Senate President Godswill Akpabio has called on Nigerians to embrace reading, research and innovation as essential drivers of national development.
Akpabio made the call while declaring open the 2026 Library Week of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) on Wednesday in Abuja.
Represented by the Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Abba Moro, Akpabio said that reading, research and innovation shaped civilisation and helped societies overcome ignorance.
He described libraries as centres for exchanging ideas and preparing future leaders, while stressing that research was essential for legislators to make informed decisions and enact effective laws.
The senate president urged universities and research institutions to address national challenges, support young innovators and embrace technology critically, noting that information alone did not automatically translate into knowledge or wisdom.
“A nation that reads is a nation that rises. Some nations are blessed with gold beneath their soil, oil beneath their waters and minerals beneath their mountains.
“Yet history teaches us that the greatest wealth of a nation lies not beneath its feet but within the minds of its people,” he said.
Akpabio said that libraries must embrace technological advancement while preserving critical inquiry.
According to him, artificial intelligence can provide quick answers, adding, however, that speed alone can not guarantee truth or accuracy.
He commended the NILDS Director-General, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, for promoting reading, research and innovation through the institute’s Library Week.
In his remarks, the NILDS director-general described the institute’s library as a strategic knowledge hub supporting legislative research, capacity development and evidence-based decision-making.
Sulaiman said the library provided information resources and research support to the National Assembly, adding that the institute was pursuing service automation and expanding access to electronic resources.
He noted that information overload had made it increasingly difficult to establish the credibility and quality of available materials, requiring researchers to develop stronger information literacy skills.
Sulaiman said artificial intelligence offered opportunities for research but also raised concerns about accuracy, intellectual property and attribution, urging researchers to use technology responsibly and critically.
He said the Library Week would strengthen reading culture, research and innovation within NILDS, while encouraging staff members and researchers to read widely and utilise credible library databases.
“In this era of rapid technological advancement, libraries remain indispensable. Technology has not diminished their relevance.
“On the contrary, it has expanded their role and created opportunities for them to serve as dynamic centres of knowledge, research and innovation,” he said.
The director-general encouraged the institute staff members and researchers to use library resources effectively, adding that responsible engagement with artificial intelligence was necessary to protect accuracy and intellectual integrity.
The keynote speaker, Prof. Chinyu Ahunobi, stressed the need for leaders to demonstrate good reading habits to inspire younger generations.
Ahunobi, the CEO/National Librarian, National Library of Nigeria, said Nigeria must move beyond encouraging reading to establishing sustainable institutional practices.
This, he said, should include leadership reading programmes, book discussions and initiatives that reward intellectual curiosity among citizens.
‘Let us ensure that the next generation inherits our example. Young Nigerians are watching the choices our institutions make.
“They observe whether we value quality, read widely, conduct honest investigations and produce reliable evidence.
“If we read visibly, they may take reading more seriously. If we investigate honestly rather than producing documents without adequate research, they may learn to value evidence.
“If we collaborate across sectors, they may understand that difficult problems require collective intelligence,” she said.
Ahunobi said the National Library of Nigeria was ready to collaborate with the National Assembly, NILDS and other institutions to strengthen reading, research and evidence-based policy-making.
Earlier, in her address of welcome, the institute’s librarian, Dr Catherine Ikokoh, said libraries were more than repositories of books, describing them as important centres for learning, research and innovation for national development.
Ikokoh urged participants to make use of local libraries and cultivate regular reading habits, stressing that access to knowledge could inspire practical solutions to community challenges.
