Nigerian Library Association


Nigerian Library Association is the recognized group for librarians working in Nigeria. It was established in 1962 in Ibadan.
The Nigerian Library Association emerged as a Division of the West African Library Association. WALA was established in 1954 as an offshoot after a UNESCO seminar on the Development of Public Libraries in Africa held at Ibadan in 1953. With the political independence from colonial rule of Anglophone West African countries in the late 1950s and early 1960s, WALA national Divisions transformed into National Library Associations of their respective countries, thus giving birth to the Nigerian Library Association in 1962.

Structure

The supreme organ of the Nigerian Library Association is the Council which consists of the Executive Committee, eight elected Councilors, Chairmen of all State Chapters and the Federal Capital Territory as well as Chairmen of special interest groups. The current NLA President is Prof. Innocent Isa Ekoja . Individual members of the Association now numbering about 5,000 drawn from various types of libraries, would usually belong, in the first instance, to one of the 37 States/FCT chapters or/and one or more of the thirteen special interest groups.

Special Interest Groups

The thirteen special interest groups currently in existence are:
  1. Academic and Research Libraries
  2. Association of Government Libraries
  3. Association of News Media Librarians of Nigeria
  4. Association of Women Librarians in Nigeria
  5. Cataloguing, Classification and Indexing
  6. Nigerian Association of Law Libraries
  7. National Association of Library & Information Science Educators
  8. Public Libraries Section
  9. Information Technology Section
  10. Nigerian School Library Association
  11. Association of Libraries for Visually Handicapped
  12. Preservation and Conservation Section
  13. Medical Libraries Section.
  14. Nigerian Library and Information Science Students' Association

    Publication

NLA publishes the following
The NLA, State Chapters and Special interest groups hold numerous conferences and themes throughout the year. The largest conference is the annual conference.

Honours and Awards

i. The prestigious award of the Fellow of the Nigerian Library Association was instituted in 1989 to honour members who have distinguished themselves in their professional practice.
ii. In 1991, the Association also instituted the Eminent Service Award for individuals adjudged to have rendered outstanding and meritorious services to it.
Other Awards
List of Past Presidents of NLA.

External Links