Delivering information services using ICTs
Transforming access to research literature for developing countries
How to transforming access to research literature for developing countries
Authors:
B. Kirsop; L. Chan
Publisher:
University of Toronto Research Repository, 2005
The economic development of a country depends heavily on its scientific strength and ability to resolve problems in such areas as public health, infectious disease, environmental management, or industrial progress. Access to research information traditionally depends on ability to pay, which has a negative impact on developing countries.
A number of initiatives address this imbalance, ranging from consortial licensing and new publishing models to the Open Access Initiative, and these may have the ability to meet the needs of research in financially constrained countries.The advent of the Open Access strategies, particularly interoperable institutional archives, has the potential to revolutionize access to essential research.
This article outlines initiatives designed to empower the world’s research readers while retaining the quality standards required for dissemination of professional articles. The focus is primarily on access to the primary peer-reviewed literature produced in both the North and the South. The authors compare the likely impact of different access programs on developing country science. While it is clear that the benefits from these initiatives will have the greatest impact on the poorest countries, it is a widely accepted consequence that all academic life will be immeasurably enriched from the widest possible access to publicly funded research output.
[adapted from author]
