All over Africa information and communication technologies (ICT) are gaining increasing importance and businesses realize the need for a secure and efficient ICT infrastructure. Although many businesses still rely on proprietary software solutions, the demand for Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) solutions and support thereof is constantly on the rise. As FOSS solutions are becoming more mature and often provide the same or better functionality as their proprietary counterparts, albeit being free of licensing costs, these solutions are very attractive for the African market.

This is where ict@innovation comes in. Through the establishment of a training programme that is focused on the African market specifically, InWEnt, FOSSFA and all the partners involved seek to enable African businesses and entrepreneurs to take the opportunity to address the demand for support and training of FOSS solutions. ict@innovation's training of trainers (ToT) on "Advanced African FOSS business Models" provides the tools to establish oneself in a growing market, in times where vendor lock-in and expensive license agreements become increasingly apparent. Relying on collaborative efforts – ict@innovation's Foss Business Model's Content Creation Community - in the establishment of the training material has been an important ingredient in making sure that the training materials would address certain aspects that are distinct in African businesses and further help in assuring sustainability of the content.

The ict@innovation platform in this respect is the central place for cooperative work on the training material and for further dissemination thereof. The ToTs consist of six modules, which together give the participants a coherent skill-set that covers the practical aspects of giving a training just as much as technical and economic topics that are essential for the understanding of FLOSS.

The six modules are:

1: Introduction to Emerging FLOSS Business Models Module

2: African Business Models – Case Studies Module

3: Communicating FLOSS Module

4: Introduction to General Business Skills Module

5: FLOSS Specific Business Knowledge and Skills Module

6: FLOSS Training

Based upon these materials four ToTs were held in South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique. In all of these countries the participants showed great enthusiasm and interest in the topics. The variety of backgrounds of the participants always contributed to lively discussions within the groups, which on the one hand facilitated the group's understanding of the topics, and on the other hand illustrated the importance of certain aspects of the training. The feedback that the participants provided after the trainings was therefore invaluable for the improvement of the training material. It also gave a fair indication that the ToTs indeed made an impact, as most participants expressed their willingness to offer trainings themselves in the future.

The training material will soon be published here under a creative commons licence which will enable free download, using, changing or adjust the material to local needs.