Publication Ethics

The journal is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity. We adhere to the guidelines and principles set forth by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and other relevant international standards. All parties involved in the publication process—authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher—are expected to comply with these ethical guidelines.

1. Responsibilities of Authors

Originality and Plagiarism: Authors must ensure that their work is entirely original. Any text, data, or ideas borrowed from other sources must be properly cited. Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable and will result in immediate rejection or retraction of the manuscript.

Data Integrity: Authors must present accurate and reliable data. Fabrication, falsification, or manipulation of data is a serious ethical violation and will not be tolerated.

Multiple Submissions: Manuscripts submitted to this journal must not be under consideration by any other journal or publication. Simultaneous submissions are considered unethical.

Authorship: All listed authors must have made significant contributions to the research and writing of the manuscript. Individuals who do not meet the criteria for authorship should not be listed but can be acknowledged in the "Acknowledgments" section.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: Authors must disclose any financial or personal relationships that could influence the research or its interpretation. Conflicts of interest should be declared at the time of submission.

Ethical Approval: For studies involving human or animal subjects, authors must provide evidence of ethical approval from an institutional review board (IRB) or equivalent body. Informed consent must be obtained from human participants, and their anonymity must be preserved.

Errors in Published Work: If authors discover significant errors or inaccuracies in their published work, they must promptly notify the journal and cooperate in correcting or retracting the paper.

2. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Confidentiality: Reviewers must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents. They must not share or discuss the content with anyone without explicit permission from the editor.

Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively, with constructive feedback provided to improve the quality of the manuscript. Personal criticism of the authors is inappropriate.

Timeliness: Reviewers should complete their evaluations within the agreed timeframe. If they cannot meet the deadline or feel unqualified to review the manuscript, they should notify the editor immediately.

Conflict of Interest: Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest and decline to review a manuscript if they have a competing interest that could bias their evaluation.

Plagiarism and Ethical Concerns: Reviewers should alert the editor if they suspect plagiarism, data fabrication, or any other ethical violation in the manuscript.

3. Responsibilities of Editors

Fairness and Impartiality: Editors must evaluate manuscripts based on their academic merit, without regard to the authors’ race, gender, nationality, religion, or institutional affiliation.

Confidentiality: Editors must ensure the confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts and not disclose any information about them to anyone other than the authors, reviewers, and publisher.

Decision-Making: Editorial decisions should be based on the manuscript’s quality, originality, and relevance to the journal’s scope. Editors must not use unpublished information from submitted manuscripts for their own research.

Conflict of Interest: Editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts in which they have a personal, financial, or professional conflict of interest.

Ethical Oversight: Editors are responsible for investigating allegations of ethical misconduct, such as plagiarism, data fabrication, or authorship disputes, in accordance with COPE guidelines.

4. Responsibilities of the Publisher

Support for Ethical Standards: The publisher supports the journal’s commitment to ethical publishing practices and provides resources to address ethical issues.

Transparency: The publisher ensures that all parties involved in the publication process are aware of their roles and responsibilities.

Retractions and Corrections: The publisher will promptly issue retractions, corrections, or clarifications if ethical violations or errors are identified in published work.

5. Handling Ethical Violations

Allegations of Misconduct: Any allegations of ethical misconduct, such as plagiarism, data fabrication, or authorship disputes, will be investigated thoroughly in accordance with COPE guidelines.

Sanctions: If ethical violations are confirmed, appropriate actions will be taken, including but not limited to:

• Rejection or retraction of the manuscript.
• Notification of the authors’ institution or funding body.
• Prohibition of future submissions from the authors involved.

Appeals: Authors may appeal editorial decisions or sanctions by submitting a formal appeal to the editor-in-chief, who will review the case and make a final decision.

6. Reporting Ethical Concerns

If you suspect any ethical misconduct related to a submission or published article in the journal, please contact the Research Integrity and Ethics team at ethics@africanscholarpub.com and copy editorial office. All concerns will be treated confidentially and investigated promptly.