Lancet news: Elsevier reverses their decision to withdraw from HINARI in Bangladesh

Reproduced with permission of Neil Packenham-Walsh (HIFA2015)

"A Lancet editorial published online today reports that Elsevier has reversed their decision to withdraw from HINARI in Bangladesh. An accompanying comment by HIFA members Tracey Pérez Koehlmoos & Richard Smith calls on 'the big publishers and all other publishers to continue to provide free access to all of their journals in all of the 64 low-income countries signed up to the HINARI system'. Both are freely accessible on-line.

1. Editorial: Bad decisions for global health. Lancet.
Published online January 18, 2011 DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60066-4
http://download.thelancet.com/flatcontentassets/pdfs/S0140673611600664.pdf

2. Smith R. Big publishers cut access to journals in poor countries.
Published online January 18, 2011 DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60067-6

Richard Smith wrote an excellent article, and the full text can be
accessed at;
http://download.thelancet.com/flatcontentassets/pdfs/S0140673611600676.pdf

This is good news for Bangladesh, and indeed it is good news for all of us.

Congratulations to Tracey Koehlmoos and Richard Smith (former Editor of the BMJ), and Richard Horton (Editor of The Lancet) for their effective action to resolve this issue, and for their steadfast and continuing support for health information access in low-income countries.

Dr Neil Pakenham-Walsh MB,BS, DCH, DRCOG
Coordinator, HIFA2015
Co-director, Global Healthcare Information Network
16 Woodfield Drive
Charlbury, Oxfordshire OX7 3SE, UK
Tel: +44 (0)1608 811338
Email: neil.pakenham-walsh@ghi-net.org"