REPORT ON STUDENT INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME

(SIWES)

HELD AT

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF NIGERIA (NLN) KWARA STATE BRANCH

HERALD NEWSPAPER OFFICE PREMISES, OFFA ROAD, P.M.B. 1447.

ILORIN, KWARA STATE

BY

JAMES, BUKOLA OLUTOLA

19D/7HLS/00164
SUBMITTED TO:
THE DEPARTMENT OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE,
COLLEGE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY,
KWARA STATE UNIVERSITY, MALATE, ILORIN.

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF

B.Sc. {HONS} DEGREE IN LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE.

JULY, 2022.
 REPORT OVERVIEW
This report includes a brief introduction to the Student Industrial Work Experiences Scheme
(SIWES) Programme, a detailed description of all practical experiences gained during my
Student Industrial Work Experiences Scheme (SIWES) at the National Library of Nigeria,
Kwara State Branch, as well as an account of my experiences gained from different units of the
library and outreach programmes aimed at providing quality information service delivery to its
users. Also included are challenges faced by the library, SIWES students, and recommendations
for improving the scheme.

I
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page

Report overview………………………………………………………………………………………….i

Table of contents…………………………………………………………………………………………ii
CHAPTER ONE……………………………………………………………………………………….…1
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………….1
Objectives of SIWES……………………………………………………………………………………..1
CHAPTER TWO…………………………………………………………………………………………3
Description of the establishment of attachment…………………………………………………………..3
Location and a brief history of the establishment…………………………………………………………5
The Organisational structure of the establishment…………………………………………………….….6
Various departments/units and their functions…………………………………………………………....9
CHAPTER THREE……………………………………………………………………………………..21
Report on the actual work done with a clear statement of the experience gained during SIWES
duration………………………………………………………………………………………………….21
CHAPTER FOUR……………………………………………………………………………………….41
Outline the equipment you used, their functions, and a detailed description of their usage.....................41
CHAPTER FIVE………………………………………….……………………………………………..44
Summary, Conclusion, and Recommendations……………………………………………….…………44
Problems encountered……………………………………………………….………………………...…45
Suggest ways of improvement based on observations made…………………………………………….46

II
III
 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF SIWES
The Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES), also known as Industrial Training
was established by Industrial Training Fund (ITF) in 1973 in response to the mandate given to
the Industrial Training Fund, through decree 47 0f 1971, charging it with the responsibility of
promoting and encouraging the acquisition of skills in industry and commerce with the view to
generate a pool of trained indigenous manpower to solve the problem of lack of adequate
background studies and practical skills preparatory for employment in industries and other
organizations by Nigerian graduates of tertiary institutions which include; Universities,
Polytechnics, Colleges of Education, Colleges of Technology and Colleges of Agriculture, as
many employers concluded that the theoretical education being received in higher institutions
was not responsive to the needs of the employers of labour. Hence the need for the
establishment, (NOUN, 2022).

The scheme is fully funded by the Federal Government and jointly coordinated by the Industrial
Training Fund (ITF), National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), National Board
for Technical Education (NBTE), and the National Universities Commission (NUC) as a
tripartite Programme involving the students, the universities, and the employers of labour,
(Plasu.edu.ng, 2022).  SIWES involves the tertiary institution authorities and the industrial
sector. It usually runs for up to 24 weeks for students in the fourth academic year in universities.

OBJECTIVES OF SIWES
The main objectives of SIWES include the following:

● To provide an avenue for students in the Nigerian Universities to acquire industrial skills
and experience in their various fields of study.
● To prepare students for the work situation they are likely to meet after graduation.

1
● To expose students to work methods and techniques in handling equipment and
machinery that may not be readily available in the universities.
● To make the transition from the university to the world of work and thus enhance
students’ contacts for future job placements.
● To provide students with the opportunity to apply the theoretical knowledge they had
gained in school to real-life work situations, thereby bridging the gap between university
work and actual practice.
● To enlist and strengthen employers’ involvement in the entire education process of
preparing university undergraduates for employment in the industry.
● To provide students with an opportunity to apply their theoretical knowledge in real work
situations, thereby bridging the gap between university work and actual practice.
● To serve as an opportunity for self-actualization for students thus making positive and
commendable contributions within the scope of /her knowledge.

2
 CHAPTER TWO

DESCRIPTION OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ATTACHMENT

Image 1 National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch Building

The National Library of Nigeria Kwara State branch is one of the 32 state branches of the
National Library of Nigeria, established by the federal government of Nigeria as a country’s pre-
eminent repository of information that acquires, store, organize, preserve and disseminate the
nation's intellectual heritage. It is the bibliographic control agency of the nation that is
responsible for the national bibliographic control. It also provides universal availability of
publications through its National Bibliography of Nigeria (NBN). The National Library of
Nigeria, Kwara State Branch is currently located within the Herald Newspaper office premises
along Offa Road, G.R.A. Ilorin.

Outside the library, the premise has a signpost indicating the location of the library and a fence
with a gate. At the entrance of the gate, is a Readership Promotion Campaign banner attached to
the wall of the library building that is visible to passers-by from the main road. The library
compound has Two (2) big Cashew Trees, two (2) standby KVA generator inside a burglary
proof, and the security house beside the Image house of the National Association of Public
3
Relation Office in Kwara State. The library building is structured in a warehouse design and has
only (1) entrance and (1) exit door. The entrance door is located at the right-hand side of the
building which is meant for every patron where the circulation desk of the library is located. The
exit door is to the left-hand side solely meant for staff use except when there are emergencies.

The library building is partitioned into different sections with the E-library separated from the
reading room. At the main entrance of the library is the circulation desk to the right with a cloak
section beside it, where library users keep their valuables before moving to the readers unit
otherwise known as the reading space. The reader’s unit is an open space within the library
building immediately after the circulation desk on the right. It has over 50 reading chairs with
wooden library reading carrels. Within the library hall, you can find the special services unit
made up of the legal deposit desk, International Standard Programmes desk, the library’s
catalogue cabinet, and two (2) library shelves for foreign monographs from class T (Technology)
to Z (Bibliography and Library science) and the second shelve for Serials. The office of the Head
of Branch is located behind the special service unit to the left and the official document room to
the right. Some of the library shelves can be seen on the left before the entrance of the H.O.B.’s
office. These shelves are double-sided metal shelves for foreign monographs, reference
materials, and Nigeriana collection.

Directly opposite these shelves is another set of 4 reading carrels and chairs meant for Library
users who may want to consult the library books. The adjacent library hall has Reference desks,
an official document desk, some library shelves with Nigeriana collections, the secretary’s office
to the right, and the E-library. The E-Library has up to 52 desktop computers, the administrative
desk, server room, and the office of the E-Library staff.

4
 LOCATION

Image 2. Location of the library on Google Map

The National Library of Nigeria Kwara State branch is located within Herald Newspaper
premises along Offa road, G.R.A. Ilorin in Ilorin-South Local Government Area. It is a state
branch of the National Library of Nigeria with its headquarters in Abuja.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ESTABLISHMENT

5
 Image 3. Signboard of the establishment

According to nln.gov.ng (2022), the National Library of Nigeria was established following the
recommendation of the Nigerian Division of (WALA) Library Advisory committee established
in the late '50s, which later became the Nigerian Library Association in 1962. This Committee
had the assignment of working out plans for library services in the country and persuading the
government to agree to set up a National Library.
On the attainment of independence, the Nigerian government embraced the idea of a National
Library as proposed by the association and the Ford Foundation of America agreed not only to
finance but also to provide the necessary expertise for a feasibility study. The survey
recommended a National Library of Nigeria, thus backing up the recommendation of the Library
Advisory Committee. Dr. Carl White a distinguished Scholar/Librarian was appointed to come to
Nigeria in February 1962 to assist in setting up necessary technical personnel for the National
Library. Thus, in September 1964, the government passed the first legislation.

The National Library of Nigeria (NLN) came into existence by the National Library Act passed
in September 1964. This Act was later replaced and substituted with the National Library Decree
No 29 of 1970. It is a grade "A" parastatal and the apex library in the country.
The National Library of Nigeria (NLN) was established with the fundamental goal of ensuring
access to the entire fount of recorded knowledge for the progress and development of Nigeria
and serves as "the giant memory of the nation. It is the intellectual store-house, and the data bank
for the learning and remembering processes of the nation”. The NLN has 32 branches including
the National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch which was established in 1980 with Mr. W.
F. Adio as the pioneer Head of the Branch. In 1984, a piece of land was allocated to build its
prototype permanent structure by the Kwara State Government, which was later revoked in 2004.
In 1996, the library was moved to the Former S.D.P. secretariat at Kulende Estate. In 2006, the
Branch relocated, to pave way for the National Open University in Kwara State, to its present
6
location in the neighbourhood of Kwara State Printing Corporation (The Herald premises) on
Offa Road, G.R.A. Ilorin, under the Headship of Mallam S. A. Mohammed. In 2012, Mrs. Olani,
Olabimpe Kafayat became the H.O.B. of the branch till date, (kwsbnln.blogspot.com, 2014). The
library has 6 professional librarians of different cadres, 1 library assistant, 2 chief library
assistants, 3 administrative staff and 1 programmer for the E-library.

The services rendered by the National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch under the northern
operation as a public service department includes:

Image 4. A photo of a roll up banner displaying the services rendered by NLN Kwara

● Co-operation between State branches for effective service delivery

● Reference and Information Services
● Consultancy Services/ Training of librarians and library officers, support to other
libraries.
● Certification/Subpoena Services
● Issuance of ISBN and ISSN
● Collection of legal deposits from publishers
● Preservation of materials
● Selective Dissemination of Information (S.D.I)
● Organising library tours

7
● Readership Promotion Campaigns (RPC)
● Stock-taking/Weeding of library materials
● Provision of internet services
● Indexing and Abstracting of local publications
● Exhibitions and displays on topical national and educational issues
● Liaising with the book industry on international publishing standards at the state level.
● Information and Communication Technology (I.C.T) through the provision of E-library.

ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF NATIONAL LIBRARY OF

8
 NIGERIA KWARA STATE BRANCH

National Librarian (CEO)

Public Service Departments

(

Head of Branch

Readers’ Special Serials Unit Reference Multimedia/

Service Service Unit Unit Supporting E-Library
& Unit section
Official
Document unit

International
Circulation Human
Standards
Desk Resources
&
Legal and
Deposit Secretary
Reading
Desk Desk
Space

Foreign/Nigeriana
collections.

VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS/UNITS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS

9
The National Library of Nigeria (NLN) Kwara State Branch is divided into various units/sections. These
units work hand in hand to ensure the smooth running of the day-to-day activities of the library to its
clients.

These sections/units include:

The National Librarian: The National Library of Nigeria's Chief Executive Officer serves as
the coordinator for the eight (8) component departments of the national library. The CEO's
primary responsibilities include: making major corporate decisions, implementing and managing
the national library's overall operations and resources, and serving as the primary point of contact
between the board of directors and other corporate organizations.

Image 5. a poster of the NL/CEO of

the National Library of Nigeria

In many cases, the Chief Executive Officer acts as the national library's public face (Hayes,
2022). The office of the National Librarian has the following units namely; Public Relations Unit
(PRU), Physical Planning Unit (PPU), Procurement Unit (PU), Service Compact with All
Nigerians (SERVICOM), Audit Unit, and the Board Secretariat, (Adeoti, 2022). The current
Chief Executive Officer of the National Library of Nigeria is Prof. Chinwe Veronica Anunobi.

Public Service Department (Northern and Southern Operations): Making the facilities of the
National Library available in different states, to MDAs functionaries, researchers, students, and
the general public, and providing current awareness through the compilation of bibliographic
indexes and abstracting services. Attending subpoenas or court summons with materials
deposited in the National Library through the Legal Deposit obligations, when the need arises.

10
Conducting Readership Promotion Campaigns and Exhibitions, certification of documents for
legal tender in court and other related issues, issuing ISBN/ISSN to publishers and authors at the
state level.

Head of Branch: A whole-time officer having the prescribed library science qualifications
appointed by the federal government to perform managerial roles at the branch library and carry
out oversight functions on behalf of the National Librarian.

Image 6. Photo of Mrs. Olani

Olabimpe K. the H.O.B. NLN Kwara

The current Head of Branch of the National Library of Nigeria Kwara State is Mrs. Olani
Olabimpe Kafayat. Some of the specific duties of the Head of Branch include;

 Responsible to the Director State Branch Service Department.

 Plans, organises and co-ordinates the work of the State Branch.
 General administration to the Branch.
 General supervision of all staff.
 Handles confidential reports of the staff.
 Handles difficult reference enquiries and cross-checking the treated reference enquiries.
 Prepares monthly, quarterly, annual and other reports of the State Branch.
 Initiates, plans and organises exhibitions and displays according to the actual proposal
submitted and approved.
 Selects books and forwards the selection slips to the Head State Services Division for
purchase.

11
  Attends to all correspondences.
 Responsible for staff training in the Branch

1. Readers’ Service section: This unit offers direct services to library users. It provides free

Image 7. circulation desk

reading materials and space for users. It is the point where users come in contact with library
materials to meet their information needs. This unit is further divided into the following;
A. Circulation Desk: It is the first stop for users and staff. It is located at the main entrance
immediately after the library door. This unit is mimed by the library assistant and
security officers. It facilitates physical access to library materials, maintains the library
collections, assists library users, coordinates the use, and performs other activities related
to library use and access which include:
 Ensuring that users register their names, address, phone number, signature, Date & time,
Occupation, and Purpose for using the library in the library user register before making
use of the library.
 Giving out Library tallies to users before they are allowed into the reading space for
security purpose.
 connecting library users with library staff to meet their information needs.
 Shelving of consulted books by the library staff;
 Shelf labeling to guide users to library shelves for easy retrieval of Library resources;
 Proper shelf arrangement of books in a classified order using their call numbers;
 Shelf reading to ensure that every book is in its proper position;
 Ensuring that users do not steal, and mutilate library materials.
12
 Ensuring that users obey the library rules and regulations while inside the library.
 Keeping the overall statistics of registered users and books consulted.
 Taking statistics of users every two hours.
 Monitoring materials that are damaged and routing them to appropriate staff for repair or

Image 8. Reading space with double reading carrels and

chairs
replacement.
B. Reading Space: The reading space is a 60 seats capacity space containing 15 four-seater
reading carrels for library users. It is the principal point for gaining access to the library’s
general collections of books and periodicals. Users of the library are also allowed to
make use of their books in this space. Users who have research needs or may not be able
to retrieve books from the shelf by themselves are usually directed to the reference library
officer or library assistant to assist them from catalogue cabinet to retrieve the
information materials from the library shelves. However, users are not allowed to borrow
out books from the library as the national library of Nigeria does not charge and
discharge their collections. Those who may want to make use of their laptops are allowed
to bring them inside the library reading space.

13
 Image 9. Nigeriana and Foreign Monographs at the National
Library of Nigeria Kwara State

C. Foreign Monographs and Nigeriana Collections: Foreign Monographs refer to all the
library collections found within the library that are published by foreign authors. While
the Nigeriana collections are all the library collections that are published by Nigerians.
The library collections are centrally processed from the head quarter based in Abuja
before they are distributed to the branch libraries using the Library of Congress
Classification Scheme (LCCS). These collections are majorly acquired through legal
deposits under Decree no. 29 of 1970 as the National Bibliography Agency of Nigeria
enjoined to receive three (3), ten (10), and twenty-five (25) copies of everything
published in Nigeria by private or commercial publishers, state and federal agencies
respectively within one (1) month of publication at their own expense. Other means of
acquiring library collections in the library include; direct purchase, donations, gifts and
exchange. The library has 9 double side metal shelves with 6 trays each one measuring
containing foreign monographs, and Nigeriana collections. Other types of collection in
the library include reference materials and official documents.

14
 Image 11. Special service Unit

2. Special Service Unit: This unit is made up of the legal deposit and international standards
operation desk. The Legal deposit desk provides specialized services to users such as;
 receiving legal deposit of publications issued international standard numbers; and
 issuance of legal deposit letters of acknowledgement of receipt to publishers, authors,
and printers.
The International Standards Operation Desk is responsible for;
● the certification of subpoenas, newspapers, and official documents;
● processing publications for the issuance of international standard numbers (i.e.,
International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and International Standard Serial Numbers
ISSN); as well as
● the receipt and documentation of all ISBN, ISSN, and certification applications.

15
 Image 12. Serial Desk

3. Serials and Official Document Unit: This unit is in charge of the library’s serials and official
government documents. Serials are publications issued in successive parts usually having
numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely.
Examples of serials in the library include; Newspapers, Magazines, academic journals, and
reviews.

Image 13. Serial and official documents

16
 b. Official documents are government publications used to formalize government
information for business operations. It is any document or paper prepared by a federal,
state, or local government containing information relating to its activities, agreements,
responsibilities, and annual reports. An example is the official gazette of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, Kwara state official gazette, public service rules, financial
regulation, budget statements, inaugural speeches of governors etc.
The official gazette of the Federal Republic of Nigeria contains names of employees
recruited by the federal government showing detailed information about their
recruitments, confirmation, promotion, and retirement among others. It can also contain
information about new establishments, change in bills, and functions of an organization
that is reviewed and accepted officially. This unit is managed by the serial and official
document library officer. This library officer is responsible for the proper storage,
preservation, and retrieval of the serial and O.D. in the library. She also provides quick
access to these collections for library users. If a library user wants to make use of the
periodicals, the serial library officer usually requests the following information;
i. Name of the periodical i.e., Newspaper
ii. Specific date the newspaper was published i.e., day, month, and year
iii. Page number
iv. Content of the page number requested.
This will help to fast-track the retrieval process for periodicals in the archive also known as the
official document room. The library archive/official document room contains bound
retrospective newspapers dated back to 1953, withdrawn materials from circulation, and official
documents. The retrospective newspapers that can be found at the National Library of Nigeria
Kwara State Branch include:
i. The Catholic Herald
ii. The Herald
iii. Vanguard
iv. Nigerian Observer
v. Punch
vi. The Guardian
vii. Daily Trust

17
 viii. The Nation etc.

Other functions of the serial /official document unit include:

a) Handling of reserve materials.

b) Sorting and arrangement of journals
c) Serials display of new journals on arrival.
d) documenting serial materials acquired by the library.
e) Stamping of serials received into the library.
f) Put serials on shelves based on their discipline for easy retrieval by a library user.

Image 14. Reference Desk and Reference Enquiry file

4. Reference Unit: The reference unit or information desk of the National Library of Nigeria
Kwara Branch is a public relation desk where the reference chief library officer provides library
users with direction to library materials, answer user queries, give advice on library collections,
and expertise on multiple kinds of information from different sources available in the library.
This section handles both directional and non-directional queries from users and directs them to
sources from where information can be obtained within and outside the library. Examples of
reference materials in the library include; dictionaries, encyclopedias’, thesauri, directories,
almanacs, bibliographies, manuals, handbooks, atlases, etc. The reference desk usually has a
reference enquiry form meant for library users to document their information needs for the chief
library officer. This form usually contains information such as the;

18
 Name of user, address, enquiry, Tel/E-mail, Subject field, sources of information; serials (Title),
Date, Monograph (Title), (Author), (Class), Nigeria (Title & Authors), remarks; officers,
signature, date.

Image 15. Secretary desk and the Admin Unit

5. Supporting Unit: The supporting unit of the library is made up of the human resource and
Secretary desk. The human resource desk is located within the E-library. It is the unit responsible
for;
i. The administrative management of staff, management of files, incoming and out-going
mails, staff welfare and staff training.
ii. managing the library employee’s life cycle i.e., on-boarding, and ensuring that they carry
out assigned tasked and are administered their benefits.
iii. Maintaining a safe working environment.
iv. supervise the productivity and performance of the entire library staff. 

The Secretary's desk is a supportive unit in the library. This unit is responsible for managing and
distributing information among co-workers in the library, answering phones, preparing memos,
and monthly reports, and performing other secretarial duties. The secretary works together with
the Head of the Branch.

19
 Image 16. E-Library

6. Multimedia and E-Library: The Multimedia and E-library section of the library is also known
as the automation section. It is charged with the responsibility of keeping multimedia materials
such as audio books, video cassettes, maps, atlas, globes, cartographic materials, films, and all
the library records in non-print format to make them accessible on-line, and provide backup for
some of the library records to create an on-line repository for the library. This section previously
maintains databases such as EBSCO host, E-granary, and JSTOR. The E-library facilities
include; servers, computers, printers, scanning machines, etc.

20
 CHAPTER THREE

REPORT ON THE ACTUAL WORK DONE

READERSHIP PROMOTION CAMPAIGN

Image 17. RPC Book donation at Borstal Homes, Ganmo

As part of the celebration to mark the 2021 Readership Promotion Campaign, I and other SIWES
Students at the National Library on the 12th of January 2022 visited the Borstal Home
Correctional Training Institute to donate books to their school library under the theme, ‘Building
a Nation of Readers: Share Your Story,’. The experience gained includes learning the proper way
of organizing outreach programs, and how to draft a proposal for a readership promotion
campaign.

CERTIFICATION OF NEWSPAPER

I certified a Guardian newspaper for March 2006 for a clientèle. This was achievable using the
following procedure:

● The clientèle prepared a formal letter requesting a CTC of the Guardian newspaper for
March.

21
 ● The letter was given to the serial library officer to confirm if the newspaper is available in
the library Newspaper archive.
● Upon confirmation of its availability a remita payment of NGN 2,000 was made into the
National library Remitta’s account online (payment for certifying the front page of the
newspaper and the main page where the information needed is contained).
● The receipt generated from Remita was converted into an official receipt.
● After the payment was made, the clientèle made 3 photocopies of the application letter,
remita receipts, and the newspapers’ front page and the main page containing the exact
information needed for proper documentation.
● The photocopy of the requested newspaper was then sent to the Head of Branch to affix
the National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch Embossing Notary Stamp
(certification seal) on it and a Certified True Copy Stamp.
● After which the clientèle was issued an official receipt of payment and given the CTC
pages of the newspaper requested.

Image 18. Certified Newspaper

PROCESSING NEWSPAPERS

22
I stamped newspapers (The Punch, and Daily Trust) subscribed to by the NLN Kwara State
Branch using the “Received stamps”. The newspapers are among information resources
published in Nigeria and so are part of the Nigeriana collection; they are purchased by the library
on daily basis

Image 19. local newspaper at the NLN

Kwara

Image 20. National newspapers at the NLN Kwara

Branch

through a vendor as part of the library’s collection. While the Herald newspaper is a legal deposit
published in Kwara state and as a result affixed a “Legal deposit stamp”. The National Library of
Nigeria Kwara State Branch has a stated policy for periodical acquisition; a national newspaper
and a community based/ regional newspaper are acquired on daily basis. The Head of the Branch
liaises with the newspaper vendor who delivers them to the circulation desk in the library. They
are then taken to the reference section and stamped with the National Library of Nigeria Kwara
State Branch “Received Stamp” with date and signature. The various titles are sent back to the
reading space of the library and are dropped on a reading carrel allocated for that purpose for
users.

At the end of each month, all the issues are arranged into different titles tied together and sent
into the newspaper archive for safe-keeping which will be binded at a later time. In the National
23
 Image 21. Fumigators at the NLN Kwara
Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch, the methods of preserving newspapers/magazines are by
tying them together according to their titles, making hard cover binding, and fumigating to drive
away rodents and pests.

This activity offered me, the privilege to know the procedure for processing newspapers into the
library's Newspaper database using received stamps and legal deposit stamps as well as the
importance of carrying out these activities in the library.

LEGAL DEPOSIT

I received legal deposits and prepared an acknowledgement letter for publishers. The National
Library of Nigeria under Decree no. 29 of 1970 has the legal right as the National Bibliography
Agency of Nigeria to receive three (3), ten (10), and twenty-five (25) copies of everything
published in Nigeria by private or commercial publishers, State, and Federal Agencies
respectively within one month of publication at their own expense.

Before a publisher is issued an international standards number, they are told to make a legal
deposit of the copies upon receiving the ISBN or ISSN. Once a publisher or author comes to
make a legal deposit, the publications are submitted to the legal deposit desk officer at the
special service unit. After which the desk officer is expected to prepare an acknowledgement
24
letter containing the details about the publication that is been deposited and a copy of the letter is
given to the publisher.

Image 22. Legal deposit Acknowledgement letter and Legal

deposit publications

This experience has helped me understand the procedures involved in acquiring a legal deposit
into the National Library of Nigeria (NLN) Kwara State Branch.

ISSUANCE OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS NUMBERS

I assisted publishers and authors to process their ISBN and ISSN applications online (using the
National Library's official website nln.gov.ng) and off-line for the submission of required
documents to the NLN Kwara.

The procedure for the issuance of an ISBN/ISSN to a publisher is stated as follows;

25
● The publisher is expected to present an application letter requesting an ISBN /ISSN from
the National Library of Nigeria based in Abuja through the Public Service Department
and the NLN Kwara as addressed in the body of the letter.
● The publisher or author is expected to make a non-refundable service fee of NGN 3500
per title into the NLN Remitta’s account online.
● For reputable publishers attached to an institution of higher learning, e.g., the University
of Ilorin Press, they can request a block of 10 or more which cost NGN 10,000 and more.
● The publisher is expected to bring along photocopies or soft copies of visual proof for
verification and to ensure that it meets international standards. These include the recto
page (half-title page & full title page), verso page (copyright page), and back matter
(index, bibliography, glossary, and references).
● After the payment is made, the publisher is expected to submit 3 copies of the application
letter, Remitta’s receipts, photocopies of CAC if the publisher has a registered company,
or NIN if he or she does not have a registered company to the international standards
desk officer for processing.
● The period for processing the ISBN/ISSN issuance usually varies. Sometimes it takes a
few hours, while some other times it takes days or weeks before a publisher gets his or
her number.
● When the number is ready for collection, the officer calls the publisher to come for a pick
up and an issuance letter is prepared with a duplicate copy issued to the publisher. The
issuance letter bears the name and address of the publisher, ISBN/ISSN, the title of the
publication, and a statement to certify that the number has been assigned and collected by
the publisher. The publisher is also expected to sign with a date on the letter.

26

Image 23. sample of ISBN Application letter, receipt and

CAC
Applying for ISBN/ISSN using the online method is recommended for publishers or authors who
are requesting a single title. This is done through the National Library of Nigeria's official
website, using the following steps;

● Visiting www.nln.gov.ng.
● From the main page click on the ISBN/ISSN tab
● From the drop down menu select the option ISBN/ ISSN.

Image 24. NLN ISBN/ISSN Portal

● The page re-directs to https://issnisbn.nlndata.com.ng/ and requests login details to the
online ISBN application portal for registered users while new users are expected to sign
up.

After entering the login details, the page automatically generates a form used in applying for a
standard number, and publishers are expected to upload all copies of the document required
online after which they get their ISBN directly from the portal. Although they are also advised to
submit hard copies of the documents to the National Library branch close to them for proper
documentation.

27
SHELF READING

I shelf-read Foreign and Nigeriana collections under class B (Philosophy), HA(Statistics),

HB(Economic theory), HC(Economic history), HD(Industry and Land), HF(Commerce),
GE(Environmental science), GV(Recreation), GN(Anthropology), P(Linguistics),
T(Technology), K(Law), KR(Law in Africa), LB(Theory and practice of education), JC(Political
theory), JF(Political institution and public administration), JQ(Political institution and public
administration in Africa), QX(Microbiology), Z(Libraries), in the library.

Shelf reading in the library is a process of reading every call number on a shelf to ensure that it is
in the proper order and areas receiving the most use are kept tidy. The call number is the number
that distinctly identifies a book in a library. The NLN Kwara library collection is shelved read
from left to right. The National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch call number is made up of
the following;

Type of collection: This refers to the category of information material that is catalogued and
classified. It is usually abbreviated and appears as the first description on the lower part of the
book’s spine label except for the foreign monograph. They are written as follows;

● OD-Official Document
● NC- Nigeriana Collection
● REF-Reference Material

Class number: This refers to a number or letter (from a classification scheme) assigned to library
materials to show its location on the library shelf using subject headings, and notation for easy
retrieval by a library patron. The NLN Kwara makes use of the Library of Congress
Classification Scheme which divides knowledge into 21 main classes namely;

Letter Subject area

A General Works

B Philosophy, Psychology, Religion

C Auxiliary Sciences of History

28
 World History and History of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand,
D
etc.

E History of America

F History of the Americas

G Geography, Anthropology, and Recreation

H Social Sciences

J Political Science

K Law

L Education

M Music

N Fine Arts

P Language and Literature

Q Science

R Medicine

S Agriculture

T Technology

U Military Science

V Naval Science

29
 Z Bibliography, Library Science, and General Information Resources

The library also makes use of an online classification portal such as the Library of Congress
Catalogue portal (https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/ui/en_US/htdocs/help/searchBrowse.html) and
OCLC classify (http://classify.oclc.org/classify2/) to classify its collection.

The National Library of Nigeria Kwara State Branch collections is processed from the head
quarter based in Abuja before they are sent to the branch with a copy of the catalogued card
inserted inside the page of the publication.

Cutter number: It is the method of assigning book numbers to the library collection using the
cutter Sanborn three-Image author Image for the first three letters of the author’s surname. It is a
method of representing words or names of authors by using a decimal point followed first by a
letter of the alphabet, then by one or more Arabic numerals. E.g. . O34

Date of Publication: This refers to the date the publication was published and it is usually written
after the cutter number on the book spine label.

Image 25.Nigeriana Collections on the shelve

This experience taught me the library's best practices for shelf-reading and shelving books.

30
CONSULTANCY SERVICE-TRAINING LIBRARY STAFF

Image 26. photo with staff and students @state high court library Ilorin

I trained Staff and Students at the high court library on how to integrate Librarika (I.e., an
integrated library management system) into their library routines, cataloguing library materials
using Robot Mini Catalogue and documentation their library collections using an MS.
spreadsheet.

31
 Image 27. Librarika interface on desktop

1) Librarika is a free integrated library system built on the cloud to manage library collections
online. It is an open platform for anybody who want to manage their physical or virtual
library online using Integrated Library System (ILS). That includes Universities, Colleges,
Schools, Polytechnics, Medical Institutes, Public Libraries, Non-profit organizations,
Government Agencies, Corporate Offices, Departments, Social Institutes, NGOs, families,
and even a personal library. It is used to procure, catalogue, and manage the circulation of
library collections. The features of Librarika include;
● 100% free basic plan that allows up to 2000 titles or records.
● Instant creation of your online library at Librarika.
● using the "Smart Add" module, one can import a book directly from the Internet with just
an ISBN.
● Unlimited member/patron accounts.
● Member reservation / self-service / overdue reminders.
● The Bar code scanner is friendly.
● No hardware, infrastructure, and software costs.
● No installation and maintenance cost.
● Easy, no technical skill required.
● Access from anywhere using any internet-enabled device.
● Support multiple library branches.

Image 28. Robot Mini catalogue App. on play store

2) Robot Mini Catalogue is a mobile application on the google play store that freely allows
cataloguers to put all the theories of cataloguing into practice by providing bibliographic
entries prepared [Main Entry with the Added Entries provided for access point tracing] into a
32
 graphical 3 by 5 inches card for view. Catalogue entries can also be imported through On-
line database and local means from your file manager.

Image 29. Jot form Spreadsheet online

3) Spreadsheet: This is an electronic document in which data is arranged in the rows and
columns of a grid and can be manipulated and used in calculations. The spreadsheet was used
for documenting the library collections, so has to have at a glance the total holdings of the
library. The data were entered according to the title of the book, name of the author,
accession number, number of copies available, type of material, call number, etc.

This experience has helped me to know the dynamics of intra-personal and interpersonal
relationships through outreach programs.

CONSULTANCY SERVICE-TRAINING OF SIWES STUDENTS

Image 30. 1lib1ref 2022 Kwara with SIWES students in KWSLB

33
I trained SIWES students on how to participate in the global online 1lib1ref
(https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/1Lib1Ref_2022_Kwara) campaign for GLAM institutions to
promote open access to reliable and verifiable information on Wikipedia by adding citations and
Wikilinks.

The campaign carefully and pro actively worked to actualize the vision of "Imagining a world
where every librarian added one more reference to Wikipedia" and the #1Lib1Ref2022Kwara
which ran from 30th January to 28th February 2022 was part of the global #1Lib1Ref editing
campaign organized for librarians, archivists, information managers, information scientists,
Bibliophiles and researchers to make Wikipedia more credible and reliable, by adding one
citation at a time! to promote  "Verifiability" as one of the core content policies of Wikipedia.
The student was taught how to add citations to articles on Wikipedia using the Citation hunt tool
(https://citationhunt.toolforge.org/en?id=9d5ff6fe&custom=7683ca12).

Image 31. Citation hunt tools and meta page for the 1lib1ref 2022 Kwara

This experience has helped me identify an alternative approach to learning through teaching.

34
PREPARING BACK OF BOOK INDEX FOR PUBLISHERS

I prepared 3 back-of-book indexes for publishers using Textract book indexing software
(https://www.texyz.com/textract/videos/basics.htm).

Image 32. Textract book indexing software

The software allows PDF text data of publications to be indexed using a unique combination of
automated and manual indexing by:

a) dropping a PDF proof version of your book onto Textract. The initial index is
created fully automatically without running through the text.
b) Editing and expanding the index in Textract using powerful and easy-to-use in-text
navigation, selection, and editing features.
c) Then export the formatted index, review it, and include it in your document source.

This experience taught me how to convert the publisher's prepared manuscripts into portable
document formats acceptable by the software, and how to prepare name indexes and general
indexes.

LIBRARY DISPLAY

I selected Nigeriana collections written in Igbo, Hausa, and Yoruba, for display on the display
rack to celebrate International Mother Language Day.

35
Image 34. Display of Nigeriana collections to celebrate IMLD 2022

International Mother Language Day is a day set aside by the United Nations Educational
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to commemorate the sad massacre that occurred
among the Bengali-speaking people of Dhaka in Indonesia on the 23rd of February 1952.

The objective of International Mother Language Day is the preservation of linguistic diversity,
promotion of mother tongue-based multilingual education, as well as prevent indigenous
languages around the world from going into extinction as it has been discovered one language
disappears on average every two weeks, taking with it an entire cultural and intellectual heritage.

Image 35. IMLD 2022 @ St. Anthony Secondary School Ilorin

36
This activity help me understand the importance of Current Awareness Services and the decline
of mother tongue usage in Nigeria.

DOCUMENTATION OF RETROSPECTIVE IN-HOUSE JOURNAL

Image 36. Nigerbiblios ;Publication of the NLN

I documented retrospective in-house journals of the National Library of Nigeria from 1978 to
1989 for the proposed digitization of Nigerbiblios; an in-house journal publication of the
National Library between 1978 to 1989. The documentation was done on an A4 paper containing
bibliographic details of the publication. This experience exposed me to the procedure involved in
the documentation of in-house journals.

CATALOGUING IN PUBLICATION (C.I.P)

37
Image 37. Cataloguing in Publication

I learned the procedure for entering bibliographic details of books into a CIP worksheet and its
usefulness in preparing the National Bibliography of Nigeria.

Image 38. Cataloguing in Publication Worksheet

A Cataloguing in Publication record (aka CIP data) is a bibliographic record prepared by the
National Library of Nigeria for a book published and issued an ISBN upon request. When the

38
book is published and an ISBN as be issued, the publisher is required to include the CIP data on
the copyright page thereby facilitating quick book processing for libraries and book dealers. 

Image 39. National Bibliography of Nigeria

The C.I.P of the book is also used in compiling the National Bibliography of Nigeria by the
National Library of Nigeria. The National Bibliography of Nigeria is a publication national that
contains a list of books, documents, pamphlets, serials, theses, dissertations, or other printed
material published by Nigerians within or outside Nigeria, in the language of the country, for the
people living in Nigeria or elsewhere within a stipulated time limit.

SUBPOENA

I was introduced to subpoenas, the need for subpoenas, and the process of preparing them. A
subpoena is a writ ordering the librarian at the national library to attend a court to testify and
defend a certified copy of a document issued by them as fair, just, and unbiased.

This experience gave me a better insight into the subpoenas and the procedure for their issuance.

39
 CHAPTER FOUR

OUTLINE THE EQUIPMENT YOU USED, THEIR FUNCTIONS, AND A

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THEIR USAGE

Stamps and Stamp pads: A stamp pad is a block of absorbent materials saturated with ink; used
to transfer ink evenly to a rubber stamp. While a stamp is an instrument for stamping a pattern or
mark, in particular an engraved or inked block or dye.

40
 Image 40. Stamps and Stamp pads

The NLN Kwara Branch makes use of different kinds of stamps on documents for different
purposes, namely;

41
Image 41. Stamps of the NLN Kwara

● Received stamp affixed to an official document e.g., letter or newspapers received into
the library.
● Despatched Stamp affixed to an official document or package e.g., a letter, that is
dispatched out from the library.
● Donation stamp affixed to a book or any other publications donated to the library.
● A gift and Exchange stamp is affixed to the library collection that is acquired through gift
and exchange.
● Head Kwara State Branch Stamp is affixed to a letter written by the Head of Branch on
behalf of the NLN.
● A legal deposit stamp is affixed to a legal deposit publication or periodicals.
● A printed Matter stamp is affixed to a printed matter.
● A certified True Copy (CTC) Stamp is affixed to a newspaper or official document that
has been certified with an embossing notary stamp.

National Library Embossing Notary Seal: This is a metal clamping device that leaves a round
indentation on the notarized document or official document certified by the NLN Kwara. These
raised impressions contain the NLN Kwara information and are used alongside a Certified True
Copy stamp.

Smart Phone: This is a mobile phone that performs many of the functions of a computer,
typically having a touch screen interface, internet access, and an operating system capable of
running downloaded applications. This device is used for scanning and converting ISBN/ISSN
application letters of publishers and authors submitted to the NLN Kwara for processing. It is
also used for contacting the publishers to inform them about the status of their applications.
Furthermore, it is also used to make payment for ISBN /ISSN administrative charges via Remita
and other computer functions.

Laptops:  Also known as a notebook computer by manufacturers, is a battery and AC-powered

personal computer generally smaller than a briefcase that can easily be transported and
conveniently used in temporary spaces such as in libraries, temporary offices, and at meetings. A

42
laptop is used for typing memos, preparing monthly reports, documenting library collection, and
stock taking.

CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

My Six (6) months of SIWES experience introduced me to different sections of the National
Library of Nigeria, Kwara State Branch, their history, functions, and routine activities carried out
at each unit of the library aimed at providing quality information service delivery to its users
such as:

● Readership Promotion Campaign

● Certification of newspapers
● Processing of newspapers
● Accepting legal deposits
● Issuance of international standard number
43
 ● Shelf reading of foreign and Nigeriana collection
● Training of Library staff
● Training of SIWES students
● Preparing Back-of-Book Index
● Library display
● Documentation of retrospective materials
● Preparing Cataloguing-in-Publication (C.I.P)
● Attending Court Subpoena

In conclusion, my Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) is an interesting part of

my study in partial fulfilment for the award of a Bachelor in Library and Information Science
which has exposed and equipped me with background knowledge of my SIWES placement, as
well as practical and soft skills needed for workplace adaptation. Thus, “experience they say is
the best teacher”, no doubt this scheme has been a great benefit to my professional and career
development. During these six (6) months programme, I have been able to put into practice the
theoretical knowledge gained in school. Therefore, I will recommend that this programme be
continuously adopted and implemented for students. Further recommendations include;

1. Provision of Transportation allowance by the placement organisation as a form of

incentive for students to assist them to offset the high cost of transportation to their
SIWES placement.

2. The Industrial Trust Fund letter for attachment places should include consideration for
securing employment opportunities for any outstanding student during the SIWES
programme.

3. The Industrial Trust Fund letter for attachment purposes should consider work shifts for
SIWES Students for an organisation to accommodate more students rather than issuing
refusal letters to students.

4. Prospective SIWES students should not take the Industrial Training period for granted,
but rather see it as a time to develop their career practically and technically.

44
 5. Libraries involved should make available allowance for Top-up/conversion students since
they are not being catered for by the Industrial Trust Fund. This would be highly
beneficial to the students and appreciated if taken into consideration.

PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED

While I was observing my SIWES, staff below level 14 of the National Library of Nigeria Kwara
State Branch in October 13th, 2021 embarked upon an industrial strike. As at the time of my
resumption for SIWES, the staff were still on strike and only skeletal services were made
available. I did not have the privilege to meet with the staff of the various unit except the Head
of Branch who was a level 14 officer and occasionally when she invite staff to the office for an
assignment. She would implore the staff to train me in the area of their official duties. The
library had to go on strike due to the inability of the federal government and refusal to honour
and implement the collective bargaining agreement it freely entered with Joint Research and
Allied Institutions Sector Unions, (JORAISU) and prevented me from engaging in other library
routines that involve the library users, circulation, and reference services apart from special
services.

SUGGEST WAYS OF IMPROVEMENT

I want to appeal to the Federal Government, and other Supervisory Ministries of Research
Institutes and other Agencies, whose staff are affected as well as the Minister of Labour and
Employment, the Conciliator-in-Chief of the Federation, to do the needful by engaging the
Unions currently on strike to get the dispute resolved amicably. While I also crave the
management of JORAISU to avoid total closure of services rendered.

45