Cross River State Governor, Bassey Otu, says declared his readiness to revamp and digitalise the state library in Calabar, the state capital.

Otu made this known during a visit to the dilapidated library in Calabar in company of the deputy governor of Cross River State, Peter Odey, on Monday, June 12.

The governor, according to a statement issued on Tuesday by his Chief Press Secretary, Emmanuel Ogbeche, assured students and researchers that his administration would ensure a functional and knowledge-based e-library that is information technology driven.

He said: “Libraries are important and we will ensure that we have an e-library that is functional, digital, and would serve the needs of students and researchers.

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“I am not unaware of the financial constraints we face as a state, but we will look at what is feasible as quickly as possible and work to get the library up and running as libraries as centres of knowledge are pivotal to growth and development.

Governor Otu stated that a functional library would help in bringing back the reading culture among students, noting that the library would be IT and digital-compliant.

Speaking during the inspection of the library complex, the Director of the Cross River State Library Services, Eme Awatt, expressed her gratitude at the visit of the governor, stressing that the management and staff had hoped for such an opportunity to present the challenges facing them.

Awatt said: “I am really pleased with this visit by the governor. This is what we have been praying for. There is hope that we could soon have a befitting and functional library with an e-section. We have computers locked up, and hopefully, they are still functional to be put to use.”

She added that beyond the physical repairs, there is a need for manpower development to meet the needs of a model library.

The Star