FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW AND RECORDS MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AMONG RECORDS MANAGERS IN NIGERIA’S PREMIER UNIVERSITY

Introduction. This study was designed to investigate the awareness level, perception, and the adherence of record managers in the University of Ibadan to the provisions of the Nigerian Freedom of Information Law in relation to stages of records management practice. Method. Survey design was adopted. The population comprised of 705 records managers and 255 were selected as sample. Data were collected using questionnaire and interview schedule and thereafter analysed using frequency distribution and percentage tables. The interview responses were transcribed and themes were identified using Nvivo version 12. Results. Findings revealed that the level of awareness of records managers about FOI Law in the University of Ibadan is average. Also, there is high adherence to the provisions of the FOI Law on creation, storage, reliability, and disposal of records but low on access to records. More so, they have positive perception about the FOI Law. And the major constraint they face include: wrong information request and consideration of too many laws. Conclusions. The study concluded that the success recorded by University of Ibadan in being one of the leading universities in Nigeria is not unconnected with the culture of effective records management. However, there is room for improvement, especially on access to records