International Journal of Education and Information Technology

Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79

http://www.aiscience.org/journal/ijeit

Professionalism in Librarianship: Librarians’

Functions, Challenges and the Way Forward
Japheth Abdulazeez Yaya1, *, Kikelomo Adeeko2
1
J. C. Pool Library, Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria
2
University Library, Mcpherson University, Seriki Sotayo village, Abeokuta Ogun State, Nigeria

Abstract
Every profession in the human history has its origin, prospects and challenges; it is the desire of every member of the
professional body to seek for solutions to the problems militating against their successful journey in the society. Thus, this
paper discusses Professionalism in librarianship with emphasis on the prospects, challenges and it suggests some factors that
could help in resolving the problems of librarianship profession in Nigeria; several issues were also discussed. Thus, the
practitioners of this laudable profession must possess some characteristics that would make them more effective in providing
the much needed information to an individual, organizations and the general populace. The paper concludes by suggesting the
following steps as the way forward from the problems militating against the librarianship profession in Nigeria: The activities
and programmes of the librarianship profession should be given a wide publicity; People should have a right attitude towards
printed educational materials and give due recognition to the Nigerian Library Association (NLA) as being done to other
notable associations in Nigeria; Membership of the NLA should be financially committed to their association as done by
membership of other associations; Government officials should have positive attitude towards library and the association that
represent the interest of librarians in the land; and librarians should know that they are in the highly contested profession.
Hence, the library management should act fast and provide all the modern facilities and technologies that are needed to enable
library to effectively compete with other organizations that are offering similar services to the general public.

Keywords

Professionalism, Librarianship, Librarians, Library Profession, Librarians’ Functions, Librarianship Challenges

Received: April 5, 2015 / Accepted: May 3, 2015 / Published online: June 28, 2015
@ 2015 The Authors. Published by American Institute of Science. This Open Access article is under the CC BY-NC license.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

profession and we shall conclude this paper by pointing out

1. Introduction some solutions on how those obstacles confronting the
librarianship profession could be surmounted.
Every profession in the human history has its origin, prospects
and challenges; it is the desire of every member of the
professional body to seek for solutions to the problems 2. Overview of a Profession,
militating against their successful journey in the society. Thus, Professional and
in this paper, we shall be considering Professionalism in
Librarianship: Librarians’ functions, Challenges and the way Professionalism
forward. Hence, we shall look at it in the following dimensions: The term ‘profession’ was derived from a Latin word
overview of a profession, professional and professionalism; ‘profiteor,’ meaning to profess, which can also have the
characteristics of profession; librarianship as a profession; connotation of “making a formal commitment in the sense of
librarianship professional ethics; challenges of librarianship

* Corresponding author
E-mail address: yjapheth@yahoo.com (Y. J. Abdulazeez), japhemarison@gmail.com (Y. J. Abdulazeez), adeeko308@gmail.com (A. Kikelomo)
 International Journal of Education and Information Technology Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79 71

taking a monastic oath”. This root might suggest that a a profession, it must have some qualities and values. Hence,
professional is someone who claims to possess knowledge of the general characteristics of a profession are stated as
something and has a commitment to a particular code or set follows:
of values, both of which are fairly well-accepted
• Assessment process for entry into the profession
characteristics of professions (Lester, 2010). According to
Magali (1977), profession could be classified into four or Becoming a member of a professional body is not meant for
more groups depending on the era when they began to every ‘Dick and Harris’; that is it is not for just anyone in the
professionalize. Generally these are: the ancient professions society. There are some criteria that are used to assess any
(the priesthood, university teaching, law and physicianship); interested person in the society before joining a desired
the mediaeval trade occupations (including surgery, dentistry professional body. Generally, before anyone could be
and architecture); the industrial-era professions (typified by admitted into any literary professional body, he/she must
engineering); and various groups that emerged or have some academic qualifications; that is, he/she must have
professionalized in the twentieth century (from teachers and graduated from the prescribed universities that undergo
social workers to accountants and personnel managers). From courses related to such profession. In other word, he/she must
the classification above, librarianship can be grouped as part not be a nonentity, he must be learned. For instance, before
of ancient profession as we cannot isolate librarianship from joining Nigeria Library Association (NLA) such individual
the university teaching as it provides the needed organized must be at least a graduate of library schools like: University
knowledge for the teaching profession. of Ibadan and Babcock University, just to mention a few
schools offering the course at all levels in Nigeria. Also, to
On the other hand, Lester (2010) observed a professional as a
become a member of Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) or
person who embodies the idea inherent in ‘profiteor’. A
Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) or even Nigeria Union of
professional is a member of a profession. The term also
Teachers (NUT) to mention a few professional bodies in
describes the standards of education and training that prepare
Nigeria. The membership doors of these aforementioned
members of the profession with the particular knowledge and
professions are not opened to just anybody in the society but
skills necessary to perform the role of that profession. In
they are meant for those people who possess the basic
addition, most professionals are subject to strict codes of
qualifications as members.
conduct enshrining rigorous ethical and moral obligations.
Professional standards of practice and ethics for a particular However, these are the questions that might be rightly asked:
field are typically agreed upon and maintained through widely what about those illiterate artisans that form association? How
recognized professional associations. Some definitions of can we classify them? To us, we may classify them as mere
"professional" limit this term to those professions that serve group of individuals that share common goals due to their
some important aspect of public interest(Harvey; Mason & similar trades to earn a living. Lester (2010) identifies these
Ward, 1995) and the general good of society (Sullivan, 2005; set of individuals as semi-formal associations based on
Gardner & Shulman, 2005). In some cultures, the term is used communities of practice and bodies that principally fulfil the
as shorthand to describe a particular social stratum of well- role of a trade union, and ‘paired’ bodies. In Nigeria we have
educated workers who enjoy considerable work autonomy and trade unions like: Bricklayers Association of Nigeria, Road
who are commonly engaged in creative and intellectually Employers Association, and Nigerian Union of Road Transport
challenging work (Gilbert, 1998; Beeghley, 2004; Eichar, 1989; Workers (NURTW) just to mention a few ones in Nigeria. But
Ehrenreich, 1989). Stan Lester identifies other groups as learned societies that are
classical in their formation. This restricts the number of people
Besides, professionalism can be regarded as the objectivity,
that could join the professional bodies from time to time. To
rules and codes of practice of a profession. Professionalism
some professional bodies, intending members have to sit for a
consists of some professional standards (i.e. the skill,
qualified professional examination and pass before they could
competence or character) expected of a member of a highly
be admitted into their professional groups. For instance,
trained profession (culled from system dictionary). Thus,
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN); Council
librarianship as a profession has some set of rules and codes of
of Registered Engineers in Nigeria (COREN) just to mention a
ethics that regulate the activities and practice of its members in
few professional groups in Nigeria.
the society.
• Code of Ethics

3. Characteristics of a An ideal profession body must have a well-designed code of

ethics to guide the general conduct of its members. It is a
Profession professional standard of conducts for members of a
It could be noted that before a discipline could be regarded as professional body (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 1998).
72 Yaya Japheth Abdulazeez and Adeeko Kikelomo: Professionalism in Librarianship: Librarians’ Functions, Challenges and the
Way Forward

Lester (2010) sees ethics as a branch of philosophy that is experts.

concerned with what is right, moral or fair. General ethical
• Responsibility to Clients
codes exist in religion and philosophy; they can be inherent
in ideas such as citizenship and civil values, and many people The roles play by the clients or customers of any organization
would claim to have a personal set of ethics that guides their cannot be under estimated. In fact, they determined the
behaviour. Most professions have some form of ethical codes growth and extinction of the organization. No wonder many
that either takes the form of a code of practice or forms a companies are folding up. This could be as a result of the
more general set of principles that governs behaviour in the irresponsible posture of the management and staff of the
profession, with the code of practice describing specific organization towards their customers. Thus, a professional
behaviours expected in particular situations (Brussels, 2007). body must be responsible to the needs and demands of its
customers and provide products and services that will
• Professional Association
adequately satisfy their needs. For instance, library users are
An ideal profession must belong to one or more professional the clienteles of the librarian; he/she must select and acquire
associations. A professional association fight and defend the library resources that will adequately meet their information
common goals of its members. It must be registered with needs.
both the Corporate Affair Commission (CAC) and the
• Continuing Professional Development
Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity before it can
function legally as an association in Nigeria. Librarianship is It can be observed that continuous growth is the strength of
operating in each country under the umbrella of literary any living organism. Likewise, for any profession to remain
professional association such as: Nigeria Library Association relevant and current in their professional callings, the place
(NLA), Nigeria; American Library Association (ALA), of continuous development must a take vantage position in
U.S.A. and South Africa Library Association(SALA), South its programme for members. Most professional bodies see the
Africa just to mention a few countries. importance of repositioning their members; hence, they often
organize intellectual programmes like seminars and
• Use of Expert or Specialist Knowledge
workshops for their members periodically; this they do so as
As we had earlier mentioned in this paper, a professional to train and retrain their members in order to make them
body is not for a nonentity in the society; rather, it is a relevant and more efficient in their professional callings.
composition of men and women whose mental capabilities Beside the general professional body developmental
have been scientifically proved and found worthy. For programmes for its members; each member must also pursue
example, before anyone could become a qualified medical personal intellectual development programme for himself or
doctor, he/she must have spent at least seven years in the herself. That is, they have to personally spend quality time
university medical colleges and teaching hospitals learning and resources to improve and develop their mental
and training in order to acquire enough knowledge before capabilities from time to time. This can be achieved through
being qualified as an expert on the profession. sponsoring oneself in attending seminars, conferences and
professional workshops within and outside the shores of his
• The Exercise of Autonomous Thought and Judgement
country without waiting for the official financing of such
Members of a professional body are experts who use the programme. These would make such employee to be relevant
knowledge that had been acquired for years through rigorous to the organization and being desired by many competitors in
learning and training on the profession to judge and decide on the labour market.
matters that are urgent and timely without waiting for any
superior decision. They take responsibility for their actions on
any serious matter without necessarily blaming their 4. Librarianship as a
subordinates for any problem that might surface in the course Profession
of carrying out their duties. For example, a professional
Librarianship is a professional body that is saddled with the
librarian in the university library exercises autonomous
responsibilities of selecting, acquiring, processing and
thought and judgement on the acquisition of various books and
effective dissemination of relevant information resources to
non-book educational materials which he deems relevant to
the information seekers in order to satisfy their information
support the curriculum of a particular programme in the
needs. The profession is the manager and custodian of
university. Although it is a normal process for him/her to seek
organized knowledge stored in a conducive environment or
for the input of the subject experts before embarking on
building known as library. This profession is one of the most
acquiring any item into the library collection; but he/she can
important professions in the human race; because everybody
decide to take such urgent step in the absence of the subject
in the human society needs information at every stage of life
 International Journal of Education and Information Technology Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79 73

in order to survive. This profession is a solid foundation that knowledge to the graduates of the profession.
accommodates all other professions in the human race. Who Besides, the librarianship profession has a number of values
does not need information to survive? To this end,
attached to it in order to make membership of the profession
Ranganathan (1963) opines that ‘every reader his book’ but
to be more efficient in discharging their roles as information
we hereby assert that ‘everyone and profession his/its
disseminators in the human society.
information’. This implies that information is vital to
everyone and profession; in fact, it is a lifewire and bedrock
of every profession. 5. Values of Librarianship
To buttress our submission, Gorman (1995) reviewed the five Profession
laws of library science postulated by S.R. Ranganathan; he
According to Lester (2010), professional is someone who
asserts that libraries serve humanity- They should serve the
claims to possess knowledge of something and has a
individual, community and society to a higher quality. The
commitment to a particular code or set of values, both of
author suggests that when librarians are making decisions on
which are fairly well-accepted characteristics of professions.
the acquisition of educational materials for the library, they
In a related development, Wikibooks (2013) observe that
should consider how the change will better serve humanity.
values are essential to the success and future of librarianship:
Therefore, librarians should protect free access to knowledge
they highlight what is "important and worthy in the long
(information) - The library is central to information freedom.
run," and help to define librarianship profession. In a
It needs to preserve all records so that none are lost, and
literature review on professional values in Library and
should be transmitted to everyone in the society irrespective
Information Science (LIS), Finks (1989) argues that these
of cultural settings and belief (Gorman, 1995). Then, who is
values fall into four categories:
a Librarian? Michael Gorman in his book “Our Enduring
Values: Librarianship in the 21st Century”, provides a • Professional values are inherent in librarianship and
workable definition of librarian as a “person who earns a include recognizing the importance of service and
master’s-level education at an accredited school and receives stewardship; maintaining philosophical values that reflect
on-the-job training, as well as carries out one or more of the wisdom, truth, and neutrality; preserving democratic
following tasks: Selects printed materials and electronic values; and being passionate about reading and books.
resources; Acquires the selected materials and resources; • General values are "commonly shared by normal, healthy
Organizes and gives access to them; Preserves and conserves people, whatever their field." Librarians' work, social, and
them; Assists library users; Instructs library users; and satisfaction values express a commitment to lifelong
Administers and manages the library, library personnel, learning, the importance of tolerance and cooperation, and
services, and programs” (Gorman, 2000:14). the need to feel accepted.
However, this laudable profession is not a safe haven for the • Personal values specifically belong to librarians and
nonentity. Before anyone could be qualified as a professional include humanistic, idealistic, conservative, and aesthetic
librarian; he or she must have attended a library school at the values. He must be passionate towards people and reading.
university. He/she must have obtained at least first degree in
librarianship and goes further to acquire the ultimate • Rival values threaten the mission of libraries with
academic certificate – Doctor of Philosophy (PhD). This bureaucratic, anti-intellectual, and nihilistic (useless and
shows that there is no room for the mediocre in the senseless) ideas. Librarians must have faith in the
profession. Few of the universities that are offering profession's ability to do good (Finks, 1989; Wikibooks,
librarianship programme in Nigeria include: The University 2013).
of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State; Ahmadu Bello University, Moreover, Wikibooks (2013) note that in 1999, the American
Zaria, Kaduna State; University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu Library Association (ALA) formed a task force "to clarify the
State; Bayero University, Kano, Kano State; University of core values (credo) of the profession". This task force
Maiduguri, Borno State; Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, believed "that without common values, we are not a
Edo State; Delta State University, Abraka, Delta State; Abia professional," and proposed the following definition of
State University, Uturu, Abia State; Federal University of common goals for our field: Connection of people to ideas;
Technology, Minna, Niger State, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Assurance of free and open access to recorded knowledge,
Kwara State; Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State information and creative works; Commitment to literacy and
and other private universities. These institutions of higher learning; Respect for the individuality and the diversity of all
learning offered the programme at all levels from peoples; Freedom for all people to form, to hold, and to
undergraduate to the post-graduate so as to give a well robust express their own beliefs; Preservation of the human record;
74 Yaya Japheth Abdulazeez and Adeeko Kikelomo: Professionalism in Librarianship: Librarians’ Functions, Challenges and the
Way Forward

Excellence in professional service to our communities; and ethic, Yaya; Achonna and Osisanwo (2013) in their article
Formation of partnerships to advance these values (Sager, “Censorship and the Challenges of Library Services in
2001; Wikibooks, 2013). Nigeria” strongly opposed the censorship of any literary
However, Wikibooks (2013) observed that despite the work work; they advocated that intellectual resources should be
made available to everyone and it should not be restricted
of this task force, the ALA did not adopt a Core Value
Statement until June, 2004. This statement represented a in whatever form. Unfortunately, Intellectual freedom is a
compromise between the task force and its critics, and took major area of conflict within libraries. Intellectual freedom
is a goal that most library workers can agree on in theory,
its 11 core values from ALA policies that were already in
but situations in everyday library work can complicate this
effect. While the task force's document positioned these
seemingly simple rule (Wikibooks, 2013).
values in relation to librarianship profession (for example,
our profession must provide "assurance" that access to • Privacy and confidentiality – Librarians are to protect
recorded knowledge is free and open), the official ALA each library user’s right to privacy and confidentiality with
policy simply lists the values. The ALA's wording also leaves respect to information sought or received and resources
its list open to other values as well, and lists these as consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted (ALA, 2009).
examples of core values: Access; Confidentiality/privacy; As librarians, we should maintain privacy and
Democracy; Diversity; Education and lifelong learning; confidentiality rights of our clienteles; it implies that we
Intellectual freedom; Preservation; The Public good; should not divulge information that pertains to any of our
Professionalism; Service; and Social responsibility user to the third party. For instance, in the medical, legal,
( American Library Association, 2009). Therefore, librarians accounting or banking/finance professions, privacy and
must equip themselves with all the aforementioned values of confidentiality of patients or customers are one of their
the profession so as to be efficient in their information major ethics. Under no condition must they disclose
disseminating roles; thereby becoming more profitable to the customers’ information to the third party even their
entire human race. spouse(s). Thus, we should emulate them in keeping
strictly information that concerns our patrons. Therefore, it
is imperative for the librarian to respect the right of a user
6. Librarianship Professional to privacy, except where it is in the public interest and
Ethics should not share confidential information or user data
While discussing the general characteristics of a profession in beyond the original transaction.
the early stage of this paper, we mentioned code of ethics as • Intellectual property rights – Librarians are to recognize
one of the features of a profession. Thus, the membership of and respect intellectual property rights (ALA, 2009).
librarianship profession is being guided by some numbers of However, Wikibooks (2013) painfully noted that
professional ethics so as to add credibility to the profession Intellectual property rights are a difficult issue. They were
and to prevent its members from engaging in any unholy of the view that while most of the rest of the ALA's Code
activities in the society. In the United States, professional of Ethics talks about how libraries should provide
librarian ethics are codified in the ALA's Code of Ethics unrestricted access to information, copyright and other
(Wikibooks, 2013); these are what we adapt for this paper. intellectual property rights can sometimes provide
Therefore, the ALA’s 2009 codes of ethics for librarianship restrictions on this flow of information. Libraries have
include: taken an active interest in open licensing (open access
• Highest level of service to all users – Librarians are to journals and books), free software, and new publication
provide the highest level of service to all library users and distribution models that respect the rights of
through appropriate and usefully organized resources information creators while allowing more widespread
(printed and electronic); equitable service policies; access to ideas. Nevertheless, Intellectual property rights
equitable access; and accurate, unbiased, and courteous of authors of the literary works are to be kept by the
responses to all requests (ALA, 2009). This implies that library, so that they would be encouraged to use their
there should be no discrimination when providing library intellectual capabilities in contributing widely to
services to users. Every reader should be treated equally knowledge.
and justly. • Respecting fellow library workers – Librarians are to treat
• Intellectual freedom – Librarians are to uphold the co-workers and other colleagues with respect, fairness and
principles of intellectual freedom and resist all efforts to good faith, and advocate conditions of employment that
censor library resources (ALA, 2009). In support of this safeguard the rights and welfare of all employees of their
 International Journal of Education and Information Technology Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79 75

institutions (ALA,2009). Librarians should note that professional librarians, para-professional and supporting
respect begets respect; that is, respect is reciprocal. Other staff. Most of the para-professional and supporting staff
members of library staff are human beings that have had been actively encouraged and supported by the library
moods and feelings; in fact, they are partners in progress management to enrol in the library schools and then
and they should be given their due recognition and becoming professional librarians today. One of the authors
respects. The idea of bulling and shouting on the of this paper is a living example of such categories of
subordinates by the superior library staff should be library staff; he began his working career in the library as
abandoned in the archive so as to create a peaceful a Library Assistant in January 1987 and today, he is a
working relationship among all the library staff, it is only Chief Librarian in an academic library in Oyo State,
then that the library would easily achieve its set goals and Nigeria and presently a PhD candidate at Babcock
objectives. University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria. This is
being done so as to retain an experience staff in the library
• Users Right and Dignity - Librarians should have respect
operations and thereby promote continuity of the library
for the users right and dignity without prejudice to race,
services as “library is a growing organism” (Ranganathan,
gender, religion, tribe, physical characteristics, age, place
1963).
of origin, etc (www.ifla.org/.../nigeria-code-ofethics-and-
professional-conduct-for-libr). Librarians should note that 6.1. Professional Functions of Librarians
library users are human being like them that has blood,
flesh, moods and feelings; so, their rights should be Every profession is set up to carry out certain tasks in order
respected. to benefit human race. Thus, librarianship profession is a
laudable profession that benefits the human race in so many
• Non-advancement of private interests – Librarians should important areas; hence, it performs the following tasks so as
not advance private interest at the expense of library users, to contribute positively to the growth and development of the
colleagues, or our employing institutions (ALA, 2009). community where it is sited; the librarians’ functions
This implies that the interest of library users should be discussed in this paper are adapted from
paramount above every other personal interest. We should www.liasa.org.za/sites/de...librarianship/2003:
know that library is not a personal estate of anyone where
it is being ruled by personal and selfish ideas; rather, • Selection and acquisition of information sources relevant
library resources and personnel are being guided and to the needs of the user community
controlled by the information policies that are set up by In any human society, information is very crucial; it
the library management. Therefore, advancement of facilitates development in every facet of human endeavors.
personal or private interests should be jettisoned. Information is very broad and complex; hence, relevant
• Distinguishing between personal convictions and information has to be selected and acquired in order to
professional duties – Librarians are to distinguish between effectively minister to the information needs of various
their personal convictions and professional duties and information seekers in the society. Therefore, librarians has
should not allow their personal beliefs to interfere with to take cognizance of the information needs of his users
fair representation of the aims of their institutions or the before selecting and acquiring relevant information resources
provision of access to their information resources (ALA, to satisfy their informational needs.
2009). As librarians, we are to select all the educational • Organization and management of the information sources
resources that are relevant to the information needs of our and facilities so that the collections are accessible to the
readers irrespective of our religion or cultural settings and users
this has to be done without undue restriction. Librarians
For information to be easily accessible and useful to any
must lose their neutral viewpoints and publicly fight for
information seeker in the human society, such information
equal access to information (Blanke, 1989).
has to be systematically organized and professionally
• Excellence in the profession – Librarians are to strive for managed by the librarians. Information has to be classified
excellence in the profession by maintaining and enhancing using a standard scheme in accordance to the subjects it treats.
their own knowledge and skills, by encouraging the Thus, the following schemes could be used to classify
professional development of co-workers, and by fostering information resources in different libraries: Library of
the aspirations of members of the profession (ALA, 2009). Congress Classification scheme (commonly used in the
It could be noted here that the professional development of Academic libraries); Dewey Decimal Classification Scheme
co-workers in the library had been in practice for decades. (commonly used in Public and School libraries); Colon
There are three categories of library staff namely: Classification scheme; Bliss Classification scheme; Universal
76 Yaya Japheth Abdulazeez and Adeeko Kikelomo: Professionalism in Librarianship: Librarians’ Functions, Challenges and the
Way Forward

Decimal Classification scheme (all are commonly used in technical reports (Wikipedia, 2014).
Special and Private libraries). With these schemes, librarians
• Electronic resources management
could effectively organized library resources so as to enhance
their easy accessibility. These include managing licensing agreements and facilitating
access to electronic databases journals and books. In most
• Dissemination of information to the users
Academic libraries, examples of electronic resources include:
Librarians can effectively disseminate information to their Ebscohost, Myilibrary, Jstor, Science direct, Agora and others.
users through: selective dissemination of information (SDI), All these provide immediate and current educational
open access publications; physically displaying information materials to the library users. With these online resources,
materials on the library shelves for outright consultation; information seekers can access information in any area of
charging and discharging of information resources for further their needs and disciplines; they can equally access
consultation at the users’ convenient time and locations. collections that are stocked by the library at their
convenience without necessarily visiting the library for their
• Facilitating access to information in print and electronic
various information needs.
formats
Librarians do facilitate easy access to the educational 6.2. Challenges of Librarianship Profession
resources kept in the library by providing bibliographic Although the librarianship profession is a worthy profession
details of each library material on 3x5” cards and arranged that is involved in performing the professional functions
them alphabetically on the public catalogue; thus, library aforementioned and discussed in this paper. However, its
arranges the bibliographic description of its resources in activities are being hampered by some problems; these are
author/title, subject and classified catalogues respectively so being discussed as follows:
as to give easy access to its holdings and thereby “saves the
time of readers” (Ranganathan, 1963). Also, library provides • Lack of adequate publicity
Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC); an electronic Adequate publicity is an essential ingredient that enhances
format for the accessibility of the library collections. Besides, growth and development of any organization. It attracts favour
it provides shelf guides for those books arranged on each and goodwill from high calibres of people in the society to any
library shelf so as to give physical/easy access to them. association that know how to adequately publicize its activities
• Creating and managing digital collections in institutional to the world. Unfortunately, the activities of library association
repositories lack adequate publicity compare to their counterparts like the
Nigerian Medical Association and Nigeria Bar Association
An Institutional Repository (IR) is an online archive for whose activities are given adequate publicity whenever they
collecting, preserving, and disseminating digital copies of the are to hold their annual convention, this always attracts even
intellectual output of an institution, particularly a research the president of Nigeria to attend or he could send a delegate
institution (Crow, 2006; Harnard, 2005; Wikipedia, 2014). of high government officials to represent him in case if he
An institutional repository can be viewed as a "...a set of could not personally grace their occasions. The implication
services that a university offers to members of its community that this inadequacy might have on the library association are
for the management and dissemination of digital materials enormous: first, the association’s programmes and projects will
created by the institution and its community members (Lynch, not be easily known to the general public; people that could be
n.d). For a university, this includes materials such as of help to the association will not be adequately reached for
monographs, academic journal articles, both before (preprints) them to render much needed assistance; besides, the attention
and after (post prints) undergoing peer review, as well as of the association’s membership will not be adequately drawn
electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). Also, it consists of to her activities, this might prevent her members from actively
digital assets generated by academics, such as administrative supporting the association programmes and activities for the
documents, course notes, learning objects, or conference year.
proceedings. Deposit of material in an institutional repository
is sometimes mandated by that institution (Wikipedia, 2014). • Lack of due recognition
Some of the main objectives for having an institutional Generally, people have low interest for reading; it is a
repository are to provide open access to institutional research popular adage that “if you want to hide anything from a
output by self-archiving it, to create global visibility for an natural man put in a textbook but if you want such
institution's scholarly research, and to store and preserve information to be known, put it on the screen”. This implies
other institutional digital assets, including unpublished or that people transfer such negative notion towards anything
otherwise easily lost ("grey") literature such as theses or that pertains to library and its association. Lack of due
 International Journal of Education and Information Technology Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79 77

recognition of librarianship association has brought a lot of development of its country; therefore, they usually release
setbacks to the association; many organizations and wealthy some developmental report that could help in formulating
individuals often closed their doors of assistance towards its policies that would assist in building and developing the
projects and programs. Unlike their counterparts like country economy. Thus, it is the desire of every association
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) or Nigerian Medical for government to implement their report. Unfortunately,
Association (NMA) where people and organizations often most of these association reports especially that of the
need their services; this makes people to have high regards to Nigeria Library Association are not implemented nor are they
their associations and their projects are heavily supported by used to formulate information policies that would help in
some wealthy individuals and organizations in the society. developing the economy sector. This has greatly affected the
The implication of this problem on the librarianship morale of these associations especially the Nigeria Library
profession is that people in authorities of any organization or Association from making any useful developmental
even government officials will not give immediate approval suggestion in their report. The implication of this had led to
to library budgets and projects as they do to other sectors in inadequate formulation and implementation of information
the same organization or government establishment. policies that would enhance growth and development of
public libraries that is generally regarded as ‘people’s
• Fund inadequacy
university’ in the country; most of these libraries are full of
Money is the determinant factor that accelerates the growth obsolete and old collections, dilapidated infrastructures and
and development of any association. The librarianship frustrated library personnel due to non-payment of their
association is facing the challenge of short supply of fund; salaries and wages for several months.
many visions and laudable projects of the executive members
• Lack of rich curriculum in most library schools
of the association remain unfulfilled dream due to scarcity of
funds to execute them. The Nigerian Governments are not It can be noted here that many library school graduates are
given financial support to the association. Sadly enough, the not competent enough to face the challenges that abound in
membership of the association are not helping matters; most the labour market. In librarianship; one of the major reasons
members are not financially committed to the association as for these lapses is principally as a result low level or poor
they are not faithful in paying their annual dues to the curriculum that was used to train this group of young
association. In such case, how can the association’s project librarians, no wonder they perform woefully in their places of
be implemented? The implication of this problem is that work. In most library schools in Nigeria, they are still using
laudable programmes and projects of the association for the ancient curriculum to train their students without following
year will not be adequately implemented. Therefore, there the modern trend in librarianship; whereas we are in the
should be total commitment of members towards the modern trend in the human race otherwise known as
association and its dream. ‘information age’ where computer applications has taken the
place of traditional method of librarianship.
• Political factors
In most library schools, they don’t even have computer
As hinted above, the Nigeria Library Association is not
laboratory where student librarians will be exposed to
getting much needed recognition and support from the
electronic formats of processing and disseminating
government officials. Library is a service delivery institution;
information nor do they engage the services of System
government officials see library as not for profit organization
librarians/lecturers to train these young potential librarians on
in which they must not waste much resources sponsoring its
the application of Information Communication Technology
projects and association. This negative posture has greatly
(ICT) and its accessories. How can such young librarian
affected the growth of the association. Most of these officials
perform in an electronic library set up where they usually
built up stiff opposition against the association and they
transmit the library operations through computer system and
prevented it from having much sought government attention.
its accessories? The implication of this on most of these
The implication of this on the library is that it would prevent
young librarians and librarianship as a whole is that they are
library from acquiring and adequately providing all the
not skilful enough to be gainfully employed in most
needed information resources for the survival of such
academic libraries; also, few of them that are lucky to be
organization as “library is a growing organism”
employed are not productive as they performed below
(Ranganathan, 1963).
average this made them to be disengaged from such hard
• Lack of government interest in implementing the report of earned employment. Therefore, it is imperative for every
association library school in most Nigerian universities to take a cue
Every association wants to contribute to the growth and from Babcock University, Department if Information
Resources Management (IRM) where they have very rich
78 Yaya Japheth Abdulazeez and Adeeko Kikelomo: Professionalism in Librarianship: Librarians’ Functions, Challenges and the
Way Forward

curriculum to train young librarians even to the PhD levels, general populace. Also, librarians should be more committed
no wonder they are excelling in their various places of work. to the course of their profession as being done by their
counterparts in other professions. Library and information
• Competitors challenges
science professionals need to use innovative and creative
According to Yaya, Achonna and Osisanwo (2014), academic ways to meet diverse information needs of their users.
libraries are having some organizations that are competing
with their services and if urgent steps are not taken these
organizations may send librarians out of their laudable Recommendations: The Way
profession, these include: Internet and web sites providers; Forward
Telecommunication (telephone) operators; E-journals and e-
As mentioned in the early stage of this paper, every
books providers; Special and private information centers;
profession in the human history has its origin, prospects and
Archives and documentation centers.
challenges; it is the desire of every member of the
Ironically, the above mentioned competitors are equipped professional body to seek for solutions to the problems
with sophisticated technology, current and relevant militating against their successful journey in the society.
information resources with adequate funding that enhance Hence, we postulate the following recommendations as the
their ability to provide much needed services to the way forward from these problems:
information seekers; these make information users to develop
little or no interest in visiting the library for any help, except • The activities and programmes of the librarianship
during examination period when large population of readers profession should be given a wide publicity. Adequate
(students) will visit the library. The implication of this publicity is an essential ingredient that enhances growth
problem on the library services is that most information and development of any profession.
seekers will shift their attention from seeking their needed • People should have a right attitude towards printed
information from the library as they could get such needed educational materials and give due recognition to the
information elsewhere, although most academic libraries Nigerian Library Association (NLA) as being done to
have acquired some online resources like: Ebscohost, Science other notable associations in Nigeria. The association
direct, JSTOR, Myilibrary, Bookboon.com, AGORA and should harness every avenue to publicize its activities to
other educational sources; these are purposely made to the society. Both printed and non-printed media houses as
enhance their operations; yet libraries are recording low well as social media sources could be patronized.
patronage and this could affect its annual budget as library
• Membership of the NLA should be financially committed
management are not in possession of readers’ relative high
to their association as done by membership of other
figure to support her monetary request during budget defence
associations. Government should not be bordered with
this would eventually affect their active competition with
financing associations as she has more financial
other information providers. Therefore, the library
commitment to other areas in the country. In order not to
management should act fast and provide all the modern
lose their original identity because ‘he who pays the pipe
facilities and technologies that are needed to enable library to
dictates the tune’.
effectively compete with other organizations that are offering
similar services to the public. • Government officials should have positive attitude
towards library and the association that represent the
interest of librarians in the land. Hence, its report should
7. Conclusion be given a right thought and use to formulate information
In this paper, several issues that we believe are related to the policies that would help in developing other viable
professionalism of librarians have been fairly discussed. economic sectors which the government officials much
Librarians hip profession has been seen as the most important catered for. Government officials should know that
profession in the land in which every other professions information is the bedrock of any sustainable development
depend on for their survival; also, everyone in the human in the human society; library is the legalized custodian of
society rely on our profession to provide them with information, hence, money should be adequately invested
informational resources that will adequately meet their in order to acquire more relevant educational resources for
information needs. Hence, the practitioners of this laudable its collection.
profession must possess some characteristics that would • The library school in most Nigerian university should
make them to be more effective in providing the much develop and operate a well-designed curriculum to train
needed information to an individual, organizations and the their students. Therefore, every library school in most
 International Journal of Education and Information Technology Vol. 1, No. 3, 2015, pp. 70-79 79

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