Competencies and Training of Academic Librarians for the Management of Institutional Repositories in Federal University Libraries in Northeast Nigeria

Abstract

The objectives of the study were to find out the sources through which librarians in universities in Northeast Nigeria received training on the management of institutional repositories; the types of skills they possessed for the development of institutional repositories and to establish the relationship between the librarians’ level of competences and the sources of training of librarians for the development of institutional repository in the federal universities. The study adopted a quantitative approach using a cross-sectional survey design. The population of the study was one hundred and forty (140) librarians from the seven (7) federal universities in the North East, Nigeria. Findings of the study revealed that the majority of the librarians agreed that the skills they possessed would enable them to manage the repository budget and respond to user needs, the majority agreed that they had the skills needed for the management of an institutional repository, agreed that the skills they possessed would enable them to install computer program, use Microsoft office and package, to download and retrieve data from databases, and to design web and programming skills. The majority received training on the management of institutional repositories within their institutions, followed by who received the training through personal sponsorship, followed by who received the training outside the institution and who received sponsored workshops, conferences, and seminars. The study then established a positive statistically significant relationship between the librarians’ level of competencies and challenges experienced for the development of institutional repositories in federal universities in North East Nigeria.