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Do ministers archive emails and text messages?

Ministers in Belgium archive their electronic communications on USB sticks. Apache spoke about this with several archivists, including Martijn Vandenbroucke , collections management coordinator at Amsab-ISG.

Illustration showing a man throwing electronic communications into the trash bin
© Gheleyne Bastiaen

Government leaders across Europe are making a habit of deleting text messages and emails. In Belgium, ministers are not required to retain the contents of their cabinet archives, including their electronic communications. Their emails do end up on USB drives after their mandates expire. This raises serious concerns among archivists.