ICT UTILISATION AND INFOPRENEURSHIP IN LIS FOR SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS TO DEVELOPMENTAL CHALLENGES

Abstract

Academic libraries in many institutions today such as polytechnics operate at a critical convergence of knowledge management and institutional development, but many of these libraries have striven to keep pace with rapid digital transformation. This study investigated how ICT utilisation and infopreneurial practices within the academic library especially that of Federal Polytechnic Ngodo-Isuochi, Abia State, can serve as sustainable responses to the developmental challenges facing the institution and the wider society at large. The research adopted qualitative case study methodology involving in-depth interviews with library staff, faculty, and institutional administrators, researchers. The research revealed ways of ICT adoption, identified lacuna in digital infrastructure, and explores emerging ICT entrepreneurial information services that address real-life community needs. Also, findings revealed that while awareness of ICT tools are growing among library personnel, the depth of practical utilisation remain constrained by unreliable power supply, limited staff digital competence and inadequate funding. Infopreneurial consciousness, though embryonic, is observable in select service innovations such as Current Awareness Services (CAS) bulletins, online document delivery, and digital literacy sessions. The study posited that intentional embedding ICT-driven infopreneurship into the operational modules of polytechnic libraries can reposition these institutions as dynamic hubs for knowledge creation and national development. A practical framework for achieving this transformation is proposed, and implications for library policy, staff capacity building, and interinstitutional collaboration are discussed.