National Centre for Innovation joins ORCID

AMMAN — The National Centre for Innovation (NCI), affiliated with the Higher Council for Science and Technology (HCST), has signed an agreement through Jordan Open Innovation Platform (JOIP) with the ORCID. 

Upon the agreement, the JOIP will be linked with the ORCID database to have an automatic and bidirectional information exchange, according to a HCST statement.

The agreement will build the main structure of the JOIP to link all the researchers and innovators in Jordan by providing them with a unique international identity.

It will also build a verified, organised and automatically updated database for researchers and innovators in Jordan based on reliable data from international indexes such as CrossRef, Scopus, and others, the statement said. 

In addition, the agreement helps adopt and apply a national identification system for researchers and innovators in Jordan who uses the JOIP. This system will be based on the ORCID database, making it locally and internationally recognised, linking all innovation, research and development activities.

The HCST is the first Jordanian institution to obtain ORCID membership and join hundreds of international institutions and organisations affiliated with this non-profit organisation. 

The ORCID is considered a significant part of the broader digital infrastructure for information exchange concerning scientific research, development and innovation activities in the international arena, the statement said. 

The agreement was signed by Dia-Eddin Arafah, secretary general of the HCST, and Chris Shillum, executive director of the ORCID. 

Arafah said that this agreement is considered a first step towards achieving the NCI’s objectives for being the national reference and the leading provider of information related to research and innovation in Jordan. 

Shillum said that the agreement will strengthen the organisation's mission in supporting and increasing cooperation in the scientific and technological fields.

The NCI was established by joint funding between the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation and the Middle East and North Africa Transition Fund, under the supervision of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.