2020 tables: Institutions - biological sciences

The 2020 tables are based on Nature Index data from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2019.

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# Institution Share 2018 Share 2019 Count 2019 Change in Adjusted Share* 2018–2019
1 University of Cape Town (UCT), South Africa 5.98 3.63 49 -39.7%
2 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits University), South Africa 2.43 2.37 23 -2.7%
3 Stellenbosch University (SU), South Africa 0.54 2.30 28 319.1%
4 University of Pretoria (UP), South Africa 1.44 1.83 24 25.9%
5 Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), Kenya 0.63 1.70 16 168.2%
6 University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), South Africa 2.15 1.57 28 -27.3%
7 Department of Science and Technology (DST), South Africa 0.26 1.50 13 480.0%
8 Addis Ababa University (AAU), Ethiopia 0.30 1.20 14 297.4%
9 National Museums of Kenya (NMK), Kenya 1.61 1.13 9 -30.3%
10 University of Johannesburg (UJ), South Africa 0.21 1.06 9 406.3%
11 National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), South Africa 1.32 1.06 14 -20.2%
12 International Center for Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Kenya 0.30 1.03 2 244.1%
13 Elephants Without Borders, Botswana – 1.00 1 N/A
14 University of Ghana, Ghana – 0.98 9 N/A
15 Kalahari Meerkat Project (KMP), South Africa 1.45 0.83 3 -43.2%
16 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique et Technologique (CNRST), Burkina Faso 0.16 0.80 3 413.2%
17 Centre for Research in Infectious Diseases (CRID), Cameroon – 0.71 2 N/A
18 University of Malawi, Malawi 0.59 0.70 12 18.1%
19 Africa Health Research Institute, South Africa 2.10 0.69 8 -67.3%
20 University of Buea (UB), Cameroon 0.01 0.67 7 12426.3%
21 Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Nigeria – 0.61 2 N/A
22 Research Foundation for Tropical Diseases and the Environment, Cameroon – 0.57 3 N/A
23 Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), Uganda 0.04 0.52 10 1165.2%
24 Mansoura University, Egypt 0.16 0.52 7 225.2%
25 National Research Centre (NRC), Egypt 0.24 0.51 12 106.6%
26 Save the Elephants, Kenya 0.52 0.50 1 -3.9%
26 Moi University, Kenya – 0.50 2 N/A
27 University of Science, Technique and Technologies of Bamako (USTTB), Mali 0.26 0.43 6 65.8%
28 Rhodes University (RU), South Africa 0.61 0.43 6 -30.5%
29 Uganda Ministry of Health, Uganda 0.15 0.38 1 142.4%
30 Polyclinique les Jasmins, Tunisia 0.42 0.36 3 -15.3%
31 Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Tanzania 0.11 0.36 2 219.7%
32 Nelson Mandela University (NMU), South Africa 1.12 0.35 3 -69.0%
33 University of La Réunion, Reunion 0.58 0.34 16 -40.9%
34 University of the Free State (UFS), South Africa 0.13 0.34 4 161.2%
35 South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), South Africa 0.12 0.32 3 164.6%
36 National University of Sciences, Technologies, Engineering and Mathematics (UNSTIM), Benin – 0.32 2 N/A
37 University of Bamako, Mali 0.17 0.32 2 81.6%
38 Medical Care Development Inc. (MCDI), Equatorial Guinea 0.27 0.31 1 12.2%
39 University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Benin 0.12 0.30 2 139.5%
40 Organization of Coordination for the Fight against Endemic Diseases in Central Africa (OCEAC), Cameroon 0.03 0.30 2 909.8%
41 Makerere University, Uganda 0.48 0.30 7 -38.9%
42 Assiut University, Egypt 0.02 0.28 3 1424.1%
43 Emirates Center for Wildlife Propagation (ECWP), Morocco – 0.28 1 N/A
43 Coucal Project, Tanzania – 0.28 1 N/A
44 Ifakara Health Institute, Tanzania 0.12 0.27 4 133.7%
45 University of Kinshasa (UNIKIN), Congo – 0.27 2 N/A
46 University of Venda (UNIVEN), South Africa 0.12 0.27 4 118.8%
47 University for Development Studies (UDS), Ghana – 0.26 2 N/A
48 Malawi Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Environment, Malawi – 0.25 1 N/A
48 Maendeleo ya Jamii (MYJ), Uganda – 0.25 1 N/A
48 African Development Bank (AfDB), Ivory Coast – 0.25 1 N/A
49 University of Antananarivo, Madagascar 0.50 0.24 2 -51.8%
50 University of Nairobi, Kenya 0.03 0.24 7 689.6%
51 Mohammed V University, Morocco 0.06 0.24 3 328.7%
52 National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), Tanzania 0.14 0.22 5 60.8%
53 University of Zambia, Zambia – 0.22 2 N/A
54 Centre de Recherche Biomédicale Espoir pour la Santé (EPLS), Senegal 0.15 0.22 1 48.8%
55 Cairo University (CU), Egypt 0.62 0.21 9 -65.7%
56 International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Kenya 0.69 0.20 1 -70.9%
57 National Heritage Institute (INP), Tunisia – 0.20 1 N/A
58 Al-Azhar University, Egypt 0.02 0.19 4 899.8%
59 Alexandria University, Egypt 0.15 0.19 9 24.2%
60 Botswana Ministry of Health, Botswana – 0.19 2 N/A
61 Beni-Suef University (BSU), Egypt – 0.18 4 N/A
62 African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), Uganda – 0.18 1 N/A
63 University of the Western Cape (UWC), South Africa 0.52 0.17 7 -67.5%
64 University of Oran, Algeria – 0.17 2 N/A
65 Centre for Conservation of African Resources, Animals, Communities, and Land use (CARACAL), Botswana – 0.17 1 N/A
65 Suez University, Egypt – 0.17 1 N/A
66 Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana 0.18 0.16 5 -11.8%
67 Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique – 0.16 2 N/A
68 South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), South Africa 0.48 0.16 13 -67.2%
69 University of Yaounde I (UYI), Cameroon 0.03 0.16 6 443.4%
70 International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Nigeria – 0.15 2 N/A
71 University of Namibia (UNAM), Namibia – 0.15 1 N/A
72 Nambibia Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), Namibia – 0.14 1 N/A
72 Centre National de Recherches sur l'Environnement, Madagascar – 0.14 1 N/A
73 University of Ibadan (UI), Nigeria 0.23 0.14 6 -41.0%
74 American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt 0.47 0.14 2 -71.1%
75 Tunis El Manar University (UTM), Tunisia 0.07 0.13 5 86.8%
76 National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Nigeria – 0.13 2 N/A
77 Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), Kenya 0.04 0.13 5 212.6%
78 Kintampo Health Research Centre (KHRC), Ghana 0.06 0.13 1 105.1%
78 Mkwawa University College of Education (MUCE), Tanzania – 0.13 1 N/A
78 NRF iThemba Laboratory for Accelerator-Based Sciences (IThemba Labs), South Africa – 0.13 1 N/A
79 National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Nigeria – 0.12 2 N/A
80 Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, South Africa – 0.12 2 N/A
81 South African National Parks, South Africa – 0.12 3 N/A
82 University of Lagos (Unilag), Nigeria 0.13 0.12 5 -7.9%
83 Center for Health Research Manhica (CISM), Mozambique – 0.12 1 N/A
84 University of Zimbabwe (UZ), Zimbabwe – 0.12 1 N/A
84 Kenya Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Kenya – 0.12 1 N/A
85 Mekelle University, Ethiopia – 0.11 2 N/A
86 The University of Dodoma, Tanzania 0.02 0.11 1 386.3%
86 Mauritius Ministry of Defence and Rodrigues, Mauritius – 0.11 1 N/A
86 Ethiopia Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture (MYSC), Ethiopia – 0.11 1 N/A
87 Cadi Ayyad University (UCA), Morocco – 0.11 2 N/A
88 CSIR‐Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG), Ghana – 0.11 1 N/A
89 National Museum of Tanzania, Tanzania 0.25 0.10 2 -59.9%
90 Ministre de la Recherche scientifique et de l'Innovation Technologique (MRSIT), Congo – 0.10 1 N/A
90 Faculty of Sciences of Tunis (FST), Tunisia – 0.10 1 N/A
91 Global Animal Health – Tanzania (GAH-T), Tanzania – 0.10 1 N/A
92 Université de Parakou, Benin – 0.09 2 N/A
93 Council for Geoscience (CGS), South Africa – 0.09 1 N/A
93 34th Regimental Military Hospital, Sierra Leone – 0.09 1 N/A
93 University Hospital of Kisangani (UH Kisangani), Congo – 0.09 1 N/A
94 Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA), Tanzania – 0.09 2 N/A
95 North-West University (NWU), South Africa 0.33 0.09 6 -73.9%
96 Kenya Ministry of Health, Kenya 0.13 0.08 1 -35.8%
96 Infectious Diseases Research Collaboration (IDRC), Uganda 0.82 0.08 1 -89.9%
96 Kenya Methodist University (KeMU), Kenya – 0.08 1 N/A
96 Windhoek Central Hospital, Namibia – 0.08 1 N/A
96 Eritrea Ministry of Health (MOH), Eritrea – 0.08 1 N/A
97 University of Nigerian Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Nigeria – 0.08 2 N/A
98 Mercy Hospital Research Laboratory, Sierra Leone – 0.08 2 N/A
99 Lagos State University (LASU), Nigeria 0.12 0.08 3 -33.3%
100 Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Morocco 0.05 0.08 1 58.1%

Footnote

Each year, the Nature Index publishes tables based on counts of high-quality research outputs in the previous calendar year. Users please note:

  1. The data behind the tables are based on a relatively small proportion of total research papers, they cover the natural sciences only and outputs are non-normalized (that is, they don’t reflect the size of the country or institution, or its overall research output).
  2. The Nature Index is one indicator of institutional research performance. The metrics of Count and Share used to order Nature Index listings are based on an institution’s or country’s publication output in 82 natural-science journals through 2022, in 2023 64 health-science journals were added to the Index. The 146 journals in the Nature Index were selected on reputation by an independent panel of leading scientists in their fields.
  3. Nature Index recognizes that many other factors must be taken into account when considering research quality and institutional performance; Nature Index metrics alone should not be used to assess institutions or individuals.
  4. Nature Index data and methods are transparent and available under a creative commons licence at nature.com/nature-index/.
  5. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The Nature Index database undergoes regular updating, corrections, adjustment of institutional hierarchies, and removal of retracted papers and thus the live website can differ from the frozen annual tables.

*The change in adjusted Share accounts for the small annual variation in the total number of articles in Nature Index journals. Share values have been adjusted to 2022 levels to calculate the percentage change. For more information on the adjustment, please see the Adjusted metric explainer.


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