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Background: in this era of globalisation and international academic training, many nursing programs offer students the opportunity to undertake an intercultural placement during their initial training. The rise of this phenomenon is ubiquitous throughout all Canadian universities, leading to increased student mobility at the international level with a growing number of placements being organised at the international level, on several continents. Purpose: this exploratory study aims at better understanding the processes of knowledge transfer and appropriation during international and intercultural placements in nursing in African countries. Framework: the models of empowerment and the cycle of knowledge to practice have guided this study. Method: a multiple case study was conducted within six care settings in two African countries. Individual interviews were conducted with the nursing students (n=11) and with the African nurse supervisors (n=9). Group interviews with local partners (n=2) also took place. Direct and participant observations were also carried out by the nursing students while they were in Africa in the summer and by the two principal investigators when they spent a week in the care settings the following fall. Results: the advantages of this learning activity were noted, especially those relating to the personal and professional growth of the nursing students and to knowledge transfer to the host settings. Discussion: four themes emerged and led to recommendations as to the importance of: 1) bidirectional communication, the continuity of projects between cohorts of nurses, and support at distance and on site, 2) developing emancipatory sociopolitical knowledge, 3) the diversity of care and community sites and exposure to local practices, and 4) the different phases of the cycle of knowledge to practice.