National Assembly to Translate Laws Into Local Languages

The National Assembly is set to deepen the digitisation of parliamentary records and translate Nigerian laws into Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and other local languages to expand public access to legislative information.

 

The Executive Secretary of the National Assembly Library Trust Fund, Henry Nwawuba, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja while declaring open the 2026 National Assembly Library Week.

 

The three-day event, themed, “Parliamentary Memory: Connecting Records, Legislation and the People,” is aimed at promoting legislative research, access to information and effective use of National Assembly Library resources.

 

Nwawuba described the library as the knowledge infrastructure of the legislature and a repository of parliamentary records, including Order Papers, Votes and Proceedings, committee reports and Acts passed by the National Assembly.

 

He said the Trust Fund was investing in electronic repositories and upgrading its E-Library, while also developing a mobile application to make legislative information more accessible to lawmakers, legislative aides, researchers and members of the public.

 

He also announced plans for a Bills Tracker that would allow users to monitor bills as they progress through the legislative process.

 

According to him, the library is developing infographics, audiovisual materials and video explainers to simplify Bills, Acts and legislative procedures for Nigerians.

 

Nwawuba said the planned translation of laws into local languages would enable more citizens to understand legislation affecting their daily lives.

 

He added that the library would organise public policy dialogues to promote citizens’ participation in public hearings and facilitate interaction between legislators, researchers and other stakeholders.

 

The initiatives, he said, would also help address inconsistencies in official parliamentary documents and the circulation of fake or unauthorised copies of National Assembly records.

 

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, represented by Senator Osita Ngwu, urged lawmakers to make greater use of the library, particularly amid the spread of misinformation, disinformation and the rapid development of artificial intelligence.

 

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, represented by the House Leader, Julius Ihonvbere, said legislative records were essential to understanding Nigeria’s legislative history and strengthening democratic governance.

 

Tajudeen said technology and artificial intelligence could improve legislative research, records preservation and access to information but cautioned that their use must be guided by accuracy, security and professional judgment.

 

The Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamoru Ogunlana, said the legislature could not be truly independent without the capacity to generate, preserve, retrieve and authenticate its institutional knowledge and records.

 

He identified the Order Paper, Votes and Proceedings, and Hansard as key components of Nigeria’s democratic memory.

 

Ogunlana also warned against the circulation of incomplete, outdated, altered or unauthorised Bills, Acts and other parliamentary documents, noting that digital technology had made it easier for documents to be manipulated and circulated.

 

He stressed the need for stronger cybersecurity, digital preservation, secure authentication, access controls, backup systems and staff training as parliamentary records become increasingly digitised.

 

The Clerk said the National Assembly Library should evolve beyond a repository of documents into an institution where parliamentary knowledge is preserved, authenticated and made accessible to lawmakers, researchers, journalists, civil society organisations, students and the wider public.

 

The President of the Nigerian Library Association, Dr Lawal Umar, called for sustained investment in libraries and modern information technology, while urging stronger collaboration between the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly.

 

The Secretary-General of the Conference of Speakers of African Legislatures, Ambassador Debo Oyewale, also called for greater cooperation among African legislatures in preserving legislative records and institutional memory.