Have you ever wondered why the abbreviation of the Kenya National Library Services is in lowercase? Well, knls is deliberately initialized in lowercase to depict youthfulness. An interesting initiative by the board, and we certainly can’t see the need to transform it into caps.

Knls was established in 1965, and its mandate was – and remains – to develop, equip and promote libraries in Kenya. The Library plays a dual role; the first is as a National Library, and the second is as a Public Library. This essentially means that knls exists to enable access of library and information services across the country.

Since inception, the statutory body has managed to set up 61 libraries across Kenya. The National Library division acts as a repository for legal deposits which facilitates the preservation of the national imprint for use by all communities. The core responsibility in this division is the creation, acquisition, division and dissemination of local content on a global scale. The Public Library division serves the need that is the quest for knowledge. For knowledge to be attained, resources must be made available and accessible. Thus, this division ensures that knls libraries are conducive reading spaces. Books within the libraries are available to the public – both adults and children, online catalogues are accessible, and inter-lending from branches across Kenya is possible.

But perhaps a virtual tour would make you see knls better.

When you walk into the bigger knls branches found in major towns, you will be greeted by the guard on duty who will direct you to the luggage area. The library provides secure shelves where members and visitors can leave their bags to avoid congestion within the library, but also for security purposes. For placement of your bag, you will receive a chip or disk that marks the number of the shelf where your bag is placed. Next, you will sign an entrance sheet that will ask you to provide your information including the serial number of your laptop – again, for precaution.

Once that’s complete, you can show your membership card, or, if you’re new, you will pay an entrance fee of Ksh 20 to the accountant by the luggage area and thereafter be granted access into the library section.

The front office section is the second stop in the knls library. Here, first time visitors can make general inquiries and get information on library services. Of note is that the front desk can be reached via phone prior to the visit. From here, one can make their way to either the adult section or children’s section. The adult section comprises of the short loan counter, the reference section, the multimedia section, the Braille section, and the mobile services section. The children’s section serves children below 15 years, and constitutes the baby/parent book club, the indoor games area, and the storytelling.

Have you passed by a knls branch several times on your way to work? We urge you to go inside, greet the knls staff, and get lost in a book. Let us know what you learn thereafter.

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