Perception of Librarians on COVID-19 Information and Sensitization

Abstract

Librarians across Africa have had to portray proactive measures in combating the spread of Corona Virus (COVID-19) pandemic. They were faced with the probability of how libraries would function amidst employees calling for closures while seeking for safety and looking for how to activate open access e-resources, minding workers’ rights and copyright guidelines on these e-resources. Their perception on providing health information sensitization to their immediate community, the challenges and facing the change agenda was the focus of this paper. Respondents were drawn from different libraries for the survey which adopted qualitative research methodology through interviews. The data collected were thematically analyzed to answer the research questions. Findings indicated that librarians perceived the COVID-19 sensitization as a challenge that could be overwhelming, but achievable with support from stakeholders, the government and non-governmental agencies. Recommendations were that the new normal has brought changes to information processing and dissemination. Librarians and libraries should thrive in this new reality and remain more responsive. Furthermore, enhanced impact assessment should be carried out to find out how the measures of sensitization on the pandemic became effective.