2020 marks the end of phase 1 of the Africa Programme (AP). This phase was led by James Lowry with the support of Advisory Board and the co-chairs: Jamaâ Baida and Justus Wamukoya.
The first phase of this programme was centered on six areas of work:
Advocating for strong archival institutions
Regional professional networks and associations as infrastructure for advocacy
Drawing government attention to archives through international solidarity
Curriculum development
Build partnerships in support of conservation and preservation training
Practical training in digital records management and preservation
As part of the latter area, the participants of the Study School in Botswana developed the Digital Records Curation Programme (DRCP), a set of materials that aims to translate technical digital preservation know-how into easy-to-use resources for teaching new generations of digital archivists. This initiative was selected as a winner for the DPC Award for Teaching and Communications and the NDSA Innovation Awards 2020 last November 2020.
For 2021, the Africa Programme will begin its second phase, which will be led by two new coordinators: Dr. Cleophas Ambira, who will be responsible for liaising with the anglophone countries in Africa, and Prof. Basma Makhlouf Shabou, who will be in charge of working with the francophone African countries.