Member Kondwani Chirwa, Kitwe, Zambia
Q: Tell us about your journey to librarianship.
A: My journey to librarianship started in 2008 when I enrolled to study a double major in Library and Information Studies, and Development Studies at The University of Zambia (UNZA). After graduating with a BALIS, I worked as a Research Assistant on a number of projects at RuralNet Associates Limited, a Zambian development consultancy firm. At the beginning of 2014, I was privileged to manage the International Tobacco Control Zambia Wave 2 Project for two years. In the year 2016, I got a job in an academic library at Central Africa Baptist University (CABU) where I worked for about two and half years. This is my second year as Assistant Librarian at The Copperbelt University.
Q: How long have you been a librarian?
A: Theoretically, I have been a librarian for nine years, but practically, this is my fifth year of being a librarian.
Q: What facet of the profession or your day-to-day responsibilities are you most passionate about?
A: Technical services. I enjoy listing, analysing, describing, classifying, identifying points of access such as subject headings or titles to the information being catalogued, and making any necessary preparation for user access from both within a library or through remote access from various locations.
Q: What are some ways you market services/resources to library users?
A: Conducting library orientations for new students and staff, as well as Information Literacy Workshops.
Q: What are some low budget or free professional development venues that you participate in currently?
A: I am a member of the Library and Information Association of Zambia (LIAZ).
Q: What is the single most challenging thing for you to accomplish as an international librarian? [i.e. purchasing print resources, funding professional development activities, providing resources to library users who may not have the internet at home, etc.?]
A: Funding international professional development activities.
Q: If CILA were to support your library in the future, what would your single greatest need be?
A: Funding for attendance at international professional development conferences.