An empirical study of knowledge management in academic libraries in East and Southern Africa

摘要

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to distinguish between information management (IM) andrnknowledge management (KM) and present the findings of small-scale research conducted torninvestigate KM practices in academic libraries in East and Southern Africa, and discussing thernimportance of KM and suggest the way forward.rnDesign/methodology/approach - This research was undertaken in 20 university libraries inrnAfrica using a questionnaire survey to investigate the current practices in university librariesrnin Africa to discover whether these libraries are practising KM or M.rnFindings - This survey results seem to suggest that currently most participating libraries arernpractising M. A majority of 65 per cent of the participants considered themselves informationrnmanagers.rnResearch limitations/implications - This survey have had some limitations: one, all thernparticipants were University librarians; two, due to the unavailability of contact addresses, the surveyrncould cover only eight African countries. Future research should include a broader spectrum ofrnparticipants to have an in-depth knowledge related to KM.rnPractical implications - This paper has practical implications for those who are not fully aware ofrnthe importance of KM, how KM can be used to gain a competitive advantage; to break financial andrntechnological constraints; and to satisfy escalating user needs.rnOriginality/value - Not much has been done in Africa to explore KM practices in Universityrnlibraries, this paper contributes towards filling that gap and adds to KM literature in general andrnoffers empirical support to KM concept. This paper discusses the benefits of KM and offersrnseveral recommendations to facilitate KM practices in university libraries in East and SouthernrnAfrica.