AJCA is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and takes all possible measures against publication malpractice. Our ethical guidelines are grounded in the best-practice principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and apply to authors, reviewers, editors, and the publisher alike.

Duties of Authors

• Originality: Authors must ensure their work is entirely original and that the work of others is appropriately cited.
• Data access: Authors should provide raw data for editorial review where requested and retain the data for a reasonable period.
• Multiple submissions: Manuscripts must not be submitted to more than one journal concurrently.
• Disclosure: All sources of funding, support, and conflicts of interest must be disclosed.
• Authorship: Only individuals who contributed significantly to the work should be listed as authors.

Duties of Reviewers

• Confidentiality: Manuscripts under review must be kept strictly confidential.
• Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively and constructively.
• Timeliness: Reviewers should complete assignments within the agreed timeframe or decline promptly.
• Conflict of interest: Any potential conflict should be declared to the editor without delay.

Duties of Editors

• Fairness: Editors evaluate manuscripts on intellectual merit without discrimination.
• Confidentiality: Editors must not disclose manuscript information to unauthorized parties.
• Decisions: Editorial decisions are based on review outcomes and journal policy.
• Corrections: Editors must publish corrections, clarifications, or retractions when necessary.

Plagiarism & Retraction

All manuscripts are screened for plagiarism using industry-standard detection software. Manuscripts with significant unacknowledged overlap with previously published work will be rejected, and the matter reported in line with COPE guidelines. Articles may be retracted where significant errors, duplicate publication, or evidence of misconduct are identified. Retraction notices are linked to the original article and clearly state the reason for retraction.

If you suspect a breach of publication ethics, please contact the editorial office at ajca@dou.edu.ng.