Be abreast of current trends – VC tells librarians

Prof. William Otoo Ellis, Vice Chancellor of the KNUST

Professor Williams Otoo Ellis, Vice Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST) has urged librarians to constantly update themselves in order to offer accurate and efficient services to information seekers.

He charged researchers, organizations and people with vital information not to hoard but make them easily available to enable citizens have access to information needed to produce knowledge.

Professor Ellis made the call at the opening of a two-day biennial congress of the Ghana Library Association (GLA) in Kumasi on Thursday.

It was under the theme: “Open Access to Information”.

Professor Ellis pointed out that a lot of people fall on libraries to seek information for various purposes and it is therefore, important for librarians to always be abreast of current trends in information dissemination technologies while at the same time recommending useful materials to users.

He appealed to teachers to make reading their habit and encourage their students and pupils to frequently use the library to acquire needed academic knowledge.

Mr Kofi Opoku Manu, Ashanti Regional Minister, in an address read for him, expressed the commitment of the government to support the development and growth of libraries in the country.

Mrs Valentina J.A. Bannerman, President of GLA, stressed the need for the automation of the country's libraries to enhance easy access to information. She said it should be a must for all libraries to have internet facilities to promote easy access to information.

Mrs Bannerman called for adequate funding of libraries to empower them to perform their role of facilitating access to information.