Beyond Open Access

"The aim of the Open Access movement – to bring research to international audiences without the barrier of a paywall – cannot be realised until a better infrastructure of resources is put in place for students and researchers in developing countries.... To improve the quality of university education at institutions such as UNAM, and thereby the prospects of its students and researchers, we need to better understand what these institutions need. Dr Mlambo hopes for more inter-library loan agreements, so that access to subscription journals can be shared. He also hopes that publishers in Europe can provide publication rights for texts that are co-published and printed in Namibia, making them more affordable for researchers and libraries with limited budgets. Beyond this, the work of charities such as Book Aid International, which sends books donated by publishers across the world, can be emulated to bring recent publications to universities. The Open Access movement can sometimes seem like "job done" with the provision of access to educational resources and academic research. We must recognise that this is not the case: it is only part of a wider package of initiatives that will be needed to bring about greater educational opportunity on a global stage."