Open Book: A librarian’s viewpoint
African scholars facing economic crunch Oluchi Ojinamma Okere outlines how researchers in sub-Saharan countries are being hamstrung by economics
Taiwo Odunuga is an early career researcher in a biological science discipline at one of the public universities in sub- Saharan Africa. By dint of hard work, he has attained
the rank of Lecturer II in his (teaching and research-focused) institution, but he knows the journey to achieving self-actualisation is a long one. He aspires to be promoted in two years’ time when – by rights – he would be due for one. But this is conditional on his submission to at least four journals, with at least three being recent – that is, published after his last promotion. The young academic is aware of the
opportunities available to publish his work. He could publish in a local journal, but they have limited visibility – despite the opportunities offered by digital technology. Moreover, the university has specifications regarding the number of local and international journals, and even impact value. There is also the option of publishing in readily accessible journals, which would charge quite a lot of money, but would get his article published within a short time, and would also guarantee its visibility. The problem with these is, they are tagged as predatory and could be flagged, eventually. However, Taiwo knows the best option is to publish in an open access journal with impact-factor value. Sadly, by experience, he perceives the chances of his manuscripts getting accepted in these types of journals are narrow. For some reason, the rejection rate for articles from his side of the world seems high. Additionally, aside from the problem of long turnaround periods (due to reviewing and processing), there is the thorny issue of exorbitant article processing charges (APC). A lot of factors affect the chances of
acceptance of papers from sub-Saharan Africa by editors in the North. But even when
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the scholars outdo themselves or surpass expectations, the publication fees charged by international open access journals are so high as to be out of reach. True enough, some journal publishers offer waivers to researchers from developing countries, but such journal publishers are few and far between. There is also the prospect of getting grants to support publishing in open access journals, but these are competitive and sometimes laced with local politics. The option of self-sponsorship is definitely
“Inclusiveness, equity and diversity are part of the ‘openness’ paradigm, which means so much to the growth of science”
out of the question. With an average annual salary of about €4,200 ($4,500), considering publishing a single article in even a moderately priced journal at about €1,220 ($1,510) is almost preposterous for an African academic. The high exchange rate of most African
currencies and the low per capita income make it almost impossible for researchers to publish in international journals, whether genuine or predatory. For instance, aside from a few African countries, such as Tunisia, Libya, Ghana and Morocco, many sub-Saharan countries like Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Botswana, Kenya and Zimbabwe, among many others, with an average annual GDP growth of 0.2 per cent, have very low
economic indices. Meanwhile, researchers must thrive, not just for recognition and impact, but for the sake of globalisation and international integration. Inclusiveness, equity and diversity
are part of the ‘openness’ paradigm, which means so much to the growth of science. The incapacity of researchers in low and middle income countries (LMIC) to contribute to global science has implications for the development of their continents and the world at large. Incidentally, the global North (North
America and Europe) and Asia host the largest percentage of the most visible and impactful journals globally. Realising the Sustainable Development Goals depends heavily on science. Unfortunately, African nations not only contribute the least to global literature, but are also reputed to spend the least on research and development, unlike Europe, Asia and North America, which expend upwards of 27 per cent of their GDP on research and development. These poor indicators indeed leave Africa in the wilderness of global research productivity. Some studies have accused international journal editors of neo-colonial science and bias against research that emanates from the South. While still battling these perceived or real threats to African science and productivity in the global scene, paywalls and subscriptions, lack of access to funding, high exchange rates and highly priced publication fees are another form of discrimination perpetuated by many gold, open access APC-based journals against disadvantaged researchers in an era that prides itself with openness, globalisation, diversity and sustainability.
Oluchi Ojinamma Okere is an e-resources librarian at the Federal University of Technology Akure, Nigeria
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