The National Assembly is set to expand public access to legislative information by translating Nigerian laws and other parliamentary materials into major indigenous languages, including Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba.
The initiative was disclosed by the Executive Secretary of the National Assembly Library Trust Fund, Henry Nwawuba, while declaring open the 2026 National Assembly Library Week in Abuja on Monday.
The three-day event, themed “Parliamentary Memory: Connecting Records, Legislation and the People,” is focused on improving legislative research, access to parliamentary information and the use of the National Assembly Library’s resources.
Nwawuba said the translation initiative would form part of broader efforts to deepen the digitisation of parliamentary records and make legislative information easier for Nigerians to understand and access.
He explained that the National Assembly Library was not simply a collection of books but served as a major knowledge resource for the legislature and a repository for parliamentary records.
According to him, the library is working to ensure that lawmakers, legislative aides, researchers and other stakeholders can obtain authoritative legislative materials.
These include Order Papers, Votes and Proceedings, committee reports and Acts passed by the National Assembly.
Nwawuba also disclosed that the National Assembly Library Trust Fund was investing in electronic repositories and upgrading its e-library as part of the digitisation programme.
He said plans were also underway to develop a National Assembly Library mobile application.
The proposed application is expected to improve access to parliamentary information for lawmakers, legislative staff, researchers and members of the public.
The translation of legislation into indigenous languages is expected to complement these digital initiatives by making important legislative information accessible to Nigerians who may find English-language legal documents difficult to understand.
The National Assembly Library Week is being used to promote greater awareness of legislative records and encourage more effective use of the institution’s information resources.
