Most mental health researchers in Nigeria, like their counterparts elsewhere are constantly under a recognisable pressure to "publish or
perish", since it is a prerequisite for progress in the academic settings in which they are. Thus, research constitutes the essential third leg of a
tripod on which promotions, appointments and other career issues are based; the others being teaching and clinical duties. Ironically, the system in many developing nations, in particular Nigeria, expects high productivity in publications in spite of heavy clinical burden , understaffing, gross under funding and poor supportive infrastructures. Faced with these challenges, committed researchers, as part of their creative strategies endeavour to improve their international visibility in the hope of attracting collaborative research and donor aided funding, which when judiciously utilised, lead to career enhancement. International visibility often requires publishing in journals with high impact factors, almost all of which are western based and with well defined priorities, often not related to the needs of the reading audience in the developing nations. In any case the reading audience mostly have no access even to articles from data obtained in their settings. This editorial seeks to explore what strategies journals in Nigeria and similar countries can adopt to attract more local and international citation of articles published in them.
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