EVOLVING A UNION CATALOGUE FOR NIGERIAN LIBRARIES

The environment where computers communicate with each other has made resource sharing and collaborations easier and smoother among libraries. The environment has assisted libraries to develop cooperative strategies to maximize the opportunities of the Internet and its burgeoning applications to meet the ever-changing needs of library users. Creating and maintaining union catalogues is one of such strategies that have been adopted by libraries across the globe. However, a union catalogue is non-existent in Nigeria, although there had been past efforts in the direction by the National Library of Nigeria. This paper proposes a virtual union catalogue model for the development of a national union catalogue for Nigeria. The model requires that participating libraries have OPACs and that their library management software be Z39.50 compliant. With a well-coordinated steering committee in place, the paper concludes that it is possible for Nigerian libraries to achieve more quickly a union catalogue than it took some developed countries because of the networked environment