These have made the structure, content and context of records to be altered indiscriminately. Adopting integrated electronic information systems in government and organisation‘s transactions, electronic records management policy formulation and implementation, establishing more training outlet for records managers and archivists, developing metadata for locating records, etc. will go a long way in adequately managing electronic records in Africa.