1. LIBRARIANSHIP – IS NOT JUST ABOUT BOOKS.
It’s About Connecting People with Information ,Ideas and Opportunities~ Nancy Pearl
Odean Cole-Phoenix , Wesley Hughes Documentation Center, Jamaica
Emily Musembi, The East African University, Kenya
Ramila Mukairshoeva , University of Central Asia , Tajikistan
Librarianship as a profession in Jamaica Wesley Hughes Documentation centre
Jamaica is a mountainous island in the Caribbean sea about 600 miles south
of Miami, Florida with an estimate population of 2.828 Million according to
UN data.
The growth of librarianship is evident in public and private /business
libraries. Jamaica government has focused more on librarianship especially
in matters dealing with libraries and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This has made the profession to be on forefront in advocating for literacy
across the country. In addition, there's is librarians association thus The
Library and Information Association of Jamaica (LIAJA)
It is a special library in Planning Institute of
Jamaica which is responsible for coordinating
the government libraries Network across the
ministries ,departments and agencies of
government. The role is played by the
Technical Information Manager. This helps in
advocating for the profession in the country
through the government agencies.
Librarianship as a profession in Kenya The East African University Library
Kenya is located in the Eastern African region with approximately
population of 54 million people according to UN estimates. It is amongst the
large economies in sub-Saharan Africa after Nigeria bad South Africa.
Librarianship in Kenya has been embraced widely. The country has one
public library thus Kenya National Library Services (KNLs) with 64
branches throughout the country. Librarians in Kenya has a professional
body and consortium namely; i.e Kenya Library Association(KLA) and
Kenya Library and Information Services Consortium respectively (KLISC)/.
Theses has made librarians in the country to champion their position in
different sectors of economy such as Education sector where is mandatory
for every private, public universities and colleges o have library . This has
helped the profession to grow despite challenges surrounding it especially
funding and technology evolution where everything easily accessed
virtually and invention of AI. In conclusion, despite the evolution of
The East African University is one of the
largest private university in Kenya.it offers a
wide variety of professional and certifies
courses including but not limited to
computing courses, education and business
courses. It has a capacity of1800 staff. The
library as a department offers variety of
services, at Electronic resources section ,
services such as navigation of library
databases, information literacy and access to
OPAC and open access E-journals are
provided. The East African University
Library is spacious and provides ambience
and serene environment for learning
