Selection and Acquisition of Electronic Resources in University Libraries in Southeast Nigeria: Challenges

This study surveyed the challenges faced by the university libraries in South East Nigeria in selecting and acquiring electronic resources. The descriptive survey research method was adopted for the study. The population consisted of 86. Questionnaire and interview were used for data collection. Data collected from the questionnaire were analyzed using simple statistics (mean). The findings revealed that the university libraries under study had considered all the thirteen criteria when selecting electronic resources in the library which had mean values ranging from 2.70 to 3.41 and are all above the cut-off point of 2.50 on a 4-point rating scale. The findings also showed that the university libraries use multiple tools to select the e-resources, and the overall mean showed that the use of trial offers by mounting a link to their resources without cost (mean = 3.12) is ranked highest and used mostly by the libraries, while the use of reviews provided through electronic resources (mean =2 .57) is ranked lowest as tools used in sound electronic resources selection in libraries; that the libraries use different methods to acquire the e-resources which include, through subscription, purchase and open internet source. None of the libraries under study was into a consortium with one another. However, the study revealed twelve challenges with cost as a major challenge of selection and acquisition of electronic resources. The study recommended that the university libraries in South East Nigeria should improve on the libraries budget in order to attain to the cost of electronic resources and for the training of staff that will handle the electronic collection development. That the libraries should take a drastic initiative of acquiring electronic resources through a consortium in order to enjoy the discount associated with consortium subscription

Digitization of Information Resources in University Libraries in Nigeria: Challenges and Way Forward

Libraries, archives, museums, and other memory institutions digitize items to preserve fragile materials and create more access points for patrons. The traditional role of the library as simply a place of storage and preservation of books and other information materials which has changed overwhelmingly since the advent of information and communication technologies (ICTs) Academic libraries are duly bound to acquire, preserve and disseminate information from whatever source, hence there is the need for such sources of information to be kept preserved and made available in a more convenient and accessible format. This calls for digitization which is the process of converting analog (print, carvings, artifacts and so on) materials to digital/electronic format. Digitization of information resources in Nigerian University libraries is still at nascent stage. Digitization projects in academic libraries in Nigeria are confronted by a number of challenges. These are essentially not peculiar to academic libraries in developing countries and Nigeria in particular in the efforts of libraries to contribute data to the global information resource base. First and foremost is inadequate funding. Funding for the purchase and maintenance of modern and state-of–the–art digital equipment remains a major constraint while others follow. There is the need for external funds to be injected into the learning base for digitization. The challenge of funding unearths the need for capacity-building in the area of grant-writing and sourcing for fund. Also, there is the need of digitization project equipment and collaboration between libraries and donor agencies to procure these equipment, train staff and organize seminars, workshops and conferences on digitization sensitization network. It can therefore be recommended that Nigerian government and other stakeholders should make education of her citizen a famous priority which boils down to library as an arm of education. The leaders should also be checked on the issue of corruption in other to ensure that the assigned fund for digitization projects are faithfully used to letter