Yadira Caballero Quintero
Editora

In 2002, Colciencias established a system for indexing the literature in science and technology, by which monitoring the dynamics of national scientific production is easily allowed. With this system, four categories for the classification of publications (A₁, A₂, B and C) are determined, based on the performance of certain parameters of scientific and editorial quality, accessibility and visibility. In recent years the number of indexed publications has increased, surpassing in this respect, other countries in the region such as Argentina and Chile; these publications, however, are of an endogamic nature, and, as a consequence, their visibility and impact are low. In the light of this problem Colciencias is designing a new model for measuring Colombian publications, in order to find a better international positioning.

With this new model , six categories are established, A₁ , A₂ , A₃ , A₄ , B and C , and editorial criteria are hardened, prioritizing the impact factor; it is also laid down that to reach the highest categories (A₁ and A₂) , publications should be kept in some of the two bibliographic citation indices supported by this entity, ISI and Scopus, but it was not taken into account that today in our country it is very difficult to belong to some of these indices, since there is no culture of citation of the local scientific production; the language in which editions are published is also a barrier, because, while English is the universal language there are no integrated networks of knowledge and the contents published are obsolescent rather soon. This situation is even worse, because the model will take into account publications issued in 2013 and earlier in its observation window, which do not meet the new conditions. The biggest impact, however, is caused by the absence of a time of transition to this model

So, the publications currently in a particular category will end up by being indexed at a lower one. This may also cause some journals now located in the lower ranks to tend to disappear from the national bibliographic index-Publindex.

The visibility and impact of the Colombian publications should be improved, but not under these so utopian conditions and a period of adjustment seems to be indispensable. Colciencias should rethink the conditions of each of the categories, so that, for example, the category A₁ corresponds to the Q₂ and Q₃, ISI or Scopus quartiles and so on, respecting the current four categories of the national bibliographic index,. It should perform an accompaniment to publications, with workshops of bibliometrics and good publishing practices that improve the quality, visibility and impact of these, thus achieving a progressive and constant change that allows everybody to adapt himself to these new conditions and meet the main purpose of scientific publications: that is, to make knowledge generated in the country transcend and be recognized internationally.