STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING THE VISIBILITY OF SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS IN FRANCOPHONE AFRICA

Scientific visibility has become a major concern for researchers and academic staff because of its influence on knowledge dissemination, the development of international collaborations, and academic career progression. This study aims to examine the strategies adopted by researchers and academic staff in Africa to enhance the visibility of their scientific outputs. A descriptive quantitative survey was conducted among 216 researchers and academic staff from twelve Francophone African countries. Data were collected through an online questionnaire and analyzed using Microsoft Excel and IBM SPSS Statistics. The main findings reveal a limited culture of research dissemination and valorization. Nearly all institutions lack dedicated sections for scientific publications on their official websites. Few respondents maintain personal websites, disseminate their work through academic social networks, publish scholarly books, or belong to national and international research networks. Scientific outreach activities, public lectures, and the sharing of publications with students, colleagues, and research teams are also very limited. These findings suggest that the limited scientific visibility of African academic staff stems from both institutional constraints and individual dissemination practices. The study recommends implementing institutional policies to promote research outputs, strengthening researchersÂ’ digital skills, encouraging the use of international researcher identifiers and academic platforms, including ORCID, Google Scholar, and ResearchGate, and promoting participation in international scientific networks.