AfricArXiv, Eider Africa, TCC Africa, and PREreview are pleased to host a 90-minute long roundtable discussion, bringing African perspectives to the global conversation around this years’ Peer Review Week’s theme, “Identity in Peer Review”. Together with a multidisciplinary panel of African editors, reviewers and early-career researchers, we will explore the shifting identities of researchers in the African continent, from the dominant perspective that sees them as consumers of knowledge produced in other contexts to researchers who are actively engaged in scholarly peer review. We will strive to create a safe space for reflection around issues of scholarly knowledge decolonization, bias in peer review, and open transformative peer review practices.

Moderators will invite speakers to introduce themselves and share their experiences, resources, and lessons learned in their engagement with the peer-review process. Following guest speakers’ introductions, we will move into a moderated Q&A session where roundtable participants are invited to ask questions, comment, and engage with the speakers. 

When is the event?

Wednesday September 22, 2021

2pm – 3:30pm GMT | 3pm – 4:30pm WAT | 4pm – 5:30pm CAT | 5pm – 6:30pm EAT

About the speakers

Dr. Raoul Kamadjeu – Co-founder and Managing Editor at the Pan-African Medical Journal – PAMJ

Dr. Raoul Kamadjeu is a physician, co-founder, and managing editor of the Pan African Medical Journal, an open-access publishing house based in Kenya and Cameroon. Dr. Kamadjeu received his medical degree in Cameroon, completed his Master’s in Public Health in Belgium (ULB), and recently enrolled in the Ph.D. program in Epidemiology with the City University of New York.

Dr. Stella Onsoro – Researcher and clinical psychologist at the Kenya Power and Lighting Company – KPLC 

Dr. Stellah Osoro Kerongo is a clinical psychologist and a researcher based in Nairobi, Kenya. She is a trained clinical psychologist with professional experience in counseling, coaching, and mentorship. She has a special skill in sign language She Specialized in psychological assessment, diagnosis, and treatment using multidimensional therapeutic models. She has over 10 years of experience in offering counseling services.

Nicholas Outa – Doctoral Candidate in Fisheries and Aquaculture at Maseno University

Mr. Nicholas Outa is a Doctoral Candidate in the field of Fisheries and Aquaculture at Maseno University, Kenya. He obtained a Master’s of Science degree (MSc) in Limnology and Wetland Management from UNESCO-IHE, Netherlands, BOKU University, Austria, and Egerton University, Kenya. He also holds a BSc. Applied Aquatic Science from Egerton University, Kenya. Mr. Outa has published more than 25 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals. Currently, he is a trainer in Scientific Writing and Communication at the Training Centre in Communication (TCC-Africa) and a mentor for early career researchers at the various universities and colleges where he lectures. LinkedIn

Prof. Ruth (BARWA) Oniang’o PhD – Editor-in-Chief and Founder at African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND)

Dr. Ruth Oniang’o is a professor, researcher, African Food Prize Laureate and has been honored by her own government of Kenya for her work to eradicate poverty and hunger in  Kenya,  by working with smallholder farmers for the past  3  decades and helping to formulate food and nutrition security policies.  She received  Kenya’s  Silver  Star and  Distinguished  Service  Medals.  Ruth founded  Rural  Outreach  Africa  (ROA)  in the early  1990s and continues to be a clear and profound voice in research for development as an international consultant and speaker. As the founder and editor of the African Journal of  Food,  Agriculture,  Nutrition and  Development  (AJFAND),  Ruth seeks to improve policy and decision-making through the dissemination of significant scientific findings and emerging technologies in the field, and thus serving as an influencer on the continent and globally. The journal marks 20 years this 2021 since its inception.  
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About Peer Review Week

Peer Review Week is a virtual community-led yearly global event celebrating the essential role that peer review plays in maintaining scientific quality. The event brings together individuals, institutions, and organizations committed to sharing the central message that good peer review, whatever shape or form it might take, is critical to scholarly communications.

Peer Review Week 2021 Theme: Identity in Peer Review

This year’s Peer Review Week (PRW), an annual event led by academic publishers, institutions, societies, and researchers, will be dedicated to the theme “Identity in Peer Review.” During the week of September 20 – 24, participating organizations will organize virtual events and activities to highlight the role of personal and social identity in peer review and ways the scholarly community can foster more diverse, equitable, and inclusive peer review practices.

About the hosts 

AfricArXiv is a community-led digital archive for African research, working towards building an African-owned open scholarly repository; a knowledge commons of African scholarly works to catalyze the African Renaissance. We partner with established scholarly repository services to provide a platform for African scientists of any discipline to present their research findings and connect with other researchers on the African continent and globally. Find out more about AfricArXiv at https://info.africarxiv.org/

Eider Africa  is an organisation that conducts research, co-designs and implements collaborative, offline and online research mentorship programs for scholars in Africa. We train mentors to start their mentorship programs. We believe in peer to peer learning, learning research by practice, caring for the whole researcher and lifelong learning. We have grown a vibrant community of researchers in our research journal clubs and work with university lecturers to develop transformative inclusive research training. Our website: https://eiderafricaltd.org/

The Training Centre in Communication (TCC Africa) is the first African-based training centre to teach effective communication skills to scientists. TCC Africa is an award winning Trust, established as a non-profit entity in 2006 and is registered in Kenya.  TCC Africa provides capacity support in improving researchers output and visibility through training in scholarly and science communication. Find out more about TCC Africa at https://www.tcc-africa.org/about.

PREreview is an open project fiscally sponsored by the non-profit organization Code for Science and Society. Our mission is to bring more equity and transparency to the scholarly peer review process. We design and develop open source infrastructure to enable constructive feedback to preprints, we run peer review mentoring and training programs, and we partner with like-minded organizations to organize events providing opportunities for researchers to create meaningful collaborations and connections defeating cultural and geographical barriers. Learn more about PREreview at https://prereview.org.


1 Comment

Eider Africa PREreview, AfricArXiv, and TCC Africa develop a course to involve more African researchers in peer review – AfricArXiv · 7th December 2021 at 3:35 am

[…] project follows a three-part workshop series as well as a recent roundtable discussion organized jointly by TCC Africa, Eider Africa, AfricArXiv, and PREreview and is in line with the […]

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