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Acquisition and use of government publications in Nnamdi Azikiwe library,

University of Nigeria, Nsukka

Article  in  Information Technologist (The) · March 2010

DOI: 10.4314/ict.v6i2.52716

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 Information, Society and Justice, Volume 3 No. 1, December 2009: pp xx-xx
ISSN 1756-1078

Acquisition and use of government publications:

A case study of Nnamdi Azikwe Library,
University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN)

Ifeanyi J. Ezema1
Victoria N. Okafor, PhD2

Abstract
This paper examined the acquisition and use of government publications in
University of Nigeria Library between 2003 and 2007. Record inspection and
observations were used to find out the methods and extents of acquisition of
government publications in the university library. The use of government
publications by faculty was also studied. Findings reveal that the acquisition of
government publications in the university library were mainly through gifts,
donations and deposits and publications from Federal government ministries,
parastatals and government agencies constitute more than eighty percent of the
acquisition within the period. Similarly, more than half of the users of government
publications are from faculties of Social Sciences and Education. The most
frequently used government publications are from Federal government ministries,
parastatals and agencies. The paper recommended the implementation of legal
deposits, embarking on regular acquisition tour, legislation on freedom of
information, publication of government documents electronically and the use of
subject specialists in making government publications accessible as ways of
addressing the problems.

Keywords
Government publication, acquisition, information accessibility, university libraries,
freedom of information.

Introduction
Government publications occupy a critical space in research literature in humanities, social
sciences and science and technology as they provide information regarding public policy

1 Librarian, Nnamdi Azikiwe Library, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Email: ifezema@yahoo.com

2
Librarian, Nnamdi Azikiwe Library, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Email: vickaforn@yahoo.com

© Information, Society & Justice, 2009

Department of Applied Social Sciences, London Metropolitan University
Ladbroke House, 62-66 Highbury Grove, London N5 2AD, United Kingdom
Website: www.londonmet.ac.uk/isj
Acquisition and use of government publications |2

statements, statistical evidence, and regulation of activities of organizations, institutions and

professional associations. Paradoxically, available literature regrets the underutilization of
government publications among researchers. The terms “government publications,”
“government documents,” or “official publications” are often used synonymously because, as
the names indicate, they are publications that are generated from government, whether at the
local, state or federal level. Ogundana, et al. (2002) are very incisive and definite when they say
that government publications are fundamentally information resources generated by different
arms of government, including ministries, parastatals and government. Aina (1981), Katz (1982)
and Edoka (2000) agree that government documents are publications that are issued or printed at
government expense or published by authority of a government body. Such authority could be
given by the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government. Similarly, Odumosu cited
in Ajidahun (2004) opines that government publications are vital or authoritative documents
issued by or on behalf of the government or its agencies. This position is also well articulated by
Harrold (1992) when he says that government publications have an official, instructional,
descriptive, or historical nature, and are issued by government departments.

Brunvand and Pashkova-Belkenhol (2008) demonstrated that government publications were

underused by students in their research work. Observations have also shown that academic
disciplines have significant correlation with the use of government documents. For example,
social sciences have been found to use government publications more than other disciplines
(Leiding 2005). Apart from this, Aina (2004) believes that availability of this publication
improves their use in research activities. This means that acquisition of government publications
is fundamental to their use.

At Nnamdi Azikiwe Library, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, government publication is a full

section under the Special Collection Division of the library. The section is headed by a
professional librarian with other librarians and support staff. Acquisition of government
publications is mainly through legal deposits (for the university library is a legal depository
library), donations and rarely through purchase. Occasionally, the library embarks on acquisition
tore for the collection of some government publications. The extent to which method of
acquisition improves the collection and to a large extent accessibility and use is the main thrust
of this paper. Therefore this study wishes to: (a) find the number of government publications the
library acquired in the last five years (b) find out the type of government publications acquired
within the period (c) determine the level of use of government documents by undergraduates
students, post graduates students and staff within the period (e) find out the kind of documents
frequently used.

Utilisation of Official Publications: Some Conceptual Issues

Several studies have been conducted on the use of government publications. Casewell cited in
Brunvand and Pashkova-Belkenhol (2008) has observed that in the United States, government
documents that were heavily used are legislative information, congressional hearings and
publications from US Dept of Health and Human Services. In a related study using citation
analysis, Barness (2006) reported that citations to government publications account for a
significant citations in most research work but they are often treated as ‘others’ for citation
researchers are often interested in journals, books and monographs. However, his analysis of a
total of 30,538 citations reveals that only 2.3 percent are from government publications
indicating that there is low use of government publications by researchers. An earlier study
(Weech cited in Barness (2006) however revealed that median government publications citation
 3| Information, Society & Justice

in several works examined is about 17.5%. Other studies Morton (1985), Zink (1986), and Nelon
(1986) reported low use of government publications.

Another study by Aina (2004) also shows low use of government documents in University of
Ilorin Library. His findings reveal that the highest numbers of users are from the Faculty of
Business and Social Sciences followed by Faculty of Education and Arts. Of the six categories of
documents studied, statistical publications were more frequently consulted followed by Annual
Reports. Aina has also blamed the low use of government documents on poor organization of
the documents and lack of awareness of the existence of such publications.

Similarly, other studies such as Cheney (2006), Brunvand and Pashkova-Belkenhol (2008),
Robinson and Schlegl, attribute the low use of government publications to poor collection
development methods, reference and instruction services. According to Cheney, collection
development efforts should shift from passively accepting and preserving deposited materials to
active acquisition of government documents in support of discipline-based research in core areas
of the institution. Moreover, libraries should move from providing public services in support of
government information to more active reference and instruction services role within the context
of the discipline. Therefore, she advocates the use subject librarians in handling instruction
services to create awareness and make for easy accessibility for government publications. In line
with this, the University of Iowa collects depository government publication but in addition
selectively acquire other relevant government publications. Cheney also advices that libraries
should create a greater visibility of government publications through integrating them (both
virtually and physically) into the library catalogues and merging government reference services
into the library centralized references.

In the age of information and communication technology, evidences have shown that the use of
government publications has improved significantly since user can access them electronically,
even “virtually” (Ashe, Yi and Knapp in Cheney 2006). Cruse (2002) had revealed that digital
government publications has improved collection of government publications in the University
of California and more government agencies are heavily relying on the web to distribute and
provide access to users. Therefore the present information communication powered by ICT has
reduced the cost of dissemination and accessibility of government information. However, the
United States General Accounting Office (2001) warns about the challenges which electronic
dissemination of information posses. Theses challenges include: (a) Authenticity of collections
(b) easy and permanent maintenance of archived contents (c) easy and equal accessibility to all
users.

Methodology and Data

The method adopted for this study is the use of record inspection, interview and observation.
The researchers went through records of Government Document Unit of Nnamdi Azikiwe
Library University of Nigeria Nsukka and equally interviewed the government document
librarian. Data were collected for a period of five years on the rate of acquisition, rate of use by
faculties, rate of use by year and the most frequently used government publications. Data was
then analyzed using tables and percentages.
Table 1: Rate of Acquisition of Government Publications

Period
Acquisition and use of government publications |4

Type of Document 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Total Percentage

Ministries and Parastatals 92 97 103 89 72 453 48.7

Government Agencies 91 89 102 35 60 377 40.5

Federal Government. 11 5 2 5 3 26 2.8

Reports
Parliamentary Report 7 - 3 - 19 29 3.1

State and Local 3 3 32 3 4 45 4.9

Government Publications

Total 204 194 242 132 158 930 100.0

Source: Fieldwork, 2009

From the above table (Table 1) it could be seen that greater percentage of government
publication acquired were from Federal government ministries and parastatals with a total of 453
publications or 48.7% of the entire acquisition within the period under review while documents
from government agencies a total number of 377 (40.5%). State and local government
publications acquired within the period were only 45 (4.9%), federal government reports
acquired were only 26 (2.8%) while parliamentary reports were only 29 (3.1%). The table also
shows that there is no steady increase or decrease of acquisition over the years. However, more
documents were acquired in 2005 while 2006 recorded the least acquisition are from government
ministries and parastatals with a total number of 453 or (48.7%).

Table 2: Use of Government Publications by Faculties

Faculties Staff PG UG Total Percentage

Students Students
Agriculture 12 40 8 60 7.2
Arts 3 23 28 54 6.5
Business Administration - 7 13 22 2.6
Biological Sciences 1 2 31 34 4
Education 10 204 20 234 28
Engineering 5 9 29 41 5
Pharmacy - 2 20 23 2.7
Physical Sciences 2 4 31 37 4.4
Social Sciences 24 76 185 285 34
Medical & Health Sciences - - 43 43 5.2
Total 57 367 409 833 99.6 =100*
*The inaccurate percentage is because of rounding.

Source: Fieldwork, 2009

 5| Information, Society & Justice

Table 2 shows the use of government documents by faculties. From the table it could be seen
that Faculty of Social Sciences make use of government more than other faculties. For the period
under review 285 (34%) publications were used the faculty. Faculty of Education follows with
234 items or 28% of the total publications. The other faculties have less than ten percent of the
total use with the least coming from Business Administration and Pharmacy. Undergraduate
students constitute the greatest users with 409 items, followed by post graduate students with
367 items and lastly staff with 57 items used.

Table 3: Most frequently used government publications.

Source of Publication 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Total Percentage

Ministries and Parastatals 43 51 40 59 21 214 25.79

Government Agencies 72 78 84 86 103 423 50.88

Federal Government. 18 20 23 35 38 134 16.10

Reports

Parliamentary Report 5 6 8 16 18 53 6.1

State and Local - 2 2 2 3 9 1.0

Government Publications

Total 138 157 157 198 183 833 100.0

Table 3 is a summary of the most frequently used government publications. The table reveals
that publications from government agencies are the most frequently used publications within the
period under review with 423 items used or 50.88% of the total documents. This is followed by
publications from government ministries and parastatals with 214 items or 25.79 of the total
publications used. Federal government reports is the next type of government publication
frequently used with 134 items consulted. The least consulted government publications are
publications coming from state and local government and that of parliamentary reports with 9
(1%) and 53 (6.1%) respectively. More government publications were used in 2006 (198)
followed by 2007 with a total of 183 items consulted while 2004 and 2005 recorded 157 items
each. Fewer publications were consulted in 2003 (138).

Discussion of Findings
Acquisition of government document in University of Nigeria library seems not to follow any
defined pattern. This is because according the document librarian, greater percentage of the
acquisitions are through gift and donations. The implication is that the library may not acquire
materials in core areas that are of interest to the users. It is obvious from the table that materials
acquired are mainly from Federal Government ministries and parastatals and other government
agencies who donate their publications unsolicited and free of charge. Consequently acquisitions
Acquisition and use of government publications |6

from these two groups account for close to 90% of the total acquisition within the period under
review. Parliamentary reports which are recognized as essential aspect of research materials in all
fields are rarely acquired. It accounts for a mere 3.1% of the total acquisition in the period under
review. State and local government publications are equally scanty with only 4.9 percent of the
total acquisition within the period. This development corroborates the findings of Cheney
(2006), Brunvand and Pashkova-Belkenhol (2008) and Robinson and Schlegl who attributed the
low use of government documents to acquisition patterns where libraries passively accept
deposited documents without making efforts for aggressive acquisition of government
documents through acquisition tour of government establishments. A closer observation also
shows that acquisition of government publications has been declining within the last two years
(2006 and 2007).
The pattern of acquisition leaves the reader with no option rather than to use what is available to
him. From the available statistics and interview with the document librarian, the Government
Document Unit of the library records low use of government publication. This is in line with the
findings of Aina (2004) who equally reported low use of government documents in the
University of Ilorin library. Faculty of Social Sciences however recorded the highest user of
government publications from the result of the findings. This is followed by Faculty of
Education. The two faculties recorded more than half of the entire use of government
publications within the period with Faculties of Business Administration and Pharmacy
recording the lowest. This is partly in line with an earlier study by Aina (2004). The difference
here is that Business Administration which recorded the highest use in Aina’s study recorded low
use in the present study. This may however be as a result of the location of Business
administration at Enugu Campus of the University while the main library housing Government
Document Unit is at Nsukka Campus of the university. Other faculties equally recorded low use
of government publications for none of them has up ten percent of the total use.
From the result, the most frequently used government publications are materials from
government agencies with more than 50% frequency. The likely explanation for this is that the
readers find them more useful or that they are the ones mostly available as shown in the table.
This followed by documents from the ministries and parastatals with 25.79% frequency. It is not
surprising that these documents are the most frequently used because within the period under
review, they constitute more than 80% of the total acquisition. Federal Government reports are
lowly used with 16.10% while the least used are state and local government publications.
Legislative reports are equally lowly used contrary to the findings Bruvand and Pashkova-
Belkenhol (2008) which indicated that the United States government publications that are heavily
used are legislative information. This variation may perhaps be that parliamentary reports are
rarely acquired by the library. The low use of parliamentary reports may also have link with the
acquisition procedures which Cheney (2006) had earlier identified. For instance, the findings
reveal that parliamentary reports constitute only 3.1% of the entire acquisition within the period.

Recommendations
There is no doubt that government publications occupy an essential space in the research
literature particularly in building the background of the research and obtaining relevant and
authoritative statistical evidence yet most studies report very low use of government documents.
To address this problem, libraries should formulate adequate acquisition policy particularly as it
relates to government publications. Such policy framework should address the problem relying
mainly on donations and unsolicited gifts which does not encourage acquisition of core
materials. Libraries could acquire current and core materials through:
 7| Information, Society & Justice

 Re-emphasizing the legal deposit rights of some libraries which fortunately the University
of Nigeria has and vigorously pursue its implementation.

 Embarking on regular acquisition tour of government establishments where most of

these materials are generated.

 A very important method of improving availability and use of government publications is

legislation on freedom of information. This will ensure that libraries acquire government
documents unhibited.

 In addition to these, with the present information and communication facilities,

publication of electronic documents should be encouraged so that researchers who could
not access them from the libraries could do that electronically.

 The libraries could also access the electronic government publications store them in CD-
ROMs for the use of library clientele. In using these, the library can then create an
electronic data base of government documents for the users.

 Similarly, subject librarians have pivotal roles to play in exposing the users on the
availability of government documents in the library. The present arrangement in the
University of Nigeria library where subject librarians perform consultancy services to
different faculties, the subject librarians should use the opportunity to educate the users
on available government publications in the library.

Conclusion

Government publications are evidently very important research materials for all kinds of library
users but the acquisition and management of these information resources live much to be
desired. It has been shown from the fore going that the University of Nigerian library is not quite
different from other libraries that have been studied. The major problem with the use of
government publications is fundamentally on the method of acquisition where most libraries rely
on donation, gifts and deposits which do not ensure the selection of reliable and core
government publications in relation to the needs of the library users. This paper has made some
useful recommendations which if they are implemented would possibly address some of the
problems.

References
 Acquisition and use of government publications |8

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Education Media & Library Sciences. 41(4), 449 – 453.

Aina, L.O. (1981). Librarianship for Education Students. Ibadan: Department of Library Studies,
University of Ibadan.

Ajidahun, C.O. (2004). The acquisition, management and bibliographic control of government
publications in Nigerian university libraries. World Libraries, 14(2), 1 – 12.

Barnes, N. (2006). The use of U.S government publications as bibliographic references in

doctoral dissertations. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 32(5), 501 – 511.

Brunvand, A & Pashkova-Balkenhol, T. (2008). Undergraduate use of governmenr information:

what citation studies tell us about instruction strategies. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 8(2),197
– 209.

Cheney, D. (2006). Government information collections and services in the social sciences: the
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Edoka, B.E. (2000). Introduction to Library Science. Onitsha: Palm Publishing and Links Comp. Ltd.

Harrold, L.M. (1992). The Librarians Glossary of Terms used in Librarianship, Documentation and the
Book Crafts and Reference. London: Ebenezer Baylis and Sons.

Katz, W.A. (1982). Introduction to Reference Work: Reference Services and Information Processes. New
York: McGraw–Hill.

Morton, B. (1985). U.S government documents as history:the intersection of pedagogy and

librarianship. RQ, 24(Summer), 474 – 484.

Nolan, C.W. (1986). Undergraduates use of government documents in the Social Sciences.
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Ogundana, L.B., Olowosejeje, E.B. and Barknido, M.B. (2002). “40 years of Government Library
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