Assessing The Use of Koha Software for Integrated Library Management System in University Libraries in Benue State, Nigeria

This study assessed the use of Koha software for integrated library management system in university libraries in Benue State, Nigeria. Library as the heart of any institution is established to provide information resources and services to support academic activities of their patrons, such as students, teachers and other stakeholder in education development. The main purpose of this study is to assess the use of Koha software for integrated library management system in university libraries in Benue State, Nigeria. The design for this study is a descriptive survey research design. The population for this study comprises 210 library staff made up of professional librarians and non-professionals in the two university libraries under study, namely; Benue State University Library, Makurdi; Francis Suleman Idachaba Library of the Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi. The instruments for data collection for this study are: a structured questionnaire titled “Koha Use and Integrated Library Management System Questionnaire” (KUILMSQ) and a checklist. The questionnaire and checklist were designed for this study by the researcher in line with the research questions guiding the study. The checklist has a total of 13 items and seeks to collect data on the available ICT facilities for effective Koha use. The Cronbach Alpha method yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.89. Cronbach Alpha. The study revealed that the reasons for the adoption of Koha software include low cost of purchase (100%), user-friendliness (100%), flexibility (100%), re-usability (97.6%), adaptability (98.6%), low cost of maintenance (100%), efficiency (100%), unified management (100%), reliability (100%), stability (100%), support and support model (94.8%), ability to manage privileges and permissions (95.7%), availability of search options (95.2%), and web-based OPAC functions (96.7%). The ICT facilities available for effective Koha use include printers (100%), scanners (100%), telephone (100%), internet (100%), digital camera (100%), multimedia (100%), barcode reader (100%), bandwidth (100%), projector (100%), public address system (100%), photocopying machine (100%), Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) (100%), and computer systems (100%). The study concluded that Koha software is effectively used in universities in Benue State for integrated library management system, but faces challenges such as inadequate funding, lack of consortium, inadequate power supply, and inadequate managerial support.