The use of ICTs by African women's NGOs was steadily increasing. Not only were there more users at the time, there were also more women and organisations that saw the important contribution ICTs could make to their efforts.
The first Women's Electronic Network Training (WENT) Africa started in 2003 with a workshop on the strategic use of information and communication technologies (ICTs). A total of 24 women participated in the WENT Africa 2003 workshop. These participants were women whose organisations played a significant role in promoting the use of ICTs to enhance women's roles and capacity in social and policy advocacy, as well as to strengthen women's organisations and networks in Africa. WENT Africa 2003 used the Asia and Pacific Women's Electronic Network Training Workshop as a model and source of methodology. The Asian WENT has proved to be a highly popular and successful methodology, with workshops being held annually since 1999.