Advancing Open Science in Tanzania: A Public Repository Initiative for Research Accessibility, Sharing, and Inclusion.

Ali hassani selemani

Funding Area: Critical shared infrastructure / Infraestructura compartida critica

Problem Statement: The Tanzanian government, through the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH), is encouraging researchers to use a centralised repository and publish in open-access journals for open science. Currently, there are 37 open repositories, but Tanzania lacks a system to reward open-access practices and awareness of electronic platforms at COSTECH is limited. Resource sharing is hindered by copyright issues. Over the years, the government's budget for the education sector has grown by 17%, reaching $2.1 billion between 2019/20 and 2021/22. Additionally, an extra budget of $147.56 million was allocated in March 2022 as part of an interest-free loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to the Government of Tanzania to address the COVID-19 impact on the education sector (UNICEF, 2022). This indicates increased willingness from the government and donors to support education investments. However, investment in open science platforms and repositories for publications, research data, and other resources has not seen a proportional increase. High publication fees for open-access articles and the need for researchers to understand research packaging remain significant challenges (Dr Philbert Luhunga, COSTECH’s chief research officer). Our proposed work aim to bridge the gap in open-access practices by establishing a centralized repository and promoting the use of open-access journals for young researchers, fostering a path to open science.

Proposed Activities: #Activity 1: Needs Assessment (Baseline): The study will provide valuable insights and establish a rich dataset, which will be instrumental in facilitating future evaluation activities and potentially impact evaluation for the proposed open-source intervention. The activity is scheduled to take two months and requires both human and financial resources. #Activity 2: Stakeholder Engagement: This will be an ongoing activity which will start with an initial meeting with key stakeholders including faculty, researchers, librarians, and IT staff, to gain support, establish common objectives and ensure that their needs and concerns are addressed throughout the process. #Activity 3: Developing an Open Access Repository Database at the Host Institution: This will be done after understanding the specific need through a participatory process where our stakeholder engagement process will be part and parcel of the process. The activity involves; selecting appropriate software, infrastructure planning, developing clear data policies and governance guidelines for the repository, establishing metadata standards and guidelines for the consistent and accurate cataloguing of materials within the repository, enabling efficient search and retrieval, training and support to the repository's users, including content contributors and users accessing the materials. The activity is scheduled to take 8 months and requires both human and financial resources. #Activity 4: Content Ingestion: this will involve developing a systematic process for the ingestion and curation of content into the repository. This may involve working with the institution and researchers to submit work submitted by previous students and researchers to ensure metadata is properly associated. The initial target is the Selection and conversion of 500 postgraduate research studies from a partner university. The activity is scheduled to take 5 months and requires both human and financial resources. #Activity 5: Establishing a Project Office at the Host Institution: for providing support and guidance to researchers (including students) on publishing articles in free journals, exchanges, and co-creation of knowledge between researchers and society. The activity is scheduled to run for 12 months (extension upon funds availability) and requires both human and financial resources. #Activity 6: Outreach and Promotion: awareness campaigns and creating a strategy to promote the repository's existence and encourage universities and researchers to contribute their work. This may involve hosting workshops, webinars, or collaborating with relevant departments and research centres. The activity is scheduled to take 5 months and requires both human and financial resources. #Activity 7: Continuous Evaluation and Improvement: Regularly assess the repository's performance and user feedback to identify areas for improvement and adapt to changing needs and technological advancements.

Openness: The proposed work is open in the following ways: (i) Project aim at utilising Open-source solutions like DSpace, EPrints, or relevant proprietary systems. (ii) The infrastructure will be open source and hosted on a public cloud platform, meaning that anyone will be able to access and use it. This will allow researchers from all over the world to contribute to and benefit from the project. (iii) The project will create a pilot project office at the University of Dar es Salaam and National Library to provide support and guidance to researchers on publishing articles in free journals, exchanges, and co-creation of knowledge between researchers and society. This will help ensure the project is accessible to a broad range of researchers, regardless of their technical expertise. (iv) The project will create and promote an awareness campaign encouraging sharing, promoting interoperability, and enhancing open access to large-scale research infrastructures where researchers from different disciplines interact. This will help to raise awareness of the benefits of open research and encourage more researchers to participate in the project. (v) The infrastructure will be interoperable, meaning that it can communicate with other research infrastructures, making it easier for researchers to share data and findings. (vi) The project will publish a regular newsletter to keep the community informed of its progress.

Challenges: (i) Willingness for partnership. While there is a strong willingness to partner and promote open access to research infrastructure in Tanzania, bureaucratic processes within public institutions we aim to support can pose a challenge. To address this, we plan to leverage the extensive network of Global Collaboration Partners (GCP) to conduct consultations and meetings with the selected institutions. Through these engagements, we aim to enhance the willingness of these institutions to actively host and participate in the proposed project. (ii) Lack of funding. This is a major challenge for research in Tanzania, and it is likely to be a significant barrier in scaling up the project to the success of this project. (iii) Lack of infrastructure. Tanzania's research infrastructure is not as developed as that of many other countries. This could make it difficult to source and install the necessary equipment, and it could also make it difficult to connect researchers from different institutions. However, we will utilise experience from a few local institutions already having their repository system. (iv) Lack of capacity and interest. A strategy is needed to create awareness and interest among skilled researchers in Tanzania about the open science infrastructures. (v) Lack of political will. There may be a lack of support from the government in the investment in open sciences infrastructures which could make it difficult for project scalability.

Neglectedness: Open science infrastructures are still an emerging sector in Tanzania. They are not yet well-established, and there is currently no available funding for investment in this sector. The government does not currently provide any funding for this type of work, and there are no private foundations or NGOs that have specifically earmarked funds for open science. There is a great potential for open science infrastructures in Tanzania, they can improve the quality of research, make research more accessible to the public, and boost economic development. The proposed pilot project will help to pave the way for future investment in this important sector.

Success: (i) Having a functional repository system in place at the proposed host institution (ii) The number of research outputs deposited, downloaded and accessed in the established open repository infrastructure, and the impact of the repository on research visibility and impact. (iii) Number of users utilizing the established repository infrastructure at the host institution to search, share research data, and analyse research studies. (iv) Number of research studies that are collected, converted into a new generation of open information technology tools and made user-friendly accessible through the established open repository infrastructure at the host institution. (v) Number of researchers (including university students) who receive support and guidance on publishing articles in free journals. (vi) Number of research articles that are published in free journals as the result of support and guidance received from the services offered by the project office at the host institution.

Total Budget: $24900/=

Affiliations: Our proposal is affiliated with Global Collaboration partners (GCP) and their proposed host institutions I.e. (University of Dar es Salaam and The National Library of Tanzania)

LMIE Carveout: Yes, our proposed project does fit within this category. Our organization is based in Tanzania, a Low- and Middle-Income Economy. The majority of our team members are also based in Tanzania, and our project's community is also primarily based in Tanzania. The proposed project aims to improve open sciences infrastructures in Tanzania by making it easier for researchers to access and use open research data and tools. We will do this by developing a new platform that will make it easier to find, share, and use open research data. The platform will be designed specifically for researchers in LMIEs.

Team Skills: (1) Ali Hassani holding 1) Advanced Master degree in International and Development Economics and 2) A Master of science in Sustainability. With a strong academic background in Economics, Sustainability Science, and International and Development Economics. Ali has gained valuable insights into different working cultures and ethics that shape our world. His extensive experience in project planning, research, and administration with well-known organizations like VSO, JICA, and UNHCR reflects his unwavering commitment to driving meaningful change. (2) Mohamed Ally Ndule (Master degree of Science in Statistics) Mohamed Ally Ndule is a seasoned and highly versatile data scientist-cum-data architect, statistician, and business intelligence professional with key expertise in statistics, research, monitoring, and evaluation, data analytics, accountability and collaborating, learning, and adapting. Over seven years’ cumulative field experience working in NGOs and research companies including on top Holding Inc and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). (3) Mohamed Issa Mdemu (Master degree of Science in Project Planning Management) Mohamed Issa is a detail-oriented and meticulous fraud investigator with over 10 years of expertise investigating suspicious activity in the financial industry. He is an experienced Trademark Paralegal offering extensive legal skills in patent prosecution, copyright, and trademark filing, along with PCT applications.

Submission Number: 84