Equity in Co-Authorship Across Continents: Insights from the UniPID - INASP Annual Seminar

UniPID hosted its Annual Seminar 2025 through a joint webinar with the International Network for Advancing Science and Policy (INASP), focusing on equitable practices in research co-authorship across continents. The seminar aimed to address imbalances in global knowledge production, the role of research publishing, and pathways for fairer academic collaborations.

The Seminar began with opening remarks from Kaisa Kurki, Director of UniPID, who welcomed participants and introduced the webinar’s topic. Kaisa highlighted that the webinar complements UniPID’s contributions related to national work on research integrity and UniPID’s Guidelines for Responsible Academic Partnerships with the Global South by addressing one area in need of systemic change. This was followed by a brief presentation of the hosting institutions: UniPID and INASP.

The question of Equity: Exploring the North-South Divide in Scholarly Publishing

Dr. Haseeb Irfanullah’s keynote, “The question of Equity: Exploring the North-South Divide in Scholarly Publishing” explored the persistent imbalances shaping scholarly publishing. He notes that Africa contributes only 2% of global research output despite representing 17% of the world’s population. He highlighted the South–South divide, noting that in a recent analysis of 43 African countries, just three, Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa accounted for 63% of all African publishers. This concentration, he argued, deepens the marginalization of many countries whose research systems remain under-resourced and largely invisible on the global stage. Dr. Irfanullah argued that the prevalence of predatory publishing in the Global South is often a symptom of systemic resource gaps rather than a lack of ethics. Authors in low-GDP countries publish more frequently in predatory journals due to intense pressure and a lack of formal support, unlike the structured capacity development found in the Global North.

Additionally, he noted that recently trending Global North topics such as the carbon footprint of publishing, Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs), and mental health are largely absent from Global South because the ecosystem is still fighting for basic sustainability. He also noted that while the increasing international collaborations are blurring the North-South divide, they often lack equity, with Southern researchers frequently relegated to data collectors while Northern partners retain intellectual leadership.

Finally, he emphasized that inequities exist not only between North and South but also within regions and disciplines. He called for more proactive institutional roles, greater awareness of alternative publishing models, and systemic solutions to transform the scholarly communication landscape.

With the stage set by the keynote on equity in scholarly publishing, the webinar moved into a panel discussion moderated by Kaisa Kurki, in which Dr Haseeb Md Irfanullah, Dr Laura Himanen and Dr Karembe Ahimbisibwe shared their perspectives on how to address such imbalances in research collaboration

How do current trends in global research collaboration reinforce inequities?

The panelists pointed out that there are some tensions in these collaborations. For instance, Dr. Laura pointed out that international collaboration is often driven by the desire to boost citations rather than genuine shared research needs. Dr. Karembe pointed out that disciplinary divides mean the humanities receive far less funding than the natural sciences, resulting in fewer opportunities and greater pressure to rely on Global North theories to interpret Global South realities. Dr Haseeb added a geopolitical perspective, highlighting that Southern audiences sometimes view international collaborations with suspicion fearing a "colonization" of Western ideas. However, he argued that with true co-design, this tension can be overcome.

How does the global publishing industry impact researcher assessment and career development in different settings?

Dr. Laura criticized the misuse of Journal Impact Factors (JIF). She explained that JIFs were originally created for librarians to decide which journals to buy but are now used recklessly to determine a researcher's worth. She noted that high-impact journals usually have high costs, effectively barring researchers from under-resourced institutions. Haseeb added that, because university rankings rely on 60 - 70% on research output, Global South universities push for volume over quality. He cited an example of a university increasing its output from 70 papers to 1,200 papers in a few years, an indication that ranking systems can be manipulated. To add into the discussion, Dr. Karembe offered a personal reflection on the challenges faced by researchers in resource-constrained environments. Without institutional funding, journal subscriptions, APC support, or mentoring structures, publishing in high-impact journals becomes nearly impossible. He described navigating this landscape as “like being thrown into the ocean to fight the waves alone.”

How can partners bridge the prevailing North-South gap perpetuated by the global publishing industry?

While discussing solutions to some of these challenges, Dr. Haseeb emphasized that institutions, not just individuals, must take greater responsibility for research integrity, training, and publication ethics. He also urged publishers to be more proactive in addressing systemic problems instead of waiting for crises like paper mills or AI misuse. Dr. Laura stressed the need for diversity-sensitive evaluations, recognition of local-language publishing, and reform of metrics that disproportionately favors Global North scholars. Dr. Karembe proposed funding could bridge the gap, as it allows Southern researchers the time to receive mentorship and leverage to negotiate more equitable roles within partnerships.

After the panel discussion, Roseana Avento, the Global Development Manager at University of Eastern Finland and UniPID Board member, offered closing remarks. She emphasized that bridging the North-South divide is an achievable reality provided stakeholders act with intention. She also outlined a shared commitment to three specific actions for everyone to achieve this goal: championing transparency in collaborations, actively decolonizing the publishing industry to amplify overlooked voices and diverse languages and transforming these concepts into concrete institutional policies that recognize local research. She concluded by thanking the participants and the UniPID member institutions for entrusting the coordination of UniPID to the University of Eastern Finland from 2026.

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We extend our sincere thanks to our invited speakers for providing such insightful discussion.

Did you get curious or inspired by the webinar? You can follow the full discussion on the webinar recording.

Photo credits: Toza Productions, 2025 on UnSplash