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Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Jerusalem: The Eternal Capital of Mankind

Why the noise about Jerusalem especially, about the recent declaration by President Donald J. Trump of the USA that Jerusalem is the official capital of Israel? The noise and concern as voiced by some global citizens are centered around the fact that Jerusalem is home to sacred monuments in the three Abrahamic or monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. These three religions have reference to the same Supreme God, the Creator of all things. They agree on this and share similarity in some other areas especially in the commonality of Abraham, the friend of God in all these religions which in itself should send wise signal to discerning minds of the purpose of God. But their major differences come in the manner they relate with God through the icons of their faiths: Moses- the man of God, Jesus Christ- the Son of God and God-incarnated, Mohammed- the messenger of God. This also has so much to do with their claims on Jerusalem. For instance, the Temple Mount in the Old City,  held sacred by the three religions, is site to the Al-Aqsa Mosque which is thought to mark the place from which Muhammad is believed to have ascended to heaven (the Isra and Mi'raj); the Foundation Stone or the Rock which is believed in Judaism to be the location of the Holiest of Holies, the spiritual junction between the Heaven and the Earth and thus the holiest site in Judaism towards which the Jews pray; and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which contain "the two holiest sites in Christianity: the site where Jesus of Nazareth was crucified, at a place known as "Calvary" or "Golgotha", and Jesus's empty tomb, where he is said to have been buried and resurrected".
Whereas man's misguided understanding of God and His ways which are past finding out has made claims to physical and material holiness appealing. It has brought about wanton destruction of lives and properties. It has created terrorism and extremist behaviour. Notwithstanding, claims to the history of any people is both just and worthy, and standing by the truth and reality is the most honorable thing anyone can do.
However, Jerusalem, being one of the oldest surviving world cities holds significant place in the general history of mankind. It is therefore necessary to understand what the Maker, the Most High God has as His sacred and eternal plans for the city. And this plan, He alone will achieve without the instrumentality of man or his religions or history. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave Him to show His servants as witnessed and testified to by John the Elder who reported that: 
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband... And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Certainly, Jerusalem shall be the only surviving city of all time. While the beauty of Paris, the hectic wonders of New York and the vanity of Babylon shall all pass, the glorious holiness of Jerusalem shall descend from above and all the inhabitants of the earth shall dwell in it. It shall be built upon the foundation of the Apostles and the gates thereunto shall be the twelve tribes of Israel. When the dots of the history of Jerusalem are connected to this its glorious future, simple wisdom or common sense have it that, faith in Christ Jesus, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham shall be the claiming right to the Jerusalem. So, as it were, there is something more eternal about Jerusalem than whatever claims anyone can have.
Jerusalem is the capital of the redeemed, sane and holy world soon to be. It is the eternal home of all peoples of all creeds, colours, and tongues. It is our final resting place. It is our capital. As someone satirically enthused that Trump should move to Jerusalem, he will, and not only him, but us all. It is a matter of time and faith
So, is Jerusalem the capital of Israel (Jews)? Yes. Is it the capital of Christianity and Islam? Yes, it is the capital of all peoples who believed that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died and resurrected from the dead, who is the LORD over all. Jerusalem is the eternal capital of mankind. Come on, sing with me Samuel Crossman's eternal song:
Jerusalem on high,
My song and city is,
My home whene’er I die,
The centre of my bliss;
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?

2 There dwells my Lord, my King,
Judged here unfit to live;
There angels to Him sing
And lowly homage give;
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?

3 The patriarchs of old
There from their travels cease;
The prophets there behold
Their longed-for Prince of Peace;
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?

4 The Lamb’s apostles there
I might with joy behold,
The harpers I might hear
Harping on harps of gold:
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?

5 The bleeding martyrs, they
Within these courts are found,
Clothèd in pure array,
Their scars with glory crowned;
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?

6 Ah me! ah me! that I
In Kedar’s tent here stay;
No place like that on high;
Lord thither guide my way;
Oh, happy place!
When shall I be,
My God, with Thee,
To see Thy face?
Amen.

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Halleluyah Ogo ni Fun Baba

MOONLIGHT TALES

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu

Moonlight tales the African stories
Children grinning their brows
As they chant the story of the ancient
Sweet soothing songs handed by history

To us who by richness of culture
Brightens the dark hours of night
With instinctive thoughts of succinct stories
Of fairy and the fair events fixing a folklore

We who drain the dullness of night
Simmering the turbulent sorrows of day
With night activities that quickens the queasy acts
Even with fairy tales that throws agog the sluggish night

Never here do you bed with worries
That drown in the ocean of stories
Puzzling riddles from ready mouths

Of the aged and all of us, sharing the moonlight tales

WANDERLAND

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu

It is an open secret afterwards
The matter the night revealed
The ignorant knowledge I had
Of the false truth the boy had told

That dead bones walked the weary street
In the valley mount of Djebel
As his legs held on to the soil
And his hands ran in the air

He began to run from the real shadow of his head
And the day was already blind the time he came
But as sunlight smiled upon the morning
He rose from the corner of the suite that lodged him

Though, the dead men were still sleeping as the Diya burns
Yet, the streets were shouting for a barred day
And the factories sweating at winter
The wise fool was smart to ask, why?

Only for the elders to childishly reply
With the question that answered his quest
That he knew the deaf danced to his drums

And the dumb had told him all he needed to hear at the Wanderland

Weepy Day

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu

Who burst your boil that you burst into tears, O day?
Whose acrimony has caused you this lachrymose moment?
This effluent of your pain has brought us worry
Leaving us with the tale of a day for which we are sorry

The mountains were mashed in your tears and the trees must weep
The isles could not evade the torrent from your eyes, the lakes must dance
Weepy! Weepy! Weepy eyes! The day is bitter and we all could see it
These chilly tears have caused us all to ask, what befall you, O day?

That the laissez-faire with the heart of a sparrow that prides on pity
Was caged to the comfort of the nest in which he dwells
To further oppress the unlucky bed he troubled all night
To snore and gnaw his jaws, pour his sluggish rain to wet his tired bed

But for the mighty with the heart to dare the effluence
And make a wreck of the effusive pour of a mournful Day
To take his dwelling from the border of deceitful rest

And betray the patience to further embrace your tears, O weepy Day!

Monday, November 20, 2017

Rumbles in Zimbabwe: Robert Mugabe on the Edge of Time and the Lesson for African Leaders

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu

Luckily, the rumbles are not, as of now and as earnestly desired, on the streets of the common and already oppressed masses but on the corridor of power itself. A corridor occupied by the fewest of the citizenry and marshaled by the one and only Robert Mugabe, a man in his nineties who has held sway at the helms for three years less four decades.
He is the only other person to have served in the office of President, other than  Canaan Banana, in the years of the nation's sovereignty. Now that Mugabe is, according President Jacob Zuma of the Republic of South Africa, "fine but confined" after the military announced the de facto control of the southern African country, the once upon a time freedom fighter turned tyrant may now be savouring the aroma of the dust this rumble has steered in his present capacity as the de jure leader. De jure is the last honour the military has reserved for one of the ill faces of African politics. But as foreign media wonders, the end may really have come to the junta-like civil rule of Mugabe.
While the rumble lasts in his palace, the rest African leaders may want to watch their backs closely and query themselves when will sit-tight, "forever rule" stop on the continent? They must ask themselves when will the end come to their propensity for "life rule"? They must now disavow that greedy thing in their nature that tightens their hands to power endlessly. Apart from Mugabe, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equitorean Guinea, the longest serving non-royal African leader since 1979 is another of such men who unlike his reign mate José Eduardo dos Santos of Angola who just stepped aside some two months ago after 38 years in power who are standing as clogs to the wheel of African development. African narratives are often mirrored in such men as these and so many others like them that acted in her regrettable tale. They largely account for the backward position occupied by the continent. You can imagine what it means for a country to be guided by the same idea of one person for as many years. If these leaders don't really want to go, I think, more of this rumble in the palace of Harare is desired all over.

The world-respected Nelson Mandela, in his divinely-gifted rare African human nature, thought these leaders and their likes great lessons with his unrivaled exemplary life but they refused the wisdom of the great Madiba. Mandela, upon spending his whole life with unquantifiable personal and material losses, including his now famed 27years imprisonment, only served a single term as President of the Republic of South Africa, retired voluntarily even when public approval of his government polled 80%. Mugabe in particular, who assumed office 8years before him, was personally counseled by the late sage to step aside given Mugabe's human rights abuses and bad public rating. His refusal prompted Mandela in 2007 to publicly urge Mugabe to step down "with residual respect and a modicum of dignity". 10years after, Mugabe still sit tight but with the deserving loss of the residual respect and the modicum of dignity even as he now seems to have fallen from grace.


Headlines of this unfolding saga

Be My Anchor

Adegbilero-Iwari Idowu

You are strong I am frail
When in the storms of life I sail
Anchor my soul by your glorious hail
Lest I’m swept off my lonely course

Sourced from https://stealourstuff.wordpress.com/
You are with might I am light
When I’m sift in the stormy blight
Cover me with your steadfast love
Lest I’m lost in the air as dust

You are certain I am vain
When the vagueness of life fills my veins
Make me last as your ever reign
Lest I’m ruined by the fleshly lusts




I am lighter than nil, be my aid!
I cannot stand alone, anchor me!
I am weaker than frail, raise me!
Link my hands to Yours lest I fall from grace!


Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Dear Senator Gbenga Ashafa: National Library of Nigeria and the State of Nigerian Libraries


Dear Senator,
You have left me with no other word than to say thank you for living true to the title your membership of the Nigerian upper legislative chamber confers on you having distinguished yourself. Distinguished Senator Gbenga Ashafa, you have painstakingly considered and called the attention of the nation to a somewhat conspicuous but seemingly vague national matter: the Nigerian library sector. Everything else is often mentioned and discussed in this country but the library. This accounts for the singular reason why the construction of the headquarters of the National Library of Nigeria has taken more than a decade to do unto no reasonable conclusion. The bad effects on cost, national literacy and development have been well articulated in your motion. The flimsy manner we handle national education and literacy which alarmed you only won us a poor record as the least reading country in the world. We are grateful for your foresight by seeing the invisible and beaming light on the obvious but somewhat hidden national menace. By this singular action of yours, you have distinguished yourself sir and I am left with no option than to confer on you the title of a Library Hero of Nigeria (LHN).

When I became puzzled but happy by your action, I traced and found that you originated from Lagos State; a state that, under the leadership of H.E. Akinwumi Ambode, has taken library development and education to enviable heights. Apart from having one of the largest numbers of public libraries, they recently partnered with Zenith Bank to develop public libraries. The recently modernized Isolo Public Library is a notable example of the government’s commitment to seeing through its “Adopt a Library initiative”. Lagos seems to get everything happening for them in the most progressive manner in all sectors. They are raising their shoulder high above the rest. With its western orientation of service to humanity and its pace of development, at times you wonder if Lagos is a separate country. While one would pray for Lagos to continue to prosper and also have shining lights and considerate people in leadership positions, the other states and the federal government should learn from the Center of Excellence.
The Federal Government and all state governments should consider educating the Nigerian masses as the most worthy calling of governance. Educating the masses is far beyond what the few privileged ones will learn within the four walls of our already remiss classrooms. It is more of what they will glean from a functional library system which can best be described as a public university. The public library is the citadel of learning for all peoples. This is what obtains in developed climes. I have  spoken much of this in my article titled “Journey to the Largest Library in the World and the Need for a Library-Conscious Nigerian Society”. Needless to reiterate, click to read and see where we should be heading as a country. But the call to modernize our libraries and turn them to community hubs, city centres or village squares is herein resounded. In a poster accepted for presentation in the AfLIA conference of May 2017 in Yaounde, Cameroun, I recommended how, a good public library serving as community hubs can fast-track personal and national development. I propounded there those things the modern library should do to fulfill that purpose. And as agreed to by other scholars and practiced abroad, the library should offer the following services: see poster

Having said that, without the support of everyone: government, communities, cities, philanthropist, librarians and the people, there is no way these can be achieved. I made recommendation for what everybody can do in the article titled "Nigeria: Concerning Library Culture or is it Reading Culture? Part2" which also can be clicked and read to safe writing space. However, in the light of distinguished Senator  Gbenga Ashafa’s heroic motion on the floor of the Senate, I wish to reiterate a key point here. The point is on the role of the National Assembly. Apart from the investigation the senator’s motion has birthed, the current momentum should be geared towards enacting the Library Fund Acts. This Act will provide for the establishment of Library Development Fund with fiscal empowerment like TETFund to fund library projects across Nigeria. All library types especially public libraries should be able to access this fund. The fund should also create special competitive grants for individuals, NGO, communities to compete for in order to implement innovative library projects. I can always shed more light on this. This practice is obtainable in serious-minded reading nations.

Dear Senator, that is the next step, beyond building a national headquarters of a library, which is just a building. You can always count on librarians to work with you in this matter dear library hero. God bless us all.  

CALL OPEN FOR EIFL PUBLIC LIBRARY INNOVATION AWARD

Adegbilero-Iwari Idowu
The call to apply for the 12th EIFL PUBLIC LIBRARY INNOVATION AWARD is open.
Public and community libraries in developing and transition countries that use digital technology (ICT) to improve lives with special focus on achieving any of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are encouraged to apply.
Prize of the Award: cash USD1,500 and kind.
Application closes January 11, 2018.
More information here

Monday, November 6, 2017

This Unnecessary "War" Against YouTube by Academics

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu
As a library and information science (LIS) professional, I felt so embarrassed last Friday emerging from an academic parley, staff training sort of , where some of the scholars (mid-old) condemned the contents of YouTube tagging it as "nonacademic", can not be used to teach students, or should not be recommended to students. This tongue-lash was a response to a lecturer (vibrant) who narrated how he used YouTube to teach his classes. I felt like this is a huge step backward to the early days when Google itself was discountenanced in academic arena. Even, without thanks to Google Scholar, the story has changed. Everybody wants to look for his missing bedspread on Google.

To safe your useful time, suffice it to say that, YouTube is the real deal even for academic learning! YouTube is described to offer wide range of user-generated and corporate media videos. Its content includes "video clips, TV show clips, music videos, short and documentary films, audio recordings, movie trailers, live streams, and other content such as video blogging, short original videos, and educational videos" (Wikipedia).
There is hardly anything in the world today you can not learn on YouTube. From artisans to artists, well-meaning professors to renowned universities, just anybody or any body, have YouTube channels through which they perform, teach and share vital information.  Just like any information source, it behoves the user to verify facts where doubts arise. But to say the least, YouTube is a great learning media, fantastic aid to teaching and a complete platform to master just anything that appeals to You (YouAnkara, YouFashion, YouLecture, YouSongs, YouWorship,... YouAnything).
For instance, Stanford University, one of top 5 universities in the world, has near 700,000 subscribers to its YouTube channel, Massachusetts Institute of Technology's OpenCourseWare has over 1.3 million subscribers; while Yale University's channel is subscribed to by near 100,000, its online learning platform, YaleCourses has over 500,000 subscribers which is in close relation to Harvard University's. These are the universities that rank highest at any time by any ranking system. So, it is extremely strange and absolutely unnecessary to hurl such reprimand on the academic capability of an iconic Web creation. Whereas I seek not to defend the self-defending YouTube, because it will be a baseless effort, the learners of this generation know where their information lay and the rich sources like YouTube to explore in order to get them.
My admonition to those of us in the LIS profession is that we should focus on information literacy and/or digital literacy to prevent being unwittingly awakened to unnecessarily bickering on whether the Web and its search engines (Google, YouTube, etc.) have taken the place of libraries or not.

Bibliography
1. American Library Association 
2. Wkikpedia
3. YouTube

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Library Activism101

African libraries, especially public libraries in Nigeria are still in crude form. Governments and communities don't even seem to have a place for libraries in their policy planning and implementation. The library sector is rarely considered in public discourse. This must change. We must take it upon ourselves to drive change in this critical sector of human society. That Nigeria with over 170million people has less than 1000 public libraries is no more a comfortable story to tell. Libraries must fill up the streets of Nigerian towns and villages. It is possible! And we must couple with advocacy library activism.

VREs and the Open Era: Open Science Framework for Research Collaboration and Visibility

According to UK Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC), the Virtual Research Environment (VRE) is a set of online tools and other network resources and technologies interoperating with each other to support or enhance the processes of a wide range of research practitioners within and across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.
The Open Science Framework, developed and maintained by the Center for Open Science (COS), is a collaboration tool that provides free and open source project management support for researchers across the entire research lifecycle.
Follow the link to read my presentation on Open Science Framework at Redeemer's University, Ede, Nigeria during the 2017 International Open Access Week OSF

Friday, October 20, 2017

The Normal Christian Life by Watchman Nee: Available Online

Concerning salvation and living the christian life, there are so many noises and dusts everywhere built around the failings of people to simply grasp what God did by JESUS CHRIST: His Cross, His Blood and His Resurrection. And the one book that sets the records straight is that written by Watchman Nee (1903-1972)THE NORMAL CHRISTIAN LIFE majorly based on the revelations gleaned from the book of Romans, The Holy Bible. 
From the simple to the confused, the weak to the unstable, and even you unbeliever, it is time to live a victorious, glorious and an assuring life through faith in Christ Jesus and His finished work on the Cross. The Normal Christian Life will be found for you a material that gives immense help in the bid to live the normal life God has purposed for you. Luckily, it is freely Available online: Click to read


Table of Contents
Chapter 1: The Blood of Christ Chapter 2: The Cross of Christ Chapter 3: The Path of Progress: Knowing Chapter 4: The Path of Progress: Reckoning Chapter 5: The Divide of the Cross Chapter 6: The Path of Progress: Presenting Ourselves to God Chapter 7: The Eternal Purpose Chapter 8: The Holy Spirit Chapter 9: The Meaning and Value of Romans Seven Chapter 10: The Path of Progress: Walking in the Spirit Chapter 11: One Body in Christ Chapter 12: The Cross and the Soul Life Chapter 13: The Path of Progress: Bearing the Cross Chapter 14: The Goal of the Gospel

Thursday, August 31, 2017

Harvey


Harvey,
You came so hard with forces so ferocious
In a manner we rarely see, you stormed Texas
With shivers you put Louisiana on edge
You ravaged Houston, flooded the streets and blasted her flora




Harvey,
The rampant storm that rendered the houses rustling
And the people homeless, for safety scampering
Shelters were shattered by you, children crying
And miles and bridges in rumbles you left

Harvey,
You broke the addiction of Addicks
She spilled her waters that boats plied the watery roads
And the cars of Houston were submerged like submarine
Monuments were moved ashore by your rivers

Harvey,
Austin and Washington could not but answer your thunderous call
As compassion flurried from all of earth
Prayers and vigils from distant lands to strengthen
The gallantry of men and women on ground, lives to rescue

Harvey,
You have left a trail and a tale that will long be searched and told
Now you must go away and let alone
The city of my love that hosted my feet for four hours
When she admitted me to the nation that put her trust in God


Harvey,
You have done your part, now the people shall arise
Their bits to do with courage; and steel themselves
To turn the gory story that Harvey has told
To a tale of glory the world shall ever tell





Tuesday, August 22, 2017

INASP/UNESCO Open Access Week competition

INASP is hosting a competition to provide small contributions of $500 for up to 10 successful applicants towards the costs of organising Open Access Week activities. The winners will also have the opportunity to share their Open Access activities via the INASP and UNESCO website, newsletter and the networks and all applicants might use www.openaccessweek.org to share ideas and get feedback.
Your activities might include: 
  • Creating greater understanding of Open Access or the Open Access movement
  • Increasing wider awareness and use of institutional repositories
  • Promoting and providing training in Open Access resources
  • Showcasing the open source software being used
  • Using the opportunities provided by Open Access policies to create, share and improve access to information and electronic resources
  • Having fun with your own competitions or displays
Open Access Week is an opportunity for the academic and research community to learn more about the potential benefits of Open Access, to share what they’ve learned with colleagues, and to help inspire wider participation in Open Access developments. For more information, see OpenAccessWeek.org.


Application Deadline: Monday 28th August 2017
Successful applicants will be notified by: Friday 1st September 2017
Winners’ reports must be submitted to INASP by: 17th November 2017

For sample OA Week event, see Adegbilero-Iwari's winning activities for Elizade University, Nigeria at Elizade University 2016 Open Access Week Events

Friday, July 21, 2017

#Force2017 call for abstracts: What could you contribute to the most innovative event in scholarly communications?

Changing the Culture

This year’s Force11 Conference takes place in Berlin from 25-27 October. It will focus on Changing the Culture as a theme to guide discussions. The event is intended to create new partnerships and collaborations, and support the implementation of ideas generated at the conference, and in the FORCE11 working groups.

The #FORCE2017 Conference aims to contribute its fair share to changing the scholarly communications landscape.

We focus on dialog rather than monolog, on diversity both on-stage and among the audience. And we plan a program geared towards turning past experiences with---and future visions for---scholarly communication, into concrete next steps.

Check out the line-up of confirmed keynote speakers, and if you think you could add to the program please propose your story today.

"It was really pleasing to be reminded of just how cool and exciting 
it can be at the cutting edge of scholarly communication.” - 2016 delegate
Key dates and info
  • 31st July: Earlybird registration 
  • 15th August: Abstract submission (posters, demos, sessions)
  • 25-27 October 2017: Conference dates!

Venue: Kalkscheune, Berlin

Conference Chair: Martin Fenner; Program Chair: Daniel Mietchen

Visit the main website for more information: www.force2017.org.

Still on Reading Culture: Consider the Reading Habits of Highly Successful People

Adegbilero-Iwari, Idowu
According to Sandra Wu "Some of the world's highest achievers have one thing in common: it isn’t a high IQ, nor is it an incredible lucky streak, but their appreciation for reading. Books were their most profitable investment."

Billionaires who read their ways to wealth and fame:

1. Warren Buffett spends 80% of his day reading. 
2. Elon Musk reportedly learned how to build rockets by reading books
3. Bill Gates, the richest man in the world and a lifelong bookworm, reads about 50 books a year
4. Mark Zuckerberg invited the whole world to join him on his quest to read a book every two weeks in 2015.

Wouldn't you rather start honing your reading culture or build your kids' early?
And a quick reminder to Nigerian authorities, Library culture, a prelude to reading habit, still matters. Click to see what library culture means here and this too

The above are tips from a rich site I stumbled upon.
Read more at: Blinklist Magazine

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

Library Services Platform: Are Nigerian Libraries Ready for Change?

Failure to innovate will result in a diminished role for libraries as the next phase of digital information evolves- Marshall Breeding
With the above  assertion by Marshall Breeding I wish to task and engage Nigerian librarians on innovation and adaptation to change. Apart from God, change is generally believed to be the only permanent thing. This is proven to be true across ages and seasons. The ever evolving field of Library and Information Science (LIS) is one of the most dynamic as a result of its perennial interface with changing technologies and changing socio-eonomic dynamics of the human race. So, it is convenient to come to the conclusion as Breeding's which engenders constant innovation and planned or strategic change for our libraries to remain relevant especially in this age when virtually anything can be googled. Asked, way back 2005, "Where do you typically begin your search for information on a particular topic?", 89% of the respondents (college students) chose search engines of which Google (62%), and a gracious 2% chose library websites, according to an OCLC research. This brings us to the issue of libraries versus the Web and more so, Google. 
Luckily, however, there is steady rise in library patrons' preference of digital resources and complementary shift in library resource acquisition from the ubiquitous paper to electronic. Well, not all libraries but, most libraries in developed countries are shedding the weight of print collections in favour of growing digital collections. The reasons are obvious. The Millennials which constitute much of today's information seekers and users are digitally oriented; they are digitally woven with mobile gadgets such as tablets and smartphones to get avalanche of information on the go. All these have serious implications for libraries who are key players in the  information world. No doubt, libraries are ubiquitous, they are essential treasures of human civilizations and must remain so even in the digital age.
It has been found that technologies only evolve to the gains of libraries and the information community all across history. Prof Iyabo Mabawonku, a renowned LIS scholar, in her recent inaugural lecture titled "From Tablet to Tablet: Information, Media and Technology Acceptance", highlighted the role of technology in human communication from the eras of cave paintings, cuneiform or clay tablets up to today's era of handheld mobile tablets. Libraries have always leveraged on these technologies to fulfill their purposes to the society. As computers were never a threat to libraries  at the onset of computing but rather ushered in the eras of computerisation and its succeeding and subsisting phenomenon, automation, this rapid web era should not also pose so much of a threat.
Much of early library automation efforts were based on server/client computing model with its consequential challenges which have now constituted major limitations. Many of such limitations of the now ageing library automation systems generically known as Integrated Library Systems or Library Management Systems (ILS/LMS) not limited to but include:

  • core focus mostly on print materials and traditional workflow processes
  • labour-intensive implementation and maintenance
  • loosely integrated environment
  • cost intensive
  • too many demand of other technologies such as discovery systems, ERM, link resolvers, etc as add-ons
  • complex serials management 
  • limited OPAC, which is still much like the card catalogs from which it evolved
  • inability to link with other library and institution systems such as student portals, institutional repositories, ETDs, etc
All these and many more have added to the pressure already created by preference of library users for Google and the rising e-resources collections of libraries which in the words of Jane Burke,  VP of market development for ProQuest, "we’ve reached a tipping point where collections are predominantly electronic." There was therefore need for a more robust and unified library automation system that can handle much, if not all of these issues in one system. This led to the development of new products which Marshall Breeding generically termed Library Services Platform (LSP).
Library service platforms are first web-based, multitenant library systems which operates largely as Software as a Service (SaaS) on the cloud computing architecture for the unified management and discovery of all kinds of library resources. With the cloud, much of the burdens  and cost  for system implementation and maintenance are drastically shed. The other features or benefits of the LSPs, especially OCLC's WorldShare Management Services (WMS) launched June 17, 2013, now used by over 500 libraries across the world are:
  • unified electronic and print resources workflows which also streamlines and automate management of e-resources
  • saves cost, especially cost of software and server acquisition and maintenance
  • inbuilt discovery service
  • visibility of libraries on popular search engines
  • intuitive data analytics
Apart from the OCLC, other major players in library technologies have developed their own LSPs:
All of these products apart from FOLIO are already in use by hundreds of libraries across the world. Even though, LSPs are termed future technologies in NMC Horizon Report 2017 Library Edition, to be adopted in two to three years' time, it is already in use by aggregated thousands of libraries globally as shown in the Table below. 


Library Services Platforms Adoption

NEW 2014TOTAL
COMPANYSYSTEMCONTRACTSINSTALLED
Ex LibrisAlma43406
Innovative InterfacesSierra Services Platform123495
OCLCWorldShare Management Services79303
ProQuestIntota3535*
SirsiDynixBlue Cloud Suite Enterprise150538
Social Library53179
eResource Central168329
MobileCirc218364
Analytics102116
*Intota Assessment, the first module of the new system, released in November 2013
Numbers represented here were reported to us by associated vendors
Source: LJ LIBRARY SYSTEMS LANDSCAPE STUDY 2015
A lot of things (figures, product name, owner/vendor,...) must have since changed. E.g, ProQuest have acquired Ex Libris, that means, with Alma. 
The only library so far reported in Africa to have deployed a LSP is Stellenbosch University Library with Ex Libris' Alma. I am not sure if a library in Nigeria has adopted any. The reasons may not be far fetched.
Apart from the fact that not all libraries in Nigeria, even academic libraries, have automated with the ageing or dying ILS/LMS, the challenges of libraries here seems to be pseudo-different from those beyond the sea which have necessitated the development of the LSP. To confirm the above is the fact that, our workflows are still largely traditional having to do with large and increasing volumes of print resources. This is a reversal of global trends. What the global community of information seekers and users are looking for is electronic. And this, unfortunately, is not to say that information seekers and users in Nigeria are not clamoring for electronic resources. In fact, just like the troubling statistics shared above, their first point of call for information is the Web (Google). So, it may be that the library is doing them a strong disservice due to whatever may be the reasons chief of which may not be unconnected with funding and the poor library culture I once wrote about. However, there are reasons to heave a deep sigh of relief given the recent interest and emphasis of the National Universities Commission on e-resources in university libraries. Whichever way, libraries in Nigeria will have to innovate and prepare for this inevitable change that the LSP have brought. The question, really is, not if Nigerian libraries will embrace LSP, it is a matter of when.
The when must however not be seen as later as projected by the NMC Horizon Report but NOW as I passionately desire. Now, because it is an opportunity for us to leverage on the inevitable cloud computing model making waves today. There are lots to benefit from the cloud: no hardware, no software obsolescence nor maintenance hassles, no update worries, no qualms on technical know-how or personnel, and many more. NOW, because it is an opportunity for many "unautomated" libraries to start on great footing. NOW, because we must bridge the tech gap between us and our counterparts offshore. NOW, because we must complement our political presence and gains on global library affairs (e.g. Dr Victoria Okojie, recently elected 2nd term as IFLA Governing Board Member 2017-2019) with adoption of modern library technologies and practices to the benefit of our users and the library sector. How may Nigerian libraries prepare for this change?
Nigerian libraries may have to decide critically on whether to build (use open source LSP as FOLIO) or buy (vendor-based like WMS, Alma, BLUEcloud,...). As LSP is a maturing library system, it is important to choose a matured platform or according to Breeding, it is important to choose a company that will survive. So, I counsel that:
  • libraries set up review teams to begin to assess the various platforms
  • they can ask for pricing information
  • they can explore the possibility of a consortium or consortia since LSP are multitenant based and are good for resource discovery and sharing 
  • they can interact with colleagues abroad and get their honest opinions of the platforms they are using
  • they can join the FOLIO community to be involved in its development before eventual release; it may just work like Koha
  • the Nigerian Library Association can also set up a national level task committee to review this imminent change and trends in the profession
Are Nigerian libraries ready for this change? Yea, if the counsels are heeded, Nay, if they are ignored. But as for the LSPs, they are here for good; the future has come!