Development Of Public Library In Nigeria With Reference

Development Of Public Library In Nigeria With Reference

Abstract

This design is on the development of public libraries in Nigeria with reference to the Imo Central Library, Owerri. Chapter one of this work traces the history of public Library development in Imo State starting from the days of the eastern Nigeria Library Board which serried as a platform for the establishment of the Imo State Central Library Owerri. Chapter two highlights the places which a public Library can play in the society in it’s capacity as an agency of education, information, culture, recreation and asthetic appreciation. Services rendered by public Libraries were mentioned, similar services includes reference services, gyrations of accoutrements , original collections development, display and exhibition,etc. problems militating against public Library development in the state were also stressed in this chapter. Three styles of data collection were used in this design. Three styles of data collection were used in this design. These include oral interview, examination of the Libraries records and the questionnaire made. Through these styles the experimenter collected applicable data for this design work. In chapter five, findings were made from disquisition carried act about the Library from these findings, the experimenter thus made a number of recommendations which he hoped will develop in Imo State.

Chapter One

Preface

Background To The Study

In this ultramodern world of information explosion the society is always in need of information agencies strive to meet this information need. multitudinous delineations have been given to the term library, one of similar delineations are contained in the encyclopedia Britannica(vol. 22, 1988) state that “ a library is a collection of written, published or other graphic or visual accoutrements ( including lines, photos, videotapes, phonograph records, videotape discs, microforms and computer programmes) organized and maintained for reading, study and discussion. Another description of library is from the websters New York World Dictionary( 1991) which states chapeau “ library is a room or structure where a collection of books, diurnals etc are kept for reading and reference ” collier’s encyclopedia(vol. 14,1990) defines the “ library as collection of graphic accoutrements , books, flicks, magazines, maps calligraphies, organized for use ” while maturity of people take a library to be a place where books are kept. These views of people about the library isn’t satisfactory.

thus, the description of a library to be accepted by all should be the one given by Agbodike 1995 in a lecture delivered, “ A library is a collection of records of mortal culture in print ornon-print information furnishing accoutrements , or book andnon-book accoutrements , house, saved, organized, interpreted and managed by professional librarians or clientele for information, knowledge, education, exploration, recreation and aesthetic appreciation and artistic enjoyment. The description which unites the library to bespeak alone is deficient for there are numerous other forms of recorded knowledge similar as videotapes, enterprises, microfilms, microfishes, videotape videotapes and projectors contained in the effects of libraries. opining on the changing places of the library, the father of librarianship, Melvin, Dewy( 1906) stated that the library has lost it’s etymologic meaning and means not a collection of books but the central agency for propagating information, innocent recreation or stylish of all, alleviation among the people.

From the description given above, the three factors of a library are books, staff and structure. A library can not live without books or a good institution called a library without a structure, as well as acceptable finance to run and maintain it. There are different types of libraries performing different functions aimed at satisfying their colorful patrons. These includes academy, academic, special public and public libraries. School libraries are libraries located in primary and secondary seminaries. They support and enrich the educational programmes in the seminaries in which they’re located.

Academic libraries are libraries located in institutions of high literacy while special libraries are those established in companies, associations, government department and exploration institutions. This type of library satisfy the requirements of subject specialists and experimenters. The National Library of a country is the one responsible for collecting and conserving the total of that county’s book product for the benefit of farther generations. It’s the principal repository of the public trades and culture.

Public libraries are libraries erected for the general public. They’re supervised, financed and supported them by the state or original government of a country. According to the New encyclopedia(vol. 22, 973) “ public libraries are conceded to be an necessary point of community life as promoters of libraries providers of a wide range of reading for all periods, and centres for community information services ”. Public libraries are established by state law supported from the general public finances and administered for the benefit of the citizens of the city, megacity, or region which maintains it on the base of equal access to all, whether they’re crafters, or professionals. It doesn’t distinguish as it’s doors are open to all classes of people.

The American library Association( 1967), in one of its publications, stated the functions of public libraries. Again, at the forum in library operation, organized by the University of Ibadan and the British council( 1970), it was considered that the public library should give published and audio-visual accoutrements to meet the individual and group requirements of its community for information, tone consummation, recreation and culture growth and for backing in crusade out their duties are citizens and members of the community.

LITERAL BACKGROUND OF THE IMO STATE CENTRAL LIBRARY OWERRI.

The Imo State Library Board came into actuality with the creation of Imo and Anambra state. Despite the creation of the Imo state out of the former east central state, both continued to maintain a central library services under the east central state library board until September, 1976, when the library staff of Imo State origin had to be transferred to Owerri to establish the executive headquarters of the present Imo State library Board. At the same time, the means and arrears of the former east central state were participated. The movement of staff to Owerri created accommodation problems. utmost of the inferior staff enthralled the uncompleted library structure as their hearthstone and worked veritably hard to see that the library was opened beforehand for services.

IMO STATE LIBRARY BOARD

The Imo State Library Board was actually set up by edict N0. 12 of the ImoState library Board edict 1977. The edict state “ There’s hereby established a board to be known as the Imo state library Board. The Board shall be a body commercial with perpetual race and a common seal and with power to sue and be sued in its commercial name ”. The edict which set up the Imo state library board had made it an animate body can sue and be sued in its commercial name.

The services of the board are supplemented by the divisional libraries at Aba, Abriba, Umuahia( now in Abia state), Orlu and Mbano. The Board started it’s operation with the sum of five hundred and forty thousand, eight hundred and thirty- two naira( 540,832.00) for the fiscal time 1976 and 1977 with six roster closets, roster cards, some essence form closets and many type pens. In addition to this, the state government handed the sum of five hundred thousand naira to cover its capital expenditure. Anambra and Imo state share a considerable volume of new books which hadn’t been allocated previous to the creation of state.

APPOINTMENT OF THE BOARD

The Imo State library Board was appointment on 10th November, 1976. Its member were ProfessorA.O. Anya as president and seven members videlicet, professor,D.I. Nwoga,Dr. Eze Ogueri, Miss. GloriaI. Ofor, MaziF. Nwosu Ezi,Mrs.R. Umelo, the endless clerk, ministry of education and information(Mr.N.C. Okonkwo), or his representative and the director of library services. It held its first meetings onDecember 17th 1976 and it was addressed by the also honourable manager for education and information(Dr.M.A Nwachukwu), on 14th January 1977. The Board held three meetings altogether during the period under review.

The board relationship with the press has been most cordial and added to this is the Boards ’ determination to give acceptable public library installations for the state. It’ll not be satisfied until every major centre of the community in the state particularly the headquarters of the original government areas have been handed with effective public library services.

OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE CENTAL LIBRARY OWERRI

The state central library, Owerri was officially opened to the public on 12th November 1976 by also military governor of Imo state( His Excellency, commander Godwin Ndubuisi Kanu). The form was witnessed by nearly five hundred guest including state officers, grandly ranking government officers, representative of colorful business enterprises, banking and public affairs, and representatives from colorful original government areas in the state. The structure of the library was designed to accommodate eight five thousand volumes of books, but it was opened with a book stock of about twelve thousand. On the ground bottom, the structure houses the children’s library, accession and cataloguing departments as well as an theater to sit some hundred persons, the mobile library garage and lading bag. The first bottom contain a reference library and he adult reading library, the administration sect of the library which is behind the ground bottom, contains the general office and accounts section while the first bottom of the sect accommodates services for the director and other labor force staff.

THE IMO STATE CENTRAL LIBRARY IS MADE UP OF THESE SECTIONS CHILDREN ’S SECTION ADULT LENDING SECTION TECHNICAL SERVICES SECTION ACQUISITION SECTION NIGERIANA

SECTION

CHILDREN ’S SECTION The section started with a aggregate of five hundred and three children, two hundred and fifty were makes and two hundred and fifty- three were ladies. These number has increased by important since also. A total number of five thousand seven hundred and fifty six books were issued in the same period, two thousand five hundred and thirty- two books werenon-fiction. A number of jottings with African and Nigeria background have been acquired for the children. Journals were also acquired for them.

ADULT LENDING SECTION This section started with six thousand five hundred books and by 1977 the book stock had increased to also thousand six hundred books. The section doesn’t had acceptable fabrication books in its effects. But trouble were made to ameliorate the situation. Thenon-fiction effects are perfecting every body. The number ofnon-fiction books espoused was five thousand and twenty- six, out of this figures, two thousand were espoused by males while two thousand five hundred books were espoused by ladies.

In 1977, there was an increase in borrowing of books by both relations. The library has now a collection which reflects a wider range of fields.

SPECIALIZED SERVICES SECTION This section originally experience problem brought about by lack of tools and outfit and the task of processing books for the library, numerous undressed books were transferred to Owerri, form Enugu, and this created a lot of problems by sorting out the gratuitous accoutrements accessioned, entered and defer them and needed. Before the creation of accession section, about four hundred and eighty- three children’s books and two thousand three hundred and nine- teen grown-up books had been accessioned and entered in the section. Four thousand accoutrements are reused for Owerri, two thousand two hundred and twenty eight for Umuahia divisional library, one thousand six hundred and sixty for Aba and three hundred and seventy eight for Abriba divisional library independently,( of which are now in Abia state).

ACQUISIITON SECTION The accession department wasn’t established as a separate section as soon as the library came down from Enugu. It was rather separated from the listing division in February 1977. The accession policy of the Imo state library board states that All books named either by individualities, libraries or by a group should be passed to the accession department forpre-order searching. No mask orders should be given to any seller except in respect of annuals, in case of reference books only two clones of a title should be allocated to each library but not further than eight clones ”.

With the creation of the section, accession duties have been streamlined andco-ordinated andco-ordinated with other sections of the services. The staffing of this section began with a librarian and typist. It was latterly joined by two library sidekicks. The registers performances ahs been reparations. The sections has been satisfactory. Its accessioned accoutrements have nearly field up the shelves. According to records, some thirteen thousand seven hundred and four books were accessioned in the section while nine thousand six hundred and thirty- eight particulars on order were outstanding. Out of the thirteen thousand seven hundred and four accessioned book, seven thousand nine hundred and ninety seven were adult books while five thousand seven hundred and seven were juvenile.

NIGERIANA SECTION This section correspond substantially of Nigerian publications. The stock covers a aggregate of one thousand three hundred and eight volume comprising diurnals, magazine and journals. Because of profitable problems, not all books are bought. The workshop of staff of this section include keeping the perpendicular lines and jotting of captions, it operates between 900 am to 330 pm. still, there are some accommodation problems being endured in this sector.

SERVICES The part played by the Nigerian section of the Imo Central library is separates from the purpose for which it was set up. The offer direct services which include labor force backing given to compendiums in pursuit of information, the department and the character of similar services veritably with the type of stoner it’s designed to serve. They supply information grounded in bibliographic hunt.

It also provides circular services, this makes it possible for stoner to have access to information. In this kind of services bibliographic are preferred which help the stoner in searching and retracing of the document which they use.

EXTENSION Conditioning The opening of he state central library, Owerri attracted lots of favourable commentary from all and girding several callers and pupil’s excursion groups visited the library and outstanding among them being

a) Two groups of class five scholars from civil Girls Secondary School, Owerri, were introduced to the public service department( adult rotation and reference section of the library).

b) The press Club of the Community Secondary academy Umuaka- Orlu were conducted round the library with a brief talk on the Boards Services.

c) schoolteacher librarian, the Imo and Anambra State join forum in academy libraries held in Owerri from 22 to 27th March, 1977.

BRANCH LIBRARIES OF THE IMO STATE CENTRAL LIBRARY

The libraries were established to carryout library development in the pastoral areas of the state. These libraries include Mbano Branch commissioned byDr. Raymond Ofoegbu, the also Imo State Commissioner for information, youths, sports and culture. The library is located at Mbano Local Government Headquarters. There’s also the Aboh Mbaise and Orlu libraries. The divisional library was established on14th December, 1981.

FUNCTIONS OF IMO STATE LIBRARY BOARD

a To establish, equip and maintain the state central library and its branches in any part of the state.

To give backing to other persons in the association of libraries.

To make recommendations and give advice on library development or association to any department of original government area in the state.

d To make the installations of the state library system available to members of the public and take over bibliographic services in the state.

e To establish and maintain the library’s mobile services

Statement Of Problem

a Public libraries in Nigerian are brazened with a lot of problems. For cases they don’t have enough information sources for the different orders of druggies.

b The don’t have enough space for accommodating the druggies.

c Accordingly, numerous druggies complain of their incapability to satisfy colorful information requirements.

d Some public libraries in Nigeria operate without essential installations like photocopying machines and restroom installations.

e There’s also the problem of trained staff.

f To find out the base reason of establishing the Imo State library Board.

Ideal Of The Study

a The ideal of the study is to trace history of public library development inImo State.

b By tracing the history, the study also aims at relating factors and situation that have either contributed to public library development in Imo state or riposted their rate of development.

c The study also aims at ceiling the attention of policy makers to the need for a speedy development of public libraries in the state.

Experimenter asked a number of questions with which he hopes to find answers to problems posed by the study these include

a Is the library adequately grazed with source of information

b Are there installations handed by the library headquarters?

c Is the library staffed with well drained labor force?

d As a public library, what places does it play in the society?

e What are the problems imitating against its proper development?

compass OF THE STUDY

a This design ahs a literal overviews and would thus cover issues of public library development starting from the Eastern region library days to the present Imo state.

b Lack of time and finance would not allow for an total check of this study thereby limiting it to the establishment and development t of the Imo state central library, Owerri only, among other public libraries in the state

SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

a This design will be of great benefit to scholars especially those in the library and information wisdom department.

b The study will also be of great value to experimenters who are entered in the area of public library development in Imo state.

c Government authority who are desirous of establishing public in their countries will also find this work salutary.

POPULATION

The experimenter tried about fifty druggies and the staff of the Imo state central library Owerri, for data collection.