An institutional repository for Uganda Management Institute Library

Abstract

Institutional repositories are essential research infrastructures for scholarly and academic institutions. A properly dimensioned and well established institutional repository has the potential to increase research impact and enhance the visibility of an institution through its scholarly outputs. The project aimed at designing and developing an institutional repository for Uganda Management Institute using DSpace software. This was achieved by the objectives of the study which were to examine the current system of storing and preserving audiovisual materials, identify the system requirements, design an online repository, implement, test and validate an online repository at UMI. It began with an extensive search for information concerning stakeholders’ attitudes towards open access publishing and institutional repositories. It was apparent from this review that no previous research had focused on the needs and building of an IR contribution in this area. The study was therefore carried out in two settings. The first setting comprised face-to-face interviews with library users and staffs at UMI. Responses were received. The second was document review involving examining library reports. The data collection tool explored the participates’ experiences and opinions of preservation, access and the proposed UMI repository. Respondents were overwhelmingly in favor of permitting the deposit of theses and dissertations, although under specified conditions. The interviews with library patrons established that, as readers, they wanted to find many more types of material in the repository than, as authors, they were willing to deposit. However, complete dissertations, journals and conference papers were acceptable to both groups. The ability to disseminate their work and receive feedback and commentary were the most important motivators to students depositing work, closely followed by the principle of open access. The greatest deterrents were the risk of being unable to publish elsewhere later, the ownership of copyright, and plagiarism. Findings obtained from system validation tests show that the system is a viable solution to the major challenges encountered in the access and preservation of scholarly intellectual output at UMI. Based on the findings of the literature review and the study, appropriate recommendations were made for the UMI repository.