Ukraine has made significant progress in the digitization of archival documents, ranking second in the world in terms of digital copy volume in 2023. Despite challenging conditions, the country plans to increase the pace of digitization in the future.
Digitization of archives of Ukraine
Achievements in digitalization
In 2023, Ukrainian archives made a real breakthrough, creating over 21 million digital copies of documents. This impressive result allowed Ukraine to take second position in the world ranking in terms of the scale of digitization. Information about this was provided by employees of the State Archival Service of Ukraine.
World leaders in digitization
The ranking of countries by speed of digitization of archival materials for 2023 is as follows:
- Finland - 34.2 million,
- Ukraine - more than 21 million,
- Germany - about 21 million,
- Israel - more than 18 million,
- Norway - 18 million,
- India - up to 15 million,
- Uzbekistan - 14.7 million,
- Great Britain — 12.5 million,
- Malaysia — more than 10 million
Features of leadership
While Finland tops the list, it is important to note that their figure includes both scanned traditional documents and those originally created in digital format. From 2022, Finland has completely stopped accepting paper documents for storage.
According to Vitaly Skalsky, director of the Ukrainian Research Institute of Archiving and Documentation, Ukraine actually leads the world in the pace of digitization of archival materials.
Plans for the future
In the future, a significant increase in the pace of document digitization in Ukraine is expected.
Anatoly Khromov, head of the State Archival Service of Ukraine, said: “Over the past year, Ukrainian archives digitized over 21 million pages of documents. This is 17.5 times higher than before 2019. We are seeing an exponential increase in the pace of digitization. Despite military operations and power outages in archival institutions, our goal for this year is to digitize at least 30 million copies of documents."
Access to digitized materials
You can view digitized archival documents on the Interarchival Search Portal, official websites of state archives, as well as in the reading rooms of archival institutions.
Glossary
- State Archival Service of Ukraine is the central executive body implementing state policy in in the field of archival and record keeping.
- Ukrgosarchiv is the abbreviated name of the State Archival Service of Ukraine.
- Interarchival search portal - an online platform for searching and accessing digitized archival documents of Ukraine.
- Vitaly Skalsky - director of the Ukrainian Research Institute of Archival Affairs and Documentation.
- Anatoly Khromov - Chairman of the State Archival Service of Ukraine.
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Answers to questions
What place does Ukraine take in the world ranking for digitization of archival documents in 2023?
Who is leading the list of countries in terms of the pace of digitization of archival documents?
What are Ukraine's plans for the digitization of archival documents for the future?
How has the pace of digitization of archival documents in Ukraine changed in recent years?
Where can I get acquainted with digitized archival documents of Ukraine?
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Discussion of the topic – Ukraine is in second place: 21 million documents digitized in a year
Ukraine has achieved impressive results in the digitization of archival documents, ranking second in the world with more than 21 million digital copies in 2023. This achievement underscores the importance of preserving historical heritage and modernizing the country's archival system.
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Olivia
Wow, I didn’t expect that Ukraine is in second place in the digitization of archives! 21 million documents is impressive. 👏 I wonder how they managed to achieve such results in wartime?
Hans
Yes, it's really impressive. Especially considering the situation in the country. I think this is due to the understanding of the importance of preserving historical heritage. By the way, I’m surprised that Germany is in third place. We did a good job too! 💪
Sophie
Olivia, Hans, I agree with you! I was amazed that Finland was leading by such a margin. 34 million is an unrealistically high amount! 😮 I wonder how their process is organized?
Carlos
Guys, have you noticed that Finland no longer accepts paper documents for storage? This is a revolution in archiving! 🚀 I wonder how soon other countries will follow their example?
Giovanni
Bah, all these numbers and records... Why is this digitization needed at all? We used to live without her and nothing, everything was fine. They just waste money on these newfangled things.
Sophie
Giovanni, what are you doing? Digitization is the preservation of history! Imagine how many documents can be lost due to wars and natural disasters. And so - everything will be stored digitally and will remain for posterity. 📚🖥️
Olivia
Sophie is right! In addition, it simplifies access to information. Now you don’t need to go to another city or country to study a document. Everything can be found online. This is progress! 🌐🔍
Piotr
I was surprised that Poland is not on this list. It will be necessary to ask how we are doing with the digitization of archives. Maybe we should learn from our neighbors' experience? 🤔