Library Acquisitions and Economic Recovery in West Africa

In the past decade, most countries in the West African subregion have been caught in an economic stranglehold, with foreign exchange scarcity, capital flight, and general financial hardship the status quo. The member nations of the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS) have tended to adopt similar policies in their attempts to repair their battered economies, with similar results. In Nigeria, one ECOWAS member, the various economic stabilization measures had the unfortunate side effect of stagnating social services, particularly in the area of education and library services.