By Robert Nyagah
Learners patronizing libraries under the Kenya National Library Services (KNLS) including pupils, secondary school students and those pursuing paralegal courses are set to start benefiting from professional law reading resources stocked at the libraries, the KNLS Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Charles Nzivo has said.
This comes after the KNLS signed a partnership with National Council for Law Reporting (Kenya Law), which will facilitate the dissemination of Law Reports, Law Journals and decisions of various tribunals through libraries. There are 34 across the country managed by the KNLS.
Following the recent signing of the package between the Kenya Law CEO Prof. Jack Mwimali and Dr. Nzivo, it now means that the libraries’ stock of reading materials will increase, offering professionals in law and ordinary Kenyans access to the reading materials.
Under the package, whose clauses according to Dr. Nzivo will continued to be reviewed and expanded in future, the now mostly digitized libraries will be transformed to centres of reference in law reading materials to improve understanding of the local and international laws.
It is expected that in the next few years, all law reports will be made available in the libraries countrywide.
“The KNLS and Kenya Law will launch an exchange programme to store all its Law Books and Journals through an expanded Memorandum of Understanding (MoU),” Dr Nzivo said.
The KNLS CEO expressed hope that Kenyans will take advantage of these professionally packaged law reading materials to familiarize themselves with the law, an area sometimes viewed with awe by both young and adult learners.
Digitalization of the KNLS operations, according to Dr. Nzivo, will play a major role in ensuring that all the 47 counties have access to various reading materials, but key among them the law reports online.
The Law Books and reports will be publicized to law students, lawyers, state counsels, paralegal staff and ordinary Kenyans.
The Kenya Law CEO said that his organization was keen to expand its partnership with organizations to host infrastructure, which could make Kenyans access law reports at national and county levels.
Prof. Mwimali expressed satisfaction that the pact will enable Kenyans access law materials in hard copy and digital forms. He assured that the two organizations will work closely to ensure that the KNLS branches across the country offer digital services as well as back-up services for Kenya Law reports and journals.
Kenyans will also easily access all types of legislation and executive orders to ensure Kenyans of all walks of life understood the various legal issues affecting them.
