LIBRARY SERVICES FOR VIRTUAL HIGH SCHOOLS, VIRTUAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, HOME SCHOOLED STUDENT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

The main purpose of a university library is to support the institution’s objectives, which are teaching, learning and research. The library is regarded as the heart of the intellectual system of the institution. To a large extent, the quality of the institution is measured by the services provided by the library because of its unique position in the over-all system. The history of university library in Nigeria started in 1948 with the establishment of the University College, Ibadan. Subsequently, the University College Library (now Kenneth Dike Library, University of Ibadan) was established as the intellectual heart of the College. Other Higher university libraries established in Nigeria after 1948 also ensured that this precedence is maintained in their respective institutions. However, the situation changed for the worse in the 1980s when the Federal Government of Nigeria introduced the World Bank inspired Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) which affected university funding adversely. University libraries were the first casualties. This is because a lot of the materials purchased by libraries have a substantial foreign exchange component while the SAP adopted by the government resulted in the massive devaluation of the national currency. Thus, funds allocated to universities could no longer meet the requirements of the libraries. The situation deteriorated to such a level that the Federal Government of Nigeria decided to make some interventions, such as, The World Bank Federal Universities Development Sector Adjustment Credit, The Petroleum Special Trust Fund, National Education Materials Procurement Programme and the Education Tax Fund. Today, there are over two hundred universities in Nigeria. Given the limited funding available to academic libraries in Nigeria, it is obvious that scholars and students can only access a small portion of the information available in their disciplines.