AWW On WikiSkills Mentorship Program
The Africa Wiki Women On-Wiki Skills Mentorship Program is an initiative by Africa Wiki Women created to address a critical challenge the underrepresentation of African women in shaping online knowledge. Currently, only about 13% of Wikipedia editors identify as women. This gap does not stem from a lack of significant stories but from barriers such as limited access, inadequate digital skills, and a lack of mentorship opportunities. The program seeks to change this narrative by offering tailored training, close mentorship, and ongoing support to empower African women to confidently contribute to Wikimedia projects. Each cohort focuses on specific Wikimedia platforms, enabling participants to deepen their skills and make meaningful contributions in targeted areas.
Through this effort, we aim to bridge the gender gap among contributors and foster knowledge equity across Wikimedia projects ensuring that African women’s voices and perspectives are well represented in the global digital knowledge ecosystem.
What We Offer
[edit]- Small-group mentorship: We match experienced Wikimedia editors with small groups of mentees, ensuring personalized guidance, close support, and a safe space to learn.
- Project-specific training: Participants receive tailored mentorship on selected Wikimedia projects whether Wikipedia, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, or Wikisource based on their interests and skills.
- Cross-community support: We welcome and mentor women nominated by other Wikimedia user groups, fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing across the movement.
Why this matter
[edit]- Our 2024 Africa Wiki Women Technical Research reported that the majority of women lacked mentorship and skills on Wikimedia projects. The programs seeks to address this gap.
Who Can Join?
[edit]We welcome emerging African women Wikimedians who are passionate about knowledge creation, gender equity, and skills building on wikimedia projects. Whether you're new to Wikimedia or already editing, this program will deepen your skills and confidence. In previous cohorts we have received selected women from other User groups to be mentored and groomed.
Duration
[edit]- 3-month period online mentorships
Why It Matters
[edit]Representation matters. The On WikiSkills Mentorship Program is about creating a more inclusive Wikimedia Movement—one where African women are mentored on skill building, knowledge sharing, and networking. This program invests in women’s capacity to tell their stories, document their histories, and shape the future of open knowledge.
Benefits for being a mentee
[edit]- Skill Enhancement: Mentees gain practical experience in Wikipedia editing, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and applying Wiki tools for storytelling and advocacy. This improves their digital literacy, research, and content creation skills.
- Personalized Guidance: Mentees receive one-on-one and group mentorship to help address challenges, stay on track, and achieve their learning goals within the program structure.
- Networking: Through regular sessions and community interactions, mentees connect with mentors, peers, and Wikimedia leaders across countries, expanding their professional networks.
- Confidence Building: By learning in a supportive environment and actively participating in tasks such as edit-a-thons, WikiSpaces, and visibility campaigns, mentees gain confidence and strengthen decision-making skills.
- Certificate of Completion: All participants who complete the program successfully receive a certificate recognizing their new skills and contributions.
- Additional Opportunities:
- Stipend reward for active participation
- Opportunity to host an AWW workshop in their local community
- Paid volunteering opportunities in Wikimedia projects
- Visibility through documentation, publications
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