The Problems of Library Co‐operation in Kenya

Abstract

This article opens with an examination of the information system in Kenya and goes on to highlight the lack of formal co‐operative agreements in the country's library system. An obstacle to resource sharing is the desire of many libraries to maintain the independence of their own collections. The resulting duplication can be seen as a waste of already‐scarce resources. The costs of interlending also militate against co‐operation, which is made even more difficult by physical problems such as distance and the scarcity of reprographic facilities. The demise of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute's co‐operative scheme is regretted, and the author suggests that consideration needs to be given to a new scheme to enable Kenyan libraries to maximize their coverage by sharing their resources.

Library cooperation in Kenya

“…While the process of interlending remains simple, some libraries appear unwilling to lend out materials to libraries they consider unreliable (8). Unreliable libraries comprise information centres, mainly special libraries, which are not only disorganized, but also lack the services of professionals.…”

Interlending and document supply in Kenya

“…A number of librarians (for example, Wise, 1969 (2); Ndegwa, 1979 (3); Njuguna, 1982 (4), Ng'ang'a, 1984 (5); and Otike, 1986 (6)) have wntten on library cooperanon, resource shanng and interlending acnvrties m Kenya and m East Afnca m general, but the need was felt for a more detailed study of interlending and document supply m Kenya, with the aim of making recommendations for improving the activity.…”

Profiling African libraries: automation in Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria

“…Ehikhamenor [8] points out the obstacles to the advancement of scientific and technological information (STI) in Nigeria: inflationary book and journal prices; depreciation of the value of Nigerian currency; financial inability to purchase abstracting and indexing services; high downtime of computers due to power and/or air conditioning failures; computer breakdowns and lack of spare parts and/or service; and negative attitudes towards implementing technological innovations. One can add to this list prohibitions to resource sharing outlined by Otike [19], who suggests that libraries in Kenya need a plan for facilitating co-operative agreements among the nation's libraries. He claims that co-operation has been mainly limited to interlibrary lending and photocopying.…”

“…He describes such obstacles as unnecessary duplication as libraries resist pooling of resources in order to maintain their own independent collections; the lack of bibliographic control and information about the availability of resources in other African libraries; high costs of postage and transportation for delivering materials, as well as the distances separating libraries from one another; restriction of materials (such as Africana collections, theses and dissertations, etc. ); lack of universal photocopying facilities, microfilming and photographic facilities; and lack of financial resources for collection development [19].…”

“…However, because one large public library had a collection in excess of 500,000 volumes, the mean is positively skewed. The majority (81 per cent) of the libraries have collections of less than 50,000 with the largest category (20 or Library Review 45,6 28 29.42 per cent) represented by collections ranging from 10,001 to 25,000 volumes.…”