Formal publications in the area of educational leadership and management (EDLM) can be traced back more than a century. The 1950s saw the emergence of reviews of these EDLM works. Unfortunately, these reviews were limited because they were not systematic. Sometime after the establishment of the Campbell Collaboration as the standard for systematic reviews in the social sciences in 2000, scholars began conducting systematic reviews of the EDLM literature, including the African EDLM literature. However, little is known about the quality of this latter corpus of systematic reviews. Therefore, in this article, a systematic review of systematic reviews — a meta-systematic review — was conducted on the African EDLM literature. This meta-systematic review revealed 42 systematic reviews. The quality of these reviews was assessed using Hallinger’s analytical rubric for conducting systematic reviews, which led to the identification of strengths and weaknesses of these reviews, as well as a set of exemplary reviews. These findings offer actionable insights for policymakers and practitioners by highlighting the need for targeted training and resources to improve systematic reviews' conceptual, methodological, and reporting quality, thereby enhancing their utility for evidence-based decision-making and educational policy development.

Despite progress made in recent years, women continue to be underrepresented in academic publishing. We aim to share insights from academic women researchers who participated in the Training Needs Assessment for developing their writing for publication skills in an Open Distance Learning institution in South Africa. The research questions that guided the study were: a) What specific challenges do academic women researchers face in developing research and publishing skills? b) What motivated academic women researchers to participate in a writing project? c) What type of support do academic women researchers identify as essential for advancing their research and publishing skills? The data were collected through an initial face-to-face meeting, followed by a Training Needs Assessment from eight purposively chosen participants in a case study design. The findings indicate participants’ challenges of time constraints, lack of confidence, and knowledge as obstacles that hindered their publishing. Despite their challenges, women researchers reported their motivation to participate in the writing project for career advancement, personal development, academic recognition, and their inspiration to publish their research work. The study found that women researchers required writing support, peer collaboration, mentorship, and institutional support to improve their writing for publishing skills. Supporting academic women researchers with focused training, engaging them in collaborative networks, and developing gender-sensitive policies is crucial for promoting equity, breaking down barriers, and ensuring their academic and professional success.