e/merge Africa started as the e/merge online conferences on the use of educational technology in African Higher Education Institutions. In 2012 we started pilot activities for an eLearning network to promote sharing of good practices, informal and semi-formal professional development and the growth of research capacity among educational technology practitioners and researchers in the African higher education sector. These activities arose from a project by the Centre for Educational Technology at University of Cape Town and the South African Institute of Distance Education to establish the scope and demand for such a network. The evolution of this project has been funded by the Carnegie Corporation and by the Ford Foundation.

Consulations at eLearning Africa in 2011 and at meetings of the Partnership for Higher Education: Educational Technology Initiative in 2011 and 2012 confirmed clear interest in participation and leadership by colleagues at universities in several regions of Africa. Activities offered in 2012 included an online facilitation course for educational technologists in African universities, the e/merge 2012 online conference on the use of educational technology in African universities which ran from 9-20 July 2012, and a pilot seminar for the e/merge Africa network which was presented in September 2012. The network activities are intended to promote communication and collaboration across several existing networks of which e/merge Africa participants are members. The e/merge Africa Facebook group currently has 211 members from across Africa and several other continents. Our announcement list has over 600 members.

If you want to be involved in the planning of the network then please contact us at [email protected] or complete the contact form on this site.