The scientific article writing training workshop, aimed at boosting the chances of being published in international peer-reviewed journals, held at Africarice's offices in Cotonou (Benin) from 15 to 19 December, was organized within the DIVECOSYS platform in partnership for research and training, headed by the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and twelve other institutions in West Africa.

The workshop was the second held since the platform was launched. It was led by the editorial coordinator of the CIRAD journal Bois et forêts des tropiques. The eighteen participants were young PhD students and experienced CIRAD researchers from Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali and Senegal.

By the end of the workshop, the participants were able to:

• apply the principles of scientific writing to their planned articles;
• satisfy the requirements of editors-in-chief of scientific journals;
• exercise critical judgement when constructing and re-reading articles.

The workshop was in French, and centred on the participants' planned articles in either French or English. Based on a reading of draft articles written by the participants, the rules for writing the various parts of a scientific article were applied. A collective analysis from the point of view of a journal reviewer was used as a way of honing the participants' critical judgement. The importance of the peer assessment process was looked at, along with recent changes in the publishing world. The emphasis was also placed on the importance of publishing original results, and on monitoring scientific literature in order to produce well documented articles. By the end of the workshop, the participants were capable of writing a scientific article and discussing it with their co-authors and thesis supervisors.