Argentina Launches National Digital Repositories Portal and New Electronic Library Website, Open Access Law Also Approved

From the Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation:

[On November 20, 2013] the Secretariat of Scientific and Technological Articulation of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation [recently] launched the portal of the National System of Digital Repositories (SNRD), which provides open access to more than 25,000 digital objects organized in repositories currently adhered to the system.
The new website of the Electronic Library of Science and Technology was also presented in the meeting.
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The SNRD is an initiative of the Science portfolio aimed at creating an interoperable network of digital repositories from the establishment of policies, standards and protocols applicable to all members of the system. The model of open access to scientific – technological production means that users of this type of material may, without charge, read, download, copy, distribute, print, search or link the complete texts of scientific articles, and use them for legitimate purposes related to scientific research, education or public policy management, without economic, legal or techniques barriers other than those involving the Internet itself.
Currently, the SNRD has eight adhered repositories, four fully operational and four under implementation. Another nine repositories are under adhesion stage.
Moreover, the Electronic Library in addition to a new design, functionalities and a better organization of the information, incorporated the GEOScienceWorld , the GeoRef and the Lyell Collection to its records. These three resources of great value to the researchers specialized in Earth, Air and Water Sciences, are additional to the 40 resources already subscribed and accessible from the website, available for consultation and downloaded completely free of charge for library users from the authorized nodes. With the incorporation of these resources, it is estimated to cover over 90% of the specialized journals in the topic.

Read the Complete Announcement

More News from Argentina

Argentina’s Government Passes Open Access Law

[On November 13, 2o13] the National Senate unanimously passed the law, which provides that those institutions of the National System of Science and Technology which receive funding from the National State must create institutional digital repositories with free and open access where the national scientific and technological production will be reported.
The scientific information to be published in the digital repositories shall include technical and scientific papers, academic theses, journal articles, and other materials resulting from publicly-funded research activities either through their researchers, technologists, professors, postdoctoral fellows and masters and doctoral students. The Law also establishes the mandatory publication of primary research data after five years to be used by other researchers.
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The secretary of Scientific and Technological Articulation from the Ministry, Alejandro Ceccatto, said “the enactment of this Law is a response to the monopoly position of large international publishers which concentrate the publication of scientific research” and he added that “its aim is that publicly-funded scientific production be available.It is unacceptable that society can not access to the information resulting from research activities funded by the National State”.

More In, “Argentina Passes Open Access Act Making Publicly Funded Research Available” (via IP Watch)

The free and open access institutional digital repositories shall be compatible with international interoperability standards, and ensure free open access to the documents and research data (Article 4).
With the new law Argentina, clearly aligns with those countries advocating the so-called green route (self-archiving) to open access, making publications freely available after the end of an embargo period.
In accordance with new law, researchers, technologists, professors, postdoctoral fellows, graduate and PhD students whose research activity is financed by public funds, shall deposit or expressly authorise the submission of a copy of the final version of their scientific and technological production, published or accepted for publication, in the corresponding free and open access institutional digital repository within a period not exceeding six months.
In addition, primary research data should be deposited in the corresponding free and open access institutional digital repository within a period not exceeding five years from the date of collection (Article 5).

See Also: Read the Full Text of the Law (in Spanish)

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