Towards Improved Access to Scientific Information in Africa: The Case for Transforming the Model of Scholarly Communication in the Region

Abstract

Despite the centrality of scientific information in the research enterprise, scientific communities in many parts of the developing countries including Africa have limited access to this vital commodity. This paper reviews current challenges facing existing scholarly communication in the Africa region and examines how its transformation can be achieved using new practices, and tools of information management in the emerging digital environment. The paper seeks to concretize these practices and tools into a new model for scholarly communication that can bring down costs, and improve access, dissemination and sharing of scientific information among researchers and other key stakeholders in the African region. These tools include digital publishing and open access, library consortia access to scientific information, digital library concepts, use of social media and virtual communities and data digital curation