Ghanaian University Libraries in Resource Sharing - Any Gains?

Abstract

Information explosion has brought about the need to share resources since no one Library can have it all. The paper traces the history of resource sharing from cooperation in various library functions — acquisition, cataloguing, interlibrary loans — to modern means of sharing through electronic means. Types of resource sharing initiatives and services are then discussed. The history of resource sharing initiatives in some parts of the world are discussed as well as for Ghana, linking it up to what obtains now, and the efforts organizations have made to make it work. Resource sharing among university libraries in Ghana today is analysed and suggestions for the future are made. A suggestion for a workable Consortium arrangement is made to include other libraries, even those in the West African sub region. Factors necessary for a successful consortium arrangement are stated. The paper concludes with the advice that university libraries should consider sharing resources electronically as it is the current form of making an increased amount of useful materials available to users.