Nigeria’s Future Depends on Knowledge, Not Infrastructure Alone Governor Alex Otti Warns

Abia Governor Alex Otti has warned that neglecting libraries could weaken Nigeria’s collective memory, calling for digitisation and stronger investment in knowledge infrastructure.

Otti spoke on Thursday in Abuja in a goodwill message delivered on his behalf by his Special Adviser on Monitoring and Evaluation, Ugochukwu Okoroafor, at the launch of the National Library of Nigeria Endowment Foundation (NLNEF) at the TETFUND Auditorium, Maitama.

The governor said roads, power and other infrastructure remained important to national development, but argued that Nigeria’s ultimate strength would depend on its human capital and access to knowledge.

 “A nation that neglects its libraries weakens its memory. A nation that strengthens them gives its people the tools to think, to innovate, and to build,” Otti said.

He noted that the importance of libraries had become more critical in the digital age, particularly with the rapid growth of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.

Otti called for the urgent digitisation of Nigeria’s documentary heritage to ensure that the country’s intellectual resources remain secure, searchable and accessible to present and future generations.

 “Our libraries should connect the wisdom of the past with the technologies shaping the future,” he said.

The governor also called for stronger collaboration among government, businesses, academic institutions, philanthropists and citizens to provide sustainable funding for libraries.

Highlighting his administration’s investment in education, Otti said Abia had consistently allocated 20 per cent of its budget to education since 2023. He added that the state had recruited 5,394 teachers, renovated schools and begun introducing technology-enabled smart schools.

Meanwhile, the National Librarian and Chief Executive Officer of the National Library of Nigeria, Chinwe Anunobi, said the NLNEF was established to address funding and infrastructure challenges facing the institution.

Anunobi said the National Library operates 35 branches and faces inadequate funding, ageing infrastructure, rising digitisation costs and growing demand for information services.

She said the Foundation would complement government efforts to preserve Nigeria’s knowledge assets, strengthen library services and support the completion and effective operation of the National Library headquarters under construction in Abuja.

Speaking at the event, the President of the African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja, Azikiwe Onwualu, said Nigeria’s technological ambitions could be constrained by weak knowledge infrastructure.

Onwualu urged the transformation of libraries from traditional book repositories into modern centres for research, digital literacy, innovation and collaboration.

 “Technological advancement does not begin with machines. It begins with knowledge,” he said.

He called for libraries to provide access to electronic journals, research databases, e-books, institutional repositories and digitised archives, while also supporting students, researchers and entrepreneurs.

Onwualu further stressed the need for libraries to help users distinguish credible information from misinformation, especially as artificial intelligence continues to reshape the information environment.

He advocated AI literacy programmes and continuous training for librarians to help them address issues such as accuracy, bias, privacy, intellectual property, authorship and academic integrity.

He said the librarian of the future would increasingly serve as a “knowledge navigator” helping users find, assess and apply reliable information in a rapidly changing digital world.