Abstract
The article discusses the “Ulwazi” (“Knowledge”) Program, which became the first library project in South Africa, aimed at collecting and documenting of the intangible cultural heritage and being realized thanks to the coordinating activities of the Central library of the municipality of eThekwini (Durban) and the active participation of indigenous communities. The author reveals the concept of the project; among its core objectives are the creation of a collaborative online database on the traditional Zulu culture (in both English and Zulu) as part of the information and digital resources of the public libraries of the district, and the growth of digital literacy skills of the local population. The article describes the library network of eThekwini, the main activities of public libraries in the framework of the project implementation, and the difficulties they had to face, as well as the structure of the “Ulwazi” web site, developed on the basis of Web 2.0 technology that allows to involve a large number of users in the creation and distribution of content. Special attention is paid to the social importance of the project contributing to the preservation and promotion of traditional Zulu culture, bridging the digital divide and building a tolerant society.
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