Open access institutional repositories in universities in East Africa
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Date
2018
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Information and Learning Science
Abstract
Purpose – Given that repositories were proposed as one of the routes to open access (OA), this study sought
to establish the achievements universities in East Africa had attained in initiating institutional repositories
(IRs), the challenges in providingOA and strategies for the way forward.
Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through literature searches, using the internet,
journal databases and university websites in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda for information about OA and IRs
in East Africa. Some of the findings were based on the author’s PhD “The management and accessibility of
OA IRs in selected universities in East Africa”, which used face-to-face interviews with six librarians and selfadministered
questionnaires responded to by 183 researchers at Kenyatta University, Muhimbili University
of Health and Allied Sciences and Makerere University.
Findings – Universities in East Africa were still in the intermediate stages of embracing OA, and only 40
libraries out of 145 universities had implemented IRs. However, most of the repositories had less than 1,000
items, with this challenge attributed to the absence of institutional and government/funder mandates that
affected the collection/provision of OA, in addition to the lack of awareness of IRs among researchers.
Originality/value – The value in this research was establishing the extent of IR initiatives in universities
in East Africa and their contribution to OA, which is regarded as more visible and accessible to scholars and
government personnel who could leverage the information for further development in the region
Description
Keywords
Open access, Kenya, East Africa, Universities
Citation
Kakai, M., Musoke, M. G., & Okello-Obura, C. (2018). Open access institutional repositories in universities in East Africa. Information and Learning Science.