FG set to reposition public libraries

THE Federal Government has vowed to reposition public libraries across the country so as to improve on service delivery to Nigerians.

To achieve this, the federal government, through the National Library of Nigeria is convening a conference of Chairmen and Directors of State Library Boards, to deliberate on the state of affairs in public libraries and chart a way forward.

Head, Public Relations Division of National Library of Nigeria, Mr Vershima Orvell-Dio, in a statement on Sunday in Abuja quoted the National Librarian and Chief Executive Officer of the National Library of Nigeria, Professor Lenrie Olatokunbo Aina, as saying the move was part of the holistic effort by the Federal Government to revamp the education sector.

He said the government was concerned about the poor reading culture, especially among the youth, saying public libraries remain critical in providing quality education delivery in the country.

Lead speakers at the conference include Mr Isaac Ogbonna, the Deputy University Librarian of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umidike, Abia State, who is to speak on the Topic: Public Library Administration in Nigeria: Issues/Trends and Challenges.

An Associate Professor and University Librarian at the University of Ilorin, Dr Abdulwahab Olanrewaju Issa would speak on the Topic: The Roles of Public Libraries in Communities and National Development among others.

The two-day conference which holds on the theme, Repositioning Public Libraries in Nigeria is scheduled to hold at the conference room of the National Bureau of Statistics between 27th and 28th February 2018.
The National Liberian said: “you are aware of the government’s efforts towards revitalizing the education sector by improving the quality of education and making it globally competitive.

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“You may recall the Honourable Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu is planning to declare a state of emergency in the education sector very soon.

“The honorable minister feels strongly that making our libraries functional is key, to the drive of government towards revitalizing the sector and that is why he approved for the National Library of Nigeria to convene stakeholders, especially the leaders and heads of state public libraries for us to deliberate on the issues and suggest a way forward.

“As you know, education is on the concurrent list and for that, the states have to be fully involved in this effort as well.” He said

The conference has the Honourable Minister of Education as the Chairman, while the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education (Basic and Secondary), Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wammakko and his counterpart in the House of Representatives Committee on Education, Honourable Zakari Muhammed are guests of honour.

Deliberations at the conference would be forwarded to the government for consideration. A book of proceedings would be published out of it.