TY - JOUR T1 - A priori registration of global health research—necessity or absurdity? JF - BMJ Global Health JO - BMJ Global Health DO - 10.1136/bmjgh-2021-006199 VL - 6 IS - 5 SP - e006199 AU - Ejemai Amaize Eboreime AU - Seye Abimbola Y1 - 2021/05/01 UR - http://gh.bmj.com/content/6/5/e006199.abstract N2 - An ongoing trend has sparked debates about the need to prospectively register all health research.1–3 Research registration involves obtaining a unique identification number, and registering the protocol of a study and any subsequent amendments, at recognised registries.4 Proponents of a priori registration argue that it improves transparency by tying researchers to an analysis plan, promotes efficiency in knowledge production by minimising unnecessary duplication and increases the availability and reliability of evidence for decision-making by ensuring that researchers publish their results, even when negative.3 4 However, others have argued that registration is unnecessary for some research and may even be counterproductive. But what is the implication of this debate for global health research?A priori registration gained widespread legitimacy in 2004, after journal editors under the platform of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) made registration a requirement for publication of clinical trials in journals.5 Within 5 years of the ICMJE policy on research registration, there was an approximately fivefold increase in the number of registered studies on ClinicalTrials.gov.6 Registration of clinical trials is now an ethical as well as a legal requirement in some jurisdictions like the USA.3 The World Medical Association’s Declaration of Helsinki expanded the scope of a priori research registration in 2013 by recommending that every study involving human subjects must be registered in a publicly accessible database before enlisting the first subject.7The call for a priori registration of other study types has been associated with a growing trend in the establishment and expansion of research registries; some with unique and overlapping methodological or intervention scopes.3 8 … ER -