The present and future growth of scholarly publishing in Africa

Abstract

Scholarly publishing in Africa, though still struggling to keep pace with the rest of the world, has made major progress. Many universities in Africa are seriously engaged in scholarly publishing, both in print and electronic formats. The outputs of research are constantly disseminated in universities, at conferences and during seminars; the same are then published as proceedings or in refereed journals. The various initiatives by African universities provide opportunities to researchers to present their findings for discussion before submission for publication in various scholarly journals published by universities or those collaborating with publishing houses. The journals provide an avenue for disseminating research findings from Africa, hence adding to the already existing body of knowledge by researchers from other parts of the world. The advent of electronic publishing has widened the space and opportunity for African researchers to publish their work. Most African universities maintain some sections on their websites for uploading research findings. The uploaded materials, whether proceedings or already published work elsewhere, contribute to the visibility of African research in the world. Scholarly journal publishing, therefore, has the potential to encourage research in Africa.