Image: Grace Gay for Research Professional News
Government to promote fair data principles and open access to publications as default
Spain’s government has approved the country’s first national strategy on promoting open science, including measures for improving the dissemination of research results and increasing their reproducibility.
Open science practices are ones that make the methods and results of research openly available for scrutiny and reuse, in an attempt to make the research more reliable and impactful.
Spain’s Ministry of Science and Innovation said on 3 May that the strategy for activities from 2023 to 2027, which it designed with the Ministry of Universities, would be implemented starting with a budget of €23.8 million for 2023.
Science minister Diana Morant highlighted the strategy’s benefits for society, while universities minister Joan Subirats stressed its support for non-commercial publishing models.
Main objectives
One objective is to promote the management of research data using the principles that data should be findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable.
Another is to make access to the results of publicly funded research openly and freely available by default, while the strategy is also intended to help bring about improvements to research assessment.
The ministry said its measures were in line with policies promoted by the EU.
It added: “These measures are aimed at strengthening the quality, transparency and reproducibility of scientific activity in Spain, improving dissemination among scientific personnel and transfer to society.”