Dealing with knowledge scarcity in developing countries
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This document discusses knowledge scarcity in developing countries and how providing free or low-cost access to online academic journals can help address it. It finds that while knowledge production is much lower in developing countries, initiatives that give researchers access to thousands of international journals have significantly increased journal usage and download rates. However, challenges remain around ensuring unlimited access, adding more local content, and sustaining access over time. The document concludes that free journal access programs are helpful for developing countries, but more work is still needed to strengthen domestic research capacity and production.
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Dealing with knowledge scarcity in developing countries
- 1. Dealing with Knowledge Scarcity In Developing Countries Nominal Fee/ Free Access to Online Refereed Journals Hubert Shija
- 2. Introduction • Key questions • Importance of knowledge • Knowledge production in developing countries • Knowledge aid with a help of ICT (especially the internet) • Evidence on scarcity reduction • Challenges • Practice implications
- 3. Key Questions • Is there knowledge scarcity in the South? • Does the South need scientific knowledge from the North? • Is that scientific knowledge relevant for the South? • Does free/ nominal fee access reduce scarcity? • To what extent scarcity has been reduced?
- 4. Why knowledge? • Key for development • For destiny control capability • Most powerful engine of growth • Lifeblood • Important factor of production – Example: Ghana and Korea • 1960s almost same income per capita, 40 years later Korea’s was 6x higher than Ghana’s.
- 6. Knowledge Production in the South Journal articles production across high, middle, and low-income countries No. Country Years Income level 2001 2007 1 Israel 6,487 6,623 High 2 Norway 3,252 4.079 High 3 Sweden 10,314 9,914 High 4 United Kingdom 47,660 47,121 High 5 United States of 200,870 209,695 High America 6 India 11,076 18,194 Middle 7 China 20,978 56,805 Middle 8 Brazil 7,205 11,885 Middle 9 South Africa 2,327 2,805 Middle 10 Tanzania 87 123 Low 11 Kenya 230 262 Low 12 Uganda 91 164 Low 13 Rwanda 4 12 Low 14 Burundi 3 3 Low Source: Extracted from World Development Indicators// World Bank 2005 & 2011, pp. 314 – 317
- 7. Knowledge Aid • Effective way to bridge a gap – Acquisition and adaptation • Global knowledge 97 • UN Millennium Declaration – ICT supports the process of bridging the gap • Internet users in Tanzania by 2010: 4.8 mil – Initiatives are Research4Life, INASP/ PERii
- 8. Knowledge Aid Effectiveness • REPOA resource centre users have an access to about 15,600 international peer reviewed journals worth about Tsh. 40 billion (USD 20 Million) annually • Usage information – REPOA resource centre • AGORA: 7% increase of pages visited (in 2009 543 & in 2010 585) • Wiley: projected 21% increase of requested articles (in 2010 193 & in 2011 236 articles) • Oxford Journals 80% increase of downloads (in 2006 7 articles & in 2008 35 articles) but in 2011 usage fell down by 74% (failure to update static IP address) – Globally • PERii: 93% increase of downloads (0.17m in 2003 & 2.4m in 2010)
- 9. Relevance • Covered all disciplines and subjects • Availability of local content Tanzania vs Israel between 1961 and 2011 Database Country Tanzania Israel Oxford Journals (a publisher) 458 1,558 AGORA (more than one 930 3,359 publlisher) OARE (more than one 5,025 7,730 publlisher) HINARI (more than one 5,696 13,500 publlisher) Wiley (a pulisher) 612 946 Sage (a publisher) 86 413 Total 12,807 27,506 Source: Oxford Journals, FAO, WHO, UNEP, Wiley, Sage, 2011
- 10. Challenges • Unlimited access • Sufficient contextualised content – National researchers to build capacity – Publish internationally – More funds for research (> 1% of national GDP) • Access and use sustainability – Consortium – Open access • Information fluency • Efficient and Effective Marketing to improve access and usage
- 11. Conclusion • Journals are relevant – cover all disciplines and subjects – International perspectives to local perspectives with adaptation • Aid is helpful – Increase of usage – More journals to access • the South still needs scientific knowledge from the North – Low production in the South – For development • Challenges? – good – positive
- 12. Practice Implications • Harmonization and providing unlimited access • ICT environment, access, use, and skills should be enabled • Effective and efficient marketing must be employed • Improving research sector in the country
- 13. Discussion • Thanks for listening • Q&A