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Building capacity for research in the MENA region
1. The Arab world is an ancient seat of learning, higher education and scientific research. During the seventh
century, the Islamic civilisation founded numerous madrasa, or educational institutions, including the
University of Al-Karaouine, believed by many to be the oldest degree-granting tertiary institution in the
world.1
Established in Fez, Morocco in 859 by Fatima Al-Fihri; this historic establishment remains a multi-
faculty university today.2
During this era, Arab communities also furthered scientific knowledge through a range of non-religious
establishments that included hospitals, libraries and private academies such as the Beit al Hikma (House
of Wisdom) in Baghdad. These made many meaningful contributions in the fields of medicine, physics,
astronomy and mathematics, among other sectors.
Despite its rich academic history, Arab research does not feature prominently on the world stage today.
Analysis based on data from the Web of Science™ – the scientific citation indexing service managed by
Thomson Reuters – indicates that around 80 times more research papers from the United States than
the average Arab nation are included in the index. In 2013, more than 375,000 papers from the U.S. were
included in the Web of Science™, compared to 9,181 from Saudi Arabia, 7,824 from Egypt and 314 from Syria.3
CONTEMPORARY PAN-ARAB RESEARCH CLIMATE
There are numerous social, economic, political and cultural challenges that have slowed the pace of knowledge development in the Arab
Middle East and hindered international cooperation. These obstacles include:
1. Inadequate funding
The UNDP Arab Knowledge Report of 2014 found that the R&D expenditure in Arab nations, as a percentage of GDP, ranges between
0.03 and 0.73%. This lags behind the global average of 2.13%.
According to the report, “The gap is evident if we compare the Arab region to countries of the European Union, whose percentage of
R&D expenditure reaches 1.98%, or Japan, whose percentage is about 3.39% of the GDP.”
Without sufficient funding, the Arab region’s research organisations are less able to invest in the specialised facilities, advanced tools,
and academic talent that are required to produce globally competitive research.
2. Brain drain
Another challenge in the Arab world is the tendency for promising students and talented researchers to leave the region for
opportunities in international universities and corporations. The causes of emigration are complex and vary by Arab nation – however
key ‘push’ factors include low wages and less competitive research and academic environments.
A 2012 World Bank study indicates that there are millions of Arab immigrants in OECD countries including 1.5 million from Morocco, 1.3
million from Algeria, 400,000 from Tunisia and 300,000 from Lebanon, Iraq, and Egypt individually. Moreover, 35% of Arab immigrants
are graduates of higher education.4
This represents a significant amount of talent, skills and knowledge that Arab nations now need to
function without.
BUILDING CAPACITY FOR RESEARCH
IN THE ARAB WORLD
2. BUILDING KNOWLEDGE-RICH AND GLOBALLY COMPETITIVE UNIVERSITIES IN THE MENA REGION
3. Under-represented in prominent citation indexes
In the global research environment, citation statistics play a key role in building reputations and attracting grant finance. The low citation
frequency of Arab research in high-profile citation indexes puts the region at a disadvantage.
However, while there is value in raising the international profile of Arab knowledge, this does not necessarily mean that all academics in
the region should conform to global priorities. International rankings do not always accurately reflect the value of the paper in context –
there will always be a need for research that tackles challenges unique to the Arab world.
4. Lost in translation
A significant proportion of research from this region is published in Arabic, particularly when it is conducted in response to local
challenges or focused on issues of regional interest. According to Wail Benjelloun, president of the Mohammed V University-Agdal in
Morocco, the fields of humanities and the social sciences are the most likely to publish papers in Arabic because they address national
concerns and are aimed at a local audience.5
English is widely considered to be the lingua franca of research communication and this can affect the likelihood of non-English
language papers being published in high-impact English-language journals.
COMPARING APPLES TO APPLES
A bespoke citation index for Arabic research could be one way to tackle the language barrier. This index could use metrics that reflect
unique regional priorities, allowing local research to be evaluated in context.
An index focused on Arabic language papers could have a positive impact on the research culture in the region, in that academics would
have a more accessible platform for sharing their work and a greater chance of being recognised for their knowledge contribution. In turn,
this could stimulate local and regional collaborations, aiding the advancement of a more dynamic and productive pan-Arab research
culture.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ARABIC LANGUAGE RESEARCH
It is essential for Arab researchers to address the political, social and economic challenges that affect their countries and region. As
participant observers, Arab academics are able to produce research that is more in-depth and less likely to be skewed by the cultural and
linguistic barriers that foreign scholars may have to overcome.
Arabic, spoken by over 300 million people in 22 countries, is the fifth most commonly spoken language in the world. Fostering the growth
of Arabic language research will help to improve global and intercultural understanding – as local concepts can be explored in their proper
context.6
STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING PAN-ARAB RESEARCH CAPACITY
Several projects have been implemented in recent years to improve the framework for education, research and knowledge production in the
region.
In March 2014, the Arab states began collaboration on the Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation (STI). 7
This strategy focuses on
fuelling economic development and improving research performance by:
• Advancing science education at all levels
• Upgrading and reforming universities
• Increasing financial support for research and development
• Fostering greater mobility of scientists within the region
• Encouraging collaboration with international higher education organisations
The strategy proposes that Arab states escalate R&D funding from the current 0.3% of GDP to 3%, with a 30-40% contribution by the
private sector, by creating a dedicated fund for science and technology development that is supported by new funding methods, such as
taxes and customs.
Another priority set out in the strategy is to establish a network of science centres of excellence across the Arab world to promote
collaboration through research partnerships.
