UNESCO organized and hosted four-day workshop on Feasibility Study for Virtual Library: UNESCO



> UNESCO organized and hosted four-day workshop on Feasibility Study for Virtual Library

08-09-2003 8:00 am As part of the efforts to establish a virtual library by institutions of higher education in Nigeria, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) organized and hosted a four-day workshop on the Feasibility Study for the Virtual Library.
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Various stakeholders and professionals from across the country attended the workshop, held at the Conference Hall of NTI, Kaduna from the 25th to 29th August. At the end of the workshop, an eight-chapter report covering various aspects of the virtual library, from conceptualization, to content, implementation, management and funding as well as budget were adopted.

This report is to serve as a road map for the establishment of the virtual library. The workshop was sponsored by the Japanese Funds in Trust.

While awaiting the full report, published below is the Welcome Address delivered by the Secretary-General, Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO, Mrs Katagum, at the Opening of the Workshop.

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It is indeed an honour for me to welcome you to this UNESCO workshop on the Feasibility Study on the Development of Virtual Library for Institutions of Higher Education in Nigeria, holding here at the very conducive premises of the National Teachers' Institute (NTI), Kaduna.

I bring the facilitations of the Honourable Minister of Education, Professor Fabian Osuji to the Government and people of Kaduna State. I must especially appreciate Dr. Ahmed M. Modibbo, Director NTI, for his usual kind cooperation in the use of this venue. No doubt the theme of the workshop holds a special interest for NTI in view of its involvement in a regional project on the use of ICT in distance education for teacher training.

Permit me to state some antecedents on this project. Though UNESCO has had a long, cordial and fruitful collaboration with Nigeria, at the instance of Mr. President, UNESCO and Nigeria embarked on a Special Plan of Action in 1999 at the 30th Session of the UNESCO General Conference. It was to give particular emphasis in Basic Education, Education Sector Analysis, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and Policy and Strategy Advice in the field of Science and Technology; with a view to invigorating our weakened educational system and economy.

During the first mission visit to develop the programme for the Special Plan of Action, the UNESCO team from the Science and Technology Sector observed that two issues required immediate attention, namely; i. A National Information and Communication Policy (NICIP) Workshop, and ii. A Pilot Project on Virtual University/Laboratory and the Virtual Library Testbed.

These two preliminary activities have been successfully concluded with the help of UNESCO and some national experts. In October 2001 during the 31st General Conference, where President Olusegun Obasanjo had the honour of addressing the Opening Session, the Special Plan of Action was reviewed and it was agreed to launch a Feasibility Study for a Nigerian Virtual Library for Universities and other Institutions of Higher Education. A UNESCO fact finding mission visited relevant institutions from 4 to 16 November 2002.

Subsequently, the DG of UNESCO and President Obasanjo approved this project later in November 2002 during the High-Level Group on EFA Meeting, held in Abuja.

The issue of exploitation of ICT for development, particularly in education was recently the concern of the African Ministers of Education when they met in Arusha, Tanzania in December 2002, and declare seven challenges in education, one of which is strengthening of regional cooperation and partnership. The civil society and organized private sector are key stakeholders for promotion of good quality education for all and for innovation. I am glad to report that they have been active partners in the Nigerian progress since the NICP workshop in 2000.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are all living witnesses of the enormous challenges facing higher education in Nigeria, especially in the face of the emerging global knowledge society. The Federal Ministry of Education and the relevant agencies have not been complacent. There are various initiatives by the NUC such as the National University Network (Nunet), the reopening of NOUN, Open and Distance Learning initiatives by the NTI, the Pilot Project involving six Nigerian Universities "the Virtual University/Laboratory and the Virtual Library Testbed" initiatives of the National Library of Nigeria, etc. there are also regional and international partnership aimed at providing adequate up to date books and journal both in hard and electronic forms.

The NATCOM-UNESCO appreciate that our institutions of higher education and research are grappling with a lot of challenges towards partaking in the emerging global knowledge society. They lack financial resources as well as sufficient and modern library tools required to provide the services necessary for effective learning. It is in light of this that the NATCOM - UNESCO continues to ensure that our international partners keep this issue high on the agenda as we prepare for the 32nd General Conference of UNESCO holding in Paris, September/October 2003. in this context, it is necessary to acknowledge the unflinching commitment and support of Japanese government in this project.

UNESCO and other multilateral agencies have been very useful. Let me take this opportunity to appreciate the Representative of UNESCO, Director-General in Nigeria, Mr. Hubert Charles, Director General, Director UNESCO Office, Abuja and his team for the enormous effort that has been put in this project already.

This Feasibility Study is intended to serve as an action-oriented policy and project development tool for the large-scale implementation of a Nigerian Virtual Library. A virtual (digital/electronic) library provides easy access to a variety of national and international content and other services traditionally offered by libraries and information enter.

I am confident that the key stakeholders and highly skilled professionals invited here as participants are ready to take the bull by the horn to ensure that a solid foundation is laid for the Nigerian Virtual Library. It is important that strong institutional capacities are developed to ease knowledge transfer and sharing among the institutions of higher education in the country. We have the privilege of hindsight, drawing from the experiences of many nations that have gone ahead of us. Your foresight is required for creativity and innovation to link-up with existing national, regional and international initiatives, build a credible local content in the internet and the Internet that would match our national aspirations and other global commitments within the framework of EFA, NEPAD and beyond.

Once again, I welcome you most heartily to this important workshop and wish you fruitful deliberations. I thank you very much for listening.

Source	CITAD, Vol. 2, No. 8
Auteur(s)	Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD)

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