Afr. J. Lib. Arch. and Inf. Sc. Vol. 29, No.

1 (April 2019) 73- 85

Ethical Issues in the Access and Use of Information Sources in

Public Libraries and Publishing Houses in Nigeria: A Papa Model
Analysis

A. A. Salman
Department of Library and Information Science
University of Ilorin,
Ilorin, Nigeria,
[email protected]

D. N. Ocholla and B. J. Mostert

University of Zululand,
KwaDlangezwa, South Africa,
[email protected]
[email protected]

and

O. A. La’aro
Department of Mass Communication
University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria, [email protected]

Abstract

Several ethical issues can impact the process of providing access to information materials for utilisation
by the public. This study used the Privacy, Accuracy, Property and Accessibility (PAPA) model to
investigate these ethical issues as they pertain to Nigeria. A survey research design using qualitative
research method was employed through using interviews to collect data. Public library directors and
publishers were targeted, and their responses were thematically analysed. Findings showed that
publishing houses adhere to privacy requirements of authors and strive to ensure accuracy of
information. Accessibility is provided for by libraries, though specific permissions are sometimes
required to use information. Several challenges, such as plagiarism and piracy, were identified.
Recommendations include the implementation of legal frameworks regulating the publishing process and
the introduction of ethical course in the library school curricula.

Keywords: Ethical Issues; Information Sources; Information Access and Use; Publishers; Public Library
Directors; Nigeria

Introduction

Ethics is multidisciplinary; therefore, it is applicable in virtually all the disciplines of human endeavour,
including publishing, library and information organisations. Most definitions of ethics concur that it is a
field of study dealing with the principles of morality, right and wrong behaviour in relation to self, others
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and the environment. For example, Britz (n.d.) defines ethics to be a ‘branch of philosophy that studies
human behaviour in terms of what is good or bad regarding relationship with themselves, others and their
environment.’ STANDS4 LLC (2013) posits ethics as the science which distinguishes between right and
wrong doings and the moral sense by which they are discriminated. Thus, it is the philosophy or the code
of conduct pertaining to what is ideal in human character and conduct, a situation where general activities
of human beings are guided by what is perceived as best practices. Viewed from prescriptive ethics
viewpoint, ethics provides a standard which governs the conduct of any person. Invariably, one can argue
that it is the philosophical study of moral values and rules and about what is morally right and wrong.
The role or purpose of ethics in the society is to promote the ideals and eliminate irregularities by
providing norms and standards of behaviour, based on human morals and values that are inclusive as
opposed to exclusive by creating better moral agents (Ocholla, 2009).
Information ethics, according to the Institute for Information Ethics and Policy (2013), is the totality
of issues that involves an individual’s privacy and the public’s “right to know”. Broadly, information
ethics (IE) is defined as a field of applied ethics that “provides a critical framework for considering moral
issues concerning informational privacy, moral agency (e.g. whether artificial agents may be moral), new
environmental issues (especially how agents should behave in the infosphere), problems arising from the
life cycle (creation, collection, recording, distribution, processing, etc.) of information (especially
ownership and copyright, digital divide)” (Information Ethics, n.d.). Capurro (2013) views information
ethics from a narrow sense and a broader sense and largely from a technocentric viewpoint. From a
narrower sense, he defines information ethics as dealing with the impact of digital ICTs on society and
the environment, as well as with ethical questions dealing with the Internet, digital information and
communication media (media ethics) in particular (Capurro, 2013). Broadly, he considers information
ethics to be dealing with information and communication, including, but not limited to, digital media
(Capurro 2013). Citing Ess, Himma and Tavani, Capurro categorises the main topics of information ethics
to include: intellectual property, privacy, security and information overload, digital divide, gender
discrimination and censorship. Information ethics also involves the access and use of the employee’s
documented information, email, personnel files, and other confidential information.
This study was aimed at identifying the issues associated with access and use of information resources
by publishers and public library directors, using the PAPA (Privacy, Accuracy, Property, and
Accessibility) model as a gauge.

Theoretical Background

Ethical issues relating to access and use of information sources in general and as applicable to publishers
and public library directors in particular can be informed by at least three pillars. First is the United
Nations Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1948) which is informed by duty- based ethical theories
which view information access and use from a human rights perspective. Ocholla (2009) notes that right-
based theories work according to the premise that ‘‘the right thing to do is determined by the rights that
human beings have’’ as for example stated in the UDHR Article 19 which stipulates that: ‘‘everyone has
the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions free from
interference and to seek and receive information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers’’
(United Nations, 1948). Second is the UNESCO/IFLA Public Library Manifesto (1994) which expounds
that the fundamental human values of development, freedom and prosperity for all is tantamount to access
to satisfactory education as well as “free and unlimited access to knowledge, thought, culture and
information”.
To further these ideals, public libraries are seen as local gateways providing access to knowledge and
serving as promoters of lifelong learning and the development of independent decision-making among
individuals or groups. Publishing firms as the main suppliers of information materials to libraries therefore
play an important role in providing access to information materials that can be used by the general public,

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regardless of age, race, sex, religion, nationality, language, and social status. This includes providing access
to particularised materials to users, such as linguistic minorities and people with disabilities who cannot use
regular information materials (UNESCO Public Library Manifesto, 1994). The third pillar is viewed from an
ethics prescriptive focusing on professional ethics as expressed in the IFLA code of ethics for librarians,
publishers and other information workers (2016). This code functions as a tool which librarians and other
information workers can utilise in order to form policies, address dilemmas they experience, to improve
professional self-awareness and to ensure that their conduct towards their users and society in general is
transparent. The code of ethics focuses on six issues: access to information; responsibilities towards
individuals and society; privacy, secrecy and transparency; Open access and intellectual property;
neutrality, personal integrity and professional skills; and colleague and employer/employee relationship.
Mason’s (1986) Privacy, Accuracy, Property, and Accessibility (PAPA) model is echoed in these six
principles. Using four variables, this model illustrates the impairment that can befall an individual as a
result of the unethical or misuse of information or information technology (UKEssays, 2017). According
to Mason (1986), privacy explains the nature and the type of information that people can keep to
themselves and which they may not be forced to reveal to others except if directed by the court of law.
Accuracy, he notes, refers to the person(s) liability to be held responsible for errors, authenticity and
fidelity of the information, while property deals with ownership issues, the fair prices for the exchange of
information and access to the resource. Accessibility, in the author’s view, describes the right or privilege
of an individual or an organisation to obtain information and under what conditions. Thus, the PAPA
model conceptualises what type of information a person must reveal and with what kind of safeguards,
the nature and the type of information one can keep to oneself, and who is responsible for errors,
authenticity, fidelity and accuracy of information. It also addresses the issue of property ownership in
terms of who has the copyright to the channels through which information is transmitted and accessed.
Lastly, the type, the nature and the amount of information a person or an organisation has the right or
privilege to access and use under what safeguards.

Context of the Study

In Nigeria, the public library system functions at three levels: Federal, State, and Local. At the Federal
level, the National Library of Nigeria is categorised as a public library because it is serving all categories
of users at the national level (Ogbonna, 2010). At the state level, all public libraries are generally under
the umbrella of the State Ministry of Education; in some cases, it could be under the Ministry of
Information or the Ministry of Science and Technology. Whichever ministry that supervises public
libraries in the state, they are administrated by library boards. The Library Board is responsible for
budgetary and all administrative responsibilities, while selection and acquisition of information materials
are the responsibilities of the professional librarians. By 2015, there were 316 public libraries in Nigeria
(Librarians’ Registration Council of Nigeria, 2015), including the 36 public library boards in all of the six
geopolitical zones headed by a director. At the local level, the majority of public libraries are either
affiliated or supervised by local governments, communities or individual proprietors; in some cases they
serve as branches of state library boards. Provision of information sources, service delivery and all
administrative activities are channelled through the State Library Board. In line with the
recommendations of the IFLA Public Library Service Guidelines, the public libraries provide access to
information materials regardless of any discrimination to all community members (Koontz and Gubbin,
2010). Though mainly concentrating on providing print materials, provision of e-books and the Internet is
becoming more and more a feature in public libraries (Salman, 2016).
Publishing firms in Nigeria are fast growing in number. Olaniyi (2012) identified ten major
publishing firms in Nigeria, out of which five were adjudged and rated top, based on their prominence,
experience, reputation, and integrity. These firms are: University Press PLC, Literamed Publication,
Kachifo Limited, Evans Publishers Limited, and Cassava Republic Press. Others include: Onibonoje

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Publishers, Havilah Books, Heinemann Publishers, Oxford Press, and Gaskiya Press. All these
publishing firms have their head offices located in Ibadan in the south west geopolitical zone of Nigeria.
These publishing firms publish both print and non-print information materials. Common materials
published are academic textbooks, fiction, monographs, grey literature, biographical works, among
others. They either solicit manuscripts from reputable authors who have made a mark in their areas of
specialisations or accept unsolicited manuscripts from authors, which are then subjected to the normal
editing processes before publication.
Within the recent social history of Nigeria, unethical behaviour seems to have become entrenched
among members of society. Ogundele et al, (2010) identified these as a breakdown in morals, work
ethics, discipline, social responsibilities and general civility. According to Ezendu (2010), for the
Nigerian society to re-develop an ethical culture, conflict of interests need to be eliminated; in addition,
the following need to be in place: equitable action towards all stakeholders, the appropriate application of
technology for development and full acceptance of responsibility for actions or in-actions. Ezendu (2010)
partly blames some of the problems on poor organisational culture, lack of integrity and educational
deficiency by Nigerian citizens. From this background, it is clear that access to information and the
effective utilization thereof as espoused by the PAPA model and the IFLA code of ethics for librarians
and other information workers can play a major role in enhancing society’s understanding of their human
rights and roles in creating a society that is just and fair to all citizens in the country.
According to Britz (n.d.), there are quite a number of positive ethical opportunities in the access and
use of information by publishers and public library directors such as electronic monitoring of workers in
their respective places of work with the use of electronic means which has been proved to increase
productivity of the employees. The digital revolution also averts the trouble of physically carrying large
volumes of conventional information around. Apart from the electronic information access and use, a lot
of ethical opportunities can also be derived from the access and use of conventional information services.
In Nigeria, most academic and school libraries are not normally open during the holidays and weekends.
A public library serves as the only major alternative for students to carry out assignments, read and
organise themselves in order to support their academic activities (Salman 2016). Civil servants, artisans,
politicians, clergy, retired persons, businessmen and businesswomen, and children can all benefit from
these numerous information opportunities which in most cases should be free of charge. Abubakar
(2013) posits that one of the opportunities in the access and use of public library information services in
Nigeria is the alleviation of poverty. Public library services in Nigeria can go a long way in poverty
alleviation if full access and use of their services is guaranteed. Users can entertain, inform and educate
themselves in the public library. They could get employment opportunities, information on management
of small scale industries, personal information for development, on-line publishing, social interaction, and
any other business opportunities.

Problem and Purpose of the Study

As indicated above, the unethical use or misuse of information often results in the impairment of an
individual or, as in the case of Nigeria, a society. Libraries and publishers, as the primary sources for the
production and dissemination of information materials to libraries, could play an important role in the
development and strengthening of a society’s core values and understanding of human rights by making
accessible information materials to all without any discrimination. Through the accessibility and the
utilisation of these materials, the social, cultural and economic well-being of a society can be sustained,
improved and further developed. However, Fairbairn (2012) found that despite the availability of more
than two hundred and thirty thousand public libraries in the developing countries of the world, their
services are largely untapped to reach people with vital information in areas such as agriculture, health,
employment, education, and poverty reduction. In contrast, Aina (2012) established that countries that
have a well-developed public library system perform better in all areas of human development.

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 Though a number of articles have been written on the ethical issues in information access and use
(Mason, 1986; Focht and Thomas, 1994; ALA, 2009; ALA, 2010; Parrish, 2010; Taherdoost et al, 2011;
and Britz, n.d.), they are limited in scope, not addressing ethical issues in the access and use of
information resources as applicable to publishers and public library directors in developing countries, and
modeling PAPA. Nigeria shares a lot with the world in relation to information ethics issues such as
dealing with copyright, plagiarism, usage, social media, ownership, digital divide, privacy, accuracy,
property and accessibility, which is likely to be affecting the professional activities of publishers and
directors of public libraries in carrying out their daily activities. It is against this backdrop that this study
seeks to investigate ethical issues in the access and use of information resources as it affects publishers
and public library directors in Nigeria, adopting the PAPA model analysis.

The following research questions were considered:

 What are the nature and type of information being acquired/published in relation to privacy?
(Privacy)
 Who is held responsible for errors associated with the access and use of information? (Accuracy)
 How is the issue of copyright managed in accessing and using information?
 How is licensing and industrial property managed/adhered to in accessing and using information?
 How is plagiarism managed in accessing and using information? (Property)
 What are the procedures and processes involved in accessing and using information?
(Accessibility)
 What are ethical challenges in the access and use of information resources by publishers and
directors of public libraries?

Research Methodology
A survey research design was adopted for this study, while interpretivism research paradigm was
deployed. The qualitative research method was selected as the researchers wanted to gain a deeper
understanding of the ethical issues experienced in information provision to their identified clients or user
base, by both the groups identified for the study. Interviews, done in 2014, were used as the data
gathering instruments. The population of the study consisted of thirty-six (36) public library directors
representing each federal state in the 6 geopolitical zones, and the publishers from the 10 Nigerian
publishing firms identified by Olaniyi (2012). Six (6) public library directors, each representing one
geopolitical zone, and five (5) senior staff members from the 5 top-rated publishing firms were
purposively selected based on the researchers’ judgment of their expertise to provide meaningful answers
to the questions. Appointments to conduct the interviews were made before it was physically conducted
to the eleven (11) respondents. The data gathered were thematically analysed and discussed.

Findings and Discussion

The findings of the study are discussed in the following sections. Demographic data captures the
demographic characteristics of the respondents in terms of their designation, organisation, years of
experience, and qualifications. The second part of the analysis is the application of PAPA model concept
and the responses from the two categories of the respondents.

Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents

The demographic information of respondents is presented in table 1 below.

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Table 1: Demographic information of the respondents
Respondent Designation Organisation Years of Highest Qualification
Experience
Directors of Public Libraries
R1 Director Public Library 28 Master in Library and
Information Science (MLIS)
R2 Director Public Library 32 Master in Library and
Information Science (MLIS)
R3 Executive Public Library 23 Bachelor of Library and
Director Information Science (BLIS)
R4 Deputy Public Library 34 Bachelor of Library and
Director Information Science (BLIS)
R5 State Public Library 24 Master in Library and
Librarian/Direc Information Science (MLIS)
tor
R6 Executive Public Library 31 Bachelor of Library and
Director Information Science (BLIS)
Publishers
R7 Senior Editor Publishing 16 Master of Arts (English)
Company (MA)
R8 Senior Publishing 12 Postgraduate Diploma (Graphic)
Manager Company (PGDG)
Production
R9 Acting General Publishing 21 Master of Arts (English)
Manager Company (MA)
(Publishing)
R 10 Senior Editor Publishing 17 Master of Communication Arts
Company (MCA)
R 11 Senior Publishing 14 Master of Communication Arts
Manager Company (MCA)
Production

Table 1 above indicates that though there is a variance in title description, all of the library respondents
were senior managers in the libraries; and as such, they have the same responsibilities and roles in the
provision and dissemination of public library services. The respondents from the publishing houses were
also mainly senior staff responsible for either the production or the publishing of materials.
Though the findings showed that the respondents from the public libraries had more years of work
experience than the publishers, the respondents from the publishing houses were also highly experienced
individuals as the least experienced has 12 years of service. All the respondents were also found to be
educationally well qualified for their positions, as there were seven (7) respondents with master’s degrees,
one (1) with a postgraduate diploma in graphic, and three (3) with bachelor’s degrees. Thus, all the
respondents possess a first degree and above in their various disciplines.

PAPA Model Concept and Applications

Privacy

In the first question, the respondents were asked to describe the nature and type of information acquired
or published and how issues of privacy are addressed.
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With respect to both the libraries and the publishing houses, the respondents revealed that educational
books for schools and colleges were mostly acquired or published. Respondent 5 stated that “materials
such as fiction, reference, serial publications and recreation are the type of information we acquire in this
library.” Respondents 2 and 8 also revealed that relatively few digital information sources were either
acquired by the libraries or produced by the publishing houses. Within the libraries, the respondents
indicated that privacy issues were addressed by complying with the Nigerian Copyright Act of 2004,
while respondent 7 from a publishing house indicated that “they ensure that the content of the information
materials is not revealed until it is officially launched”. The publishing house respondents also indicated
that they adhere strictly to the author’s wish or instructions in respect of privacy issues in order not to
violate his or her right over the publication. In this regard, Britz (n.d) warns that the right of the author to
control certain personal and private information must be acknowledged and adhered to by information
professionals, while Luk (2012) points out the necessity to deal with cases of misconduct against
information privacy with a well-defined disciplinary mechanism so as to curb unethical acts. However,
depending on the policy of each specific journal/publishing house, authors can be expected to supply
certain information such as a declaration of author contributions, conflict of interest statement and a
declaration that the work has not previously been published either as a whole or in part. (Elsevier, 2019;
NISC, 2019). Isaacs (2015) clearly points out the pitfalls that can befall a publisher who is not vigilant in
doing careful checks before accepting materials for publication.

Accuracy

Other than the issue of who is responsible for the accuracy of information published or acquired, the
Mason’s (1986) variable “accuracy” also concerns who will be held accountable for the accuracy of the
information. The second question therefore wanted to establish who is responsible to ensure authenticity
and that errors are traced before making available for access and use.
The responses from the publishing houses revealed that in the publishing industry all stakeholders such as
publishers, authors, readers/assessors, and printers could be held responsible for errors, authenticity and
fidelity of information when it is either published or made accessible to the public. The respondents
indicated that errors can occur at any stage of information creation, processing and dissemination process,
but that they strive to ensure that before any information is published, the reliability and the authenticity
of the contents are authenticated. One of the respondents indicated that a workshop was organised
involving five African countries with the aim of identifying the challenges concerning errors, finding
lasting solutions to these challenges, and looking for ways to handle the errors and to establish who
should be responsible for such errors in the process of information processing and communication. This
was acknowledgement that errors can and, sometimes, do occur in the provision of access to information
to the public. These errors can be committed by any of the stakeholders in the information provision
sector. The respondents also indicated that proper management of errors is important in addressing ethical
issues. These findings are supported by Enago academy (2019) who indicated that ethical challenges such
as errors could occur at any stage of the publication process and could range from simple typographic
errors to the wilful manipulation of a study’s results or its findings. Jain (2010) confirms that falsification
or fabrication of results can occur from time to time especially in the medical field, which erodes the
confidence in the results of some publication in this field, thus affecting the utilization of the information
materials. Respondents 9 and 11 alluded to the fact that before any information is acquired and published
by their publishing houses, the reliability and the authenticity of the contents are ensured whereby the
information is assessed by a competent person(s) before a final decision is taken.
Among the library respondents, respondents 1 and 6 indicated that before acquiring any materials for
their libraries they try to establish the authority of the author and the reliability of the content during the
collection development process by way of checking the credentials of the authors.

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Property

The aim of the question was to establish how are the issues of copyright (moral and material), plagiarism,
and licensing managed in the process of providing access to materials and the use thereof.
On the issue of property, respondents 7, 9 and 11 from the publishing houses revealed that copyright
belongs to the publisher of such manuscript if it has been bought. This implies that property rights
become that of the publisher when the information is bought from the author, though the author’s name
still appears on the information material. The respondents from the public libraries indicated that
according to them the property rights always belong to the author or originator of such information. The
respondents also indicated that any information materials published based on author-publisher’s
relationship attracts both moral and material rights for the two parties, i.e., the author keeps the original
copyright of his work, while the librarian or the publisher helps to protect these rights. Hansen (n.d.)
explains that while respecting the rights of the author, copyright laws provide libraries the right to collect
and make accessible copyrighted materials; and that based on the principle of fair use, certain amounts of
copyrighted materials can be made available to users without having to obtain the permission of the
copyright holder. Mason (1986:9) points out that despite continued efforts to safeguard the intellectual
property rights of authors by way of copyright, patents, encryption and oaths of confidentiality, problems
in this regard are still very common, and they are becoming more so with the continued digitisation of
information.
The respondents from both the libraries and the publishing houses revealed that plagiarism is
handled through appropriate legal actions. Jain (2010) points out that plagiarism is but one of the forms of
misconduct experienced by publishers and needs to be addressed using appropriate measures. According
to the author, once a document is presented to an editor, it goes through a chain of events between the
author and the editor in order to prevent misconduct.
The respondents from the publishing houses indicated that the user of the information is expected to pay
the price for exchange of the information. Respondent 9 indicated that this was because the user of the
information is benefitting from the intellectual property of the author, while respondent 10 indicated that
the price for exchange of the information is a win-win situation for both the author and the publisher,
because the author receives royalty, while the public receive value for their money. Millcity Press (2017)
advocates that in setting a price for information materials, it should be taken into account that the retail
price should befit that of similar materials in the author’s genre, especially as prospective buyers are
spoiled for choice.

Accessibility

The respondents were asked to identify the processes involved in accessing and using information.
The purpose of a public library is to provide access to information sources and services to the general
public and the ability to utilise these sources either in the library or at home. The library respondents
indicated that the target audience was provided with adequate and effective access to the information once
such information is acquired and made available in the library. This viewpoint was also voiced by
respondents 10 and 11 from the publishing houses. According to the library respondents, once a source
was made available, the libraries provide access to it and with it the possibility to use it. According to
Kibugi (2014), the Tshwane Declaration on Information Ethics (a first African contribution to addressing
ethical issues) declared the right of all people to have access to information, and that they should have the
ability to benefit from it. This should be made available, accessible and affordable in an equitable manner
to the benefit of the community as a whole. This is in line with the ethical principles as espoused by IFLA
to guide the ethical behaviour of library and information professionals (IFLA 2007). These principles
state that libraries are responsible for providing their users with access to the library’s holdings and access
to any other publicly accessible information materials. In addition, barrier- free access should be ensured.

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However, respondent 3 indicated that access to and utilisation of information is not always automatic
because in some cases permission must be sought by individuals or organisations from the author or the
originator of the information to use some of the information, for example, to use the lyrics of songs or to
reproduce sections of a published work.

Ethical Challenges in the Access and Use of Information by Publishers and Public Library
Directors

The fifth question wanted to establish what challenges are faced by publishers and libraries regarding
privacy, accuracy, property and accessibility in providing access and the ability to use information.
The respondents revealed that a number of factors were responsible for the challenges experienced in
providing access and use of information resources and services. Challenges identified were the following:
lack of sufficient competent professionals responsible for the publication of information, lack of respect
for legal frameworks that protect access and use of information, a depressed economic situation,
insufficient information materials, high cost of acquiring information, and prevalent piracy and plagiarism
activities. Among all the respondents, but more specifically the library respondents, lack of skills in
digital information management was mentioned as an issue. The librarians mentioned that they lacked the
technical skills to create, maintain and curate collections in a digital format. Some of these challenges
were also mentioned in a study by Mbofung and Popoola (2014) among Nigerian university librarians
who indicated low awareness and endorsement of legal and ethical issues such as privacy, confidentiality,
equal access to information, accuracy and copyright of information. This also seems to be the case in
public libraries. According to Hoq (2012), the extreme proliferation of information materials and the
explosion of ICT tools providing access to information bring to the fore issues such as privacy, piracy, the
right to access to information, and freedom of expression. These issues require the information
professional to be skilled and experienced enough to find solutions to these ethical dilemmas in order to
keep providing equitable and just access to information.
The last question wanted to find out from the respondents how these challenges can be overcome.
The general consensus among the library respondents was that improving the educational level of the
populace and awareness of information and knowledge accessibility and use will go a long way in
overcoming some of the challenges identified. Among the respondents from the publishing houses,
respondents 7 and 10 suggested ensuring that information resources were error- free through the process
of editing and re-editing; engagement of external assessors for manuscript review; and the
implementation of the legal deposit law by encouraging authors to make deposits of the prescribed
number of copies of their publications with the National Library of Nigeria or the public library. They
also suggested that government should intensify its efforts in the war against piracy and empower the
appropriate bodies with adequate financial and material resources to deliver information sources to their
users. Both groups of respondents mentioned that digital skills are important for both publishers and
public library directors so that they can be well acquitted with how digital information are managed,
accessed and use.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Ethical principles and issues as modelled by Mason’s (1968) PAPA model seem to be adhered to in part
by most of the library directors and the publishers. The findings of this study depicted that ethical issues
in the access and use of information sources and services such as privacy, accuracy of information
services, property and accessibility issues are to some extent respected. It was however not clear from
their answers how private information as pertaining to the authors and library users are safeguarded
against misuse. It can therefore be speculated that strong legal frameworks or ethical guidelines guiding
the ethical behaviour of both publishers and library managers were not in existence; and if available, it
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was not strongly enforced. Several challenges identified such as lack of sufficiently competent
professionals, lack of respect for legal framework that protect access and use of information, depressed
economic situation, insufficient information materials, high cost of acquiring information, piracy
activities, and plagiarism activities impact on the provision of services of a high ethical standard. The
kinds of responses received from the respondents also beg the question whether the concept of
information ethics and the ethical issues involved in the provision of access to information materials for
utilization by the public are clearly understood by these information professionals. It is on this premise
that this study is suggesting the following recommendations:

1. That information ethics as a course should be included in the academic curriculum of Nigerian
library schools. This will clarify the ethical issues concerned with the whole process of the
provision and dissemination of information. Gaining this knowledge will assist these future
information professionals in their efforts to implement properly the legal and the moral
frameworks governing the publication and making accessible information materials to the public
in Nigeria.
2. Practising information professionals should be sensitized about ethical issues as espoused by the
PAPA-model by way of attending seminars and other similar trainings or workshops.
3. The Federal Government of Nigeria should as a matter of urgency set up an information ethics
committee whose members consist of information professionals, legal practitioners and IT
experts to address issues concerning ethics in the information sector.

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Abdulsalam Abiodun Salman, is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Library and Information
Science, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria. He was former University Librarian, and Head, ICT Unit,
Fountain University, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria. He holds PhD, MLIS, BLS, DLS, and PGDE. He
attended the University of Zululand, KwaDlangezwa, South Africa; University of Ibadan, Ibadan,
Nigeria; Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria; Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria; and Usmanu
Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria..

Dennis N. Ocholla is Professor in the Department of Information Studies and Deputy Dean, Research
and Internationalisation in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Zululand South Africa.. He holds PhD
and MLIS degrees in Library and Information Science from Kiev/St Petersburg/Leningrad in 1988 and
Krasnodar 1983 respectively (both in the former USSR). (See
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dennis_Ocholla

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.)

Janneke Mostert is a retired Professor from the Department of Information Studies at the University of
Zululand where she was involved in teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and in the
supervision of Postgraduate students. She is currently a Research Fellow in the Department of
Information Studies. She holds PhD (2004) and a Master’s degree (1997) from the University of
Zululand, South Africa. .

O. A. La’aro is a Senior Lecturer Department of Mass Communication, University of Ilorin, Ilorin,

Nigeria

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