Springer Nature teams up with Egyptian Government on 'landmark' deal

Springer Nature and the Egyptian Government have agreed a “landmark” deal to drive forward open research and ensure Egyptian research achieves greater global visibility. 

The educational publisher has teamed up with the Science, Technology & Innovation Funding Authority in Egypt and the Egyptian Knowledge Bank (EKB) to sign a Transformative Agreement (TA) boosting momentum across global economies for Open Access (OA) publishing and the wider move to open science and research. Transformative Agreements enable participating institutions to combine journal subscription access along with OA publication costs. 

Springer Nature said: “This agreement, the first TA for the region and the first deal of its type for the Middle East, is expected to see over 3,000 OA articles a year published by Egyptian researchers with Springer Nature, increasing the reach and impact of Egyptian research across all disciplines. The deal provides researchers with read access to research in over 2,400 Springer Nature journals and the option to publish in Springer Nature’s hybrid and fully OA journal portfolio. Accelerating the transition to OA in Egypt in this way will ensure the country’s high-quality research is reusable, shareable and discoverable to the world's scholars immediately on publication.”  

The deal is the latest development in Springer Nature’s longstanding partnership with the EKB. Springer Nature publishes 35 Egyptian journals on behalf of EKB and provides support to researchers via its Nature Research Academies, helping Egyptian researchers advance discovery. 

Frank Vrancken Peeters (pictured), Springer Nature c.e.o., said: “Enabling all research to be published OA via agreements such as this is an integral part of advancing scientific discovery, increasing publishing options and reach for Egyptian researchers. This deal is testament not only to our strong partnerships and experience in delivering sustainable national transformative deals, but also to our commitment to finding achievable pathways, for all economies, to open science.” 

The “landmark deal”, as described by Springer Nature, forms part of the Egyptian Government’s wider 2030 strategy to drive forward educational development, sustainable OA and the enrichment of scientific content for Egyptian researchers.  

Professor Tarek Shawki, minister of education and technical education and head of the Egyptian Knowledge Bank, said: “Enabling more Egyptian researchers to take advantage of  access to  world-class publications and the ability to sustainably publish their high quality research Open Access for global dissemination, is a significant step in our region’s journey of ensuring that all Egyptians, no matter what their economic circumstances, will have the tools they need to excel in their education and research.” 

Springer Nature signed its first TA in 2014 with the Netherlands and now has 14 national agreements in place including the world’s largest by article volume with the consortium Projekt DEAL in Germany. Evidence shows that countries with these agreements in place with Springer Nature see between 70% and 90% of their authors publishing OA, Springer Nature said.  

Carolyn Honour, chief operating officer of Springer Nature, commented: “While Transformative Agreements are complex and no two partnerships or regions are the same, we believe their role is clear in providing a sustainable path to a full OA environment. Individual partner needs and requirements have to be taken into account and therefore reaching such a deal has only been possible through the commitment and investment from the Egyptian government.”