NJOMACS

This paper examines the evolving role of digital scholarly identity in the contemporary academic environment. It argues that the ability of researchers to create and manage their online presence has become a crucial determinant of visibility, credibility, and impact within the global knowledge economy. Drawing on the literature on scholarly communication, open access, digital identifiers, and social media, the study explores the strategies that enable scholars to establish coherent digital identities, including the adoption of ORCID and Scopus Author IDs, participation in open access publishing, engagement with institutional repositories, and the use of scholarly networking platforms. The analysis also highlights challenges, such as inequitable access to digital infrastructures, commercialisation of academic networks, and overreliance on metrics that privilege visibility over substance. Recommendations are provided for individual scholars, universities, and policymakers, with particular reference to the African and Nigerian contexts. The paper concludes that digital scholarly identity is both an individual responsibility and a systemic imperative for integrating African scholarship into global circuits of knowledge.