Take advantage of technologies - Second Lady urges librarians
The Second Lady, Mrs Matilda Amissah-Arthur, has urged librarians to explore new ways of collecting and sharing information to reduce cost and ensure easy accessibility.
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She said librarians needed to take advantage of technologies and the Internet to explore user-friendly platforms such as the social media, website, blogs and google in collecting and sharing information.
To remain relevant in the modern world, she said it was important for libraries to adopt new philosophies and approaches in sourcing and sharing information.
Network
Mrs Amissah-Arthur was addressing the opening ceremony of the maiden international conference of the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Ghana (CARLIGH) in Accra last Tuesday.
The four-day conference, which is on the theme “Innovation for access to information”, formed part of CARLIGH’s 10th anniversary.
The conference brought together librarians, researchers and academicians from across Africa and other parts of the world to discuss how to promote innovative access to information and to foster regional dialogue and collaboration.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur also underscored the need for co-operation in sharing resources among players in the information sourcing industry for viable alternatives to traditional ways of information provision.
She said the establishment of consortiums such as the CARLIGH at various levels to share information was important in enhancing information accessibility.
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Skills and competence
The Second Lady said the roles, responsibilities and functions of the librarian had changed, adding that the library was a place where new social relationships were forged and knowledge created, explored and shared.
To be able to adopt innovative methods in accessing information in their profession, Mrs Amissah-Arthur said librarians needed to change their mindset, as well as sharpen their skills.
According to her, the change of mindset was important to empower librarians with the necessary confidence to reach out beyond the traditional boundaries.
“The traditional ways of accessing information no longer achieves maximum results because of the various media and sheer volume of data available. The traditional methods do not work; they are archaic, extremely slow and cumbersome” she stated.
She, therefore, challenged librarians to step out of their comfort zones, think thoroughly in accessing information and equip themselves with good communication and relational skills which were necessary for networking and collaboration.
The Chairperson of the CARLIGH, Dr Joel Sam, in his welcome address, said the conference consolidated the achievements of facilitating stable and global access to electronic information to its member institutions.
He said the organisation had over the years provided technical advice on librarian managements and organised training programmes for its member institutions.
He said the conference sought to document innovative approaches to access information and also build a strong partnership among library and information consortia worldwide.