Librarian Spotlight – Nelson Mutuma Mwirigi

“This challenge came as a blessing in disguise, because we got more digital resources approved as alternatives or in place of physical resources.”

Nelson Mutuma Mwirigi

Starting this month we will be spotlighting librarians from all over the world. Giving them a space to talk about the joys and challenges of their work, what they are focused on now, and creating a space for librarians all over to learn from each other. In March of 2022, we had a chat with Nelson Mutuma Mwirigi, Senior Officer in charge of the Resource Centre at Kenya Accountants and Secretaries National Examinations Board. (KASNEB)

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into the field of librarianship?

I am a librarian with 15 years of experience. I have experience working in academic and special libraries. I am currently in charge of the Resource Centre at KASNEB (Kenya Accountants and Secretaries National Examinations Board). I got into Librarianship by accident, my initial love was ICT (computing science). However, I was wrongly advised that the field was flooded. I went for something close to ICT in the name of Information Science. I have found out that the Library Science field heavily relies on ICT. I have gone back to school and studied ICT. The integration of ICT into Library Science has given me more satisfaction.

What are your day-to-day responsibilities being in charge of the Resource Centre?

As the Librarian, I lead a team whose responsibilities range from the acquisition of both physical and digital reading and study materials, processing them and making them ready for access through processing physical materials and configuration for access in case of digital resources, providing access, marketing the Information resources monitoring and evaluation.

What were some of the major challenges you faced at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic?

The major challenge was the inability of users to access the physical information materials in the library due to closures caused by Covid-19.

How have you been able to overcome or adjust to the challenges faced?

The challenge of access to the physical materials in the library was overcome by creating more emphasis on training users on access to digital/online resources. This challenge came as a blessing in disguise because we got more digital resources approved as alternatives or in place of physical resources. A good example of this was migration from physical newspapers to ePapers.

What subject, topic, or issue has piqued your interest recently? What are you doing to further your learning as a librarian?

I am intrigued by Knowledge Management, Virtual Reality in Libraries, and Open Source and Open Access. I have enrolled for online learning in some courses and attend conferences and workshops where possible.

What would you consider the most rewarding parts of your job?

The most rewarding part of my job is when I solve a user’s a need or solve a problem and get feedback that indeed my intervention helped.

Can you share one aspect of librarianship that is particular to your country or geographic region?

One aspect I think is unique, especially the users I serve in Kenya is low ICT literacy levels and relatively poor internet penetration. This leads to difficulties for users accessing online learning resources.

Tell us something more about yourself, what do you do in your spare time?

I am a passionate part-time farmer. I enjoy being on the farm or in nature.

If you could take a trip right now to visit any library in the world, which would it be and why?

The Library of Congress. This is acclaimed as the biggest library in the World and would love to see the magnificent collection and organization.

We´d like to give a huge thanks to Nelson, for taking the time to share with us a bit and we hope to continue to partner with Nelson and KASNEB for years to come.