Tamale, June 20 GNA - The office of the Mayor of Louisville in the US on Monday donated a computer and its accessories valued at 3,500 dollars to the Northern Regional Library in pursuance of the Tamale-Louisville sister-city relationship.

The Shawnee Free Public Library Services in Louisville has for the past three years supported the library with large consignments of books. Dr Susan Herlin, Co-chairman of the Sister-City Relationship Committe and her husband Dr Wyatt Mac Gaffrey presented the computer to officials of the library at a ceremony in Tamale attended by teachers, students and members of the Municipal Assembly.

Dr Herlin, also known as "Simli-Naa" (Queen of Friendship), said the donation of the computer to the library was of great importance since information technology is very vital for development.

She appealed to the Ghana Library Board and the Municipal Assembly to improve on the infrastructure at the library to increase its patronage Mr Frederic Noble Baada, Acting Regional Librarian, said although the region occupies one-third of the size of Ghana with 13 administrative districts, it could boast of only three Community Libraries.

This he said is hampering the role of libraries in promoting civic education, good governance, teaching and learning, research and sustaining commerce and industry in the region. Mr Baada called for the re-introduction of mobile library services and other outreach programmes to reverse the situation.

Alhaji Yakubu Bukari, Presiding Member of the Municipal Assembly thanked Dr Herlin for the gift and expressed the hope that the library would put the computer into good use.