A Review of Problems and Challenges of Library Professionals in Developing Countries including Pakistan

Introduction “A librarian is a person who looks after the storage and retrieval of information. In a workplace, the librarian is usually a professional who is trained and educated to deal with information in a wide variety of formats and settings” (WordiQ, 2010). Librarian helps users to navigate into the voyage of internet and evaluate information efficiently. Librarian offers a helping hand for users to find out the required piece of information and to use it for personal and professional purposes (BLS, 2011). Due to the advent of Internet, World Wide Web and proliferation of online catalogue, the role of librarian has been changed. Now he is more efficient and has new roles as intermediary, facilitator, end-user trainer/educator, web organizer & designer, researcher, interface designer, knowledge manager/professional and sifter of information resources (Rao & Babu, 2001). Librarian should be knowledgeable in a variety of information sources and follow the new trends and advancements in computers, media and publishing (Careeroverview, 2011). Research Objectives 1. To review the problems faced by librarians in new digital era. 2. To identify the major challenges for librarians to work smoothly in cyber environment. 3. To furnish recommendations to overcome the problems and to tackle the challenges. Methodology The study is based on comprehensive review of related literature & informal semi-structured interviews which were conducted by the second author during some international conferences, with library professionals & scholars from developing countries i.e., Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Malaysia, Nepal, and Pakistan with the purpose to explore their perceptions, opinions and observation regarding the problems & challenges confronted by the librarians due to changing information landscape. Available material on the Internet was also explored. Studies Conducted to Investigate the Problems/Challenges Confronted by Librarians in Developing Countries in Changing Information Landscape New tools of information technology have absolutely changed the role & responsibilities of librarians. A number of studies have been conducted to explore the problems faced by librarians. Given section reviews the studies conducted at International level in general and particularly in developing countries to investigate the problems confronted by the librarians. Ademodi & Adepoju (2009) investigated the computer skill among librarians in academic libraries on Ondo and Ekiti State in Nigeria. It was found the shortage of computers and computer skills among professionals. The study recommended that more attention and funds should be provided for training and procurement of ICT infrastructure in Nigerian University libraries. For computerization purpose, library administration should solicit funds and assistant from foreign agencies and foundations who are interested for the cause. Adomi & Anie (2006) in their research on computer literacy skills of professionals in Nigerarian University libraries concluded that most of the professionals do not posses high level of computer skill and their use of computer and technology is still maturing. They recommended that library management and leaders should organize and offer in-house computer training programmes for librarians and enough computers should be provided in this regard. Trushina (2004) discussed the issues related to the internet as well as the correlation of professional codes and their implementation in library practice. He stated that libraries depend on ethical principles more than any other institution because library services are essentially human-oriented. He stressed that librarians must follow the intellectual freedom principle and they have a moral responsibility to the patrons. Hashim & Mokhtar (n.d) studied the trends and issues in preparing new era librarians and information professionals. They reported that the following trends are essential for new era librarians’ i. e. a vision towards information and knowledge rich society, globalization of information, integrated and widespread ICT applications, growth of electronic/internet resources, role of digital/electronic/virtual library, access role replace custodial role, strategic alliances, partnership and collaborations, librarians need new management knowledge and skills, specialized knowledge & skills in library and information management, trend to develop digital contents to facilitate access. It was concluded that new era librarian will become a guardian of digital information and digital librarians with newly acquired skills can play a meaningful and leading role in the networked information society of the millennium. Sreenivasulu (2000) studied the role of a digital librarian in the management of digital information systems. He stressed that the multimedia nature of the next generation of digital libraries requires the digital librarians (DL) to be essentially a type of specialist librarian who has to manage and organize the digital library, handle the specialized tasks of massive digitization, storage, access, digital knowledge mining, digital reference services, electronic information services, search co-ordination, and manage the archive and its access. He should be well-versed in markup languages, cataloguing, metadata, multimedia indexing and database technology, user interface design, programming, and Web technology. Johnson (2007) viewed library and information science education in developing countries. He concluded that LIS programs in developing countries continue to suffer from lack of financial support by governments. Wallis (2005) found that information literacy is vital skill set for citizens of information societies. They suggested that the librarian must support learning at all levels. They are needed to pass skill set of technological and media literacies to citizens at all levels of society for economic, social and personal empowerment. Rahman, Khatun & Islam (2008) reviewed the library education in Bangladesh. The study found that majority of institutions in Bangladesh do not have well-equipped computer labs or sufficient numbers of computers for students. A sufficient number of classification and cataloguing tools (DDC, LC, Sears list of subject headings for practical were not present. Many institutions either have no library or inadequate collection of textbooks. Professional’s status was also found very low, low pay scale and limited opportunities for promotion. In Sri Lanka, Wijayaratne (n.d) probed the challenges encountered by the librarians of developing world in providing library services to support open and distance learning. It was concluded that the attitude of the government towards libraries in Sri Lanka has been changed during the last few years and the government has made several approaches to develop the libraries particularly University libraries. Government also identified the capacity of distance education to accommodate the huge number of A/L completers who cannot gain admission to learn. It was found very important for the OUSL to boost the process of achieving its development goals to upgrade the quality and maintain the standards of distance education in Sri Lanka. In Nepal, Siwakoti (2008) found that there was no government agency to control, monitor and evaluate the school libraries activities. There was lack of awareness programs, budgetary constraints, inadequate space, inadequate library materials, lack of trained and skilled manpower and lack of appropriate government policy and lack of information literacy. In Malaysia Lee, Brown, Mekis & Singh (2003) investigated that there was lack of full-time teacher librarians and selected teachers are asked to take charge of the school resource center as one of their administrative duties. There was no uniform current syllabus for the training of teacher librarians. The biggest problem which was found is that in Malaysian teacher librarians are facing professional isolation. In Iran Gavgani, Shokraneh & Shiramin (2011) concluded that librarians do not have traditional skills and sufficient background knowledge to meet the changing needs of their customers. They need to be empowered by new skills and information before going to empower their patrons. So there must not be a gap between librarian’s professional/technological knowledge and their societies informational need that to be answered by librarians. Need for changing the syllabus of medical library and information science education in Iran was also felt. In India Jestin & Parameswari (2002) explored the challenges for library professionals in the new millennium. It found that library professionals in India were subjected to various challenges. The introduction of computers and new technology was a challenge to all librarians. It was conclude that librarians should be ready to participate in the process of generating and distributing information and knowledge for quality of life and education for all. Librarians must unite to withstand the revolutions that will occur in the information and communication fields. Similarly, Dasgupta (2009) searched out that in India there is non-existent of norms and standards for the education of librarians. Problems for Indian librarians discovered in his study were emergence of new LIS schools, insufficient faculty strength, lack of accreditation bodies, lack of proper library facilities, inadequate physical facilities, little attention for selection criteria, and lack of apprenticeship programs. Study suggested that the Government of India should play a leading role in promoting LIS education in India, by creating more job opportunities for LIS professionals and removing disparity in pay scales among LIS professionals. Ali & Bakshi (n.d) explored that LIS profession is facing many challenges such as lack of finance, inadequate infrastructure, lack of knowledge and training, lack of high quality teaching staff, lack of permanent faculty for distant programs, lack of admission policy and evaluation, absence of accreditation body and supporting policy at national level, lack of global perspective and lack of library visits. It was suggested that admission test should be conducted before admission in LIS and practical hours should be increased. Attendance should be made compulsory and syllabus should be up-dated. Availability of high caliber staff should be ensured. Mobile based learning programmes should be adopted for distance learning. For the purpose of imparting practical training, there should be complete infrastructure. It was concluded that to support learning and teaching ICT should be used because e-learning would be the future of education. Like other developing countries, studies conducted in Pakistan do not show the healthy picture of LIS profession. In Pakistan, even all libraries are not fully automated. Internet service for users is being provided in University libraries but in public and college libraries the provision of Internet service is not encouraging. Haider (2003) found that the present library scenario in Pakistan is not so impressive and is suffering from inadequate funds and lack of bibliographic resources in the country. It was suggested that in order to meet new challenges, library schools are needed to improve the quality of their teaching staff and revise the curricula as well. The amount of research by library professionals into their own discipline is simply inadequate. Mohammad Asghar (1992) listed some main problems as the lack of opportunities for proper training, appropriate guidance, availability and access to information sources, financial assistance and sponsorship, encouragement, publication or dissemination of research findings, and personal interest and initiative. As Khalid, Hafiz (1997) states, the library staff is an area of weakness in Pakistan; there are several causes of this problem in Pakistan such as the faulty system of selection, lack of training, poor librarian’s status, etc. It was pointed out by Ministry of Education in National Education Policy, 1998; p.113 that: College libraries, which are the largest group of libraries in the country, have also been facing the problem of poor services, outdated collection of reading materials, financial constraints and inadequate professional staff

Factors Affecting Digital Skills of University Librarians for Developing & Managing Digital Libraries: An Assessment in Pakistan

The purpose of this study was to assess the digital skills of librarians working in university libraries. This study measures their digital skills to create and manage the digital library and the factors affecting their digital skills. The study also provides practical solutions to overcome those factors. This study used a mixed-method research design that is based on qualitative and quantitative research. In the first phase, an in-depth review of related literature was conducted to identify the research problem and formulate research objectives. Data were collected using a questionnaire and analyzed through SPSS software. An interview guide was developed to collect qualitative data from 50 key experts. A thematic approach was used to analyze data. The current status of digital skills of librarians working in university libraries of Pakistan is not encouraging to develop and manage a digital library. Results showed that library schools in Pakistan are not offering practice-based training to their graduates to develop their digital skills. There is a dire need to offer practice-based training and short courses for librarians working in university libraries of Pakistan to improve their digital skills. Experts recommended in-house training programs and hiring master trainers to improve the digital skills of librarians. The results of this research are limited to librarians working in university libraries of Pakistan. This study has practical implications for librarians, library schools, library administration, and university libraries to develop digital skills of librarians and combat the factors/issues that are affecting their digital skills. This study has not only identified the key factors/issues that are affecting the digital skills of librarians but also provides practical solutions on how to overcome those factors

Knowledge and practices: Risk perceptions of COVID-19 and satisfaction with preventive measures at workplace among maternity care providers in Pakistan

Introduction: While all healthcare services across the globe deferred non-urgent surgeries, labor wards provided maternity care during the COVID-19 pandemic continuously. This study assesses the knowledge and practices of obstetricians and midwives about personal protective equipment (PPE); their risk perception of COVID-19 and satisfaction with the preventive measures adopted at their workplace.Methods: A questionnaire designed according to the World Health Organization’s advice on rational use of personal protective equipment for COVID-19 was administered to 452 Pakistani maternity care providers between 1 July and 30 July 2020.Results: Most (85%) had adequate knowledge and 78.8% had good practices regarding PPE use. The perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 was lower than for influenza and tuberculosis. Perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 was highest for outpatient clinics. Fewer midwives compared to obstetricians (23.3% vs 32.9 %, p=0.001) were satisfied with the job security provided. Only 19.5% were satisfied with the social distancing measures at their setups. Less than one-third (31%) were satisfied with the PPE available to them.Conclusions: The participants had good knowledge and practices regarding PPE. The perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 was lower than for contracting influenza; however, they were concerned about contracting COVID-19 in outpatient clinics and emergency rooms. They had poor satisfaction with the measures adopted by hospital managements regarding job security and social distancing

Factors Affecting the Development of Open Digital Repositories in Pakistan: A Chief Librarian\u27s Perspective

Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present chief librarians’ viewpoint about open repositories in Pakistan. This study appraised the factors that affecting development of open repositories in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach – The study collected data by mean of In-depth literature review, scan of Open Access Directory of repositories (OpenDOAR), through interview & discussion with chief librarians of renowned university libraries. Research limitations – This study discovered the factors that affect building open digital repositories in Pakistan through collected data by means of literature review, interview & discussion with chief librarian. The results are limited to interview interpretation of the interview and discussion with Chief Librarian of selected university libraries and the scan of the web and Open Access Repository Directory OpenDOAR. Practical implications – The results are useful for stack holders of institutes, organization and other libraries to take care of these factor while planning to develop open access repositories in Pakistan. Originality/Value – The researchers contributed to fill the identified gap and have some recommendations in this regard

Never Give Up! From LAMP To Koha: A Case Of University Of Engineering & Technology, Taxila Library

HEC emphasized on quality of education and want to develop higher education infrastructure in the country. This paper provides an analysis of UET Taxila library journey which developed over a period of last 23 years. It defines best practice as a presentation of route to produce more outcomes which means mode of doing things in specific organization as reference for good practices to others. Explains features which should have been encompass in the set meant for improving the services of the libraries. The paper opted review of the current practice being applied in UET Taxila. For in-depth understanding and some historical facts, interviews were conducted of the past Chief Librarians which explains the journey through LAMP to KOH

Minimum quantity lubrication in micromachining: A greener approach

Minimum Quantity Lubrication (MQL) uses minimum amount of lubricating fluid to reduce the friction between a cutting tool and the work piece. The conventional cutting fluid applied using flooding method causes high volume of the coolant wastage plus environmental damages due to disposal issues. MQL is suitable for machining operations including milling, turning, and drilling while surface modification processes are not very appropriate for MQL due to occurrence of particle sticking. For Micromachining, MQL has more opportunity as the heat generated in the small machining area can be smoothly transferred by MQL compared to flood cooling. Not much information are available about MQL performance and metal’s thermal conductivity. In this paper, study of Micro-milling using MQL is presented. Three different metals have been tested with same cutting parameters to observe the effect of MQL on metal’s thermal conductivity. Three different work metals are selected which are Copper, Aluminum alloy 1100 and Cast Iron with cutting parameters including depth of cut, feed rate, and spindle speed. Finally, surface roughness is measured to see the combined effect of thermal conductivity and MQL on the machined surface. It has been found that lower thermal conductivity metal is more suitable to employ MQL as the coolant method

ISSN-1996-918X Pak

Abstract BSOPD, bis(salicylaldehyde) orthophenylenediamine) is investigated as complexing agent in capillary electrophoresis for determination of gold and chromium. BSOPD was chosen as the UVVisible absorbing chelating ligand because of its ability to form stable complexes with metal ions. Both the metal ions can be determined in single run under optimized conditions with run time of 12 minutes including coexisted ions usually present in waste water. Separation was achieved at optimized conditions of 50 mM phosphate buffer as a background electrolyte at pH =3.4, at applied voltage of -10 kV and detection wavelength of 231 nm. Under above mentioned conditions, limit of quantification (0.5 and 10 µg mL -1 ) and detection limit (0.1667 and 3.33 µg mL -1 ) were found for Au(III) and Cr(VI), respectively. Linear calibration graphs were obtained 0.5 -50 µg mL -1 for Au(III) and 10 -60 µg mL -1 for Cr(VI) with the correlation coefficient value 0.996 and 0.993, respectively. Utility of this method for metal analysis has been investigated by determining gold from wastewater samples of goldsmith factories and chromium in some environmental waters (portable and polluted).The method was validated by comparing results obtained with capillary zone electrophoresis with atomic absorption spectroscopy

Enhancing tool life of hot isostatically pressed silicon nitride inserts in machining inconel 718 with different susceptors through hybrid microwave post sintering

Hybrid Microwave sintering has become a growing interest for heating and synthesizing ceramic materials due to its capabilities in successfully enhancing densification and improving mechanical and structural properties. Silicon Nitride (Si3N4) based cutting inserts have outstanding properties for machining hard materials such as cast iron, hard steel and nickel based super alloys. This research aims to analyze the effect of different susceptors on the tool life of various Si3N4 inserts (90Si3N4 4Y2O3 2.5MgO 2Al2O3 1.5SiO) that have been synthesized in machining Inconel 718. The Si3N4 inserts have been synthesized by means of Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) at 1800°C and followed by Hybrid Microwave (HMW) post-sintering at 200°C for 10 minutes with the aid of three different susceptors; Silicon Carbide (SiC), Graphite (G) and mixture of (SiC + G) powders. Density, hardness, micro structural properties and tool wear were analyzed. HMW post sintering for only 10 minutes using SiC, G and SiC+G susceptors enhanced the density (97-98%TD) and hardness (27-58%) significantly. Finer uniform grains and less porosities were produced particularly for Si3N4 inserts produced by HMW (SiC+G) when compared with HMW (SiC) and HMW (G). Tool life for the Si3N4 inserts were improved by 10-17% HMW(SiC), 20-53 % HMW(G) and 32-88% HMW(SiC+G) for the cutting speeds of 100, 125 and 160 m/min. Hence, the mixture of SiC +G powders as susceptors produced the best outcome for Si3N4 inserts with enhanced densification, hardness, wear resistance, and longer tool life (88% increment at 100 m/min) when compared with the commercial tool (RNGN 6060) in machining Inconel 718

Assessment of total phenolic and flavonoid contents of selected fruits and vegetables

686-693This work was conceptualized with the goal to investigate different fruits and vegetables for their comparative investigation of total phenolic and total flavonoid contents. The total phenolic content of 9 fruits and 12 vegetables used in the current study was determined by Folin-Ciocalteau assay. In addition, total flavonoid content was identified through catechin and aluminum colorimetric analysis. The ratio among the phenolic and flavonoid contents of fruits and vegetables extracts were also analyzed. Our results showed that methanolic extract of Citrullus lanatus had higher contents of phenolics and flavonoids (215±1.24 mg GAE/100 g and 73±0.81 mg CE/100 g) than other fruits. Moreover, maturity process of fruits from unripened to fully ripened stage showed significant increase in the total phenolic and flavonoid contents. Fruits under study had shown flavonoids/phenolics ratio of 0.32, which indicates that these fruits contained about 32% of flavonoid contents. Among vegetables, the greatest value of phenolic contents was observed in Capsicum annuum (213±1.24 mg GAE/100 g), and total flavonoid content in Raphanus sativus (45±1.24 mg CE/100 g). Vegetables showed lower ratios of flavonoids/phenolics (0.11-0.2) indicating lesser total flavonoid content (11-20%) as compared with fruits. The obtained results indicate that fruits and vegetables could be attributed to a potential source of natural phenolics and flavonoids in the pharmaceutical and food industry. Moreover, the antioxidant activities of these selected fruits and vegetables should also be determined in order to explore their beneficial effects against the prevention and management of disorders caused by oxidative stress