Research Fairness Initiative opens a new era for equitable and impactful research collaborations

Abstract

Abstract The global collaborations and partnerships in research and science are evidently growing as an inevitable reality to tackle the mounting common global challenges. To overcome all of these challenges and create a balance between countries, institutions, stakeholders, and fields and to strengthen the research and science fair collaborations and boost institutional research capacities and potential, the Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED), developed an evidence-based tool, the Research Fairness Initiative (RFI). This paper investigates the RFI experience and application among the Middle East partners to propose better ways for better research and science collaborations. The COHRED team used two scientific methods to understand the region's stakeholders on research collaboration. 7 telecom. meetings were carried out with 7 academic institutions in the region and a literature review was implemented. Partners in the region were largely interested when the RFI was introduced to 7 academic institutions from five countries: Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. 3 have launched the work of the RFI and they will be potential RFI reporting institutions by submitting RFI report. Efforts seeking to build and strengthen research and scientific collaborations receive real attention and also evidently proves the lack of collaboration and partnership platforms and frameworks is a reality. The RFI was seen as a useful institutional instrument to develop the institution's capacity. The major reason behind this is that the institutions are lacking structural, technical, logistical, ethical, resource capacities to establish and develop regional and international research and scientific collaborations. Research collaboration is a global, regional, and national priority and RFI is evidently recognized as a realistic and forward-thinking tool in building collaborations based on fairness, integrity, impact, and transparency. Key messages RFI is one of the best institutional reporting tools that ensure equitable and fair research collaborations. Research collaboration is a global, regional, and national priority for the slow-developing countries (Middle East region).