Africa Virtual University - AVU

The African Virtual University (AVU) is a Pan African Intergovernmental Organization established by charter with the mandate of significantly increasing access to quality higher education and training through the innovative use of information communication technologies.  

Eight African Governments - Kenya, Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire, Tanzania, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo have signed a Charter establishing the AVU as an Intergovernmental Organization.

The AVU has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and a Regional office in Dakar Senegal.  The AVU has Host Country Agreements with the governments of Kenya and Senegal and the AVU has diplomatic status in these countries.

The AVU was initially launched in Washington in 1997 as a World Bank project and was later transferred to Kenya in 2002. The AVU become an Intergovernmental organization in 2003.

The AVU has developed significant experience in the following areas since 1997:

• Delivering programs though information and communication Technologies (Degree Programs, Certificate and Diploma Programs)
• Building and managing large consortia of African Educational Institutions
• Designing and implementing Multinational eLearning Projects
• Developing African-based residential and eLearning materials for Partner Institutions
• Establishment of state of art e-learning centers in Partner Institutions
• Training of Partner Institutions staff in eLearning methodologies
• Developing and implementing Open Education Resources (OER) strategy
• Managing a digital Library

The AVU has trained more than 40,000 students since inception in 1997. The greatest asset of the AVU is its ability to work across borders and language barriers in Anglophone, Francophone and Lusophone Africa.

As the leading Pan African eLearning Network, the AVU has acquired the largest eLearning network in Anglophone, Francophone and Lusophone Africa with more than 53 Partner Institutions in 27 countries.