A group identified as the Nigerian Library Association (NLA) in delta state has urged librarians to think outside the box to be able to discharge their duties effectively.
This was made known by chairman of NLA chapter, Nelson Edewor at the just concluded state conference and AGM held at the Admiralty University of Nigeria (ADUN).
“It is important that librarians think out of the box in the delivery of effective library and information service as we live in extraordinary times that require extraordinary measures and dynamism. ” Edewor said
“Librarianship is a dynamic profession and any librarian that wishes to stay relevant must be ready to move with the knowledge thread and the level of technological advancement.
He further called on members to join hands together to move the association forward as collaboration is highly needed,
The conference which was held from the 27th-29th October 2021 with the theme – “Strong libraries, strong societies” had over 150 participants from libraries in and outside the state as well as Library schools.
The conference kick starts with a courtesy call on the Vice-Chancellor and Management of the hosting University.
The visit was led by Dr Nelson Edewor, NLA Chairman; with Prof. Adomi, Prof Charles Omekwu, Mrs Rose Eboh, Dr Alex Obuh and Dr Emiri as well as all Exco members.
The Chairman appreciated the University Management for the huge financial support towards the conference and for allowing NLA DELTA to hold her conference in the University.
He further mentioned that the ambience of the University is indeed a sight to behold and encouraged them to keep it up.
In his response, Prof. Paul Omojo Omaji, Vice-Chancellor of ADUN, thanked the NLA for the choice and pointed out that ADUN is a library friendly Institution, therefore, will always be supportive of the Association/ Profession.
According to him, NLA should be proud of the University Librarian; Dr Onyia and Mr Sylvester Ebhonu for effectively representing the profession in the discharge of their duties.
Prof. Omaji further expressed his disappointment with the federal government over the uncompleted state of the National Library at Abuja for over 2 decades.
He emphasised that it is an embarrassment to the profession and the nation at large.
The activities for the day continued with the pre-conference workshop delivered by Sylvester Ebhonu on effective e-library services/operations.
The keynote address was presented by Prof. Barr. Charles O. Omekwu with the theme “Understanding the Nexus between Strong Libraries and Strong Societies”
According to him, the value of libraries is hardly appreciated in societies where poverty, hunger etc is prevalent.
“Inspite of their potential abuses, social media platforms are vital tools to connect with library users in ways that are dynamic, timely, innovative, constant and continuous. Any proposal to gag or fetter the social media platforms must be stoutly refused, resisted and rejected”.
He encouraged academic libraries to migrate their resources to cyberspace and enable open access to their collections and services by the global user communities. He also charged libraries to employ social media in the delivery of cutting edge library and information services.
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