President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday inaugurated the National Assembly Library and Resource Centre in Abuja.
The centre named after Tinubu was part of activities to mark the first anniversary of the present administration in office.
The Executive Secretary of the Centre, Henry Nwawuba, described the library as a citadel of knowledge management, information storage, digitisation, archiving, legislative research, and training.
He said that the environment of parliament was very temporal as legislators come and go, saying the facility would be for both lawmakers and staffers.
“We hope that all the activities they have performed during their tenure will be carefully, documented and managed for posterity.
“It is critical also, that we support our legislators with the ability to engage in critical thinking and using the parliament as an engine room for legislative innovations.
“All of these things are some of what will come to bear as this National Assembly library takes off.
“It is not just a physical library we have in this premises, we also have access to a world of materials, resources, books, publications, and so many things,” he said.
Nwawuba said the facility was going to be a digitalised environment with a very robust E-library and many other facilities like a multi-purpose hall.
Speaking on the architectural design of the library, the General Manager of Dumez Nigeria Limited, Mr Georges Nehme said that the library was designed to make research resources readily available to the members of the National Assembly and the upcoming generations.
He said that Dumez, constructors of the Second Niger Bridge in Onitsha, ensured the uniqueness of the library and resource centre by ensuring it was designed to be eco-friendly.
“The building glazed elevations as well as roof skylights have been designed to bring natural daylight to most of the library spaces.
“All library visitors will enjoy the calm environment of the reading areas as well as the wide and beautiful circulation areas of the library.
“In addition, the library has been equipped with an advanced automating system, audiovisual technology and a cost-effective cooling system,” he said.
In his remarks, President, Nigeria Library Association (NLA), Dominic Umokaro said the library was a thing of pride for the library profession.
“We need to build a nation that is a leading nation and for us to be a leading nation must be a reading nation,” he said.
He said only readers could become good leaders, saying that with the example of the National Assembly library, there would evolve a leadership of readers committed to research and innovation.
The Chairman, House Committee on Library Trust Fund, Rep. Yusuf Galambi (NNPP-Kano State), said that the library aimed to educate the National Assembly members and all Nigerians and even foreign researchers.
“The National Assembly Library is full of almost with everything you need to know about Nigeria and the Nigerian parliament,’’ he said.