Editor’s Note: Today’s post is by Ning Zhang and Gareth Dyke. Ning is the founder and CEO of TopEdit Author Services. Gareth is Academic Director at Reviewer Credits GmbH (Berlin). 

China’s Science and Technology Journal Excellence Action Plan (the EAP) has entered its second phase, sparking significant debate in academic and publishing circles. While this initiative aims to enhance the quality, visibility, and global competitiveness of Chinese scientific journals (including developing new ones), its implementation has stirreddiscussion, especially within the life sciences community, both in China and around the world. This has, in part, been due to the notable exclusion of some Chinese journals perceived to be successful, at least amongst researchers.

Here, as nothing has so far been written about the second stage of China’s EAP in English, we examine its implications, its funding framework, and what it means for Chinese scientific journals, researchers, and the broader international academic publishing community.

What is China’s Excellence Action Plan?

Launched in 2019, the Excellence Action Plan is a government-led initiative designed to elevate the global stature of Chinese academic journals. The program addresses longstanding challenges in China’s publishing sector, such as insufficient international visibility, overreliance on foreign journals, and a lack of competitive domestic titles. Chinese researchers, it is noted, have long had to rely on international journals if they are to meet their publishing benchmarks, including those with the highest possible Impact Factors for promotion and recognition. This requirement explains the explosive growth in China of some dedicated Open Access publishers like MDPI who offer fast potential publication in journals with Impact Factors. The EAP obviously seeks to shift this emphasis to Chinese-owned journals.

The second phase of the EAP, announced in November 2024, builds on the successes and lessons of the first phase. Of 463 selected projects, 50 journals were classified as “English Leading Journals”; in other words, Chinese-owned journals published in the English language considered by the government to potentially globally competitive. Each of these “leading journals” will receive up to 1.5 million RMB per year for five years (> $200,000 USD per year in support to grow). Another 150 were designated as “English Echelon Journals” which means they are more middle of the road in a global context and will receive capped annual funding of 500,000 RMB (ca. $70,000 USD). 50 newly founded English journals were selected as high starting point journals. Besides English journals, 200 journals publishing in Chinese were also funded, aligning with the motivation of “publishing papers in China”. Besides funding individual journals, the EAP supports 13 state-owned publishers with the maximum support reaching 24 million RMB over five years. The aim here is to foster big publishers in-country given the majority of journals in China are run individually. In total, the fund available for journal support under this program is 1.2 billion RMB (ca. $166 million USD) for the next five years. This tiered approach reflects the Chinese government’s prioritization of resources toward journals that are most likely to achieve global influence.

The Rationale Behind the Excellence Action Plan

The Excellence Action Plan addresses a critical issue for Chinese researchers: reliance on foreign journals for publication. For decades, Chinese scientists have faced the “two ends abroad” dilemma: publishing research in international journals while paying high fees to access foreign databases and article processing charges (APCs) to open access journals. This dynamic not only places a financial burden on Chinese institutions but also limits the global visibility of China’s academic contributions.

Reports such as the 2024 Shanghai English Science and Technology Journal Development Report illustrate the disparity. While China has 514 Science Citation Index-indexed journals, the U.S. boasts 5,923 and the U.K. 4,625. Bridging this gap with journals owned outside China is one core goal of the Excellence Action Plan.

According to one anonymous editor from China, this initiative emphasizes aligning journal development with disciplinary growth. “Only when the journal is strong can the discipline be strong,” she argues, highlighting the need for journals to focus on cutting-edge research and foster meaningful collaborations with leading scientists.

Progress and Achievements

Since its inception, the Excellence Action Plan has made significant strides in improving Chinese journals, including fueling a rapid growth in Impact Factors. In 2018, only four Chinese journals had an Impact Factor above 10, and none surpassed 20. By 2022, 43 journals exceeded an Impact Factor of 10, with 15 surpassing 20. In 2022, 154 journals were indexed in the top quarter (Q1) of their subject category in Clarivate’s Journal Citation Reports. 99 of 154 were newly indexed.

The Excellence Action Plan has also led to increased global visibility for Chinese journals. Those like Cell Research are included in international indexes including the Science Citation Index (SCI), PubMed, and MEDLINE, demonstrating the program’s ability to raise standards. The first phase of the Excellence Action Plan also fostered partnerships with a number of international publishers. For example, among 514 SCI-indexed journals owned by Chinese Institutions, 96 journals are published with Springer Nature, 46 with Elsevier, and 39 with Wiley, improving the credibility and reach of Chinese journals.

However, critics caution against over-reliance on Impact Factors as a measure of success. While the rise in Impact Factors signals progress, it also risks reinforcing a narrow, metrics-driven approach to evaluating journal quality.

Challenges and Controversies

Despite its successes, the Excellence Action Plan faces several challenges, including ongoing funding disparities. The gap in funding between “Leading” and “Echelon” journals raises concerns about resource allocation. Cell Research, which already demonstrates global excellence, was expected to be chosen as a ‘Leading Journal’ and thus funded at a level of 1.5 million RMB/year for five years. However, it was classified unexpectedly as an ‘Echelon Journal’. This precipitated a great deal of discussion within the research community and, as things stand, little explanation as to why this decision was taken has so far been offered by the EAP committee.

Some have also argued that the Excellence Action Plan relies too heavily on Impact Factors. While these are a useful benchmark, they cannot fully capture a journal’s influence or quality. Critics argue that the program risks equating high metrics with research excellence.

Regarding this hot topic, the EAP office specifically stated that the Impact Factor is not the most important factor as before. The office also stated that they put journals published with Chinese publishers like KeAi, cofounded by China Science Publishing & Media and Elsevier, or SciOpen, hosted by Tsinghua University, as a priority because they support more group journals, since most journals are run on their own and belong to different societies or institutions.

Finally, and most critically, many Chinese journals still struggle to attract international submissions, limiting their global influence. As one practitioner noted, most citations and submissions for Chinese journals come from domestic authors.

The Broader Implications for International Publishing

China’s Excellence Action Plan has implications that extend far beyond the borders of the People’s Republic. As Chinese scientific journals improve in quality and visibility, they are poised to become formidable competitors to established international titles. Leading foreign journals may face growing competition for submissions and readership from emerging Chinese titles.

We also note that the Excellence Action Plan opens avenues for partnerships between Chinese and international publishers, particularly in fields like open access and multilingual publishing. These have yet to be fully, or even partially realized. Greater visibility for Chinese journals will reshape global research priorities, especially in disciplines where China leads, such as artificial intelligence and renewable energy.