Seems that misperceptions about what academic libraries contribute to their institution, and the need for librarians to lead them, are found in locations far beyond our own backyards. In this passionate editorial published in the Sierra Leone Awareness Times, Saa Mathias Bendu, a student at the Institute of Library, Information and Communication Studies (INSLICS) Fourah Bay College, explains what the library means to the academic community and why it requires professional leadership. Bendu writes:
The character and efficacy of a university may be gauged by its treatment of its central organ, the library. The primary purpose of any educational library is to aid the learning process of the institution and other professional tasks associated with library service including collection, building achieves, staff management and readers support. The library is the place where the student is encouraged to pursue personal and independent search for knowledge and understanding. The libraries like laboratories, is an indispensable centre for knowledge.
Let’s hope the folks at Fourah Bay College act on Bendu’s recommendations.