The focus countries of KAAD are spread across four regions, each of which has a KAAD partner committee that represents KAAD affairs and plays an important role in the process of pre-selecting applicants. In West Africa the focus country is Ghana, in the Horn of Africa it is Ethiopia and in southern Africa the focus is on Zimbabwe. In East Africa there is a partner committee in the focus country Kenya, but the two neighbouring countries Uganda and Tanzania are also in focus.

Corresponding with the four focus regions in Africa, there are also four networks for current scholars and alumni of KAAD: KASWA (KAAD Association of Scholars from West Africa) has three chapters in Ghana: Northern, Middle and Southern Chapters. KASEA (KAAD Association of Scholars from East Africa) also has three chapters in East Africa: Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda Chapters. KASHA (KAAD Association of Scholars from the Horn of Africa) is based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and KASSA (KAAD Association of Scholars from Southern Africa) in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Over time, the alumni themselves and their networks have created many cross-connections in the academic world and in the respective societies: high management positions at universities, important positions in politics (head of national authorities, ministries or regions), founding and management of NGOs.

The special constellation of the KAAD networks (unusual for African societies) is in the interaction between “young and old”. Established alumni, some of whom are in high positions, come together with scholars who are just completing their master's degree and are still at the beginning of their careers. This creates a cross-generational solidarity network where members support one another but also challenge one another in discussions and inquiries.

Above all, the annual seminars of the networks KASWA, KASEA, KASHA and KASSA enable this exchange, as they always include the aspect of being on the road together. They take place at changing university locations and therefore always have ‘hosts’ and ‘visitors’ from the KAAD network. Excursions to interesting places are combined with presentations/lectures and lively discussions.

Within this thematic work, some of the main areas covered are education (organisation, access and content) and leadership (political, economic, academic). Ecological issues and the future of health care in African countries are also high on the agenda. Within the framework of the global synodal process initiated by the Vatican, internal church issues are also coming into focus, above all the question of including lay people in the work of the Catholic Church and their role and influence.