A comparative study of education for librarianship in West Africa

ht.

Libr.

Rev.

(1976) 8, 493-513

A Comparative Study of Education for Librarianship in West Africa ADETUNJI

AKINYOTU* THE

BEGINNINGS

Formal library education was first organized in West Africa in 1944 when a library school was opened at Achimota College, Gold Coast. This school was established as a result of a survey conducted by Miss Ethel Fegan whose report was submitted to the British Colonial Office in 1944.1 The school was headed by Miss Fegan and financed jointly by the British Council and the Governments of the three colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast and Sierra Leone. There were 14 students in all, made up of six from Nigeria, four from the Gold Coast, three from Sierra Leone and one from French Togo. Ten of these successfully sat for the entrance examination of the British Library Association.2 But the school was closed down after one year because, as Miss Evelyn Evans* pointed out, it was felt that more libraries were not likely to be established in the near future and therefore it was pointless to continue to train librarians for whom there would be no jobs. Harold Lancour4 later summed up the situation thus: “At that time there were no properly conceived or operated libraries to serve as examples of what could be accomplished. There was no cadre of trained and experienced people to conduct a training program. There was in no sense a library profession or tradition.” With the closure of this school came the end of the first experiment in formal library education in West Africa and it was several years after that before any such venture was attempted again. In the interval, however, some form of training was going on in the few libraries that then existed in the different countries. The British * Librarian I, Ibadan University Library, Ibadan, Nigeria. 1 Elizabeth H. Peeler (1964). Education for librarianship in West Africa. Nigerian Libraries 1, 6 I. 2 Bernard I. Palmer (1959). Education and training of librarians in the newly developing Commonwealth countries. Library Trends 8, 234. 3 Cited in Elizabeth H. Peeler (1964). Education for librarianship in West Africa. Nigerian Libraties 1, 61. 4 Quoted in Doris Cruger Dale (1972). Library schools in Africa: a preliminary survey. Illinois Libraries 54, 482.

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Council libraries which were established in both Nigeria and the Gold Coast in the mid-1940s were particularly active in this respect. In Gold Coast, for example, Miss E. J. A. Evans, who was then the British Council librarian in the country, continued to offer training facilities for library workers after the demise of the Achimota School. The Gold Coast Library Board, which was established in 1950, later assumed responsibility for library training and it arranged a series of courses to prepare candidates for the elementary levels of the British Library Association examinations. These courses were considered as merely preparatory to full-time courses overseas where Gold Coast citizens were sent as a matter of policy for final qualification. The Board received considerable financial assistance from the Carnegie Corporation for staff training and all the funds were used to send staff to library schools in England.1 The earliest recorded training course in Nigeria was organized in 1950 at the University College, Ibadan. It was conducted by Miss Joan Parkes (later Mrs Allen) and John Harris, then librarian of the University College, Ibadan, for candidates who were in charge of Native Authority libraries. s This course was later followed by a series of similar courses regularly organized in Northern Nigeria by Miss Parkes from 1952 onwards when she was the Northern regional librarian. These courses consisted of instructions on methods of issuing books, ordering new stock, preparing books for the shelves, book repairs, the use of quick reference books, suitable library furniture and so on. The Northern Regional Government offered its positive support for the courses by including in its Codzjled Grants to Native Authorities, a provision whereby any Native Authority which sent its reading room attendant to the regional library for the course could claim half of the attendant’s salary from the Government.3 The Eastern Nigeria Library Board was also very active in library training. Established in 1955, it embarked on a staff training program as from September 1956 with five assistants. The series of courses which the Board conducted, sometimes in collaboration with the British Council and other outside bodies, aimed at both improving the skill of the Board’s staff and also preparing the more brilliant ones for the British Library Association examinations. As from 1963, the Board reorganized its training program and conducted two separate courses 1 R. C. Benge

(1967).

Library

education

in Ghana,

1961-67.

Library

Association

Record

69,

225. s Elizabeth H. Peeler (1964). Education for librarianship in West Africa. Nigerian Libraries 1, 62. s John P. Allen (1964-65). Early days in the Northern Regional Library, Kaduna. Northern Nigeria Library Notes 2-3, 7 1.

EDUCATION

FOR LIBRARIANSHIP

IN WEST

AFRICA

495

concurrently. One course provided on-the-job training in elements of library organization and administration with emphasis on the practical application of principles and methods in the Board’s service. The Board’s staff and those of government departmental and local authority libraries were admitted to this course. The second course was designed to provide guidance to assistants preparing for the British Library Association’s first professional and entrance examinations. The Western Regional Library, the Nigerian Library Association and other libraries in the country were also engaged in staff training to varying degrees. THE

SEARCH

FOR

A POLICY ON FORMAL EDUCATION

LIBRARY

All the local training programs in West Africa were being carried out on a modest scale and none led to full qualification except after it had been supplemented with full-time library school attendance in England, France or the United States. It was not until 1960 that a new local library school was established in any part of West Africa. This was the Institute of Librarianship of the University College, Ibadan. The establishment of this school had been preceded by a series of resolutions, reports, recommendations and individual views on library education. The event that had the greatest influence on library education in, at least, Anglophone West Africa was the UNESCO Seminar on the “Development of Public Libraries in Africa”, which was held at University College, Ibadan in 1953. The seminar deliberated on library education and set up a committee known as Group III whose duty was “to study the basic questions involved in the training of library workers in Africa and to put forward concrete plans and proposals for the consideration, not only of librarians, but also of government officials, educators and others with a responsibility for the provision of public library services and the professional training of librarians.“1 In a report2 prepared by Dorothy Williams and John Harris on behalf of Group III, it was stated that: . . . the group reached agreement that the basic objective of full-scale library training in Africa should be to train leaders for the profession in this continent, i.e. people who would be qualified to assume full responsibility for the effective operation of library service in practical terms in public, school, university or special libraries, capable of playing a dynamic role in the development of libraries in Africa, and able to conduct requisite in-service training of assistant 1 UNESCO (1954). Development Paris: UNESCO. B Ibid.,

p. 97.

of Public Libraries

in Africa

: The Ibadan

Seminar, pp. 97-l 17.

496

A.

AKINYOTU

staff . . .

it was further felt that generally Africa should require university graduation programme of full-scale professional training

speaking, library or its equivalent at a leadership

schools located in for admission to the level.

The report further went on to recommend that a one-year training course for intermediate staff should be established in a limited number of appropriate institutions of higher education, preferably universities. “The aim of such training would be to equip secondary school graduates to fill numerous posts at the intermediate level of responsibility in libraries of various types, particularly as assistants in large libraries or as librarians-in-charge of small libraries.” These recommendations evoked a great deal of controversy and, significantly, the loudest critics came from the Gold Coast. Commenting on the recommendations, Miss Jessie Carnell, then librarian at Kumasi College of Technology, Gold Coast, expressed strong scepticism about the desirability of concentrating on training Africans for leadership positions. In her opinion, it was both premature and unrealistic to set up library schools with the primary objective of training leaders. The basic need was “workers” and leaders could not possibly be produced by library schools, they could only emerge from the ranks by virtue of their “qualities of character, a high level of intelligence, the discipline of work and the experience of responsibility.“1 Miss Evelyn Evans, then Director of the Gold Coast Library Board, fully supported the views of Miss Carnell and even went further to question the wisdom of establishing a West African library school at all. She argued that such a school could not provide the same advantages and facilities as would be available in the United Kingdom where students could visit model libraries. Moreover, she re-echoed the argument advanced for the closure of the Achimota School of 1944 that the demand for librarians in West Africa was bound to be too small to justify the existence of a local library school. She would rather support the continuance of the existing system whereby short local courses, conducted by individual libraries and library boards, prepared candidates for the elementary stages of the British Library Association examinations, followed by attendance at a library school in the United Kingdom.2 THE

WEST AFRICAN AND LIBRARY

LIBRARY ASSOCIATION EDUCATION

This open diagreement among leading librarians in West Africa must have contributed to the delay in implementing the recommendations of 1 E. J. Carnell (1955). Review: Seminar. WALA News 2,46. 2 E. J. A. Evans (1956). Training

development

of public

for Librarianship.

libraries

WALA

News

in Africa: 2, 67.

The

Ibadan

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN

WEST

AFRICA

497

the 1953 UNESCO Seminar. However, the seminar achieved one positive result which had since then had very great impact on library education in the region. Following the recommendation of the seminar that “librarians working in various regions of Africa should take practical steps to form dynamic professional library associations as soon as possible. When formed, such associations should draw up carefully planned programmes of action aimed at stimulating and assisting library development in Africa, and achieving adequate recognition for the profession”,1 the West African Library Association was founded in 1954 with representatives from the Gold Coast, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria attending its inaugural meeting in Lagos. The Association showed considerable concern for library education right from its inception but probably because of the wide disparities of views on the matter, it avoided a definite stand on the recommendations of the UNESCO Seminar. Rather, it passed a resolution which merely restated the existing pattern. The resolution reads: “That this Conference, believing that qualified librarians have a significant part to play in the New Africa, urges on West African governments the need to award scholarships to librarians for study overseas.“2 The Annual General Meeting of the following year was able to arrive at a more concrete policy on library education which amounted to a compromise between the opposing views of librarians from the Gold Coast on the one hand and of those from Nigeria on the other. The Association passed the following motions at the 1955 meeting: (1) That this Conference, conscious of the need for increasing professional training facilities in West Africa, urges the Council of the Association to set up a Standing Committee on Library Training to: (a) explore the possibility of establishing a library training center for West Africa; (b) assist, in whatever ways it can, those librarians now engaged in the formal training of junior librarians. (2) That the Council of the West African Library Association investigate the possibility of obtaining funds from the Carnegie Corporation of New York to establish four scholarships a year in each of the territories of the Gold Coast and Nigeria for training, at a library school in the United Kingdom or the United States, library assistants who have at least passed one part of the Registration Examinations.3

As a result of these motions, a formal request was made to the Carnegie Corporation. But when the corporation indicated interest in the request, it was not easy to formulate a generally agreed proposal because of a conflict in the viewpoints held by librarians from the Gold Coast and 1 Paris: 2 3 News

UNESCO (1954). Development of Public Libraries in Africa: The Ibadan Seminar, UNESCO. WALA News (1955) 2, 19. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of W.A.L.A., Dec. 18, 1955 (1956). 2, 95.

p. 117.

WALA

498

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by those from Nigeria. The former would rather use whatever money was allotted to the Gold Coast for training as scholarships to send assistants to library schools in England, as was already the practice. Whereas, the members from Nigeria preferred to spend Nigeria’s share to provide a “tutor-advisor” for Nigeria, and to set up local training courses that would lead to first professional qualification.1 However, a compromise proposal was finally agreed upon and presented to the corporation. THE

RECOMMENDATIONS

OF HAROLD

LANCOUR

The corporation decided to conduct its own investigations before making up its mind on what forms of assistance were needed. Therefore, in the fall of 1957, it appointed Dr Harold Lancour, then associate dean of the University of Illinois Library School, to undertake a survey of the library needs of British West Africa. In his report,2 Lancour observed that in order to assist library development effectively, the corporation should concentrate on providing funds for the recruitment and training of library personnel. He suggested two ways in which this could be accomplished. The first was “by establishing a grant of money for scholarships to send potential librarians to England and possibly to other countries”. He, however, expressed strong reservations about this approach because it would be found expensive and consequently only few people would be able to benefit from it. Moreover, local training was bound to be more beneficial than overseas training in that the training would be more directly related to local conditions and needs. The alternative line of action was the establishment of a library school in one of the West African countries. The location of such a school should be in an institution of higher education with adequate resources, personnel and prestige to develop a high quality, professional training program. The school could be located in institutes and colleges of technology, but preferably it should be in a university, particularly if the training was to be at the postgraduate level. He finally recommended the University College, Ibadan as the institution best suited and equipped for such a school. These recommendations again brought clashes of views between leading librarians in Nigeria and the Gold Coast. John Harris, a leading librarian from Nigeria and then president of the West African Library Association, lauded the Lancour report at the 1959 Conference of the Association in these words: 1 E. H. Peeler (1964). Education for librarianship in West Africa. JVigerian Libraries 1, 65. 2 Harold Lancour (1958). Libraries in British West Aftica. A Report qf a Survey for the Carnegie Corporation of Jvew York, Oct.-Norm. 1959. Urbana: University of Illinois Library School.

EDUCATION

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LIBRARIANSHIP

IN WEST

AFRICA

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It is the most comprehensive ever made in this part of the world; . . . it must inevitably form the starting point of any serious discussions of problems of library development in West Africa. Dr Lancour’s conclusions are that the key to further library development is not books, not buildings but staff, and that the greatest need is for supply of professional librarians at the leadership level. His recommendations give his views as to the way in which a supply can best be assured.1

On the other hand, Miss Evans, a delegate from Ghana, sprang to the attack. Commenting on the library school proposed by Lancour, she expressed the view: . . . that for purposes of public librarianship such a school would be of little use. If or when established it would certainly meet the needs of university and special library staff, but with the wider aspects of librarianship which have to be covered by the Public Librarian, something more than just academic training is required. I am quite prepared to be told that this system has proved effective in the United States, but I contend that there can be no comparison whatsoever between a University College which must depend entirely on lectures, and a library school in which the students have easy access to well-run public library systems. In-service training, combined with subsequent attendance at a library school would appear to best suit the needs of staff training in a new public library system. And I would like to emphasize the value of being able to work in and visit well-established public libraries overseas, and the value that travel abroad gives to the broadening of an individual’s mind.2 In view of these conflicting opinions and bearing in mind the leadership positions held by John Harris and Miss Evans in Nigeria and Ghana respectively, it is not surprising that library education initially followed different patterns in the two countries. Francophone countries did not feature prominently either in the West African Library Association or in the wrangling going on on a policy for library education in Africa largely because at that time libraries and qualified librarians were very rare in the countries and also because, as a result of the colonial educational policy of France, it was considered normal for whatever training that was necessary to be given in the mother country.

DEPARTMENT

FORMAL LIBRARY OF LIBRARY

EDUCATION IN NIGERIA STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN

In spite of open disagreement among leading librarians in West Africa, the Carnegie Corporation of New York adopted the report of Harold Lancour and went ahead to implement its recommendations. It made an initial grant of $88000 to the University College, Ibadan in 1959 for the purpose of setting up a training scheme for librarians. The scheme was started in October 1960 with John Harris, then the university 1John Harris (1959). Presidential address. WALA News 3, 102. 2 E. J. A. Evans (1959). The public library and the community. WALA

News 3, 147.

500

A.

AKINYOTU

librarian, as the director and it was designed to operate within the framework of the University Library. Teachers for the scheme were drawn mainly from among the senior members of the University Library. The first prospectus1 for the scheme declared that the purpose of the course was to prepare leaders for the profession in Africa and that strong emphasis was to be placed on “the special requirements of African readers, on the problems peculiar to libraries in the tropics, . . .“. Even though the scheme was intended primarily for graduates, nevertheless it was found necessary, at least initially, to admit non-graduates, provided they had at least two years full-time experience in a recognized library and they had passed at least one part of the registration examination of the British Library Association. The course was originally designed to last two years, at least half of which was to be devoted to practical work. But this was modified before the course began and students were prepared for the registration examinations, that is, the Associateship of the Library Association, in one year. It was proposed to award a local diploma to graduates who successfully completed the A.L.A. examinations and, in addition, did further work of special relevance to libraries in tropical Africa. This additional diploma was never awarded and it was not until the 1963-64 session that the A.L.A. program was completely scrapped and replaced with another one leading to the award of a local diploma. The syllabus was accordingly modified to reflect a strong orientation towards the special needs of African libraries. As from the 1966-67 session, only graduates were eligible for admission, with the result that for the following four years there was no provision for training non-graduates within the scheme. A separate program was introduced for non-graduates as from 1970-71. This was a one-year certificate course open to holders of the West African School Certificate with credits in at least five subjects including English language. Holders of the Grade II Teachers’ Certificate with the grade of “merit” in five subjects were also acceptable. In exceptional cases, candidates without either of these qualifications but who had long library experience and were sponsored by their employers were considered for admission provided they had passed either English or mathematics with a credit grade. This program, which led to the award of a certificate in library studies, was reorganized in 1973. It now lasts two years and leads to a diploma in library studies. The school also introduced, as from 1969-70, higher degree programs leading to the degrees of master of library studies and doctor of philosophy in library studies. The scheme was reorganized into an’ institute of the University in 1 Ibadan

University

College

(1960).

7 raining

Course in Librarianship,

Prospectus.

Ibadan.

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN

WEST

AFRICA

501

1965 and in 1969 the institute attained full departmental status within the faculty of education. In addition to the initial grant, the Carnegie Corporation made further grants of $112000 in 1963 and $84000 in 1966. These grants sustained the school from its early years up to 1968 when the university took over full financial responsibility for it. It now has a full-time staff of five, plus a librarian/demonstrator and it has so far produced over 150 professionally qualified librarians.1 SUGGESTIONS

ON

ADDITIONAL

TRAINING

AGENCIES

Right from the beginning, it was clear to many people that the Ibadan school would not be able to cope single-handedly with the training of sufficient numbers of library personnel of all grades. Therefore, several suggestions were put forward on how best to provide other avenues of training to complement the work of the Ibadan school. Notable among contributors to the search for a workable formula were Robert F. Ashby who suggested a mobile library training unit that would operate on a nation-wide basis and whose work “would be intended to be distinct from, complementary to, and in some degree in preparation for, library school training”,2 John Harris who advocated a program of training for intermediate staff of libraries which would be conducted through correspondence courses and short intensive courses under the aegis of the National Library of Nigeria3 and Carl M. White, then library adviser to the Nigerian Federal Government, whose suggestions were limited to the training of staff for the newly established National Library.4 The most important contribution and one that ultimately bore some concrete fruits was that of F. A. Sharr who was commissioned in 1963 to conduct a survey into the library needs of Northern Nigeria. In his report, 5 he recommended that: (a) In-service training courses should be undertaken by libraries; (b) there was need for a second library school in Nigeria; (c) a school oflibrarianship should be established at Ahmadu to provide professional education up to international standard basis for Northern students and for those of other regions, if they

the individual Bello University on a sandwich so desire;

1 Ibadan University. Department of Library Studies (1973). Prospectus, 1973-74, Ibadan 2. 2 Robert F. Ashby. The Training of Staff in the Libraries qf Xigeria: A Report Presented to the West African Library Association, Feb. 1962. Mimeo. 3 John W. Harris (1962). Training and Certzjcation for Library Exe&L&e Grades in Nigeria. Ibadan: University College. Mimeo. 4 Carl M. White (1964). Education and training of library personnel in Nigeria. Nigerian Libraries 1, 75-80. 5 Nigeria, Northern. Ministry of Information (1963). The Library Needs of Northern Ngeria. A Report Prepared under the Special Commonwealth African Assistance Plan (by F. A. Sharr), pp. 242. Kaduna : Government Printer.

502

A. AKINYOTU (d) the course at Ahmadu Bello education up to university entrance

DEPARTMENT

University standard

and

should comprise both professional studies.

OF LIBRARY SCIENCE, BELLO UNIVERSITY

general

AHMADU

There was some delay in implementing the last two proposals and therefore, in the interval, Ahmadu Bello University Library started its own in-service training after appointing a library staff training officer in 1964. A graduate-in-training program was introduced in 1967 whereby graduates of the university were recruited and given two years of onthe-job training. After serving for two years in one of the university libraries, graduates-in-training were to be sent overseas on sponsorship for formal professional qualification. The Sharr report was finally implemented in October 1968 when a department of librarianship was established at the University. It became the Department of Library Science in the faculty of education in 1970. The department started with two separate programs. The first was a two-year diploma program for intermediate staff and the other was a three-year program leading to the degree of bachelor of library science. Candidates for the diploma program were expected to have passed the West African School Certificate or the General Certificate of Education at ordinary level with at least a credit in English language, while admission to the degree program required the same qualifications as outlined in the University Calendar for admission to any regular department of the university. 1 A program leading to the degree of master of library science was added in 1969. It normally lasts one year of full-time studies and two years of part-time. FORMAL

LIBRARY

EDUCATION

IN GHANA

Right from the time it was established in 1950, the Ghana Library Board had pursued a policy of training staff in accordance with the British Library Association’s practice. Aspiring staff were encouraged to prepare through correspondence and local courses for the elementary levels of the Library Association examinations. Those who passed a part of the registration examination were then awarded scholarships to complete their training in a library school overseas, preferably in Britain. The Board also conducted a series of in-service training courses.2 1 Abmadu Be110 University. 1968169, p. 13. Zaria. 2 E. J. A. Evans (1963). The

Department Ghana

Library

of Librarianship Board.

Library

(1966). World

First 64, 209.

Annual

Report,

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN

WEST

AFRICA

503

Between 1950 and 1961, seven Ghanaians qualified as chartered librarians through this process.1 Apparently, there was general dissatisfaction among Ghanaians with Lancour’s recommendation that a single library school for West Africa should be established at the University College, Ibadan. Apart from the general disapproval of the educational policy set down for the Ibadan school, it was strongly felt that Ghana should have its own library school. It is not surprising, therefore, that the then Prime Minister was quoted in the “Annual Report of the Ghana Library Board 1960” as calling for the establishment of a school of librarianship in Ghana.2 In 1960, the Board commissioned J. C. Harrison, formerly head of the Manchester Library School, to make recommendations for library education in Ghana. In his report, Harrison recommended that a nonuniversity school should be established which would run courses for the British Library Association examinations and would be directly under the control of the Ghana Library Board.3 Harrison’s preference for a non-university school was to be expected in view of the fact that this was the common practice in England at that time. It is interesting to note that Lancour had earlier exhibited a similar bias in recommending a university-affiliated library school. The Board adopted Harrison’s recommendations and in September 1961 the Ghana Library School was duly set up under the Board’s auspices, though the first fully organized courses did not begin until January 1962. Students were recruited from among secondary school certificate holders, with or without library experience. Admission was not limited to Ghanaians as could be inferred from the 1962-63 enrollment of 30 students which included two from Sierra Leone and three from Nigeria.4 The course lasted two years. Between 1961 and 1965, the school produced 48 qualified librarians, 26 of whom completed the old registration examination and 22 passed the part II of the new.5 It was clear from the beginning that the arrangement whereby the school prepared candidates for the British Library Association examinations was to be purely tentative. This fact was emphasized by R. C. Benge, the first principal of the school, in his paper” read at the inaugural 1 Quoted in R. C. Benge (1967). Library education in Ghana, 1961-67. Library Association Record 69, 225. 2 E. H. Peeler (1964). Education for librarianship in West Africa. Nigerian Libraries 1, 68. 3 R. C. Benge (1967). Library education in Ghana, 1961-67. Library Association Record 69, 225. 4 R. C. Benge (1963). The Ghana Library School. Library World 64, 221. 5 R. C. Benge (1967). Library education in Ghana, 1961-67. Library Association Record 69, 226. s R. C. Benge (1964). Foundations of a Library School. Nigerian Libraries 1,81.

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conference of the Nigerian Library Association in December 1963. In the paper, he acknowledged the importance of “national or local qualifications based on local conditions” and, comparing the situation at the Ibadan school with that at his own school, he commented that: . . . in our own case we did feel that if the whole pattern that the library assistant in Ghana had been going to the training and taking the L.A. examinations there, that was had to accept that that was the situation, and so we are saying syllabus for the minimum possible period” . . . After that, to inaugurate a local qualification.

for so long had been United Kingdom for where to begin. We “we will teach that it should be possible

Even during this transitional period, the Ghana Library School was anxious to bring some local flavour to its program. A proposal was put to the British Library Association that at the final level there should be a paper to be set by the school on library administration in Ghana or West Africa. There was also an early realization that if the school was to break its ties with the British Library Association and still retain recognition for its programs and diplomas, it had to be affiliated with a university. Benge expressed this viewpoint in the paper mentioned above and he subscribed to the view that librarianship should be made a graduate profession in West Africa. But, according to him, that was impracticable in Ghana at the time because of scarcity of graduates. He went on further to express preference for a three-year degree program rather than a one-year postgraduate program like the one being offered by the Ibadan school. In his view, a three-year degree program was the best for new countries in that it would allow for the teaching of “languages which are particularly important and social sciences generally. Unless you have this you tend to get a professional or technical superstructure on too narrow a base.” Wilfred J. Plumbe, the then librarian of the Ahmadu Bello University and one of the architects of the Ahmadu Bello University Library School, expressed a similar view a year 1ater.l With Benge still as principal, it was natural that when the school was finally integrated with the faculty of social studies of the University of Ghana as the Department of Library Studies in October 1965, it should start with a three-year degree program. The program led to the degree of bachelor of arts in library studies and the course was a combination of professional and academic subjects, Students devoted the entire first year to the study of any three of the following subjects: 1 Wilfred J. Plumbe (1964-65). Staff education a paper presented at the Leverhulme Conference held at the University College of Rhodesia and 14-23 Sept. 1964. Northern .Nigeria Library Notes 2

and training on University Nyasaland, & 3. 145.

in African Libraries Salisbury,

university libraries: in Tropical Africa, Southern Rhodesia,

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LIBRARIANSHIP

IN

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AFRICA

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English, French, political science, sociology, philosophy, linguistics, economics, history and geography. They continued with one of these subjects to degree level for the remaining two years but major emphasis was placed on library science subjects during this period. Between 1965 and 1967, 10 students graduated from the course. This degree course was changed to a two-year postgraduate diploma course in 1967 and this in turn was reduced to a one-year program in 1969. In order to provide for the training of intermediate and junior staff, a one-year certificate course was introduced in 1970. In 1971, another program leading to the degree of master of arts in library studies was approved by the university authorities. One might be tempted to wonder how the department, with a full-time staff of only three, could cope with three programs at the same time. However, the enrollment figures for the different courses seem to offer an explanation. In 1971-72, there were only four postgraduate diploma students and in 1972-73, there were nine certificate in librarianship students and only one student for the M.A. c0urse.i The department also planned to establish archival studies starting from the 1973-74 year. This plan followed a decision jointly taken by UNESCO through its International Council on Archives (ICA) and the Ghana Government to establish a regional training centre for archivists from English-speaking African countries. The cost of the first four years of its operation is to be borne by a grant from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and by the Ghana Government and the Ghana National Archives. It is expected that the Governments of Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda will send their students to the centre. In April 1973, Professor Andre Nitecki submitted to the Board of the Faculty of Social Studies proposed syllabi for a postgraduate diploma in archival studies and for a certificate for archival assistants. Each of the programmes is expected to last one year.2 Apparently in order to provide a means of advancement for the numerous holders of the British Library Association certificates, Professor Nitecki recently submitted a proposal to the Ghana Library Association for the establishment of a fellowship of the Ghana Library Association. The proposal requires candidates wishing to proceed to the fellowship to: 1 Ghana. University. Department of Library Studies (1973). Education for Librarianship in Ghana, 1973-74, p. 8. Legon, Ghana. s See Memorandum submitted by Professor Andre Nitecki dated 30 April 1973 and addressed to Professor K. B. Dickson, Dean, Faculty of Social Studies, University of Ghana, Legon.

A.

506

AKINYOTU

(a) produce evidence of having completed five years’ approved library services election to the associateship of an approved library association and (b) produce evidence of being active members of the Ghana Library Association since the election to the above-named associateship.

after

The proposal further went on to specify that candidates would be expected to present to the Board of Studies of the Ghana Library Association a thesis upon some aspects of librarianship in West Africa. The thesis must be an original work and must contribute to the development of libraries and librarianship in West Africa.1 This proposal is still being considered by the Association. FORMAL

LIBRARY

EDUCATION

IN

SENEGAL

As was the case in Ghana and Nigeria, the few librarians that were trained for the libraries of French West Africa received their training overseas and particularly in France up to the early 1960s. Special programs were organized in Tolouse for trainees from French-speaking African countries as from 1961. Between 1962 and 1964, a “Certificat d’aptitude” experiment was tried out in France under the auspices of the “Direction de la Co-operation avec la Communaute et YEtranger”. The result of this experiment was not encouraging enough and therefore the scheme was dropped.2 However, the deliberations and decisions of the two UNESCO seminars of 1953 and 1964 and particularly of the 1961 Addis Ababa Conference, the Development of Education in Africa, affected the thinking of library education policy makers in Francophone West Africa as it did that of their Anglophone counterparts. It was clear that if education was to be promoted on an appreciable scale, then libraries would have to be established to support educational programs. It therefore followed that there was an urgent need to train librarians in reasonable numbers and particularly in a local school. To this end, an agreement was signed between the Senegalese Government and UNESCO on 28 March 1962 to the effect that a regional centre for the training of African librarians should be set up in Dakar. The agreement specified that during 1962, UNESCO would provide an expert on library schools, a fellowship in librarianship to train the centre’s future director who had been designated by the Government, and the technical equipment necessary to enable the centre to operate efficiently. During a second period-1963-66-UNESCO would provide an expert, fellowship for students, books and equipment. During the 1 Ghana. University. s A library education (1968). Umsco Bulletin

Department of Library Studies (1973). Newsletter 3, 9-10. policy for the developing countries: the view of Miss Paule for Libraries 22, 180.

Salvan

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN

WEST

AFRICA

507

same periods, the Government was to provide premises, furniture, equipment, administrative staff, teachers and the funds necessary to operate the centre efficiently and maintain and replenish its stocks and equipment. The first school year began on 4 November 1963 with 20 students, made up of six from Senegal, two each from Cameroon, the Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Togo and one each from Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Dahomey; Guinea, Mali and Upper Volta.1 The program was designed to cover both theoretical and practical education on library technique and it also included a supplementary course on general education, because of the generally low academic standards of prospective students. Special emphasis was placed on the needs of public library services in Africa. The course lasted eight months each year and instruction was given on organization and administration of libraries, bibliography, cataloging and classification, documentation and general education. 2 At the beginning, admission policy was very liberal. There was no entrance examination and even though candidates were expected to have passed the equivalent of a French secondary school certificate examination, any one who held at least the intermediate secondary school certificate was accepted. A local diploma, known as “Certificat d’aptitude au mktier de bibliothtcaire”, was awarded to successful candidates. This eight-month program was offered for four years consecutively, that is, from November 1963 to June 1967 and during this period, a total of 83 students participated.3 When direct UNESCO assistance came to an end in June 1967, the Senegalese Government felt not only that the centre should continue to exist but also that it should expand its training program to cover the fields of documentation and archives services. A request was therefore made to France to assist in converting the centre into a university institute to be known as the School for Librarians, Archivists and Documentalists. The conversion was effected as from 1 July 1967 by a Government decree issued on 15 November 1967. The decree spelt out the principal aims of the new school as follows: (a) To train middle-level (b) to provide in-service assistant archivists, assistant (c) to conduct research

librarians, archivists and documentalists; training for the above-mentioned staff as well librarians and assistant documentalists; in the institute’s various fields of activity.4

as for

1 Louis Senguin (1964). The regional center for the training of librarians at Dakar. UNESCO Bulletin for Libraries 18, 101. 2 Doris Cruger Dale (1972). Library schools in Africa: a preliminary survey. Illinois Libraries 54, 483. 3 T. H. Bowyer (1970). The University of Dakar School of Librarianship. Library Ahztetiufs on Afrita 7, 65. 4 Amadou Bousso (1973). University of Dakar School for Librarians, Archivists and Documentalist. UNESCO Bulletin for Libraries 27, 73.

508

A. AKINYOTU

The decree also extended the duration of the program to two years. The regional scope of the school was to be maintained and this was formally confirmed at the Conference of Heads of State of the Common Afro-Malagasy Organization (OCAM) which met in Niamey from 22 to 23 January 1968. Resolutions were passed at the conference urging participating countries “to provide for the rapid training of specialized librarians, in particular at the Dakar School”, and also to request “the competent authorities to ensure that a highly specialized course for archivists of at least two years’ duration will be available as from October 1969 at the Dakar School for Librarians, Archivists and Documentalists.” In the 1971-72 year, the school had a full-time staff of three together with 20 part-time teachers. The school now runs two programs. The first is a continuation of the program of the defunct centre and it is meant for the training of middle-level librarians. The second was started at the beginning of 1971 academic year for the training of archivists. This program was set up with the aid of UNESCO through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and with support from the International Council on Archives. Its objective is to train middle-level archivists for all the French-speaking countries of Africa. A program on documentation is being contemplated but meanwhile training in documentation techniques is being given to the second year students in both the librarianship and archive programs.1

LIBRARY

EDUCATION IN OTHER COUNTRIES

WEST

AFRICAN

There is yet very little formal library education going on in the other West African countries. Dadzie,z however, listed some courses being provided in Guinea and Mali. In Guinea, the National Library in Conakry was reported as sponsoring a program known as “Stage de Formation de Bibliothecaires Non-Professionnels pour les Minister-es, Service et Etablissement Scholaires”. The program, which normally lasted five weeks, was started in 1961 and it consisted of an introduction to library sciences, classification, cataloguing and simple bibliographical work. And in Mali, the Ministry of Information started as from 1963 to offer a short course of one or two months for library assistants. The course, known as “Cours d’Introduction aux Problemes Documentaires”, 1 Ibid., pp. 73-74. s E. W. Dadzie and J. T. Strickland (1965). Librarianship in Africa, p. 28. Paris: UNESCO.

Directory

of Archives,

Libraries

and Schools of

EDUCATION

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IN

WEST

509

AFRICA

consisted of accessioning, cataloguing and classification and circulation. It is not clear whether these courses are still being offered. Mr S. I. A. Kotei, a senior lecturer at the Ghana Library School, in giving a report of his study tour of West Africa, referred to a library school being run in Liberia by the director of the Monrovia University Library. According to him, the school is a private venture meant for library assistants in government, public and other institutions. Lectures are given after working hours for a fee, depending on whether the candidate is a private, or sponsored student. There was a plan to submit a request to the Liberian Government to establish the school on a formal basis. Kotei also reported that in Sierra Leone “Library education is being vigorously pursued at the lower level; junior assistants have been taking the City and Guilds of London certificate examinations, and diploma students in the Department of Education will soon be taking the elective papers in librarianship. . .“.I CURRENT

PROGRAMS,

COURSES

NON-DEGREE

AND

QUALIFICATIONS

PROGRAMS

All the three library schools at Ibadan, Zaria and Dakar offer two-year programs meant for middle-level personnel, while the Ghana school runs a one-year certificate course. The Ibadan program aims at providing “basic training in library techniques for personnel in all types of libraries. It is intended to be an avenue for appointments to the intermediate grades.“2 Candidates are expected to have at least one year’s library experience and to hold the West African School Certificate with five credits including English Language or equivalent certificates. In exceptional cases, a lower qualification may be accepted provided the candidate has had at least two years’ approved library experience and is sponsored by his employing authority. Final selection of students is based on an entrance examination. The aims of the Zaria and Dakar programs are similar to those of the Ibadan school, but their admission requirements differ slightly. While Zaria requires the possession of the West African School Certificate or equivalent, it does not insist on five credits and there is no entrance examination. The demands of the Dakar school are even more liberal than those of Zaria. Students are recruited from among those who hold a secondary school certificate or even a much lower qualification provided those with lower qualifications have 1 S. I. A. Kotei (1973). A study tour of libraries Ghana. Dept. of Library Studies, Newsletter 3, 5. 2 Ibadan. University. Department of Library Jbadan.

and archives Studies

(1973).

in West

Africa.

Prospectus,

University 1973-74,

of p. 2.

510

A.

AKINYOTU

“worked for four years in a public service, three of which have actually been spent in a library, a documentation center or an archive service”.1 As a rule, there is no entrance examination, but all Senegalese students are selected by means of a competitive examination which both preservice and in-service candidates are required to take. The courses in the three schools cover basically the same grounds in library science, with all three offering instruction on libraries and society, cataloguing and classification, library administration and bibliography. Ibadan and Zaria teach knowledge and use of library resources, library routines and one or two other courses which are not included in the Dakar curriculum. On the other hand, Dakar includes such subjects as typewriting, foreign language, science of archives and documentation and it also gives a course on general culture which consists of the study of the history of ideas, of civilizations, and of arts of Africa and also introduction of law.2 The three schools award a diploma to successful candidates. The one-year program of the Ghana school leads to the award of a certificate in Librarianship. The objectives of the program are described as : to train library assistants to: * ’ (‘1) fully support professional librarians in various library operations; (2) perform technical tasks without direct supervision; (3) supervize the execution of various mechanical and clerical operations.3

library

Candidates for admission are expected to have had at least two years’ working experience in an approved library; be supported by their library authority; have a good general education with at least five G.C.E. ordinary level passes including English language and satisfy the examiners at an entrance examination. The curriculum is divided into (1) introduction to librarianship; (2) introduction to the administration of small libraries; (3) mechanical preparation of library materials; (4) use of classification and catalogues; (5) public relations and (6) general office administration. UNDERGRADUATEPROGRAMS

Only the Zaria school still has a three-year program leading to the degree of bachelor of library science, Ghana having abandoned a 1 A. Bousso (1973). University of Dakar School for Librarians, Archivists and Documentalists. V.h%SCO Bulletin for Libraries 27, 74. 2 See Appendix 1. 3 Ghana. University. Department of Lrbrary Studies (1973). Educationfor Librarianship in Ghana, 1973-74, pp. 10-l 1. Legon, Ghana.

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN WEST

AFRICA

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similar program in 1967. Candidates are expected to have passed G.C.E. in five subjects including English language and two of the subjects must be passed at the advanced level. The curriculum consists of the usual librarianship subjects but, in addition, students are expected to study two other academic subjects including a foreign language at least during the first two years. Moreover, students take a one-term course on methods of research and they undertake a research project. BASICGRADUATEPROGRAMS

Ibadan, Zaria and Ghana offer one-year programs leading to basic professional qualification at the graduate level. All three schools require no more than graduation for admission. While Ghana and Ibadan award a postgraduate diploma for this program, Zaria awards a master of library science degree. In fact, the Zaria degree is both a basic professional qualification and a higher degree since both holders of the university’s B.L.S. degree and those with a first degree in any other field are acceptable. The three schools teach the following subjects in one form or another: administration of libraries, cataloguing and classification, bibliography and readers’ services and book arts. Both Ibadan and Zaria have a course in Library and society. Only Ibadan offers library history, while Zaria includes methods of research and a compulsory research project in its curriculum. Ibadan students also have to take a paper on any one type of library, while Ghana students have to choose one of (a) book production and publishing; (b) special services; (c) special libraries; and (d) special subject.1 HIGHERDEGREEPROGRAMS

The Ibadan school has both a master’s and doctoral degree programs. The master of library studies program lasts not less than two academic years and each student is expected to spend the first three terms following courses in (1) research methods and (2) either advanced bibliography and documentation, or advanced cataloguing and classification and such other courses cognate to his area of research. The first year is completed with an examination comprising written papers. The second year is spent mainly on individual research and at the end of it, a dissertation is to be submitted. Candidates for admission to the program are expected to possess a good first degree and to have obtained the postgraduate diploma in librarianship of the university or an equivalent qualification. Admission requirement for the Pl1.D program is the same, 1 See Appendix

II.

512

A.

AKINYOTU

but the course lasts not less than three years. The degree is awarded for approved work presented for examination in thesis form, supplemented when required by oral examination. 1 It may be pointed out here that it is not clear as to why the master’s program should be designed to last not less than two years since the university’s regulation requires only two years for master’s degrees after the bachelor’s degree. The master’s program of the Ghana school is more in line with the usual practice in this respect. It requires the same admission qualifications as Ibadan, but it lasts only one year. Candidates take a final examination consisting of three papers each lasting three hours and they are expected to submit a dissertation of normally not less than 20000 words. Two of the three-hour papers may be on any one library science subject in which the candidate wishes to specialize and the third can be on any other subject. The subjects offered are library administration, comparative librarianship, classification and cataloguing, library research and information science .s As mentioned earlier, the Zaria M.L.S. is in one respect a higher degree too even though its requirements are exactly the same as for a basic professional qualification. CONCLUSION

Library education is making steady progress in the various countries of West Africa. After coming under various influences and consequently showing different patterns at the initial stages, it is gradually evolving into similar patterns in the three countries where library schools now exist. The schools at Ibadan, Zaria and Ghana now have non-degree, postgraduate and higher degree programs and Dakar is planning to introduce a postgraduate program soon.3 Only Zaria still offers an undergraduate program. However, all the schools still face the common problem of recruitment particularly at the postgraduate level. This is not surprising since librarianship still has to compete with other more “prestigious” and lucrative professions for the few university graduates in some of the countries. This problem is further complicated by the uncertainty of employment opportunities for graduate librarians in an area where the pace of library development is still very slow. There is no doubt, however, that a solid foundation for library education has now been laid and the undesirable situation whereby West Africans had l Ibadan. University. Department of Library Studies (1973). Prospectus, 1973-74, pp. 15-16. Ibadan. 2 Ghana. Univenity. Department of Library Studies (1973). Education$~r Librarianship in Ghana, 1973-74, pp. 18-20. Legon, Ghana. 3 A. BOUSSO (1973). University of Dakar School for Librarians, Archivists and Documentalist. UNESCO Bulletin for Libraries 27, 107.

EDUCATION

FOR

LIBRARIANSHIP

IN WEST

to travel abroad in order to obtain the basic professional has been eliminated. APPENDIX

Coursesfor

_~-___Libraries and society Knowledge and use of library resources Classification and cataloguing (theory and practice) Library routines (theory and practice) Library administration Book arts Bibliography (theory and practice) Special subject Book selection Foreign language Typewriting General culture Supplementary courses* Public relations General office administration * Supplementary

513

AFRICA

qualification

I

non-degree programs Zaria diploma

Dakar diploma

Ghana certificate

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X X X

X X

X X X

X X X

Ibadan diploma

__.-

X X

X X X x X X X

X X

courses are: (1) Science of archives, (2) documentation. APPENDIX

Coursesfor

Ibadan postgraduate diploma History of libraries Administration of libraries Technical services Bibliography and readers services

Book arts Library in society Methods of research Special subject*

II

basic professional graduate programs

X x X X X X

Zaria M.L.S.

Ghana postgraduate diploma

X X

X X

X X

X X X

X X

X

* Ibadan students have to take a paper on any one type of libraries, while Ghana students choose one of the following: Book production and publishing; special services; special libraries: a special academic subject.