Abstract
This study is an assessment of information brokerage in the University of Calabar Library in the discharge of its functions to aid teaching, learning and research from 2005 to 2010. A descriptive survey design was adopted for the study and the total sampling procedure was used in selecting the seven divisional heads of the study. A checklist of University of Calabar Library Information Brokerage Delivery (IBD) Systems was prepared together with an interview schedule and used to elicit information from these librarians. The results showed that the University of Calabar Library has been engaging in information brokerage activities in the different units of the library through information merchandizing. It was discovered that patronage on brokerage activities and services were disproportionate among the units surveyed. The study showed that brokerage on publication services and system/technical services rated highest between the period covered by the study. The two brokerage delivery systems undertook 113 and 925 transactions and generated a substantial amount of income for the library. The study concludes that the University of Calabar Library is engaging enormously in information brokerage and thereby sustaining Entrepreneurship Education in library and Information Science in Nigeria. It is recommended that subject specialist librarianship be encouraged in academic libraries to facilitate the attainment of financial goals in the specialized services delivery in University Library as well as other tertiary institutions’ libraries in Nigeria.KEY WORDS: Information Brokerage; Information Products and Services; University of Calabar Library; Fee-Based Services; Entrepreneurship Education.
Highlights
Brokerage is an entrepreneurial business activity which people engage in to make a living
In the light of the above context, libraries as specialized information institutions are daily engaging and promoting information brokerage thereby sustaining an aspect of entrepreneurship education in Nigeria
A checklist and an interview schedule were served on all divisional heads manning the seven divisional heads of the library to elicit information on the extent of availability of brokerage transactions in the University of Calabar Library
Summary
Brokerage is an entrepreneurial business activity which people engage in to make a living. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English describes a broker as “a middleman in bargains, agents, and a person licensed to sell or appraise distrained goods” It centres around the business of intermediation for profit on commission. The library is a professional institution comprising experts in the field of information gathering, organisation, storage and dissemination These are library functions where it can broker either on the demand or supply of what the International Federation of Library Association (IFLA) Council (1987) describes as information services that could attract charges. There is a clear existence of the two-way brokerage principle which are the capability of acting as a broker and transacting with a broker These accord with Uhegbu (2007:29) who states that the provision of information without cost to beneficiaries for centuries past is fast changing with fees being charged. He goes on to state that information brokering reflects commercial tint having become a business undertaken by a person in this business known as “information broker”
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
