EXPLORING THE GROWTH OF OPEN ACCESS PUBLICATIONS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW

Open Access (OA) publishing has revolutionized academic communication by providing free and unrestricted access to scholarly work. Although OA adoption is well documented in developed countries, its progress in developing nations is less consistent and less studied. This paper offers a systematic review of existing literature to examine how OA publications have grown in developing countries, highlighting key challenges and facilitating factors. Using established systematic review protocols, a thorough search was performed across major academic databases, including peer-reviewed articles, conference papers, and grey literature. Studies focusing on OA in developing regions were carefully selected and analyzed to identify prevalent themes and gaps in knowledge. Results indicate that while OA awareness and supportive policies are increasing in many developing countries, barriers such as limited infrastructure, financial constraints, and insufficient institutional backing still hinder wider OA adoption. Although some national and regional initiatives, often aided by international partnerships, have made progress, the viewpoints of essential stakeholders like publishers, academic institutions, and scholarly organizations in these regions are not extensively covered in existing research. This review emphasizes on the various theories used and gives us an insight into how the growth and adoption of OA has been studied so far. The findings provide valuable insights for researchers and policymakers aiming to enhance equitable access to scholarly knowledge worldwide.