Electronic information resource sharing among university libraries in southern Nigeria: opportunities and challenges

Abstract

The study explored the state of electronic information resource sharing among university libraries in Southern part of Nigeria, highlighting the prospects and the challenges. The study was an empirical research which adopted the descriptive survey as the design. The questionnaire was used to collect data from the population comprising university librarians of the 37 public universities in Southern Nigeria. It was found that the university libraries had diverse kinds of electronic information resources and some ICT facilities but lacked web-based OPAC and library management software, which are fundamental for e-resource sharing. They could not engage in any meaningful form of structured resource sharing initiative as a result of lack of institutional policies and standards. This implies that access to information is endangered where the libraries are unable to collaborate to bridge the gap between the information-rich and information – poor libraries -– a scenario which conversely would affect the relevance and image of the poor libraries. It was recommended that the management of the universities and the Nigerian Library Association should advocate for government support in formulating standard policies and development of standard software that would drive effective consortium formation among libraries for a more effective resource sharing.

Keywords: Electronic information resources, Electronic resource sharing, Access to information, University libraries