Marginalized Knowledge: An Agenda for Indigenous Knowledge Development and Integration with Other Forms of Knowledge

MU (N= 43) UZ (N=223)

Services	Aware & Used				Aware but not used				Not aware & Not used				Not indicated
	MU Value %		UZ Value %		MU Value %		UZ Value %		MU Value %		UZ Value %		MU Value %		UZ Value %
Circulation	34	79	68	30	3	7	45	20	6	14	95	43	0	0	14	6
Reference	39	91	111	50	2	5	42	19	1	2	60	27	1	2	10	5
Periodical	37	86	67	30	4	9	48	22	2	5	87	39	0	0	21	9
Malawiana/Uzulu	39	91	132	59	1	2	63	28	3	7	20	9	0	0	8	4
*ILL	16	37	92	41	10	23	33	15	17	40	69	31	0	0	29	13
Audio- Visual	22	15	39	18	8	19	87	39	13	20	69	31	0	0	28	13
OPAC	38	88	76	34	0	0	43	19	2	5	84	38	3	7	20	9
Databases	36	84	58	26	0	0	51	23	7	16	92	41	0	0	22	10

Table 3. Awareness of the available library products and services and their use

Note: ILL denotes Inter-library Loans

In terms of Circulation services, 79% of the students from Mzuzu University were aware of the services and had used them, which was significantly more than students from the University of Zululand with 30%. In terms of Reference services, the results indicate that 91% of the students at the Mzuzu University were aware of the services and had used them, while only 50% of the students at the University of Zululand indicated the same. Concerning Periodical services, fewer students (30%) from the University of Zululand were aware of the services and had used them, than students from Mzuzu University (86%). Pertaining to Malawiana/Uzulu services, results show that from the Mzuzu University, 91% of the students were aware of and had used the Malawiana services, as opposed to only 59% from the University of Zululand (in terms of Uzulu services). Regarding Inter-library loans, students from the University of Zululand (41%) were more aware of the services and had used them than their counterparts from the Mzuzu University (37%). Audio-Visual services’ results show that 51% of the students from the Mzuzu University were aware of the services and had used such services, in contrast to 18% from the University of the Zululand. In terms of OPAC services, the results indicate that students from the Mzuzu University (88%) were more aware of the services and had used them, than students from the University of Zululand (34%). Lastly, pertaining to Database Services, 84% of the respondents from the Mzuzu University were aware of the database services and had used such services, while the same was true for only 26% of the students from the University of Zululand.

4.2.3 Methods of becoming aware of the services.

This question sought to establish how the respondents became aware of the services offered by the libraries. Various methods were provided for them to choose from.

Figure 1 on the next page shows the methods through which respondents became aware of the services.

Mzuzu University (N=43), University of Zululand (N=223)

Figure 1.Methods that users became aware of the services.

The most popular method through which students from the Mzuzu University became aware of the services was through librarians’ user education (79%), followed by talks and lectures (53%). The least popular method of the students from the Mzuzu University was listening to the local radio (5%). At the University of Zululand, the most popular method was wandering around the library (43%), followed by talks and lectures (40%), while the least popular method was reading annual reports (3%). This trend indicates that in both Universities, talks and lectures came second in raising the students’ awareness of services.

4.2.4 Most effective methods that the Library could use in marketing itself to users.

This question sought respondents’ opinions on the most effective methods that libraries could employ in marketing themselves to users. Responses are graphically presented in the chart on the next page.

Mzuzu University (N=43), University of Zululand (N=223)



Figure2. Most effective methods that libraries could use in marketing                          themselves to users

Results show that posters were selected by the respondents as the most effective methods libraries could use in both the University of Zululand (54%) and Mzuzu University (49%). At the University of Zululand, students chose talks and lectures as their second most effective method, while students at the Mzuzu University ranked e-mail marketing as second. The University of Zululand’s least popular methods were e-mail marketing (0%), exhibitions (0%), and press releases and press conferences (0%). The Mzuzu University’s least effective marketing methods were local radio/paid TV advertisements (0%), local media (0%) and leaflets (0%).

5. Conclusion

The results indicate that there are some marketing activities going on at both the University of Zululand and Mzuzu university libraries. They also show that the two libraries have a lot in common. For instance, they have similar products and services that they seek to market, and employ similar marketing methods, such as sign posting, displays, talks and lectures, and posters. Much as this is the case, the marketing of library products and services takes place without marketing policies in either of the two libraries. The Readers services librarian from the Mzuzu University Library and the Senior librarian from the Mzuzu Library both listed a number of similar services that they market using similar methods. Both libraries need to collaborate on the establishment of marketing policies and consult each other on the implementation of such a policy.

Interestingly, students and both librarians from Mzuzu university and the University of Zululand, cited posters as the most effective and preferred method libraries should use in marketing themselves to users, and as a channel of promotion and publicity.

The results show that more students from the Mzuzu University are aware of the available services and make use of them than students at the University of Zululand, despite the fact that the University of Zululand markets its services on a daily basis, unlike Mzuzu University, which markets its products and services depending on their availability.

The study concludes with the following recommendations:

• 
  The two university libraries should set up library marketing committees that would be responsible for formulating marketing policies and their implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
  
• 
  The two university libraries should intensify the marketing of Internet, Audio-Visual, Inter-library Loans and OPAC services because a lot of students indicated that they were not aware of such services.
  
• 
  The libraries should also use T-shirts, e-mail Marketing, local radio/paid TV ads and the Local media, such as the Zululand Observer for the University of Zululand and Boma Lathu for the Mzuzu University, as suggested by the students.
  
• 
  The two libraries should regularly conduct surveys to establish the needs of their users.
  

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Challenges and opportunities facing ICT and rural development initiatives amongst South African and Kenyan rural women
A.K. [e-mail]

Department of Library and Information Science and Department of Computer Science

University of Zululand

X1001, KwaDlangezwa 3886

South Africa