Repositioning Africa in global knowledge production

Abstract

Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for 13·5% of the global population but less than 1% of global research output. In 2008, Africa produced 27 000 published papers— the same number as The Netherlands. Informed by a nuanced understanding of the causes of the current scenario, we propose action that should be taken by African universities, governments, and development partners to foster the development of research-active universities on the continent.