E-LIS (and Open Access) in South Africa

Jennifer A. De Beer
Centre for Knowledge Dynamics and Decision-making, Dept. of Information Science, Stellenbosch University

     Full text: PPT
     Last modified: October 27, 2005

Abstract
The marginalisation of African scholarship in particular, and scholarship from developing countries in general, was regarded as a fait accompli in the pre-Internet era. Latterly, discussions on the digital divide notwithstanding, it is that African scholars may give exposure to their works via networked services such as E-LIS and other similar digital repositories. This paper will provide an update on efforts to promote E-LIS in South Africa, situated against the backdrop of more general efforts to promote Open Access initiatives in and across South Africa. Steps to introduce E-LIS across the African continent will also be briefly elaborated upon.