African Journal of Biomedical Research
Journal / African Journal of Biomedical Research / About the Journal

 

Focus and Scope

The African Journal of biomedical Research was founded in 1998 as a joint project between a private communications outfit (Laytal Communications) and members of the Ivory tower. Later, the need to expand the horizon of the journal led to the formation of a group (Biomedical Communications Group, Ibadan, Nigeria) which is aimed at being registered in future as a non-governmental organization involved in the promotion of scientific proceedings and publications in developing countries.

The journal is conceived as an academic and professional journal covering all fields within the Biomedical Sciences including the allied health fields. Articles from the Physical Sciences and humanities related to the Medical Sciences will also be considered. The African Journal of Biomedical Research publishes full-length papers, review articles intended to throw light on recent advances in areas within its scope, short communications, rapid communications and mini-reviews. The journal will also carry news on conferences, workshops and products. The guiding principle shall be consistency.

One of the dual roles of the African Journal of Biomedical Research is to serve as a conduit for academic and professional media, covering all research findings within the biomedical sciences including the allied health fields. The other role is to put to test the alliance between the private non-governmental sector and members of  an African academic community in their quest to propagate knowledge. Furthermore, the journal will make significant and regular contribution to the South-North flow of information, which hitherto has been slow.

African Journal of Biomedical Research (ISSN 1119-5096) is published in January, May and September by the Biomedical Communications Group, Ibadan, Nigeria. The journal is published on a page sponsorship basis (Three issues per volume).

Peer Review Process

The entire editorial workflow is performed using the online  Open Journal System. Once a manuscript is submitted, the manuscript is assigned to an Editor most appropriate to handle it based on the subject of the manuscript and the availability of the Editors. If the Editor determines that the manuscript is not of sufficient quality to go through the normal review process or if the subject of the manuscript is not appropriate to the journal scope, the Editor rejects the manuscript with no further processing.

If the Editor determines that the submitted manuscript is of sufficient quality and falls within the scope of the journal, he/she assigns the manuscript to a minimum of 2 external reviewers for peer-review. The reviewers submit their reports on the manuscripts along with their recommendation of one of the following actions to the Editor:

• Publish Unaltered
• Publish after Minor Changes
• Review Again after Major Changes
• Reject: Manuscript is flawed or not sufficiently novel

When all reviewers have submitted their reports, the Editor can make one of the following editorial recommendations:

• Publish Unaltered
• Review Again after Minor Changes
• Review Again after Major Changes
• Reject

If the Editor recommends “Publish Unaltered,” the manuscript is accepted for publication.

If the Editor recommends “Review Again after Minor Changes,” the authors are notified to prepare and submit a final copy of their manuscript with the required minor changes suggested by the reviewers. Only the Editor, and not the external reviewers, reviews the revised manuscript after the minor changes have been made by the authors. Once the Editor is satisfied with the final manuscript, the manuscript can be accepted.

If the Editor recommends “Review Again after Major Changes,” the recommendation is communicated to the authors. The authors are expected to revise their manuscripts in accordance with the changes recommended by the reviewers and to submit their revised manuscript in a timely manner. Once the revised manuscript is submitted, the original reviewers are contacted with a request to review the revised version of the manuscript. Along with their review reports on the revised manuscript, the reviewers make a recommendation which can be “Publish Unaltered” or “Publish after Minor Changes” or “Reject.” The Editor can then make an editorial recommendation which can be “Publish Unaltered” or “Review Again after Minor Changes” or “Reject.”

If the Editor recommends rejecting the manuscript, the rejection is immediate. Also, if two of the reviewers recommend rejecting the manuscript, the rejection is immediate.

The editorial workflow gives the Editors the authority in rejecting any manuscript because of inappropriateness of its subject, lack of quality, or incorrectness of its results. The Editor cannot assign himself/herself as an external reviewer of the manuscript. This is to ensure a high-quality, fair, and unbiased peer-review process of every manuscript submitted to the journal, since any manuscript must be recommended by one or more (usually two or more) external reviewers along with the Editor in charge of the manuscript in order for it to be accepted for publication in the journal.

Publication Frequency

African Journal of Biomedical Research (ISSN 1119-5096) is published in January, May and September by the Biomedical Communications Group, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

Editorial Team