Towards instituting
a developmental reading culture in Nigerians, a university teacher Dr Blessing Ahiazu, has called on government to establish more public libraries across the country.
Dr Ahiazu, who is the Chief Librarian of the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), stated this in an exclusive interview with The Tide said, the major ways to inculcate a reliable reading culture in Nigerians is to take reading close to their homes.
“What I want government to do is to provide public libraries, not less than 10 in each local government area of the state.
“It could be called community libraries and be manned by professional librarians who are knowledgeable on the job”, she said.
According to her, when librarians are spread across the states, it will encourage both children and adults to utilise them.
“Even when the children destroy the books”, she continued, “Government should be willing to replace them rather than blaming librarians for not safe guarding the books”.
While emphasising that librarians should be serious minded in their jobs, she also emphasised the need for library users and service providers to work hand in hand in a bid to inculcate the required reading culture in Nigerian society.
In his presentation titled, “Marketing of Library Services for Professionalism and Sustainability”, Godbless W. Okede noted important roles required of library service providers.
Okede, who is of the Institute of Petroleum Studies (IPS), noted that beyond the establishment of libraries, librarians are also vested with the responsibility of managing users.
“The marketing concept of the library services is a bridge between the users, library services and staff.
“It is not about raising money for the library, but managing the users to appreciate the services provided in the library”, he said.