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Monday 28 January 2013

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF NIGERIA DIARY AT 50

The National Library was not to operate as a public library. July 1961 the council of ministers approved the Rogers report. March 1962 a library adviser was appointed Dr Carl M. White, who was before his appointed professor at the Columbia university library school and had just completed a term as arrived in Nigeria soon afterward.

Reality 7,550 volumes we...
re moved from the old secretariat library to from the basic stock of the new national library. The library had a budget of 90,000 in 1963/64, and was able to appoint staff and place order fro its own books. It also became a depository for United Nations publications.

In November 1964, the National library of Nigeria opened its doors.

Dr White anticipate the following functions, among others:

1. To serve as a national bibliographic center.
2. To serve as a legal deposit and a center for the exchange of books.

In September 1964, the National library act, was established. This meant that Nigeria had a National Library established by law which was neither a national depository nor could publish the national bibliography. The library of the University of Ibadan continued to fulfill these functions under the provisions of the publications Ordinance of 1950, already mentioned.

In 1968 a memorandum was submitted by the National Library Association to the federal government.

In 1970 the national library decree (17) was promulgated. Although it did not in corporate all the ideas of the Nigerian library association, A real attempt was made to remedy the major shortcomings of the national library Act of 1964, with particular reference to deposit obligations and bibliographical functions. Among the function assigned to the national library in section 2 of the decree are the followings:

1: To establish and maintain a branch of national library in each state of the federation.
2: To give advice on library development or organization to any agency of the federal government or other or local government agency requiring it.
3: To have responsibility of national bibliography and the development of bibliographical services.

Section 4 of the 1970 Decree deals with deposit privileges: that the publisher of every book in Nigeria shall, within 1 month after publication, deliver at his own expense three copies of the book to the national library. This provision would appear to have retained the privileges extended to the University of Ibadan by the publications Ordinance in 1950, the Ibadan University Library would now rely on the National Library to work out machinery for the procurement of publications: 25 copies of all publications of state governments must be deposited in the National Library to be truly national.

What should be the functions of the national library in this era of enabling e-library.

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