Public Libraries and E-Government in Nigeria

Developments in Information Communications Technologies (ICT) are a hallmark of the new Information Society They have provided the opportunity for governments to provide information and services online thereby promoting transparency and participatory democracy. Nigeria has keyed into this innovation to a reasonable extent. However the success of providing government services electronically has been linked to the availability of the points where the citizenry can access the Internet. The public library is on institution strategically placed in the community to serve as portals to access government services and information online. Public libraries in Nigeria are hampered from playing this role because of poor ICT infrastructure and lack of awareness amongst the citizenry of the roles of public libraries. The paper recommends that public libraries in the country should strategize on how best to provide e-government services. The Federal, State and Local governments should support public libraries so as to effectively provide e-government services emanating from their agencies.