Consortia-Based Resource Sharing in Pakistan Academic Libraries: Opportunities, Barriers, and Future Directions

Abstract

Resource sharing based on consortia has become an important solution to academic libraries facing the increased costs of information, limited budgets and growing demand of electronic resources. Libraries can improve access to scholarly work by promoting collaborative arrangements so that they can reduce dependence on institutional collections and increase sharing. The urgency of such programs is heightened by the fact that digital scholarship is spreading, and individual institutions are facing financial demands. Pakistani academic libraries largely rely on collaborative and nation-wide consortia in order to gain fair access to scholarly data. These consortia are organized as organized groups that combine subscriptions, enter into licensing contracts and share electronic resources among the member institutions. Through them, they are an important process by which the scarcity of resources can be relieved, as well as serve as a way to maintain academic competitiveness. The current quantitative research paper critically analyzes the future outlook, challenges and future prospects of resource sharing in consortia in Pakistani academic libraries developed with the lens of professional librarians. The study used a survey research design where structured responses were obtained by conducting interviews on librarians working in both the public and private universities throughout the country. The data collection was structured in a way that was able to obtain subtle information on the perceived effectiveness, concrete value, and operational issues related to the participation in the consortia. The methodology used analytic procedures through descriptive statistics to question the perceptions of librarians on the effectiveness, advantages, and obstacles of the consortia-based resource sharing. Central tendency measures and variability measures were used to answer a question about the level of consensus and the differences of opinion among the respondents. The evidence of the empirical data shows that consortia programs significantly enhance access to electronic resources and offer valuable support to research work. However, there are still certain barriers especially financial setbacks due to institutional financial constraints, technology gaps as a result of inequalities in infrastructure and policy considerations that impede the best collaboration between the stakeholders. The research ends by giving a series of practical suggestions that would strengthen the practice of consortia-based resource sharing in Pakistan. Additional financial investment, technology support, and policy changes that streamline the consortia systems' accountability and governance frameworks are the suggested interventions. This study offered useful information that can direct the creation of particular regulations and tactical plans focused on long-term library cooperation. Having defined both the facilitators and obstacles to the consortia engagement, the research provides a factual basis to the decision-makers to drive forward a collaborative strategy that ensures equitable access to scholarly information in the country.