Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire/Reports/Annual report 2015

Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d’Ivoire

Annual report 2015

If 2014 was the revelation year marked by acquiring the User Group status, 2015 arose mainly as the year of the establishment of Wikimedia in Ivory Coast.

General Assembly of Wikimédia Côte d'Ivoire on 04th April 2015.

The main challenge was the implementation of a structural framework helping to deploy a strong and dynamic organization that works for the promotion and open diffusion of knowledge in Côte d'Ivoire and worldwide. Therefore, important activities with more relevant and diverse contents and outlines (I) had been conducted, showing a strong commitment from volunteers of the new Association (II), and all this crowned with an affirmed acknowledgment both at the national and international level (III). So, this document aims to report on this dynamic that began with the project Côte d'Ivoire, 10 years ago.

More relevant and diverse contents

In 2015, more than 1509 contributions including 375 edits and 1209 photos, are to be put to the credit of the members of the User Group of Côte d'Ivoire or contributors having benefited from its support. These contents focused on traditional fashion, food, education and public figures of Côte d'Ivoire. They were edited mainly on wikipedia.org, commons.wikimedia.org, wikibooks.org and meta.wikimedia.org in 3 languages. In addition to French and English, which are the usual languages of the User Group on the platforms of the Foundation, contents have also been published in German during events organized by Wikimedia Côte d'Ivoire. These mainly relate pictures uploaded by students in Germanic Studies at the Goethe Institute in Abidjan, during the Wiki Loves Africa contest.

As regards to the direct impact, over 242 participants have been met during events organized by the User Group in 2015. There are about fifty contributors, exactly 47 members of the User Group or having participated in the events organized by Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire, which means 19, 42% of conversion rate. Most (39) have been enrolled during the two months of Wiki Loves Africa 2015 contest.

We have been able to achieve our goals through the support of partners, both strategic and operational. These are a total of 13 partnerships that can be classified into two groups. Some are partners with a formal agreement, others are simple hosts for events - either organized by the User Group or in which the User Group took part - offering us opportunity to promote open diffusion of knowledge.

• 3 Formal Partnerships: Tenues Traditionnelles Ivoiriennes, E-voir Agency, Africa Center
• 3 Event hosts: National Commission of Francophonie, Goethe Institute, Museum of Cocody
• 8 Invites: US Embassy in Abidjan, Akendewa, ASBL Kouady, GREPh, Waleya Agency, Bloggers' Association of Côte d'Ivoire, Age Numérique, Studio Mozaik

A growing voluntary commitment

Wikipedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire organized 23 events: workshops, outings, meetings, executive board meetings, mini-contests and photo hunting. 

1. Wikipedia Day, January 15, 2015
   • Radio program on the Ivorian culinary culture, Studio Mozaïk
   •  Meeting of the Coordination Committee
   •  Online Editorial Challenge
2. Monthly Meeting # wikiciv12, February 28, 2015 in Abidjan
3. Constitutive General Assembly, April 4, 2015 in Bonoua
4. First Executive Board meeting, April 6 in Abidjan
5. Workshop Kumusha Takes Wiki, March 15, 2015 in Abidjan
6. Photo hunting in Ossibissa, a fishermen island off Abidjan on April 30
7. Second Executive Board meeting, May 13, 2015 in Abidjan
8. Wikinic, June 6, 2015 at Mougognini (Jacqueville)
9. Third Executive Board meeting, August 8 in Abidjan
10. Meeting with Young Leaders of BSF Campus, 22 August in Abidjan
11. 10 events Wiki Loves Africa 2015, from October 3 to November 30, 2015 in Abidjan, Grand Bassam, Yamoussoukro, Toumodi, Waraniéré, Agboville and Azaguié
12. Fourth Executive Board meeting, December 19, 2015 in Abidjan

These activities have generated over 716 hours of volunteer work, more than three months of engagement corresponding to the time of preparation and execution of activities. This commitment is the fact of 25 active members, of which 40% are women. This significant proportion of women in the Association is marked by their substantial presence in the executive staff where they occupy 62.5% of elected positions.

On the local level, we have actually participated in five national events, invited in many cases to talk about the User Group activities, and projects of the Wikimedia Foundation through conferences and workshops.

1. Safer Internet Day 2015, on February 10 at the headquarters of YooMee and broadcasted online, organized by Age Numérique. Communication on "Educate with Wikimedia"
2. Digital Week Abidjan15, on March 9, 2015 at AGITEL Formation in Abidjan, organized by Waleya digital agency. Communication on "Discovering the Wikimedia movement"
3. Le Goûter Vert, on June 30 at the headquarters of Friedrich Ebert Foundation in Abidjan, organized ASBL Kouady. Communication on "volunteering in youth empowerment"
4. Female TechCamp, from October 3 to 4, 2015, at N'sa Hotel in Grand Bassam, organized by the NGO Akendewa & the US Embassy of Abidjan. Activities about Wiki Loves Africa 2015 (Communication + Workshop + Visit of the Museum of Costumes)
5. Campus Libre, on October 15, 2015 at the Goethe Institute in Abidjan, organized by the Philosophical Research and Exchanges Group (GREPh). Communication "Contribution of the web to the promotion of knowledge in Ivory Coast : case of Wikimedia"

A confirmed and strengthened acknowledgement

Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire has been honored through the selection of its Chairperson by the association Libraries without Borders as part of the program for young leaders called BSF Campus. This initiative, which concerns 32 young leaders from Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Senegal aims to promote the transformation of SSA libraries through innovative projects.

Also, the GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Artists and Museums) collaborative initiative between Wikimedians of Côte d'Ivoire was considered "innovative, impactful and of social interest" by BSF and its partner, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It will be conducted in 2016.

• 
  Young leaders of BSF Côte d'Ivoire
  meet the ivorian Wikimedia community and share experiences.
• 
  Chairman, Donatien Kangah,
  attends a conference of philosophers as a speaker.
• 
  2 Days training seminar in Dakar targeting francophone editors.
• 
  Shooting techniques
  explained during upload session at Goethe Institut library.

We had at least 3 International Collaborations.

1. User Group has contributed to the development of video scripts for the training platform BSF Campus Online, including modules on "Content creation and community mobilization" and "Commons in Africa."
2. We co-hosted in June, a training workshop for independent publishers in Francophone Africa organized by the Alliance of Independent Publishers and Wikimedia France. Also with Wikimedia France, we are engaged in the WikiMooc project, both in the educational and promotional aspects.
3. With WikiAfrica, we are engaged, with two members of the jury, in the selection of best pictures of the Contest Wiki Loves Africa 2015. For the second consecutive year, we are among the nine national organizations, focal point of the contest in their countries.

As well, the number of supporters has reached 2000 Internet users, Twitter & Facebook combined.

Far from the project, Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire is now recognized as an organization nationally as well as internationally for its commitment to the digital service, culture and education. Future challenges will consist in continuing and completing the work of professionalization, while strengthening the technical and editorial capacities of its members and supporters.