The Role of E-Learning Policy in Academics’ Professional Development in African ODeL Institutions

E-learning has undoubtedly become one of the major solutions to address the many challenges that higher education institutions face. Some of these challenges have led to the demand for distance education and the development of e-learning as a complementary and alternative teaching and learning system. This study explored the ways in which the e-learning policy in two African open distance e-learning (ODeL) higher education institutions drives academic professional development. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 participants, and the policy documents from the selected institutions were thematically analysed. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology guided this study. The study’s findings revealed that comprehensive and robust e-learning policies may contribute to improving the adoption of online teaching in higher education. The findings also indicate that the e-learning policy should contribute to the capacity-building activities of the lecturers to prepare them for the new online systems. The study consequently recommends that ODeL higher education institutions in developing countries develop and continuously update an e-learning policy.