Staff training and development programmes in academic libraries in Imo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the staff training and development programmes in academic libraries in Imo State, Nigeria. Five research questions guided the study. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for the study. All academic librarians in five institutions of higher learning in the state, comprising 81 academic librarians were investigated. Structured Questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. Data generated were analyzed using percentage, frequency and arithmetic mean rating. Findings of this study showed that there are available training and development programmes in academic libraries in Imo state to a high extent; library needs, institutions objectives, librarians request/staff need are the criteria used to select librarians to attend staff training and development programmes. Challenges of staff training and development programmes in the academic libraries according to the study include: poor funding, and lack of management policy on training and development programmes. The study concluded that there should be continuous educational and professional programmes for librarians to update their knowledge on new technology, and adequate infrastructural facilities should be provided in academic libraries to enable librarians practice what they learnt