Academic libraries, ICT use and sustainable higher education development

Purpose: Education is a strong pillar to national development. It is vital to ensure sustainable higher education development (SHED) in a bid to facilitate global development. This study aims to investigate academic libraries, information and communication technology (ICT) use and SHED. Design/methodology/approach: Descriptive survey research design was used for this study. The population of the study was 607 librarians in the 41 public university libraries in Southern Nigeria. Total enumeration and purposive sampling techniques were used for this study. The instrument of data collection was questionnaire. Descriptive statistics was used for the data analysis. Findings: It was found that qualified teachers and promotion of scholarship constitute SHED. The extent of contribution of academic libraries to SHED is high. Academic libraries face a number of challenges in their effort to provide information services for the actualisation of the SHED. The extent of use of ICT in SHED is high. It was therefore recommended that academic libraries and ICT should be adequately used to accomplish SHED in Nigeria. Research limitations/implications: This study will contribute to the body of literature on how academic libraries and the use of ICT can contribute to SHED. Practical implications: While SHED is central to global development, the role of academic libraries and the use of ICT should be unanimously embraced by all the stakeholders in education industry. Originality/value: SHED is inevitable in the contemporary era. This study reveals that academic libraries and ICT use are vital in achieving SHED. © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited.