Provision of inclusive information services for the visually challenged patrons in Rivers State public library

This study examined the provision of inclusive information service for the visually challenged patrons in Rivers State public library.Four research questions guided the study; a descriptive survey design was adopted for the study.The population of the study consisted of all the 20 staff in Rivers State Public Library Board.A total enumeration sampling technique was used to select all the staff at the Central Library Bernard Carr Street, Port Harcourt, and its branches, the Jubilee branch Library, Bori Branch Library, and Ogoloma branch Library in Okirika.A four-point scale questionnaire was used for data collection.The reliability of the instrument was determined using the Cronbach alpha with a value of 0.77.Data was analyzed using frequency and mean.The findings of the study showed that respondents highly agreed that the inclusive services provided in the Rivers State public library include personalized reference service, current awareness service, and selective dissemination of information but disagreed with book clubs for visually and lending services for the blind respectively.Respondents also agreed to the availability of collection development and accessibility policy, they highly agreed to audiobooks, speech input/output accessible mobile reading apps, and braille.Findings also showed that the challenges against inclusive service for visually challenged patrons include poor funds, lack of awareness and training for library staff, and lack of technological expertise among others.The study recommends among others that the government should improve on funds for public libraries, and provide adequate staff training to understand how to work with visually challenged patrons.