ABSTRACT
The work centres mainly on the Sokoto Caliphate Collection in Nigerian Libraries end Archival Institutions. The purpose of the study is to establish the existence and locations of this very valuable but hitherto not well known collection; and also to determine specificaLly how the following major technical operations affect, the collection: Acquisition, Organization (Cataloguing and Classification), Restoration and Preservation. The other areas also to be considered include circulation, utilization and cooperation. In order to obtain relevant data on the above major operations, questionnaire and structured interview methods were employed. Six different Collecting agencies drawn from University, Public, Special and Private Libraries, Archives and Museum form cur representative samples. With the data gathered from these Centres, the study identifies generally the actual present condition of the Sokoto Caliphate Collection and the numerous impediments to its development and effective conservation. Also identified are the serious problems facing the collecting agencies themselves as well as the researcher and Scholars who mostly utilize the collection. In the light of these accomplishments, several suggestions -re made in form of recommendations to the authorities concerned so as to ensure improvement, proper reservation and maximum utilization of the collectionThe work centres mainly on the Sokoto Caliphate Collection in Nigerian Libraries end Archival Institutions. The purpose of the study is to establish the existence and locations of this very valuable but hitherto not well known collection; and also to determine specificaLly how the following major technical operations affect, the collection: Acquisition, Organization (Cataloguing and Classification), Restoration and Preservation. The other areas also to be considered include circulation, utilization and cooperation. In order to obtain relevant data on the above major operations, questionnaire and structured interview methods were employed. Six different Collecting agencies drawn from University, Public, Special and Private Libraries, Archives and Museum form cur representative samples. With the data gathered from these Centres, the study identifies generally the actual present condition of the Sokoto Caliphate Collection and the numerous impediments to its development and effective conservation. Also identified are the serious problems facing the collecting agencies themselves as well as the researcher and Scholars who mostly utilize the collection. In the light of these accomplishments, several suggestions -re made in form of recommendations to the authorities concerned so as to ensure improvement, proper reservation and maximum utilization of the collection