The British Council and Unesco in Ethiopia: A Comparison of Linear and Cyclical Patterns of Librarianship Development

Abstract Although scholarly attention has been paid to the development of libraries and librarianship in Ethiopia, relatively little research has been undertaken on the part played by international organizations like the British Council and Unesco. This article examines the contrasting library activity in Ethiopia of these two organizations in terms of the policy approaches they took and the services they provided, from the middle of the twentieth century to date.