University librarians across Nigeria have raised serious concerns over the growing spread of predatory journals, misinformation, and unethical publishing practices associated with the increasing adoption of open access publishing within the nation’s higher education sector.
The concerns were raised during the 114th Bi-Annual Conference and General Meeting of the Association of University Librarians of Nigerian Universities held at the National Universities Commission between May 4 and 7, 2026. The conference brought together librarians, scholars, policymakers, researchers, and development partners to deliberate on the future of academic libraries in the digital era.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the conference, participants acknowledged that open access publishing has significantly improved global knowledge sharing, increased research visibility, and strengthened scholarly communication across universities and research institutions. However, they warned that the rapid expansion of the model has also opened the door to exploitative and unethical publishing systems.
The association specifically expressed concern over the proliferation of predatory journals, describing them as platforms that exploit researchers through questionable peer-review processes, poor editorial standards, and deceptive publication practices. According to the librarians, the growing trend threatens the credibility of academic research and weakens confidence in scholarly communication within Nigerian universities.
Participants also warned against the misuse of emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, in academic publishing. The communiqué noted that while AI tools offer opportunities for innovation and efficiency in research processes, their improper deployment could encourage misinformation, plagiarism, manipulated scholarship, and compromised academic integrity.
The conference further observed that university libraries are gradually evolving beyond their traditional roles as book repositories into strategic centres for knowledge management, digital preservation, research dissemination, and scholarly communication support. Delegates stressed that modern libraries must embrace innovation, digital transformation, open science, and AI-enabled services to remain relevant within the global knowledge economy.
Despite the opportunities presented by open access publishing, the association identified several obstacles hindering effective implementation in Nigerian universities. These include poor ICT infrastructure, unstable electricity supply, inadequate funding, weak institutional policies, low digital literacy, and insufficient support for article processing charges required by many international journals.
The librarians maintained that many universities still struggle to establish sustainable digital repositories and modern electronic library systems capable of supporting global research accessibility. They warned that without significant investment in technology and digital infrastructure, Nigerian universities risk falling behind in international scholarly visibility and competitiveness.
The association also reaffirmed the importance of professionalism in academic library administration, insisting that only qualified and certified librarians registered with the Librarians Registration Council of Nigeria should be appointed as university librarians and heads of academic libraries.
According to the communiqué, the appointment of unqualified individuals into library leadership positions undermines professional standards, weakens institutional efficiency, and affects the overall quality of academic support services provided to students and researchers.
Participants subsequently called on the Tertiary Education Trust Fund and other relevant government agencies to strengthen support for broadband connectivity, digital repositories, open access infrastructure, and sustainable scholarly communication systems across tertiary institutions nationwide.
The association also urged Nigerian universities to develop institutional policies promoting ethical research practices, responsible scholarly communication, and the proper use of artificial intelligence in academic work. It stressed that stronger regulations and awareness campaigns are necessary to protect researchers, students, and institutions from exploitative publishing schemes.
As part of its resolutions, the conference resolved to deepen collaboration among university libraries in Nigeria through shared digital infrastructure, open access consortia, and cooperative research initiatives aimed at improving research accessibility and strengthening digital scholarship.
The communiqué concluded that university libraries remain central to teaching, learning, research, and innovation within higher institutions. The association therefore called on stakeholders to collectively invest in technologically driven and globally competitive academic libraries capable of supporting Nigeria’s long-term educational and research development goals.
