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The African Publishers Network (APNET) is a pan-African and non-profit network that exists to connect African publishing associations in order to exchange information and promote indigenous publishing.
Prior to the foundation of African Publishers Network / APNET in 1992, [1] publishers in Africa had difficulty sharing information and learning from one another’s experiences. There was no publicly-accessible database containing the addresses of libraries, bookshops or fellow publishers, and there was no networking structure connecting the agencies. [2]
After several conferences and seminars focused on solving problems within the African book trade, it was considered necessary to set up an umbrella body which would be a network of publishers in Africa. [3] In 1992, delegates from nine countries founded the African Publishers Network at a conference in Harare, Zimbabwe with APNET Secretariat in Harare. The Secretariat was relocated to Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, with a research and documentation centre in Harare. However, due to the political situation in Côte d'Ivoire, APNET Secretariat was moved to Accra, Ghana in 2004.
APNET has evolved to become a diverse network representing the regions across Africa. As at December 2025, APNET has 40 national publishers associations as members. [4]
The governance of APNET consists of four key parts which are interdependent: 1) The General Council represents the totality of African members and meets at least once a year; 2) The Board comprises 11 members: 4 Executive Board Members (Chairman, Vice Chairman, Honorary Treasurer and Honorary Secretary); 6 Regional Board Representatives for West, East, Central, Northern, Southern and Francophone Region) and is the executive arm of the council; 3) The Secretariat, is headed by the Executive Director, Ernest Oppong, who manages the daily administrative and operational activities of APNET and aims to ensure it runs smoothly. The Secretariat also implements decisions from the General Council and the Board. It conducts functions such as organizing training/workshops, African Publishers Conference, advocacy, trade promotion and research and documentation; 4) Standing and adhoc committees to discuss and oversee certain pertinent areas and activities such as editorial, training, elections, copyright and legislation, international relations and Finance and Sponsorship.
In addition, membership to APNET consists of three levels: FULL MEMBERSHIP (granted to national publishers associations); ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS comprises Founding Members and past Chairpersons of APNET. ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP is reserved for African Individuals, institutions or corporate entities who or which, in the opinion of the Board, have a direct interest or involvement in African publishing and book development, demonstrating sufficient interest in the objectives of APNET or with a proven record of support for African books and publishing [5]
APNET has had many concrete achievements since its formation; in general, as an evaluation of APNET states: “The formation and revitalization of many national publishers associations are a direct result of APNET’s networking activities, most consistently through person-to-person contact and the publication of the African Publishing Review”. [6] The African Publishing Review(APR) is an APNET Newsletter sent out to publishers’ associations, publishers, African and International stakeholders and partners, libraries, etc., and other subscribers. The APNET Newsletter is free of charge for all users. The African Publishing Review is the pan-African publishing journal published in Africa with news, analysis, and in-depth perspectives of African Publishing. A survey was conducted and it showed that the APR is the “second most important source of information” [7] to publishers after the national publishers associations. A survey by SIDA showed that the APR is the most frequently used form of APNET service. APNET has produced other publications, including The Story of APNET [8] , APNET Members Directory, African “Rights” Indaba, and APNET Rights Catalogue [9] . Surveys published in 2025 include APNET-IFRRO Survey on Copyright and RROs in Africa (English [10] and French language [11] ), and APNET Country Reports: The State of Book Publishing in Africa (2023-2025) [English and French languages].
The African universities are gradually improving in formal education programmes and classes for creating professional publishers: university training in this field is available in African countries such as Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Uganda and South Africa, and Zimbabwe. There are still many African countries that do not university programmes of study to train publishers. APNET has been very instrumental in the capacity building of publishers and other publishing industry professionals through training. African Publishers Network has conducted over 35 workshops in 45 African countries.
Other publications of APNET include a development directory which contains 70 entries on key African book-development organizational and professional bodies; essays and reports on publishing in Africa; a resource centre which is a source of published and unpublished research on publishing in Africa.
APNET was jointly responsible with the Kenya Publishers Association for organizing the 2023 Nairobi International Book Fair, at which a significant publishing rights initiative was launched. Publishing professionals from Kenya, Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda conferred with counterparts from Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK and the USA at the fair's Right Café on such topics as trading and translation rights. [12] APNET has been very supportive in partnering with African book fairs and other international book fairs to help increase the participation of African publishers to promote trade.
In April 2025, APNET was given an observers' status of the WIPO's Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) [13] to represent the interest of the African publishing industry in the formulation of treaties, policies and other laws and to promote intellectual property rights of African authors and publishers.
APNET advocates for the African publishing industry through attending book fairs, both in Africa and internationally. APNET goes beyond attending and providing materials for the book fair; it enables other African exhibitors to attend through financial support. In addition, when a book fair is being organized in Africa, APNET offers its support by arranging its major meetings to occur during the dates of the event so that all will be in the area to attend.
Dialogue with the World Bank has proved to be a success for APNET. As the World Bank has reached a better understanding of APNET and dialogue has continued between the two, “APNET has been in a position to send out World Bank monthly operational summaries to the National Publishers Associations, which provides information and possible opportunities for publishers” [7]
A trade and promotion programme is conducted through APNET, which allocates catalogues of African books and sources and disseminates orders to publishers.
UNESCO provided support for the KAWI project (also SAP KAWI project) to produce and illustrate popular science books for children in national and minority languages in Africa. [14] African authors and illustrators were used to create the content which was translated into various languages. [15]
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