Plagiarism Policy

Africa Journal of Health and Environmental Law (AJHEL)

Promoting Health, Protecting the Environment, Advancing Justice and Sustainability in Africa

The Africa Journal of Health and Environmental Law (AJHEL) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity, originality and responsible scholarly communication. The Journal considers plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct serious violations of publication ethics.

AJHEL requires all authors to ensure that manuscripts submitted for publication are original, properly referenced and free from plagiarism, fabrication, falsification and other forms of academic misconduct.

1. PURPOSE OF THE POLICY

This policy establishes AJHEL's standards concerning:

  • Plagiarism;
  • Self-plagiarism;
  • Text recycling;
  • Duplicate publication;
  • Unattributed use of ideas;
  • Data plagiarism;
  • Image and figure plagiarism;
  • Fabricated references;
  • Citation manipulation; and
  • Other forms of academic misconduct.

The policy applies to authors, editors, reviewers and other individuals involved in the publication process.

2. DEFINITION OF PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism is the presentation of another person's words, ideas, data, arguments, findings, images or other intellectual contributions as one's own without appropriate acknowledgement.

Plagiarism may occur intentionally or unintentionally.

Examples include copying material without citation, inadequate paraphrasing, presenting another researcher's findings as original, or reproducing substantial material without appropriate permission or attribution.

3. FORMS OF PLAGIARISM

AJHEL recognises several forms of plagiarism.

3.1 Direct Plagiarism

Copying words, sentences, paragraphs or other material from another source without quotation and appropriate citation.

3.2 Mosaic or Patchwork Plagiarism

Combining phrases, sentences or ideas from multiple sources without appropriate acknowledgement or sufficiently original expression.

3.3 Inadequate Paraphrasing

Changing only a few words or rearranging the structure of another author's work while presenting it as independent writing.

Proper paraphrasing requires both substantial re-expression and appropriate citation.

3.4 Idea Plagiarism

Using another researcher's original idea, argument, theory, interpretation or conceptual contribution without appropriate acknowledgement.

3.5 Data Plagiarism

Using another researcher's:

  • Dataset;
  • Survey results;
  • Statistical findings;
  • Research observations;
  • Tables; or
  • Other research data

without appropriate acknowledgement or permission where required.

3.6 Figure and Image Plagiarism

Using another person's:

  • Photograph;
  • Figure;
  • Chart;
  • Diagram;
  • Map;
  • Illustration; or
  • Other visual material

without appropriate attribution and permission where required.

3.7 Translation Plagiarism

Translating another person's work into another language and presenting the translated material as original without acknowledging the original source.

3.8 Source Misrepresentation

Citing a source as supporting a claim when the source does not actually contain or support the stated information.

4. SELF-PLAGIARISM AND TEXT RECYCLING

Authors must not substantially reproduce their own previously published work as though it were new research.

Self-plagiarism may include:

  • Reusing substantial sections of previously published articles;
  • Republishing substantially the same research;
  • Reusing data without appropriate disclosure;
  • Reusing substantial text without acknowledgement; or
  • Presenting a previously published study as an entirely new contribution.

Limited reuse of standard methodological language may be acceptable where appropriate, particularly when properly referenced.

5. DUPLICATE AND REDUNDANT PUBLICATION

AJHEL does not permit simultaneous or duplicate publication of substantially the same research.

Authors must not submit the same manuscript to multiple journals simultaneously.

Where related publications exist, authors must disclose them to the Editorial Office.

Legitimate secondary publication may be considered in exceptional circumstances where appropriate disclosure, permission and attribution requirements are satisfied.

6. CITATION REQUIREMENTS

Authors must appropriately acknowledge the sources of:

  • Direct quotations;
  • Ideas;
  • Arguments;
  • Theories;
  • Data;
  • Statistics;
  • Legal authorities;
  • Research findings;
  • Tables;
  • Figures;
  • Images; and
  • Other intellectual contributions.

Citations must be sufficiently accurate to allow readers to identify and verify the original source.

7. LEGAL SCHOLARSHIP AND PLAGIARISM

Because AJHEL publishes legal scholarship, authors must take particular care when reproducing:

  • Statutory provisions;
  • Judicial decisions;
  • Legal arguments;
  • Treaty provisions;
  • Constitutional provisions;
  • Government policies;
  • Regulatory documents; and
  • Legal commentary.

Quotations from legal authorities must be appropriately identified and cited.

Authors must not present another scholar's legal interpretation or analysis as their own.

8. HEALTH AND MEDICAL RESEARCH

Authors must properly acknowledge sources of:

  • Clinical information;
  • Epidemiological findings;
  • Health statistics;
  • Medical research;
  • Patient-related research;
  • Public-health evidence; and
  • Scientific findings.

Fabricating or misrepresenting medical evidence is considered serious research misconduct.

9. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH

Authors must properly acknowledge sources of:

  • Environmental datasets;
  • Climate data;
  • Pollution measurements;
  • Biodiversity information;
  • Geographic information;
  • Environmental assessments;
  • Scientific findings; and
  • Environmental impact studies.

Environmental data must not be presented as original where it was obtained from another researcher, organisation or database.

10. AI-GENERATED CONTENT

The use of generative AI does not remove the author's responsibility for originality.

Authors must not use AI to:

  • Disguise copied material;
  • Paraphrase plagiarised material for the purpose of avoiding detection;
  • Generate false citations;
  • Fabricate references;
  • Misrepresent another author's ideas as original; or
  • Circumvent plagiarism screening.

AI-assisted manuscripts remain subject to AJHEL's Generative AI Policy.

11. ORIGINALITY SCREENING

AJHEL may screen submitted manuscripts using appropriate plagiarism and originality-detection tools.

Screening may occur:

  • Before peer review;
  • During peer review;
  • During revision;
  • Before publication; or
  • After publication where concerns arise.

The Editorial Board may use similarity reports as one component of its assessment.

12. SIMILARITY SCORE

A similarity percentage does not automatically establish plagiarism.

Legitimate similarities may arise from:

  • Common terminology;
  • Legal provisions;
  • Standard technical language;
  • Research methodology;
  • Article titles;
  • References;