The "Brain Gain Initiative", which is supported by HP and UNESCO and brings together over 20 research institutions, has played a key role in driving interest alongside the African National Grid initiative. Bruce Becker, EUMEDGRID-Support partner, is one of the people behind the drive to put Africa's adoption of Grid computing firmly on the map. Becker is not only coordinator of the South African Grid initiative - SAGrid - but also a member of an international initiaitive - CHAIN - aimed at fostering a shared vision and approach to Grid Interfaces across Europe and the rest of the world. From an African perspective, this is part of a strategic move to achieve sustainable support and development that is underpinned by clearly defined roles and resource allocation for Grid computing. Part of this strategy places emphasis on regional operational centres, or ROC for short, to support researchers in their collaborative work across borders and domains. One of the major challenges is ensuring Africa keeps up to speed with Europe, which is a world leader in the deployment of e-Infrastructures, and that activities are aligned with global efforts. Removing barriers to entry and uptake are very important stepping stones towards unleashing the full potential of high-quality collaborative e-Infrastructures connecting the region with the rest of the world.