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Fee-free Open Access publishing in leading biological science journals now available to researchers in developing and transition economy countries

11 May 2021

From Albania to Zimbabwe, researchers in 30 developing and transition economy countries can benefit from immediate and fee-free Open Access publishing in The Company of Biologists’ hybrid journals following a Read & Publish agreement with Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL).

This landmark agreement runs until 31 December 2023 and institutional members of EIFL-partner library consortia in eligible countries can participate free of charge.

Researchers in eligible countries will be able to publish an uncapped number of Open Access research articles in Development, Journal of Cell Science and Journal of Experimental Biology without paying an article processing charge (APC). They will also benefit from free and unlimited access to the journals and their archives dating back to 1853.

Romy Beard, EIFL Licensing Programme Manager, says:

This agreement is an important step towards making the transition to Open Access more equitable. We are pleased to partner with The Company of Biologists to allow free Open Access publishing in their three hybrid journals. We are also pleased that The Company of Biologists is able to provide automatic recognition of authors, eliminating the need for authors to actively claim an APC waiver.

Claire Moulton, Publisher at The Company of Biologists, says:

The Company of Biologists has been committed to Open Access for over 15 years and we were one of the first not-for-profit publishers to launch a cost-neutral Read & Publish initiative. We are delighted that over 200 institutions in 17 countries are already participating, but it is also very important to us that the benefits of Read & Publish agreements are available to researchers in developing and transition economy countries.

As a result, we are very excited about our three-year agreement with EIFL. By removing the financial barriers to accessing content and publishing articles immediately Open Access, it offers the opportunity to further democratise science.

Richard Grove, Commercial Manager at The Company of Biologists, says:

Our mission is to advance excellence in the biological and biomedical sciences worldwide and we believe that immediate and free availability of high-quality research helps us to achieve this,” says Richard Grove, Commercial Manager at The Company of Biologists. “We look forward to working closely with EIFL and EIFL-partner library consortia to build awareness of this new agreement and to encourage Open Access article submissions from corresponding authors in 30 developing and transition economy countries.

Eligible countries

Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Congo, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lesotho, Lithuania, Malawi, Maldives, Moldova, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, North Macedonia, Palestine, Senegal, Serbia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Zimbabwe

About EIFL

EIFL (Electronic Information for Libraries) is a not-for-profit organisation that works with libraries to enable access to knowledge in developing and transition economy countries in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America.

EIFL runs a number of programmes to enable access to knowledge for education, learning, research and sustainable community development. This includes negotiating agreements with publishers to secure affordable access to e-resources as well as Open Access publishing terms on behalf of libraries and authors in EIFL partner countries.

Further information about fee-free Open Access publishing can be found on the EIFL website here.