An investigation into the use of standards in University Libraries in Kenya

Abstract

This article sets out to describe the usage of standards in the development of quality library services in universities in Kenya. Standards represent opportunities for librarians to add value as information providers and for the library profession to raise its visibility as an authority on information quality. The mixed research method was used for data collection. A total of 27 (87%) of the 31 respondents from private and public higher education institutions (HEIs) completed and returned the questionnaires. Based on the fi ndings from the questionnaire survey, fi ve heads of university libraries were interviewed. The fi ndings revealed that the majority of the university libraries had used only fi ve out of the ten Commission for Higher Education’s Standards and Guidelines for University Libraries in Kenya (CHE 2007), namely: vision, mission and objectives; organisation and access of information resources; information resources; ICT resources; and library building