Abstract:
Academic libraries of Public Higher Educational Institutions in Ethiopia (PHEIE)
suffer from common problems like flexibility associated with e-library services,
lower levels of efficiency, unequal distribution of information resources and huge
costs involved in managing the entire Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) infrastructure. The main aim of this study was to investigate
ways in which resource sharing among Ethiopian university libraries could be
enhanced through the use of cloud technology with a view of suggesting a
framework for effective application of cloud library in resource sharing. The
methodology employed to conduct this study was survey research and the
respondents’ drawn from Jimma, Mizan-Tepi and Hawassa Universities, which
comprised of librarians, ICT professionals, students and staffs. Simple random
sampling method was used to select samples from study population and a
purposive sampling method was used to select study areas and samples for
interview. Data for the study was collected through questionnaire, semistandardized face-to-face interview and observation. The preliminary results of
the research show that 76.5% of respondents agreed cloud library was best means
to increase resource sharing among universities. The majority of the respondents
indicated that cloud library will benefit users in many ways; by access to all
services at one point with M=4.7, SD=1.2 as well as ease to get disseminated
information with Mean=3.6, SD=1.3. The study found that cloud library had a
potential to minimize duplication of e-library projects with M=3.75, SD=1.28 and
to enhance abilities to integrate libraries with each other by a M=3.79, SD=1.28.
It found also that cloud library technologies are not available in EPHLI and thus
can be said that their impact on resource sharing had not been felt. Hence, the
recommendation for the availability of cloud library technology applications for
access of EPHLI libraries in Ethiopia was provided.
