Researchers submitting to ORA are no longer required to have a grant from a partnering research funder
Open Research Africa (ORA), the pioneering platform from F1000 and the Science for Africa Foundation, has announced a significant expansion of its author eligibility criteria. All articles with an author based in Africa can now be submitted, regardless of their funder. Previously, only work supported by an ORA partnering research funder could be published on the platform.
Sharing quality African research with the world
Africa is home to world-class research programs tackling some of today’s most pressing challenges. ORA was launched in 2022 by F1000 and the Science for Africa Foundation to enable the rapid sharing, discovery, use and reuse of African research for the benefit of all, both in the region and globally.
ORA uses F1000’s trailblazing publishing model, with a streamlined submission process that supports rapid publication of research outputs, accelerating the dissemination of knowledge and the pace of new discoveries. Open, post-publication peer review promotes understanding of the review and revision process, eliminating unnecessary editorial delays, and reducing peer review bias.
Once published, all content on Open Research Africa is made available to everyone, everywhere, free-of-charge.
Extending eligibility
Until now, only authors with funding from one of ORA’s partnering research funders have been eligible to submit their research. However, many researchers beyond these groups have expressed their desire to publish on the platform. In 2024, 60% of submissions to ORA did not meet the author eligibility requirements, meaning that they regrettably had to be rejected regardless of their quality or potential impact.
To meet the demand for a more inclusive policy, F1000 and the Science for Africa Foundation have announced a major change to the submission requirements. All articles with at least one author based in Africa can now be submitted to the platform and will no longer need to have funding from an ORA partner. This introduces an exciting additional publishing option for African researchers, especially those who want to realize the impact benefits of open research.
Accepted articles without funding from an ORA partnering research funder may be subject to an open access article publishing charge. However, F1000’s discount and waiver scheme, supporting researchers in over 40 African nations, is available for ORA publications.
Alongside the new policy, several recent updates to ORA, including a move to editorial-led reviewer selection, have increased publication efficiency and improved the experience of African authors.
“I am delighted that this new phase in Open Research Africa’s development sees the community-driven platform opened up to articles from as wide a group as possible,” said Rebecca Lawrence, Managing Director of F1000. “It has been disheartening to reject so many good quality submissions from African researchers simply because they didn’t meet the previous author criteria. Following this change of policy, we are excited to see ORA maximize the impact of much more of the groundbreaking research taking place across the continent.”
Lawrence added: “We are grateful to all the organizations who have helped us establish ORA as a home for trusted and transparent African research, with particular thanks to the Science for Africa Foundation for their support and ongoing commitment to ORA. We would also be very interested to hear from potential additional partners who share our vision for this showcase of African excellence.”
About F1000
F1000 provides innovative open access publishing platforms offering rapid publication and open peer review, whilst supporting data deposition and sharing for the research community.
F1000’s own publishing platform, F1000Research, was launched in 2013 and was the first open research publishing platform combining the ability to publish rapidly with functionality to ensure transparency, robustness and reproducibility of research.
Building upon the growth and success of its core platform, F1000 also provides fully managed, open research publishing services directly to research funders, learned societies and institutions, including Wellcome, the Gates Foundation and the European Commission.
F1000 Research Ltd is wholly owned by Taylor & Francis, an Informa Group company.
About the Science for Africa Foundation
Science for Africa Foundation is a pan-African, non-profit, public charitable organization created to support, strengthen, and promote science and innovation in Africa.
SFA Foundation believes science and innovation will be central to tackling major societal challenges and delivering sustainable development for Africa, and that scientists and innovators are key actors in driving interventions to address Africa’s most pressing challenges.
We serve the African research ecosystem by designing, funding and managing programs that support excellent science and innovation; and that build and reinforce environments that are conducive for scientists to thrive and produce quality research that impacts development.