Remunerating Researchers from the Global South: A Source of Academic Prostitution?
Remunerating Researchers from the Global South: A Source of Academic Prostitution?
While researchers from the Global North are granted a guaranteed salary, risk funds, and various forms of insurance, the same cannot be said for research assistants. The remunerative discrepancy between these two groups is a form of discrimination. It creates an imbalance between researchers from the Global North and those from the Global South – even as the two groups work together.
Besides salary, there is also the question of the research assistant’s working conditions. A lack of adequate financial resources for organising one’s work and tackling unforeseen challenges can make research activities very difficult, indeed. Academic institutions do not always take into account the various unpredictable expenses a research assistant or collaborator may face while in the field. Research projects in the Global South often take place in impoverished, unstable, and conflict-ridden areas. The presence of researchers in such zones can give rise to increased financial demands.