Annual Meeting - 2013 African Journals Partnership Project Keynote Address David Ofori-Adjei Editor-in-Chief, Ghana Medical Journal

October 2002 – WHO, Geneva Twelve Editors of African Medical Journals at the meeting. Few African Medical Journals on Medline, mostly English; very few French or Lusophone Need for improved quality and visibility Outcome of meeting was the formation of FAME (Forum for African Medical Editors

September 2003 - London Organised by FIC. Key involvement of Richard Horton and Richard Smith

Concept and Conception Hosts – Richard Horton and Richard Smith Funded by FIC NLM/NIH involvement Mechanisms to enhance the quality of African health journals Ultimately improve the health of people through publishing research Twinning or Partnership October 2003 – Concept paper prepared October 2003 – Completion of forms by African Editors

Partnerships African Health Sciences Ghana Medical Journal Malawi Medical Journal Mali Medical British Medical Journal The Lancet JAMA Environmental Health Perspective/American Journal of Public Health Major criterion was journals from countries with NIH funded research. Involvement with MIMCom was also important.

Partnership Expansion Medical Journal of Zambia Ethiopian Journal of Health Sciences Sierra Leone Journal of Biomedical Research Annales Africaines de Medecine New England Journal of Medicine Annals of Internal Medicine Ghana Medical Research/The Lancet Mali Medical/EHP

TASKS Task 1 – Identify Equipment needs Task 2 – Identify Editorial needs Task 3 – Provide Computers and Internet access; training of staff Task 4 – Provide Author/Reviewer training Task 5 – Training in Business planning and sustainable publishing operations Task 6 – Provide Managing Editor support Task 7 – Maintain journal Website Task 8 – Internships Task 9 – Commission Systematic Reviews Formed the basis for annual evaluations since 2006

Annual Review & Planning Meetings: Since 2005 First meeting was in 2006 in Atlanta

Medals and Scars PubMed Central Medline Other indexing services Leveraged local support Provided training for other African journals Heightened private sector interest & support Spi Global Thomson Reuters, ScholarOne Manuscripts Ovid Technologies, Inc. (Wolters Kluwer – Health) Kaufman Wills Fusting & Company

We all have scars! Uncompleted Tasks Capacity building Sustainability Use and Management of technology Put a ‘spine’ to things

Thank You