Govt pledges to improve library facilities

—-Government has pledged to expand library facilities to greater heights at both institutional and public levels in order to meet the growing demand from the public in the country.

Western Province Deputy Permanent Secretary, Mwangala Liomba, emphasized that libraries are an essential tool and play a critical role in the teaching and learning process in all learning institutions countrywide, adding that it is important to place the library as an integral player in the whole process of development.

Mr Liomba disclosed this during the national Library Week commemoration launch held at the provincial library in Mongu district under the theme ‘cerebrating 50 years of library and information
science in the guest of steering social, political and economic development’.

He said libraries serve as storehouses of information and knowledge as well as improving literacy levels among the population.

Mr Liomba further explained that Government is aware of the challenges being faced by library and information services among them being lack of adequate funding to procure library materials, poor
infrastructure and inadequate human resource.

He stated that after 50 years of independence, accompanied by noticeable developments in the education system, the nation should strive to migrate from the teacher cantered culture to a learner-
research one in which the leaner becomes an active and decisive participant in the learning process.