Abstract
Disaster management has been a subject of interest to libraries and librarians, because of its implications for disaster preparedness and control. This paper is a review of literature on disasters experienced by libraries in some developing nations, with a view to discovering workable solutions that would help to either prevent or manage future occurrences. It examined library disasters in Egypt, Philippines, Nepal, Jamaica, Nigeria and Malawi among others. The paper observed that the initial response of the affected libraries to these disasters was poor. It therefore advocated for the need for disaster plan and preparedness among libraries and librarians in developing countries. It further suggested the following as the way forward – conduct of risk assessment, formulation of disaster plan and policies, mitigation, quick response to disaster and workable recovery plan among others. As a result of this research, it was concluded that disasters would be prevented and better managed in libraries if these precautions and recommendations are implemented.
Highlights
Information plays a key role in education, research and subsequent development of nations
The focus is not to do a root-cause analysis of the events that triggered the demise of the great library, but to gain insight into the disappearance of one of the Seven Wonders of the World in ancient world (Rollin, 1851). This is an event Haughton (2011) described as “the greatest catastrophe of the ancient world”. It is the view of the authors that whatever happened, the destruction of the Alexandria library and its mass collection is a disaster to the world of knowledge
Superio and Alayon (2015) investigate factors that facilitated the destruction. Their objectives were to: ascertain library personnel’s awareness of disaster management, identify disaster preparedness and plans for recovery, and highlight factors that accelerated the extent of damage of the libraries and their collections as well as lessons learnt from the disaster. 22 academic libraries formed the scope of their study— 9 libraries from Northern Iloilo, 7 from Capiz and 6 from Aklan all in Northern Panay, West of Visayas. of the 22 surveyed libraries, 18 representing 82% that constituted the majority do not have written disaster plans; only an insignificant 4, representing 18% have written disaster plan
Summary
Information plays a key role in education, research and subsequent development of nations. Libraries in the 21st century have become hybrid in nature, acquiring both print and non-print materials as well as offering traditional and ICT-based services. This trend is common in developing countries. In our contemporary world, developed countries which are geographically located in Europe, North America and parts of Asia are highly industrialized and have an edge in science and technology They possess greater levels of wealth, with very stable governance structure. Due to their low level industry, human development and socio-economic bases, developing countries are far behind their developed counterparts in terms of ICT acquisition, accessibility and application. Paper takes a historic look at past library disasters in developing countries with a view to making recommendations to prevent likely disaster
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