Oxfam to donate its archive to Bodlean

Oxfam is to donate its 70-year archive to Oxford University's Bodleian Libraries, it was announced today.

The international charity was founded in Oxford in 1942 as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, and its archive fills almost 10,000 boxes, and contains papers, film, digital materials, audio recordings and oral histories.

Among the material is information on Oxfam's projects between 1955 and 2005, covering issues such as agricultural development, water and sanitation and primary healthcare, the Bodleian said.

There are also documents on Oxfam's adverts for campaigns and appeals, and council and executive minute books and papers charting the charity's rise and expansion.

The library said it has been given a grant by the Wellcome Trust to fund a four-and-a-half-year project to catalogue the material.

Librarian Sarah Thomas said: "The archive will be an essential resource for a range of scholars, complementing our existing holdings in the areas of science, medicine, history and development."

Karen Brown, chair of Oxfam, said the archive was a "unique record" of Oxfam and the international aid movement.

"It is wonderful that the Wellcome Trust funding has enabled us to work with the Bodleian to preserve material and make it available to the public. I hope it inspires future generations to continue striving to overcome poverty worldwide."