Public Domain Advocacy and Digitization Project

Welcome to the documentation hub for the Public Domain Advocacy and Digitization Project. This page is designed to provide an accessible and organized account of our efforts to promote public domain awareness and drive the digitization of public domain works in Nigeria. Here, we document our campaigns, share insights, and outline our progress in preserving and making these valuable cultural and intellectual resources accessible to all.

Mission

We are committed to the preservation, accessibility, and empowerment of knowledge through the promotion and digitization of public domain works. Our mission is rooted in the belief that public domain materials represent a shared cultural and intellectual heritage, serving as a foundation for innovation, education, and creativity.

Over the years, we have undertaken impactful initiatives to promote awareness, bridge content gaps, and advocate for the growth of the public domain.

2022 public domain celebration

Public domain advocacy event

Public Domain Day is observed annually on January 1st. In 2022, Free Knowledge Africa celebrated the first public domain day in Nigeria by hosting a webinar aimed at raising awareness about the public domain in Nigeria. The webinar explored how to identify works entering the public domain and featured speakers from around the globe, including experts in public domain issues, copyright law, and cultural heritage.

This event underscored the significance of public domain works as tools for education, creativity, and innovation, fostering a deeper understanding of their role in bridging knowledge gaps, particularly in Africa.

2023 public domain celebration

Building on the momentum, Free Knowledge Africa hosted its first in-person Public Domain Day celebration in 2023, in collaboration with the Nigerian Library Association, Kwara State Chapter. The event was held on March 29, 2023, at the National Library on Offa Road, Ilorin, Kwara State, with over 40 participants in attendance. "Topics on Ways of identifying the works in the public domain","Works protected by copyrights", "How librarians can make use of the works in the public domain", "Digitalization of public domain works", "Striking the balance Copyright vs Copyleft" were discussed. Two facilitators from Free Knowledge Africa led an engaging session titled "Navigating Copyright: The Librarian's Guide to the Public Domain" and "Some rights reserved: Striking the balance Copyright vs Copyleft".

The open movement has given rise to the Creative Commons and Wikimedia, and the 21st Century Librarian has a crucial role to play. In relation to this, members of the Free Knowledge Africa team organized a training session on the 1st of September 2023. It was held at the National Library of Nigeria Headquarters in Abuja. This training event had over 30 people in attendance touched on different trending topics. These topics includes The Open Movement and its relevance, The Creative Commons, Wikimedia. Librarians as content Curators and Producers, Digitization, and the role of Librarians in the Nigerian Public Domain was also emphasized.

2024 public domain celebration

In 2024, we launched the Public Domain Campaign, aiming to address the challenges of accessing intellectual materials and emphasize the importance of public domain and open access initiatives. The campaign advocates for a more robust and accessible public domain to foster creativity and innovation.

As part of this campaign, we shared several educational and engaging resources on our Instagram platform to raise awareness and spark conversations around public domain and open access. You can view some of the highlights through these reels:

Topic	Link
2024 Public domain campaign	[1]
What is the Public domain?	[2]
Public domain vs copyrighted	[3]
Public domain around the world: Quick tour of how public domain laws differ globally	[4]

World Intellectual Property (IP) Day

This year, on April 26, 2024, Free Knowledge Africa, in collaboration with the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), joined the global celebration of World Intellectual Property Day. The event also aligned with Public Domain Day celebrations, further highlighting the role of intellectual property in societal well-being and its potential to drive innovation and creativity.

Under the theme “Intellectual Property (IP) and the SDGs: Building Our Common Future with Innovation and Creativity,” we hosted a hybrid webinar at the NIALS premises in Lagos, Nigeria. The discussions focused on the synergy between creativity, innovation, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as the potential of intellectual property to harness the benefits of the public domain.

Public Domain and Historical Knowledge

Public domain advocacy event

On November 26th, 2024, we had a physical advocacy event with the theme ‘Public Domain and Historical Knowledge’. The event was organized by Free Knowledge Africa in collaboration with the FCT Branch of the National Library of Nigeria. It was held at the National Library of Nigeria, FCT Branch.

The event was attended by professionals in various fields, spanning librarians, legal practitioners, historians, researchers, corp members, and even students.

It was an engaging and interactive session. We discussed the Public Domain in Nigeria, keeping historical knowledge and making it openly accessible to the public. We delved into Nigeria’s historical knowledge and the gap Free Knowledge Africa had found in the documentation of our history, also an introduction to the concept of Freedom of Panorama, stating the limitations to Freedom of Panorama in Nigeria brought about by the signing of the 2022 Nigerian Copyright Act.

Digitization Project

As part of our 2024 initiatives, Free Knowledge Africa launched the Public Domain Digitization Project, aimed at identifying, compiling, and digitizing public domain works in Nigeria to make them freely accessible to the public. To actualize this vision, we partnered with the National Library of Nigeria, combining resources to preserve and share these cultural treasures for educational and creative purposes.

Publicdomain.ng

Collection	Summary	Link
Books	This is a collection of Books in the Nigerian Public Domain. Here, you will find an extensive array of texts that capture the essence of Nigeria’s rich literary and historical landscape. From government documents and speeches to cultural studies and academic works, these books are invaluable resources that provide insight into Nigeria’s past and its journey through history.	[5]
Public Figure Portrait	This is a collection of Public Figure Portraits in the Nigerian Public Domain. Here, you will find images of notable individuals who have shaped Nigeria’s history, culture, and society. From early leaders and freedom fighters to influential artists, writers and thinkers, these portraits offer a visual journey through Nigeria’s rich heritage.	[6]
Nigeria’s History in Pictures	This collection is an archive focused on preserving and sharing Nigeria’s historical and cultural images that have entered the public domain. It offers a visual journey through a Nigeria’s rich heritage, showcasing photographs, illustrations, and other visual media that capture significant moments, cultural practices, and notable figures in history.	[7]
Nigerian Government Publications Collection	Government publications in the public domain are a vast collection of documents produced by different levels of government in Nigeria that have entered the public domain due to age or specific legal provisions. These publications include annual reports, official gazettes, speeches, and various other materials that are invaluable for historical research, legal reference, and educational purposes.	[8]
Newspaper	This is a collection of newspapers in the Nigerian Public Domain. These newspapers offer valuable insights into past events, shedding light on the social, political, and cultural dynamics that have shaped Nigeria’s history. They serve as a window into the thoughts, experiences, and aspirations of earlier generations, fostering a deeper understanding of the nation’s journey.	[9]