Open Access Policy

JOECSA is a fully open-access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to maximizing the visibility, accessibility, and impact of ophthalmic research from Eastern, Central, and Southern Africa. All articles published in JOECSA are immediately and freely available to the global public without subscription barriers, paywalls, or registration requirements. virtusinterpress

Upon acceptance, authors retain copyright of their work and grant JOECSA a non-exclusive license to publish the article under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) or an equivalent open license approved by the editorial board. This license permits unrestricted reading, downloading, copying, distribution, printing, searching, linking, and text mining of the article, provided the original authors and source are properly cited. nature+1

JOECSA's open-access model supports the journal's mission to advance eye health equity by ensuring that clinicians, researchers, policymakers, and patients across Africa and beyond can access high-quality, peer-reviewed evidence without financial constraints. The journal does not charge article processing charges (APCs) to authors, in line with COECSA's commitment to supporting African researchers and reducing barriers to publication.

All published articles are deposited in PubMed Central (PMC) and other relevant repositories in compliance with funder mandates and international open-access standards. JOECSA ensures long-term digital preservation through OJS's archival features and partnerships with national and institutional repositories. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih+2

This open-access policy meets PMC's requirement for immediate, unrestricted electronic access and aligns with global best practices for scholarly communication, data transparency, and research dissemination.