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The research and publication patterns of thirty-four topranking researchers in library and information science (LIS) in Africa were surveyed. The researchers produced 294 papers during the 1990–1995 period which were considered for this study. The findings reveal that majority of the researchers were from universities and were based mainly in Nigeria and South Africa. The principal research centres, however, were the Department of Library and Information Studies, University of Botswana and the Faculty of Information Sciences, Moi University, Kenya. The research investigations concentrated mainly on professional education, information science, library management and information technology. Of the fifteen top ranked journals used by the researchers, only two were published in Africa.

all kinds of occupations, especially those in construction and the motor industry; hence we have carpenters, plumbers, bricklayers, welders, painters, panel beaters, electricians, mechanics, etc. Other activities in which they are involved include hairdressing, tailoring and dressmaking. They have limited education. Most of them would have undergone primary education, and a few have attained secondary education.Every individual, whether literate or illiterate, needs information for a variety of issues essential for his or her survival. It is, therefore, not surprising that information is needed for awareness, in-creased productivity, health, etc. In studying the information needs of an individual, the information needs have to be studied in the context of the information environment, which includes not only the information needs, but also the information seeking behaviours, access to information and sources of information used for meeting the information needs.The users of information are complex, while some are relatively homogenous such as professionals, students, policymakers, researchers, etc., some could be heterogeneous like rural inhabitants, artisans, etc. They have different backgrounds, education levels, and jobs; they operate from differing environments. Given the large disparity among users of information it is obvious that information providers must provide a variety of information sources in order to meet the needs of the various users. Because of the importance of providing information sources to users, the information needs of specifi c users need to be studied.A survey of 439 artisans in Botswana was carried out with a view to determining their information needs, information seek ing behaviour and sources of information used for meeting their daily needs. The study reveals that about 70% of the respondents were 21-40 years old. The ar ti sans were involved in a variety of vocations, dress mak ing, weld ing and hair dressing being the most pro min ent. A sig ni fi cant number of the artisans (11.7%) had no for mal ed u ca tion. The greatest job-related informa tion needs were in fi nd ing sources for raw materials (55.6%), locating gov ern ment tenders (46.2%) and improving their knowledge (44%). Health (59.9%) and sports (32.1%) were the major gen eral ar e as of information needs. The artisans sought information main ly through informal conversations (65.8%) and listening to radio (62.6%). The most used information sources were ra dio (50.3%), colleagues (49%) and news papers (47.4%). On ly 28% of the respondents were computer literate. The pa per recommends that the government of Botswana should pro vide continuing education programmes for the artisans, as this would improve their skills in their vocations, as well as their computer literacy competence. Also, information pro vid ers, such as libraries should be involved pro-actively in the provision of information to artisans. They should also equip the artisans with information literacy competence.The overall aim of this study is to investigat...

Purpose The purpose of this study is to assess the current level of education qualifications of the workforce working in academic libraries in Botswana. The study also aims to determine the current and required level of continuing professional development (CPD) of librarians working in academic libraries in Botswana. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted positivist research paradigm and quantitative research design using a structured questionnaire to collect data, where survey questions were developed based on existing, tested and verified NeXus1 and NeXus2 instruments developed in Australia. Findings Findings revealed that majority (41 or 35.3%) of the academic workforce in Botswana had first degree professional qualification, while those with diploma qualification were 28 or 24.1%; about a quarter of respondents had obtained master’s degree qualification. Most of the CPD activities undertaken were workshops and other workplace training programmes. While about half of the total respondents had attended conferences, less than half of them had published or presented a paper, and mentoring, that should have been given a pride of place in the libraries, largely suffers near neglect. Some knowledge and skills have been acquired on the job and have beneficial impact in the service rendered. Originality/value The study seems to be the first of its type in Botswana as a thorough search of literature did not yield any result in the field. What is more, it combines the librarians in public and private universities, colleges of education and institutes of health sciences. Recommendations generated from the findings are likely to improve the services rendered and interest of the librarians in the profession.

An academic librarian is expected to be skilled in the tasks they undertake and make quality services promptly available to users. This study aimed to determine academic librarians’ understanding of the changes in their profession and the need for continuing professional development; examine librarians’ perception of the quality of library and information science education in Botswana; and find out the extent to which academic librarians perform different library and professional functions. The research paradigm adopted was a positivist approach. Using the census method, quantitative data was collected from practising librarians and qualitative data was obtained from five library heads. The study established that there had been significant changes in the librarians’ jobs over the years, as they were currently required to work harder, learn more skills and perform new tasks. With no suitable continuing professional development strategy in place, there was a lack of adequate knowledge to perform information technology and other salient tasks. Appropriate recommendations are made.