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Cambridge University Press has been working to improve the lives of people living in less economically developed parts of the world for nearly 500 years.

Since the Press was founded in 1534, we have been sending school books, text books, journals and religious texts to schools, libraries and places of worship throughout Africa, Asia, Australasia and the Americas.

Today, we are still committed to providing high-quality educational and research material to the developing world – inspired by our mission to advance learning, knowledge and research worldwide.

Cambridge works with several international aid programmes to secure sustainable access and use of research information and knowledge for people living in developing countries.

Below is a list of the donation schemes through which journals and books are currently available.

We build strong relationships with the people running each scheme and provide additional support to the institutions registered with these programmes. Please note that Agora, Ardi, Hinari and Oare – while existing independently – are also known as components of the Research 4 Life initiative.


Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU)
The Association of Commonwealth Universities aims to improve access to print journals for its member universities in Africa. Through this, Cambridge Journals are available in print form at low cost.

AGORA (Access to Global Online Research in Agriculture)
Developing world institutions can access Cambridge agriculture journals online via AGORA, which was set up in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

The African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
AIMS is a project to promote mathematics and science in Africa that Cambridge has supported since 2010. This support has been through the donation of print books and, for the first time this year, through a combination of digital content from books and journals.

ARDI (Access to Research for Development and Innovation)
Developing world institutions can gain access to Cambridge scientific and technical journals via ARDI, set up in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

BookAid
BookAid is the UK's leading book donation charity supporting the development of libraries in sub-Saharan Africa. We regularly provide books to this scheme. In 2014 (the latest BookAid report available), the estimated value of books donated by Cambridge University Press was £108,951. One significant recipient of this was the African Educational Trust (AET) in Somaliland.

eIFL(Electronic Information for Libraries)
More than 180 Cambridge journals are available online to developing countries via the eIFL initiative. This scheme is split between some countries that receive free access to content and others that pay a reduced cost.

HINARI (Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative)
Developing world institutions can access Cambridge healthcare journals online via HINARI, which was set up in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO).

INASP (International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications)
All Cambridge journals – and, for the first time in 2016, a number of ebook collections – are available through the Programme for Enhancement of Research Information (PERI) scheme. This is administered by INASP, which works with 21 partner countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America to 'improve access, production and use of research information and knowledge, so that countries are equipped to solve their development challenges.'

Journals Donation Project (JDP)
Cambridge journals in print form are available to developing countries through the Journals Donations Project (JDP). There is a particular emphasis on countries that have suffered from political or economic deprivation.

OARE (Online Access to Research in the Environment)

Developing world institutions can access Cambridge environmental journals online via OARE, which was set up in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

You can also find out more about access in the developing world to ebooks and journals in our leaflet here.