National Library of Uganda


The National Library of Uganda is a Government semi-autonomous institution established by an Act of Parliament in 2003. It replaced the Public Libraries Board which was established in 1964. The mandate of the National Library, is to collect, organize, preserve and disseminate Uganda's documented heritage. The Act further empowers the National Library with an oversight role over Local Government and Communities in the establishment and management of Public and Community Libraries.

Vision

"To be a leading institution of excellence in preserving Uganda's documented heritage and the provision and delivery of Library and Information services."

Mission

"To collect, preserve and disseminate Uganda's documented heritage and provide professional leadership for the delivery of Library and Information Services to public and community libraries."

Library Administration

The Governing body of the National Library is the National Library Board which consists of a Chairperson and eight other members appointed by the Minister. The functions of the Board are - a)to establish, manage and maintain the National Library of Uganda; b)to implement the functions of the National Library; and c)to put in place procedures for the collection, preservation and use of the National Library collections. The Current Director is Mr. Adonia Katungisa.

Library Sections/Departments

Functions of the National Library of Uganda

The functions of the National Library are - a)to develop national policies on public libraries; b)to provide local governments standards, advice, norms, work manuals and guidelines in respect of public library buildings, staffing, stock and information processing, storage and retrieval; c)to inspect and ensure that public libraries conform to national policies, guidelines and standards; d)to provide technical, professional and advisory services in the field of librarianship to Government departments, local governments and the public sector; e)to carry out research in the field of library and information provision and disseminate results to Government, local governments and the public; f)to design and carry out pilot projects in new areas of library and information provision and disseminate results to local governments and other organisations; g)to carry out and coordinate staff development programs for people working in libraries and information services; h)to support and promote adult literacy and education through identification and stocking post-literacy reading materials; i)to support the setting up of rural community libraries; j)to promote the habit and culture of reading through reading campaigns and book exhibitions; k)to carry out advocacy at the local and international level in matters relating to libraries; l)to acquire and organise for use a comprehensive collection of library material published in Uganda, by Ugandans, and on Uganda; m)to act as a depository for the national and foreign governments publications as well as for United Nations and other international organisations for purposes of promoting research and scholarship and for the preservation of published national culture and intellectual output; n)to compile a national bibliography of books published in Uganda as a means of promoting the awareness of the availability of these books and encouraging the sale of these books in the country and abroad; 0)in collaboration with publishers in Uganda to carry out the cataloguing of books before they are published so as to ease the processing of these books by various libraries; p)to establish and maintain a National Union Catalogue of holdings of major libraries in the country and to provide information and referral services, including specialised information services, at the national and international level; q)to allocate International Standard Book Numbers and International Standard Serial Numbers to publishers in Uganda; r)to act as the agency for national and international lending and exchange of library materials; s)to act as a national agency for national, regional and international information system; t)to create electronic databases in areas of national interest; u)to acquire at a fee, from any person or institution, any manuscript or literature that maybe considered to be of interest to the country; and lastly, v)to carry out any other function that may promote the above objectives.

Special Powers of the National Library

The National Library has the following powers --a) Legal deposit namely the right of the National Library to require every publisher of a book or document in Uganda at his or her own cost to deposit three copies of the book or document or one copy of a videogram or film and ten copies in the case of any Government department with the National Library; b) the power to inspect, issue standards, guidelines and regulations in the case of public libraries; c) the power to allocate International Standard Book Numbers and International Standard Serial Numbers or other International Numbers to Publishers in Uganda.
The National Library of Uganda is the overall supervising authority of all public libraries in Uganda.

Public Libraries in Uganda

Western Region

Currently, NLU, World reader and the African Library and Information Associations and Institutions started implementing Local Content for African Libraries Project. The project is aimed at allowing Uganda children access locally created e-books in their local languages, pairing digital technology and locally created e-books with extensive training, capacity building, and support to help library systems develop the resources and knowledge they need to improve their ability to help children access and read content in their mother tongue. Five libraries in the Central Region namely; Kawempe Youth Centre Community Library, Zigoti Community Library, , Masaka Public Library and National Library of Uganda and in the Western region, Masindi Public Library, Hoima Public Library, Buseruka Community Library and Kabwoya Public Library. 8 Public libraries and 2 Community Libraries have been equipped with 500 e-readers, loaded with content in digital format for children.
The Library supports national library policies and standards, provides advising services, and advocates for libraries. Working with several partners, NLU supports literacy, librarian training, and technical skills. One program, supported by EIFL, trains young people in basic computer literacy at three public libraries to help them improve their skills, employability, and ability to access information about job opportunities. NLU, in partnership with Kawempe Youth Centre Uganda, with funding from ran a project that supported pregnant teenagers with knowledge on information access through Information Communication Technologies to improve their health and livelihoods.