– Acting Chief Librarian

ACTING Chief Librarian, Ms Emiley King, has found that there has been a steady decrease in the number of persons who have used the Guyana National Library over the past three years or so.

She is thus encouraging the public to make better use of the library, a facility into which Government is putting a “whole lot of resources”, she said. “And when we have a facility we must use it.”

In an interview with the Guyana Chronicle at the library recently, she also encouraged persons to be more involved in the various activities that are organised by the library. “What is the sense of not using what you have? The library is not being utilised as it ought to be. I want to encourage parents to encourage their children to read.
“Persons still come and utilise the space and use the computers, but the young adults’ use of the library has fallen. This happens throughout the Caribbean, though. Once they are in secondary school, they don’t have time for the library anymore,” she observed.

There are some improvements that can be made at the library, King said, but finances are required. Books must be acquired, and technology must be implemented.
Finances are also needed to preserve the library and to extend the services being offered.

King said money is also needed to fuel vehicles and take officers out of town to interact with the various communities.