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The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates the global burden of epilepsy at 50 million people, with 80% living in resource-constrained countries [1]. Epilepsy prevalence is higher in Africa compared to the rest of the world, with young children, especially < 1 year of age, especially burdened [2]. The problem of epilepsy in Africa is huge, with a significant contribution from perinatal injuries, central nervous system infections and traumatic brain injury [3]. However, in Africa, about 60 -70 % of patients with epilepsy have an unidentifiable cause and, in some cases, this can be attributed to an underlying genetic condition.