COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

This can be defined as the systematic building up of library resources through

careful selection and acquisition of information materials, with the aim of ensuring
balanced materials with respect to various disciplines and material types.
Collection Development Divisions carries out certain activities which include:
1. Collection Development Policy Formulation
2. Selection
3. Acquisition of Information Materials
4. Weeding

SELECTION OF MATERIALS
Selection Criteria:
Selection of library materials is a very important aspect of general library operation
and as such the criteria for such selection should be cautiously observed and
religiously embraced so that the collection can adequately meet the library’s
objectives. The selection criteria are:
(i) Currency/Recency
(ii) Relevancy
(iii) Accuracy
(iv) Scope and coverage
 CURRENCY: This has to do with the time of publication. In selecting a
library material (print material) recency of the published material that a library
desires is very much important. A book or any other print material becomes
useless if the information content is old and obsolete except in history where the
older publications are more trusted about the information in specific subject
areas.
 RELEVANCE: Any material to be bought must be of good standard and be
relevant to the needs of the users, the mission of the parent institution that
controls or establishes the library and the objective of the library itself.
 ACCURACY: Any book to be acquired must be accurate in its information
content. This means that such a book must be known to the selector. The facts
and other data must be correct and selector must seed advice from an expert if a
book to be acquired is beyond his experience and knowledge.

SCOPE AND COVERAGE

The scope of any book is usually stated in the preface and advertisement blurbs.
The treatment of the subject which the book covers must be checked and carefully
studied because mere looking at the preface maybe deceptive and the claim of any
author that he has done justice to the subject of any book is usually not reliable.
Others are (i) style of writing (ii) special features (iii) format (iv) audience etc.

ACQUISITION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS

This is the process of selecting ,ordering, and receiving materials for the library
either by purchase, exchange, or gift, which may include budgeting and negotiation
with outside agencies such as publishers, professional bodies, dealers and vendors
to obtain resources to meet the need of the institution’s clientele in the most
economical and expeditious manner.
METHODS OF ACQUISITION
There are four main methods by which library materials can be acquired. They are:
(a) Purchase
(b) Legal Deposit
(c) Exchange
(d) Gift and Bequests
 PURCHASE: A library material may be acquired through purchase from
appropriate agents. Lists of recommended materials compiled by the acquisition
librarian serves as a guide on what to buy for the library.
 LEGAL DEPOSIT: Only National library of a country has the legal right to
accept or collect copies of books published anywhere within the country which
is referred to as legal deposit.
 EXCHANGE: Another means of acquiring library materials is through
exchange, libraries that will delve into exchange programme, must be those that
have steady supply of collections and equivalent publication that can be used
for exchange. Government publications are best acquired on exchange basis
because of the problem of foreign exchange.
 GIFTS AND BEQUESTS: This is a form of donation given to a library by
philanthropists. This could be in form of cash or material. Bequest is a situation
whereby a donor bequeaths his collections to a library after his demise. For
instance, Late Obafemi Awolowo bequeathed Sopolu Library to Ogun State
University, Ago Iwoye (now Olabisi Onabanjo University).