The third webinar in the DIAMAS Conversation Series for Libraries will focus on the DIAMAS Toolsuite and Guidelines – a set of tools and resources to support Diamond Open Access (ΟΑ) and the Diamond Open Access Standard (DOAS).

Iryna Kuchma, Manager of the EIFL Open Access Programme, will provide an overview of no-fee open access publishing in Africa at the Regional Symposium on Democratizing Science in the Arab region.

EIFL, AJOL (African Journals Online) and WACREN (the West and Central African Research and Education Network) take pleasure in announcing the award of 17 grants that will strengthen the quality and sustainability of no-fee (Diamond) open access journals and journal hosting platforms across Africa. 

The grants, of up to US$20,000 each, were awarded to 17 projects focused on strengthening no-fee open access journals and open access journal platforms in nine countries (Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia).

The Institute for Oil, Gas, Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development (OGEES) at Afe Babalola University in Ado-Ekiti in southwest Nigeria, has initiated a project to boost the quality, sustainability and impact of the Journal of Sustainable Development Law and Policy (JSDLP), and to build capacity of and share knowledge with other African journals, especially those in the southwest region of Nigeria.

Eduardo Mondlane University (Universidade Eduardo Mondlane - UEM) - in Maputo, Mozambique, has initiated a project to improve its journal publishing platform, UEM Scientific Journals (Revistas Científicas da UEM (RC-UEM).

The Kenya Association of Physicians has initiated a project that will improve the reach and impact of the Journal of the Kenya Association of Physicians (JOKAP).

JOJAP is a peer-reviewed biannual no-fee open access journal, that publishes a diverse range of original research, case reports and review papers in the health sciences, with a particular focus on research in clinical medicine.

Addis Ababa University has initiated a project to create a sustainable training programme that will build expertise and skills of journal editors, reviewers and authors, enabling them to fully utilize the Ethiopian Journals Online (EJOL) platform.

The University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania has initiated a project that will improve the quality and contribute to future sustainability of the University of Dar es Salaam Library Journal (UDSMLJ).

The UDSMLJ is a biannual peer reviewed no-fee open access interdisciplinary academic journal that publishes scholarly articles on all aspects of Library and Information Science (LIS) and related fields of study. Content analysis has shown that the journal’s scope extends beyond LIS, to include research outputs in domains such as the humanities, legal studies, management and education.

University of Zambia (UNZA) has initiated a project that aims to encourage greater institutional support for no-fee open access publishing at the university. The project will strengthen the editorial processes and procedures of the Journal of Agricultural and Biomedical Sciences (JABS), and improve discoverability of journal articles.

UNZA-JABS is an no-fee open access peer-reviewed quarterly journal that publishes research in the fields of agriculture, medicine, veterinary medicine, biomedical sciences and allied life sciences.

LINK Centre, at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, has initiated a project to strengthen the African Journal of Information and Communication (AJIC).

The ‘Strengthening The African Journal of Information and Communication’ project has three objectives: to increase discoverability and visibility of AJIC articles and authors; to deepen expertise on the Editorial Advisory Board, and to enhance recognition of peer reviewers.

The National Association for Clean Air, a South African not-for-profit organization, has initiated a project that aims to enhance the discoverability, visibility and impact of its journal, and to increase community engagement in the journal through the development of a communications strategy to attract and retain more authors and readers.

The University of Rwanda, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, has initiated a project that aims to significantly enhance the quality and sustainability of its no-fee open access journal, the Rwanda Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences.

The Institute of African Studies at the University of Ghana has initiated a project to improve the accessibility, visibility and discoverability of Feminist Africa, a no-fee open access gender studies journal based at the institute and produced by a community of feminist scholars.

The University of Ghana has initiated a project to enhance the skills of editors of five no-fee open access journals: the Ghana Journal of Geography, Contemporary Journal of African Studies, Ghana Journal of Theology and Religion, Health Sciences Investigation Journal and Science and Development Journal.

The University of Johannesburg in South Africa has initiated a project to address challenges to the growth and impact of the Journal of Construction Project Management and Innovation (JCPMI) within academic and professional communities in the construction and built environment sectors across Africa.

The Regional Institute of Information and Knowledge Management in Nairobi, Kenya, has initiated a project that will institutionalize and systemize the operations of its no-fee open access peer reviewed scholarly journal, the Regional Journal of Information and Knowledge Management, and enhance the journal’s efficiency and sustainability.

The institute publishes the journal biannually, aiming to provide a credible, authoritative and trustworthy platform for information and knowledge management professionals and scholars in Africa and beyond to engage, share and learn.

Bahir Dar University College of Education in Ethiopia has initiated a project to enhance the quality and sustainability of the Bahir Dar Journal of Education, an esteemed educational journal in Ethiopia, with a rich history of 25 years.

The Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) has initiated a project that will enhance excellence of the South African Journal of Science, a no-fee open access journal that has just celebrated continuous publishing for 120 years.

The University of Pretoria and African Minds Trust in South Africa have initiated a project that aims to create a sustainable no-fee open access (OA) future for the Journal of Student Affairs in Africa (JSAA).

JSAA is an independent, peer-reviewed, multi-disciplinary journal that publishes scholarly research and reflective discussions about the theory and practice of student affairs in Africa. The journal is published twice a year by the JSAA Editors in collaboration with the University of Pretoria in South Africa and the OA, non-profit academic publisher, African Minds.

Ugne Lipeikaite, Impact Manager of the EIFL Public Library Innovation Programme, will attend an event organized by the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

The event aims to strengthen connections, develop skills, and promote sustainability in libraries across Latin America and the Caribbean.