Challenges of open access adoption in low-resource settings: Lessons from Tunisia

Challenges of open access adoption in low-resource settings: Lessons from Tunisia | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Challenges of open access adoption in low-resource settings: Lessons from Tunisia Ridha Mhamdi This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7904485/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines the adoption and impact of open access (OA) publishing in Tunisia. It uses Scopus data to analyse trends, citation metrics, alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and funding sources. Over 60% of Tunisian publications remain behind paywalls, limiting their visibility and impact. Hybrid Gold OA shows the highest citation advantage, while Gold OA offers limited benefits due to publication in lower-impact journals. Medicine, Computer Science, and Engineering lead in OA output. However, 60% of Gold and Hybrid Gold OA publications are not aligned with the SDGs, indicating that OA does not necessarily focus on SDG-related research. International collaboration, particularly with Saudi Arabia, significantly boosts OA adoption but is simultaneously associated with heightened integrity risks, a concern underscored by a dramatically increased retraction rate in collaborative outputs. Financial barriers, including high article processing charges (APCs) and reliance on institutional funding, hinder wider OA dissemination. This study recommends expanding OA agreements, supporting Diamond OA models, and encouraging highly impacted SDG-focused research. By addressing financial constraints and implementing strategic OA policies, Tunisia can enhance its global research visibility and contribute more effectively to sustainable development. Scientific Communication Publishing/Media Library Science Article processing charge Bibliometric analysis Open access Research integrity Scholarly communication Sustainable development goals Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7904485","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":532232392,"identity":"0e3b8e1a-8e06-4dcc-b199-4a976a8ac85c","order_by":0,"name":"Ridha Mhamdi","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA6ElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACZgYzEJUAxAYHPjAcSCBNy8EZcC0JDBJ4NCG0MPMQo8W8nXnbgx8M2/L4px3eeNim5k4efwPvs8eVPxjqzHFokTnMVm7Yw3C7WOJ2WsHhnGPPiiUOsJsbngHaYtmAXYsEM4+ZBA/D7cSG2zkGh3MbDiduYGBjk2wAajE4gFuL5B+glvkgLZbEapEG2bIBpIWROC1sZdIyBrcTNwL9crAH5JfDIC1pEpIbcGnhP7xN8k3F7cR5t5M3f/gBCrH2NqAWGxt+XLZAgAEyhxliFj71o2AUjIJRMAoIAADh7llzNEo0BgAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Centre of Biotechnology of Borj-Cédria","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ridha","middleName":"","lastName":"Mhamdi","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-10-20 09:57:01","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7904485/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7904485/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":93996113,"identity":"6943cfc4-3f35-46fd-a599-16da456213f1","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-10-21 07:07:02","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":546454,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"FullManuscriptResearchSquare.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7904485/v1_covered_7b0546ce-c437-49dd-bb80-034f7457c404.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChallenges of open access adoption in low-resource settings: Lessons from Tunisia\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"Center of Biotechnogy of Borj Cédria","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Article processing charge, Bibliometric analysis, Open access, Research integrity, Scholarly communication, Sustainable development goals ","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7904485/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7904485/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examines the adoption and impact of open access (OA) publishing in Tunisia. 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