Domestic research capacity is a critical factor in the accomplishment of global sustainable development. It guarantees the creation of scientific proof that is based on significant analyses of each country’s social, development and policy challenges. Achieving the global sustainable development agenda at the national level requires significant domestic research capacity. This will help to ensure the production of scientific evidence that is based on critical analyses of each country’s social, development and policy challenges. Such evidence will help to inform contextually relevant actions and reforms for economic growth, development and welfare. However, detailed system-wide data on the social science research (SSR) system is scarce in sub-Saharan Africa, and this hinders effective policymaking. While international agencies like the UNESCO Institute of Statistics routinely gather data, such efforts still rely on locally generated information.
Regrettably, in Nigeria, there have been no systematic efforts to generate data on the domestic SSR system since independence. To date, only one national survey of research and development (R&D) has been carried out in Nigeria (in 2007); it used instruments and methods based on the well-known Frascati Manual of Europe. However, the survey aggregates the entire research landscape and pays no particular attention to social science. Hence, useful indicators such as human capital, research production, infrastructure, diffusion and uptake of SSR cannot be obtained from this survey. The Doing Research Assessment (DRA) in Nigeria is thus aimed at systematically understanding how critical factors of the national research system impact its capacity to produce, diffuse and use SSR for its social and economic development. The research process employs a mixed method approach that involved three inter-related stages: a context analysis, a systematic mapping of stakeholders and a comprehensive data collection exercise. The main findings of the research include, among others, the following:
- Nigeria is the second largest producer of SSR in Africa, but the volume of production is relatively thin when viewed on a global scale.
- Women are underrepresented in the SSR system in Nigeria; for every female social science researcher, there are at least four men.
- Most of the research grants expended locally come from foreign sources.
- Social science research results can be produced and openly discussed without undue influence from the political atmosphere.
- Open access publishing is commonplace in the Nigerian SSR landscape; nearly half of the surveyed researchers publishing at least 40 percent of their output without any restrictions.
- Journals are published in the country across many university departments, but there is no database or accreditation system for local journals in Nigeria.
- Social science researchers in Nigeria do not communicate their research results extensively to policymakers and the general public, etc.
This report contains detailed information on innovative ways of doing research in Nigeria. Without doubt, this is novel. It thus gives me a great pleasure to commend this report to readers, particularly social science researchers and every other researcher who wants to carry out impactful research in Nigeria.
Engineer Professor Okechukwu Ukwuoma, PhD, FIIA, FNSChE, MNSE, KSM
