Coverage and metadata availability of African publications in OpenAlex: A comparative analysis

This paper analyzes OpenAlex‘s coverage and metadata availability for African-based publications compared to Scopus, Web of Science (WoS), and African Journals Online (AJOL). OpenAlex is noted for its broader inclusion of the humanities, non-English languages, and research from the Global South, promoting diversity and inclusivity in science. The findings reveal that OpenAlex offers the most extensive coverage of African research publications. While OpenAlex excels in providing publication and author information, it lags behind in affiliations, references, and funder data, especially for publications not indexed in Scopus or WoS.