The Library and Archives Canada Annual Departmental Results Report for 2023-2024 is available here.
There are four mentions of genealog* (the same as the previous year), five for census (8), and none for newspaper (1). As in previous years, there is no mention of artificial intelligence.
For the core responsibility of providing access to documentary heritage, the report shows that while seven result indicators were met in 2022-2023, that fell to four of eight in 2023-2024.
The number of images from LAC collections digitized was 5.7 million, up from 5.5 million images the previous year but still lagging behind the historical achievement shown below. That contrasts with the stated ambition to make LAC resources more available nationwide.
LAC is focusing its digitization on priorities. In a renewed effort to clear the backlog, 2.4 million images were digitized for ATIP in 2023-24. LAC closed 14,653 ATIP requests, 3,492 more than in 2022-23.
Another digitization emphasis was Indigenous records for which LAC can draw on earmarked funds.
The number of unique visitors to LAC’s website and online applications fell to 1.8 million, down from 2.2 million the previous year and well short of the 3 million target. However, that does not include direct access to Collection Search —approximately 3 million queries per month.
Less than 2/3 of facilities met environmental standards for the preservation of the analog collection.
LAC reports having 15.344 Petabytes of digitized data. Making that available online using cloud providers like AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure would cost $300,000 to $400,000 monthly, depending on the level of service. Although not stated, some substantial parts of the holdings are likely offline storage, such as magnetic tape.
The word cloud is based on “providing access to the documentary heritage” section of the report.
