Slovenia
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Country Profile for Slovenia
Legislative and organisational background
The Archives of the Republic of Slovenia (ARS) is a subordinate agency to the Ministry of Culture. The main legislative bases for its work are the Archival Act and the Regulation on Documents and Archives Protection, both of them adopted in 2006. At the end of 2006, ARS published the so-called Uniform Technological Requirements (UTR) as a detailed regulation. Since then, the proactive role of ARS in record-management has been emphasized. ARS is carrying out not only advisory but regulatory and supervisory role as well.
Ministry of Public Administration is the central institution for major decisions in the field of record-management and the one that has significant influence over records being ingested to the public archives. Decree on Administrative Operations, issued by the Ministry, is considered to be its most important regulation among the legal framework for this field of expertise.
Slovenia has for several decades been making use of the so-called positive list appraisal according to which records with the status of archival material are marked-up in classification schemes (appraisal lists). General metadata needed for a quality ingest are defined in UTR. However, based on 2006 archival legal framework, ARS may, in the process of appraisal, determine specific additional metadata for each agency or type of records.
ARS expects the need to deal with various data types, such as electronic records, e-mails, datasets, web pages etc. We still have to gain much experience in the field of e-records ingest, as in the previous year only one register (dataset) was transferred to ARS.
Management of databases
All types of registers, created within the public administration, are regarded as archival records. ARS is currently involved in the preparation of UTR, which are to regulate the specifics of registers, particularly as to their technical aspects. In addition to ARS, representatives of agencies (AJPES, GURS), providers of equipment (ORACLE) and services (GENIS), as well as Perenič svetovanje consulting company are also involved in this process.
The purpose of it all is to ensure data capture in dataset management that will enable long-term preservation of data while at the same time ensuring usability and legal validity of such data even after their transfer to component archives.
Electronic Records Management Systems
General legal framework for e-business in public administration is regulated by the Decree on Administrative Operations, the supervision of which is exercised by the Ministry of Public Administration. According to archival legislation, every e-business agency has to have internal rules. These establish operations of each individual agency as well as ensure legal validity of records, created on the basis of such rules. An agency may accept general internal rules or adopt its own. All internal rules are certified by ARS, which is also in charge of the supervision over the usage of such rules in business.
UTR constitute the legal basis for internal rules certification and supervision over these rules being used in business operations. MoReq specification served as the basis for UTR. Certification audit-list was prepared by ARS. (Two internal rules have been certified within the last three months, since we started with certification. Currently in the process of certification are general internal rules for small and medium-sized enterprises and separate ones for public administration).
Ingest and pre-ingest in general
In ARS, transfers of archival records of chosen agencies usually take place every five years. The agency is responsible for selecting and describing archival records, based on the selection instructions. Description structure for e-records has not been finally standardized yet.
Currently under way is a pilot project for ingest of the member register of the abolished Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia.
The procedure is as follows: -preparation and presentation of business operations and documentation (prepared by the agency) -examination of documentation suitability (ARS) -setting metadata (ARS) -preparation of records (agency) -test ingest – the checking of a sample (ARS) -doing away with irregularities when necessary (the agency) -ingest of the records determined in agreement between ARS and the agency (ARS)
Pre-ingest actions for datasets
The technical aspect of pre-ingest actions has not yet been thoroughly determined since we are still waiting for the results of the mentioned pilot project (Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia). In any case, ARS also leaves room for the ingest of content metadata which is to give a more detailed description of dataset structure. While at it, we also wish to ingest technical metadata and data on process operations concerning datasets. Also included in the pilot project is the preparation and transfer of the output of records in dataset in .pdf, so as to give the archivists in charge a more precise overview of the dataset.
Pre-ingest actions for ERM systems
On the basis of MoReq requirements, UTR do not order specific archival formats but merely bring forward requirements for such formats. However, ARS has issued a list of formats that meet these requirements.
Creators of paper-based archival records are obligated to describe records, which are being transferred to the archives, by using mark from the classification plan to indicate their contents, creation date and the extend of an individual file or group of documents. E-records are subject to equal requirements, however, they have not yet been thoroughly defined in regard to metadata requirements. The pilot project that is currently under way is to provide us with answers to such issues.
Transfer to archives
So far, ARS has had experience with minor ingests of archival records, and has done it by using only portable record media (CD, DVD) and not the actual on-line links. ARS is planning two-phase ingest procedure but in order to carry it out it is obligatory to finish all pre-ingest activities first. Thus, the archive needs to have at its disposal proper documentation on contents and size of the ingested records. The agency is obligated to provide ARS with a detailed list of all records and their structure, including metadata. The first phase of the ingest involves a test ingest of a record sample, which is to provide the archive with the information on potentially incomplete documentation, technical irregularities or content deficiencies. Only after the first phase has successfully been concluded is it possible to approach phase two, where the same technical and content control is exercised.
More detailed protocol has not been prepared yet.
Ingest actions for datasets
Ingest will be carried out in accordance with general rules in two-phase procedure.
Ingest actions for electronic records
Ingest will be carried out in accordance with general rules in two-phase procedure.
Other comments and remarks
References
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