Contribution of National Libraries in Dissemination of Knowledge in Developing Countries: Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

National libraries play a vital role as knowledge centers for their nations. Mandate of the national libraries is to collect, preserve, and provide access to heritage content and materials about the nation and the wider region. In this context, libraries are introducing variety of knowledge dissemination services for their local and global community. With the invention of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), libraries nowuse different types of technologies to disseminate the knowledge. This paper investigates the recent changes to provide access to knowledge in National Libraries in developing countries. This was measured using library websites and scholarly literature focusing on information services, purposes, and recent problems. The sample consisted of 10 national libraries of developing countries. The results indicate that the ICT has become an integral part of the library.Computing technology, communication technology and mass storage technology are some of the areas of continuous development that reshape the way that libraries access, retrieve, store, manipulate and disseminate information to users. Digitization, enhance user access, legal demands, infrastructure facilities and etc could be identified as recent problems. Libraries in developed countries are highly competitive and advanced through information and communication technology. Within this competitive background many libraries in developing countries need further development strategies based on ICT to overcome these difficulties. This research provides recommendations to provide a discussion in order to modernize libraries in to the 21st century.