The Collaboration for Sustainable Open Access Publishing in Africa project continues to strengthen Diamond Open Access (OA) publishing in Africa through the No-fee (Diamond) Open Access Publishing in Africa Community of Practice (CoP). The CoP was established in 2024 as a direct response to the challenges facing Diamond Open Access (OA) publishers and editors identified in the Landscape Study of No-fee Open Access Publishing in Africa. It was launched to build capacity and facilitate collaboration among editors and publishers of no-fee open access (OA) journals and books across Africa. The CoP is open to all editors and publishers affiliated with African organisations that publish no-fee OA journals or books. Moderated by WACREN in collaboration with Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL) and African Journals Online (AJOL), the Community of Practice has grown to more than 380 members from across Africa. It has become a platform for capacity building, knowledge sharing, and support for publishers and editors of African Diamond OA journals and books. Throughout 2025, the CoP delivered guidance and training sessions covering topics such as journal indexing and visibility, copyright and open licences, OJS themes and customisation, editorial workflows, ISSN registration best practices, optimising journal operations, strengthening African journals for DOAJ inclusion, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in peer review, including its opportunities and risks, and emerging publishing models such as the Publish–Review–Curate model and overlay journals. In 2026, the Community of Practice continued its capacity-building activities by delivering guidance sessions on emerging challenges and issues raised by community members during the monthly meetings and through the CoP 2026 Needs Assessment Survey. In response to these needs, the CoP delivered training and guidance sessions covering topics including Strategies for Journal Editors to Attract High-Quality Submissions; Safeguarding Journal and Editorial Integrity in the Age of AI: Preventing Data, Image, and Reference Fabrication in Diamond Open Access Journals; The Role of Publishers and Editors in Safeguarding the Peer Review Process; Editors’ Role in Safeguarding Peer Review Quality amid Reviewer Scarcity, Reviewer Fatigue, and the turn towards AI Assistance; Motivating and Incentivising Peer Reviewers; and Strengthening Diamond OA Journals’ Editorial Workflows in the Age of AI: Author Identity, Reproducibility Standards, and the Role of Data Editors. In addition to the training and guidance sessions, the CoP has developed and released a range of guidance resources to strengthen Diamond OA publishing in Africa. These include No-fee OA Publishing in Africa Policy Brief; Funding Sources of African No-fee OA Journals; Quality in Diamond OA Publishing: Guidelines, Policies, and Templates; Generative AI in Diamond Open Access Publishing; Editorial Workflows in Diamond Open Access Journals; Best Practices for Journal Indexing; Peer Review Using Artificial Intelligence; and African Representation in the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). The Community of Practice meets on the third Wednesday of every month. Editors and publishers affiliated with African organisations that publish no-fee OA journals or books are welcome to join. To join the CoP, please register at: https://survey.wacren.net/index.php/554888.
