Africa Connect Digital Campus

In a world in which research and education are increasingly dependent on digital technology, access to broadband connectivity and shared services is a major challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. Building on the success of the previous phases of the Africa Connect programme (which began in 2011), the Africa Connect Digital Campus project is targeting national and local levels in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo. 

The objective is to provide direct support to universities and their end users (students, teachers, and researchers) in the effective use of technologies for quality teaching and collaborative research. The project comes within the framework of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy and national digital transformation priorities.

The Africa Connect Digital Campus project is contributing to the digital transformation of higher education and research ecosystems in Togo, Benin, and Côte d’Ivoire, with the goals of improving the quality of education and strengthening international cooperation in science, technology, and innovation to address global challenges.

To this end, we are working with national networks for education and research to provide broadband connectivity and innovative digital services that will enable academic communities to develop e-learning, open science, and regional collaboration.

The project is being implemented jointly by Expertise France, the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), and Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), with a focus on four main priorities: 

1. Improvement of digital infrastructure and services
2. Teacher training
3. Enhancement of national research and education networks (NRENs)
4. Mainstreaming of gender and environmental issues

Improving digital infrastructure and services

This action priority, under the direction of IRD, is laying the technical foundations of the project in order to create a high-performance and accessible digital learning environment. Its activities are aimed at the following areas:

• In-depth analysis: Analysis of the maturity of the NRENs and the specific needs of each university in terms of connectivity, equipment, and services.
• Improved connectivity: Enhancement of the target universities’ connection to their national network, and improvement of local (campus) networks through the installation of Wi-Fi access points, network equipment (routers, switches) and mainstreaming services.
• Development of NREN services: Consolidation of the NREN e-learning service offer, including identity federation and the development or enhancement of national e-learning platforms.
• Production equipment: Purchase and installation of video capture kits (“Rapid Mooc” type) and recording studios to enable teachers to create quality teaching resources.

Supporting teachers and developing an online training offer 

This priority action, led by Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), places people at the heart of digital transformation via guidance for universities and their teachers. 

• Economic framework and model: Support for universities in establishing a regulatory framework and an economic model promoting e-learning and recognition of the work of teacher-researchers.
• Teacher training: Mobilisation and intensive training of 125 teachers (with special attention to women’s participation) in online course design, distance tutoring, and production of instructional videos.
• Resource production: Guidance to teachers for creating online courses
• Community of practice: Establishment and coordination of a community of practice to promote the exchange of good practices and mutual assistance among teachers, in order to guarantee the sustainability of the skills acquired.
• Resource optimisation: Indexing of open educational resources produced on regional portals.

Consolidating NRENs and capitalisation of achievements 

• Development model: Development and optimisation of a long-term business model and development strategy for each national education and research network (NREN), in collaboration with national authorities.
• Value proposition: Clearly stating the value proposition of NRENs in order to better communicate their services (dedicated connectivity, value-added services) to member institutions and decision-makers.
• Advocacy and visibility: Conducting advocacy campaigns with ministries and universities to promote the adoption of NREN services and encourage public investments.
• Technical support: Making a systems and networks engineer available within each NREN to ensure service maintenance and assistance to users.

Mainstreaming gender and environment 

Gender equality and environmental sustainability are cross-cutting priorities. They are backed up by specific actions:

• Gender action plan: Development and implementation of a gender action plan to ensure gender mainstreaming in all project activities (training, access to equipment, etc.).
• Inclusive and sustainable policies: Supporting NRENs in developing gender-sensitive and environmentally friendly practices and policies.
• Awareness-raising events: Organising events to strengthen the role of women in the digital and e-learning sectors. Holding “Digital Fresco” workshops to raise awareness among stakeholders on the environmental impact of technologies and to reflect on solutions to reduce it.