Kwara State University is set to open a multi-million naira
library complex, believed to be the second biggest library in West Africa. The library,
which is now being equipped with modern facilities, was financed by the Tertiary
Education Trust Fund, TETFund.
According to the authorities of the university, the library will be opened to students of the institution and people from different places. This is one of the biggest achievements of Kwara State University since it was established ten years ago. The library has a sitting capacity of about 1,500 people. It also has an annex with an expansive parking space.
“The library is in the 21st Century where every resource you need should be present, where a student can go in and if you want to sleep there you can keep working with every resource you need by just pressing a button,” said Professor Abdulrasheed Na’Allah, immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the University.
He further stated that “It is a library which is also a social environment in which you socialize as you study. You interact as you research and you relax as you write down some of the ideas you want, you comb the whole world.”
He explained that the concept of the library is that it is “the life wire of the University, and if we don’t have an excellent library, we do not have an excellent University because our vision is for a world-class University. We needed a library that itself is a world-class”.
The former Vice-Chancellor further said that apart from the fact that the imposing structure is befitting, it will also be a source of pride for Nigeria “because we know that the whole world will be coming to KWASU to use our library.” The library is expected to be declared open by the next academic session.