OPEN ACCESS INITIATIVES AND CHALLENGES IN NEPAL
Dr. Roshan Karn
CURRENT EVENTS
• Open Access Nepal launched a 6 month long project called “Open Access: Greater Reach for Research” in 2015
• All 5 development regions have been targeted for this project
• Open Access advocacy campaigns are being done in major universities and campuses within each development region
Central Development Region
Kathmandu UniversityTribhuvan UniversityAgriculture and Forestry University
Eastern Development Region
Purbancal UniversityB.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences
Western Development Region
Pokhara University
Pashimanchal Engineering Campus
Mid-Western Development Region
Nepalgunj Medical College
Far Western Development Region
Far Western University
• A team of 7 members travel to 2 universities at the mid and end of each month
• It’s a 2 day event in each university
• Day1: Orientation about Open Access, Open Educational Resources, Open Data and Open Access Repository
• Day2: Workshops on topics such as Open Access Advocacy at local level, OER, Open Policy, Finding and Accessing Open Resources, Issues and Challenges related to Open Access and Digital Repository
CHALLENGES
• Major setback to the project due to the political crisis
• Travelling to universities outside the capital has been impaired due to the continuous strikes in plain areas
• Economic blockade has caused a severe crisis of petroleum products and fuel, strictly hampering our mobility
FUTURE PLANS• Organize a Regional South Asian Consultation on “Open
Access to Scientific Information and Research – Concept and Policies” in Kathmandu in February, 2016 with support from the Government of Nepal, UNESCO, EIFL, R2RC, INASP and GE2P2
• Develop Open Access repositories in Tribhuvan University and Institute of Medicine
• Multiple open events scheduled for the month of December
• Open Access Nepal has been assigned the task of establishing open repositories in member countries of South Asia through assistance from UNESCO
• Organize a national conference
Thank you