1-Open Access Policy

1.1     Preamble

Open Access (OA) stands as a cornerstone in advancing scientific knowledge, education, innovation, and public engagement. By removing access barriers and enabling unrestricted online availability of scholarly work, Open Access supports equitable participation in the global exchange of ideas.

As access to scholarly literature becomes increasingly costly and limited, Open Access offers a transformative solution that benefits researchers, educators, policy makers, and the public alike. It promotes transparency, fosters collaboration, and accelerates the translation of research into real-world solutions.

The Business & Economic Review (BER) establishes this Open Access Policy to reinforce its commitment to openness, knowledge equity, and academic excellence. The policy ensures that intellectual contributions from BER’s authors are made freely accessible to maximize visibility, reuse, and long-term impact.

Licenses that allow authors to define how others may use their work, from full reuse (CC BY).

1.2     Scope of the Policy

This policy applies to:

  • All authors, researchers, editors, and contributors affiliated with BER or submitting to the journal.
  • All scholarly outputs funded by public or private grants requiring Open Access dissemination.
  • The following research outputs:
    • Peer-reviewed journal articles
    • Conference papers
    • Technical reports and working papers
    • Research datasets and supplementary materials

1.3    Policy Provision

1.3.1 Deposit Requirements

Authors are required to deposit an electronic version of the final peer-reviewed manuscript into an institutional or subject repository:

  • Upon acceptance, or
  • No later than 12 months from the date of publication (unless funder policy requires earlier deposit).

1.3.2 Supported Versions

Preferred versions for deposit include:

  • Author Accepted Manuscript: Post-peer-review version prior to publisher formatting.
  • Version of Record: Final published version, if permitted under the publisher's terms.

1.3.3 Licensing

  • Authors are encouraged to apply a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY)
  • Authors should retain rights through publisher agreements or author addenda to meet these requirements.

1.3.4 Data Sharing

  • Associated research data should be deposited in recognized repositories.
  • Data must comply with FAIR principles:
    • Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
  • Authors must respect ethical, legal, and contractual obligations in data handling.

1.4    Implementation and Support

1.4.1 Training and Capacity Building

  • BER, in collaboration with partner institutions, will offer workshops, online resources, and support materials on:
  • Open Access practices
  • Copyright and licensing
  • Repository submission
  • Funder compliance

1.4.2 Publisher Negotiations

  • BER supports institutional efforts to negotiate transformative agreements (e.g., read-and-publish models) with publishers to lower access and publishing costs while advancing Open Access goals.

1.5    Roles and Responsibilities

1.5.1 Researchers and Authors

  • Ensure timely deposit of scholarly works.
  • Retain rights to make work openly available.
  • Comply with funder and publisher Open Access requirements.
  • Seek support from the editorial team or affiliated institutions for licensing and deposit.

1.5.2 Editors and Editorial Board

  • Enforce adherence to BER’s Open Access policy.
  • Promote awareness among authors and peer reviewers.
  • Ensure license clarity for each published article.

1.5.3 Library and Repository Managers

  • Maintain repository systems and metadata quality.
  • Provide guidance on copyright, deposit policies, and publisher permissions.
  • Monitor deposit activity and compliance.

1.5.4 Research Office and Administration

  • Align internal research strategies with Open Access mandates.
  • Coordinate Open Access initiatives and training programs.
  • Track OA outputs for funder reporting and impact assessment.

1.6    Legal and Ethical Considerations

  • All deposits must respect copyright, intellectual property rights, and privacy laws.
  • Works containing confidential, sensitive, or proprietary data may be exempted or require restricted access.
  • Authors are solely responsible for ensuring rights clearance prior to publication and deposit.

1.7    Monitoring and Compliance

  • BER will monitor policy implementation via annual audits.
  • Compliance reports will include:
  • Deposit rates
  • Repository access metrics
  • Non-compliance will be addressed through:
  • Author outreach and reminders
  • Corrective guidance
  • Institutional reporting (if needed)

1.8    Review and Amendments

  • This policy will be reviewed every three years or sooner if required by changes in legal frameworks, funding mandates, or publishing standards.
  • Revisions will be made in consultation with authors, editors, and institutional stakeholders and will be published on the BER website.

1.9    Benefits of Open Access

BER recognizes that Open Access provides numerous advantages for individuals and society:

  • Increased visibility and readership beyond academic circles.
  • Higher citation rates and broader academic engagement.
  • Global accessibility, supporting inclusion across geographies and income levels.
  • Public return on investment for publicly funded research.

1.10           Institutional Commitment

As a journal, BER is committed to:

  • Fostering a transparent, inclusive, and sustainable Open Access environment.
  • Collaborating with global and regional partners to advance OA best practices.
  • Supporting research integrity, digital preservation, and educational equity.
  • Leading by example in promoting open scholarship, open data, and responsible publishing.