A conflict of interest exists when professional judgment concerning validity of research may be influenced by external factors like financial gain, material benefits or personal interests. It may arise for the authors of a manuscript submitted for publication to African Journal of Biological Sciences when external factors may influence the conduct and interpretation of research.

It is important to know about the conflicts of interest of the editors, reviewers and authors in order to make the best decision for handling of the article during editorial and peer review process. It is also important for the readers of the article to know about any conflict of interest.

Author's Conflict of Interest

All authors are required to disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest including any financial, personal or other relationships that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived to influence, their work. Authors are required to declare any conflict of interest statement at the time of manuscript submission as shown in the examples below:

No conflicts of interests

"We certify that we have no affiliation with or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a direct financial or any other interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript."

"We declare no conflicts of interest."

Declaration of conflicts of interest

"We declare the following conflicts of interests: Author(s) ------- ----is a part-time paid consultant for -------------- Corporation. Author ------------- is on the advisory board of --------------- Company and has received fees as an advisory board member."