College and Research Libraries B. 0. ADEDIRAN Centralization of University Library Services: Some Compelling Factors in Nigerian Universities In Nigerian universities certain patterns of library service have emerged which are neither ideal nor in the best interest of users and library staff. The most effective way of improving these patterns is by centralizing operations in these libraries. Insufficient funds, the need for planned growth, necessity for a union catalog at local and nation- al levels, and effective deployment of library staff are compelling fac- tors for such centralization. JN EACH OF NIGERIA's siX UNIVERSITIES- Ibadan, Nigeria ( N sukka), Ahmadu Bello, lfe, Lagos, and Benin-there are a variety of libraries, ranging from the main library to small departmental reading rooms. Departmental reading rooms as they now exist cannot be called libraries, since in most cases they are un- organized and are developed by the de- partments for reference purposes and as supplementary collections to the main library collection. Only the main li- braries and faculty, school, institute, and college libraries come within the scope of this study. Rather than discussing centralization versus decentralization, this paper fo- cuses on those factors that make it im- perative for university libraries to in- corporate a certain degree of centraliza- tion in their development. As M. F. Tauber points out, centralization con- veys different meanings depending upon the adjective used with it-administra- Mr. Adediran is acquisitions librarian, Ibadan University Library, Ibadan, Nige- ria. 360 I tive, physical, or operational centraliza- tion.1 In this article centralization has an operational slant, so that certain functions like administration and tech- nical services, if centralized, would be performed in the same place by the same personnel for the various units of a system. At the University of Ibadan, only the medical library is directly controlled by the main library. Others are autono- mous with the main library playing sole- ly an advisory role in their development. There is most complete centralization at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where all the institute and faculty li- braries are controlled by the main li- brary. Each of the libraries at Ahinadu Bello University is autonomous in con- ducting its business. At the University of lfe, although the official policy states that all libraries are under the jurisdic- tion of the university librarian, in prac- tice this is not so; the other three li- braries are independent of the main li- brary. The University of Lagos has two college libraries apart from the main li- brary, and these are virtually autono- Centralization of University Library Services I 361 mous. The University of Benin is a rela- tively young institution with only a main library. The number of libraries in each university, their staff strength, and 1972-73 budgets are shown in Table 1. With the exception of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, other libraries with- in the universities operate independent- ly of the main libraries. The hiring of staff, development and processing of stock, services to readers, etc., are virtu- ally left to the various faculties or schools, institutes, and colleges. In a few cases independent libraries are lucky to be manned by professional librarians, but even then the perform- ance of the librarians is subject to the interest shown by the deans or heads. Because no performance standards are set for these libraries, the whims and caprices of the deans or heads set the norms. At the University of Ibadan, an attempt has been made by the main li- brary to establish standards for the other libraries, but it lacks the statutory power to enforce them. It plays an ad- visory role only. Such a loose relationship is not ideal for effective library service. Lack of ef- fective control in the development of libraries within the universities leads to duplication of stock, as one library does not know what the other has. It is also responsible for the general nonexistence of union catalogs-a crucial need for developing resource sharing among these libraries. The lack of qualified personnel to staff these libraries is no longer as serious as it used to be, but the staff situation is still not entirely satis- factory, especially in the newer univer- sities. There is, however, a need for ef- fective deployment of available human resources. Four factors, particularly, make oper- ational centralization a sine qua non of library organization in Nigerian univer- sities: ( 1 ) insufficient funds, ( 2) need for planned growth, ( 3) need for inter- library cooperation, and ( 4) effective deployment of library staff. INSUFFICIENT FUNDS Dipeolu mentions this factor when he writes: 'Where money and staff are scarce, one cannot afford to decentralize in the European manner. Even when some of the conditions that call for de- partmentalization apply, all technical activities should be centralized whilst as- sistance to readers might be given in the sectional libraries."2 In view of the lim- ited financial resources of most of these universities, it is essential that duplica- tion of stock and services, which invari- ably increases cost, should be eliminated as much as possible. Rather than allow the various libraries in each university to do their own ordering, processing, binding of journals, and repairs to dam- aged books, centralization would reduce TABLE 1 Ibadan Nsukka Ahmadu Bello Ife Lagos ·Benin STAFF STRENGTH AND BUDGET OF NIGERIAN UNIVERSITY LmRARIEs 1972-73° Libraries in Professional Budget Union the System Librarians (Books and Periodicals) Catalog 6 30 $173,598 None 7 19 223,998 Yes (but nqt comprehensive) 6 24 133,000 None 4 15 157,400 None 3 25 200,189 None 1 8 98,000 Not applicable • • Information obtained from questionnaires sent to the various h'braries and the latest university calendars and library annual reports. ' · 362 I College & Research Libraries • September 1974 operational costs. The money thus saved could be usefully spent for buying mul- tiple copies of titles for student use. This is a particularly important aspect of service to readers in Nigeria, for many students cannot afford to buy ba- sic texts; and added to this is the prob- lem of the rising prices of books. NEED FOR PLANNED GROWTH This need arises from the currently uncontrolled pattern governing the es- tablishment and growth of libraries in most Nigerian universities. As noted above, the relationship among main li- braries and other libraries is, in most cases, advisory. This allows the various libraries to evolve their own types of service, however unsatisfactory. If planned growth for these libraries is to be achieved, the main libraries must be in a position to formulate standards and be statutorily empowered to en- force them. This is a sound basis for operational centralization. The U niver- sity of Nigeria library system operates in this way: The University of Nigeria consists of the Nnamdi Azikiwe Library and the Economic Development Institute Li- brary also located at the Enugu Cam- pus, together with small collections in the Agriculture and Education Facul- ties on the Nsukka Campus. All the collections are serviced from the Nnamdi Azikiwe Library which is the main library where the union cata- logue is housed. 3 NEED FOR A UNION CATALOG The only way to utilize fully the li- brary resources in each university is for the main library to maintain a union catalog of all materials held in the vari- ous libraries. This can be achieved with proper directives from the main library concerning procedures for sending in cards on the holdings of all the other libraries, uniform catalog entry pat- terns, and the general adoption of a classification scheme. At the moment, much time and effort is wasted in trying to ascertain the holdings of each li- brary, because union catalogs generally do not exist. Union catalogs provide the basis for speedy and efficient resource sharing-a cooperative venture much needed in Nigeria. This is a particularly important issue, because no library in the world (let alone in Nigeria) can be self -sufficient. EFFECTIVE DEPLOYMENT OF STAFF Within a centralized system, it is pos- sible to deploy library staff in the most effective way. This can be achieved by deploying staff along subject lines in the main library as well as in other libraries (which invariably cater to a particular subject interest or a group of allied sub- jects). For too long deployment has been along functional lines, e.g. , cata- loging or acquisitions sections. Rather than encouraging subject specialization among staff, it tends to make them gen- eral practitioners. How can a cataloger easily win the respect of his academic colleagues? If library staff are deployed along subject lines, they will become specialists in their own right, competent to assist scholars and students in their subject areas. H erein lies their valid claim to academic status. Centralization should thus offer Ni- gerian university libraries an atmo- sphere in which to solve the problem of staff advancement. The current hier- archy of one librarian, one deputy, a few senior sublibrarians, several sub- librarians, and several assistant librari- ans makes advancement difficult. Within a centralized system, it would be possi- ble and rational to have a director of library services and three deputy direc- tors (one responsible for general collec- tion development, one in charge of technical services, the third responsible for readers' services). The duties of these levels would be both intellectual and administrative. Subordinate to the deputy responsible for technical services + . -;. Centralization of University Library Services 1 363 should be acquisitions librarians and catalogers who are subject specialists. These in turn should be assisted by bib- liographic searchers. The deputy in charge of readers' services would be as- sisted by reference librarians in differ- ent or allied subject areas. At this level also would be special collection librari- ans and faculty librarians. The deputy in charge of collection development should be responsible for evaluating the stock and for insuring its development along established lines. Development of these additional posts would be dependent on the sub- jects in each university's curriculum, the number of faculty libraries, the size and growth rate of the collection, the number of special collections in the li- brary, faculty and student enrollment numbers, and the size of the library staff. It is quite possible, using these cri- teria, that some of these additional posts may not be necessary in a particu- lar university library. CoNCLUSION Because of these compelling condi- tions, Nigerian university libraries have only one option: operational centraliza- tion. Where money is scarce, effective fi- nancial control can greatly stretch re- sources; the organizational fr am ework that enables librarians to practice as specialists in their own right is of tre- mendous benefit to readers and en- hances staff prestige; a service hierarchy with built-in guarantees of advance- ment eliminates frustration among staff; speed and ease of access to library materials are assured by the existence of a union catalog. All these benefits are offshoots of operational centralization. REFERENCES 1. Maurice F. Tauber, "Centralization and De- centralization in Academic Libraries: A Sym~ posium," College & Research Libraries 22: 327 (Sept. 1961). 2. J. 0. Dipeolu, "Administrative Problems, in Academic Libraries, with Particular Refer- ence to Nigeria," Unesco Bulletin for Li- braries 24:301 (Nov.-Dec. 1970). 3. University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Calendar 1970-73, p.122.