Scientific and academic journals in the Philippines: status and challenges

Abstract

As of July 2015, 28 Philippine scientific journals out of 777 Philippine scholarly journals are listed in the master journal lists of Thomson Reuters (TR), Scopus, or both. Of these scientific journals, thirteen are published by universities, two by government institutions, ten by professional organizations and three by private for-profit or non-profit organizations. Nineteen of these journals are over 25 years old, with the Philippine Journal of Science and the Philippine Agricultural Scientist being the oldest at 108 and 103 years in publication, respectively. Scientific journals in the Philippines, like other countries in Asia, face various increasing challenges. Among these challenges are getting listed in the master journal lists and citation databases of TR, Scopus, or both; obtaining funding; reaching a wider readership; attaining higher impact factors; competing for papers; and increased submission of manuscripts from outside the country. To promote the improvement of local journals, the National Academy of Science and Technology Philippines has given outstanding publication awards for scientific papers published in local journals for the past two decades. The Philippine Commission on Higher Education has accredited local journals that are included in either TR and Scopus journal master lists, and provides monetary incentives to accredited journals. Training workshops on scientific article writing and editorial management are conducted for researchers and editors by universities and professional and government organizations. A network of Philippine science editors has been formed to work together to upgrade and modernize selected journals to international standards.