The virtual library is an opportunity to address the paucity of teaching and research materials in the libraries of institutions of higher education in the country. It would also allow the institutions and local researchers to share their own research outputs with the global community. It would also ensure the preservation of our cultural heritages in a more durable form.

To kick start the effort at establishing the virtual library, UNESCO and Nigeria got a funding from the Japanese Fund in Trust to conduct a Feasibility Study for the virtual library in Nigeria. This Feasibility Study commenced with a study mission from UNESCO Headquarters to the country in September 2002. The mission held discussion with various organizations in the country and established a firm commitment on the need for the virtual library. It also recruited a National Professional Officer (NPO) who is to coordinate the Feasibility Study in the country.

To its credit, rather than commissioned consultants to undertake the Feasibility Study, UNESCO decided to involve the various stakeholders and professionals in a participatory approach to develop the content of the study. Thus, it brought together the various stakeholders in a workshop to deliberate and write the content of the feasibility report.

The workshop, which held from the 25th to 29th August at the Conference Hall of the NIT, Kaduna was attended by representatives from all the sectors of the tertiary institutions, libraries and IT professionals, educational administrators as well as IT companies that are operating in the electronic library sector. There were also representatives of donor organizations such as the MarAthur Foundation, which has been funding support on IT capacity in four universities in the country, the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), which has an electronic database subscriptions for many libraries in the country and the US Public Information System.

Working through eight syndicate groups, the workshop produced an eight-chapter document covering various aspects of the virtual library. These include infrastructure and connectivity, content management, capacity building and funding and sustainability and growth. Others were administration and management, legal, copyright and payment issues, implementation plan and costing as well as funding sources.

The workshop was conducted in an atmosphere that exhibited enthusiasm and a high commitment to the need to realize the virtual library. All participants have accepted that there are immense benefits to be derived from such a project. But they are equally aware of the problems that may militate against such a translation of the idea of the virtual library into a reality.

In a country like Nigeria, where the ICT infrastructure is poorly developed and where ICT skills are still inadequate, building and running the virtual library will not be easy. One thorny issue during the workshop was the question of payment. Virtual library requires users to access and down load documents electronically. This entails connectivity costs. Who shall bear the cost? It also requires heavy investment. Who shall fund the infrastructure development?

These concerns for cost and funding occupied a central plank in the deliberation at the workshop. It also was the reason for inviting the National Assembly to be present at the workshop. While there were many sources of funding, the issue of paying is not easy. Users have been used to a library system in which use is virtually free. To move from such a paradigm to a fee-paying system would require the understanding and support of all stakeholders, especially end users, most of who would be students.

The support and understanding of such groups can only be won on the basis of creating high level of awareness about the project and its potentials among these groups. This is why awareness creation is highly needed if the project is to succeed. Two foci of awareness building are students and staff of institutions of higher education and policy makers, especially those dealing with educational matters at all levels.

One of the issues that surfaced during the workshop was the question of hosting the coordination secretariat of the virtual library. There were many candidates vying for the honour, among which were the National Library, the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). While it is understandable that organizations may jockey for such, stakeholders need to understand that what is needed is the ability of all to come together to move the project forward rather than a turf war.

The uniqueness of the virtual library is that it is spaceless. In other words, since what it requires is the conversion of target library collections into electronic formats and placed on the Internet, to be accessed by anybody anywhere, there is no need for a centralizing bureaucracy for the project. Each participating institution should contribute its own unique content, and even charge others for this. In this way duplication of efforts would be eliminated while allowing for each to contribute within its capacity and specialty.

Already there are number of different virtual library initiatives by some of these institutions. The NUC has one. The National Board for Colleges of Education has another. There is there also the initiative of the National Open University, which is an institution under the NUC. The national virtual library should bring all these into a seamless integration so as to avoid duplication of cost and efforts, and to pool resources towards a common objective.

The building of such an important tool for the education system of the country should not be left to donor magnanimity. The Feasibility Study Coordinating committee has already identified to work with the National Assembly in an effort to ensure that the project would get speedy legal attention where necessary. It should however go beyond this and strive to get all the levels and relevant branches of government committed to this project. This would make it not only generate the funds needed for infrastructure deployment locally but also ensure the sustainability and growth of the project on the basis of national consensus and commitment.