Authorship

Authors submitting to the East African Journal of Law and Community Governance must meet the accepted criteria for authorship. Specifically, an author must have:

Made a substantial contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the study;

Contributed to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data;

Participated in drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content;

Approved the final version of the manuscript (and any significantly revised version);

Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work, including the accuracy and integrity of the research and cited materials.

Exclusion of individuals who meet authorship criteria is not permitted. Likewise, guest or honorary authorship is strictly prohibited.

Individuals who contributed to the work but do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged in the Acknowledgements section, with a clear description of their contributions.

Responsibilities of the Corresponding Author

The corresponding author is responsible for:

Ensuring all listed authors have reviewed and approved the manuscript prior to submission

Managing all communication with the journal, including receiving editorial decisions and reviewer comments

Verifying that all data, materials, and code comply with transparency and reproducibility standards

Ensuring that original data and materials are properly preserved and accessible for verification

Confirming that all presented information accurately reflects the original data sources

Facilitating data/material sharing where possible

Ensuring all authors adhere to ethical and publication standards

Approving final proofs and ensuring completion of Conflict of Interest (COI) and licensing forms

Plagiarism Policy

The East African Journal of Law and Community Governance strictly upholds intellectual property rights and prohibits plagiarism in all forms.

Authors must submit original work and properly cite or quote all sources used

All submissions are screened using plagiarism detection software

Manuscripts identified as plagiarized during initial review will be immediately rejected

If plagiarism is detected after publication, an investigation will be conducted

Confirmed cases may result in formal retraction of the article

Conflict of Interest

All authors must disclose any financial, institutional, or personal relationships that could influence the research.

Disclosures must include funding sources, affiliations, and any potential bias

Related patents (applied or granted) must also be declared

Authors are required to sign a Conflict of Interest declaration before publication

Reviewers

Reviewers play a critical role in maintaining the quality of publications.

Reviewers must have no conflicts of interest with the authors or the research

Any potential conflicts must be disclosed to the editors

Editors will consider these disclosures in editorial decisions

Reviewing Editors

Members of the Editorial Board may assist in the initial evaluation of manuscripts. They are required to declare any conflicts of interest related to submissions under consideration.

Prior Publication Policy

The East African Journal of Law and Community Governance does not accept manuscripts that:

Have been previously published

Are under consideration elsewhere

Posting manuscripts on public platforms (including preprint servers) may be considered prior publication if it compromises originality.

Manuscripts under review should not be revised publicly in response to peer review

Preprint manuscripts should not be discussed with the media before publication

Authors are encouraged to consult the editorial office regarding acceptable preprint policies

Presentation of research at scientific meetings is permitted

Unpublished Data and Personal Communications

These should not be used to support major claims in the manuscript

Manuscripts citing “in press” work will be held until such work is publicly available

Research Standards and Transparency

The East African Journal of Law and Community Governance supports best practices in research transparency and reproducibility.

Citation Standards

All data, code, and methods must be properly cited using DOIs or other persistent identifiers.

Analytical Methods Transparency

The Materials and Methods section must provide sufficient detail for replication, including statistical analysis.

Design and Reporting Standards

Authors should:

Follow recognized reporting standards relevant to their discipline

Clearly state any deviations from these standards

Present results transparently with appropriate statistical support

Discuss study limitations openly

Ethical Compliance

For studies involving humans or animals, authors must provide evidence of ethical approval and compliance with relevant guidelines.

Copyright and License

Authors retain copyright of their work while granting the East African Journal of Law and Community Governance the right to publish and distribute it.

Publishing Fees

The East African Journal of Law and Community Governance publishes articles free of charge.

Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions

The journal is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record.

Minor errors that do not affect conclusions will be corrected and linked to the original article

In cases of serious concerns, an Expression of Concern may be issued

Articles may be retracted in cases of:

·       Proven research misconduct

·       Significant errors invalidating conclusions

·       Irreproducibility of results