5.18.2007 - 08:00am ET

(CSRwire) GENEVA- May 18, 2007 – HINARI Access to Research Initiative from the World Health Organization, today announced the registration of the 2500th institution to access free or low cost online medical journals and databases. These publicly funded and non-profit institutions include universities, medical schools, hospitals and research institutes drawn from 109 developing countries. Through HINARI, they are able to access 3,750 journals online from 100 diverse publishers covering medicine, nursing and related health and social sciences.

HINARI facilitates teaching, research and the delivery of health care in the developing world while helping researchers in these countries to get their work published and made available to a wider international audience. Countries with the highest number of registered institutions include Viet Nam (153), Nigeria (125), Peru (117), Bangladesh (116), Ukraine (114), and Colombia (108). Access is free for institutions in countries with a GNP of less than $1000 per year while there is a small charge in countries with a GNP of $1000-$3000. The income generated is used for local training initiatives.

"2500 institutions in the developing world is a true milestone and we’re delighted to reach it so soon after the initiative’s launch," said Barbara Aronson, Program Manager of the HINARI initiative at the World Health Organization, "Access to these general and specialist medical journals is already making a real difference to research and the drive to find local solutions to local health issues. A perfect example of this is of a researcher in Madagascar using HINARI to conduct a comprehensive study of the pharmacological potential of indigenous plants."

"Information isolation is a thing of the past," noted Margaret Ngwira of Kamuzu College, the nursing faculty of the University of Malawi, "The past months have brought great changes to our College with the combined opportunity of HINARI access, and the other vital ingredient–fast Internet through [satellite]. The two are revolutionizing access to information”. Recalling a recent instance from Kamazu college, "One young lecturer seeking entry into an MSc programmed had to prepare a paper linked to sexually transmitted diseases at very short notice. We had an intensive training session with HINARI. I am happy to report that she has been admitted to Malawi College of Medicine to study for a Masters in Public Health."

The HINARI website, http://www.who.int/hinari, is the main port-of-call for the thousands of librarians, scientists, students, medics and healthcare researchers in the world’s poorest countries who benefit from free access to the leading international biomedical peer-reviewed journals and other information resources.

About HINARI
HINARI Access to Research Initiative was launched in January 2002. The initiative is managed by the World Health Organization in partnership with The International Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical publishers, 100 publishers and Yale University Library. HINARI provides access to a collection of over 3800 journals and other information resources covering medicine, nursing and related health and social sciences. HINARI is making an important contribution to achievement of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals by providing essential information for life to those who need it most. For more information, visit: http://www.who.int/hinari

For more information please contact: