The rich and varied publishing tradition of the Commonwealth has not been fully exploited by scholars, researchers or educational institutions or by the libraries or booksellers that aim to serve their needs. This is due to an imperfect awareness of the range and scale of publications that exist. Four years ago the Commonwealth Secretariat sought to rectify the matter for current or recent material by producing a small directory of national bibliographies of Commonwealth countries as national bibliographies, when they exist, are a prime source for tracing publications.