Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Conference Fund/Wiki Indaba 2026
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Applicant details
[edit]- A. Are you applying as a(n)
Wikimedia Affiliate (chapter, thematic org., or user group)
- B. Full name of organization presenting the proposal.
Wikimedia Community User Group Côte d'Ivoire
- F. Do you have an account on a Wikimedia project?
Yes
- F1. Please provide your main Wikimedia Username.
Papischou
- F2. Please provide the Usernames of people related to this proposal.
Emmanuel Dabo, Manouka. Ceslause, Jael28, Youssefbhy
- G. Are you legally registered?
Yes
If you are applying as an individual or your group is not a legally registered nonprofit in your country, we require that you have a fiscal sponsor.
- I. Fiscal organization name.
N/A
Objectives and Strategy
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal.
Wiki Indaba 2026
- 2.1. When will the event begin? Please enter the event start date.
2026-11-12
- 2.2. When is the last day of your event?
2026-11-15
- 3.1. When will you begin preparing for your event?
2025-12-01T00:00:00Z
- 3.2. When will you expect to complete your last event payment?
2026-11-15T00:00:00Z
- 4. In which country will the conference take place?
Cote d'Ivoire
- 4.1. In which city will the conference take place?
Abidjan
- 5. Is it a remote or in-person event?
Hybrid event
- 5.1. What will be the total number of participants at the event? (including scholarship recipients + organizing team + other guests + self funded guests) (required)
150
- 6. Please indicate whether your work will be focused on one country (local), more than one or several countries in your region (regional) or has a cross-regional (global) scope.
Regional
- 6.1. If you have answered regional, please write the country names and any other information that is useful for understanding your proposal.
This conference is for African Wikimedians in the African continent and diaspora.
- 7. If you would like, please share any websites or social media accounts that your group or organization has.
website : https://www.wikimedia.ci/ Facebook : www.facebook.com/WikimediaCI /Twitter : https://twitter.com/wikimedia_civ / Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wikimedia-c%C3%B4te-d%E2%80%99ivoire/
- 8. Do you work with any thematic or regional platforms such as WISCom, CEE, Iberocoop, etc.
Yes
- 8.1. Please describe what platforms and your work with them.
We will use the Afrika Baraza platform, a virtual platform for African Wikimedians to connect, collaborate and have meaningful conversations. Some of the volunteers in this conference organizing team are members of WISCom, and they will be handling communications, scholarships and the programme.
- 9. Please describe the target participants for this event.
Our target participants are African Wikimedians and Africans in the diaspora. We aim to have 55% experienced editors and 45% new editors split for the attendees of the conference. Our definition of a newbie is an editor who has created an account within 12 months before the conference and has at least 50 edits in any wikimedia project. When it comes to edit count we prefer to look at the quality of the edits done rather than quantity, as one can contribute complete and high quality articles with 40 edits compared to someone who just did 100 minor edits. We generally look beyond edit count as we believe that there are other characteristics we look at to identify a suitable participant for the conference, including but not limited to their offline participation and leadership as an organizer. We also aim to invite mission aligned local organisation partners and stakeholders. It will be beneficial to have more Africans not only attending but also contributing to moderating the sessions, leading in such spaces where the African agenda is being discussed and planned. We equally plan to have African UwEr in attendance. However, there will be a virtual pre-conference session for African UwEr and enthusiasts.
- 10. Please provide the link to the event's page if you already have one.
https://meta.wikimdia.org/wiki/WikiIndaba_conference_2026
The following questions (11-14) will refer to the Community Engagement Survey which is required in order to submit a proposal. Here is the survey form that you can copy and use (if the link does not work): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ieEI8EFf2vxjD9wN_h8-srYeRCp4fhSp7_1_wiR2jh8/edit. This survey is required to access a Conference grant.
- 11. How many people did you send the community engagement survey to?
300
- 11.1. When did you conduct the survey, and for how long?
January 18th - January 31st 2025
- 12. How many people responded to the survey?
102
- 13. What are the main objectives of the event?
WikiIndaba 2026 aims to bring together African Wikimedians to collaborate, discuss challenges, and showcase successful projects in the region. The conference, to be held in Abidjan - Cote d’Ivoire, will focus on reinforcing and advancing the Africa Agenda for Wikimedia projects through promoting growth and sustainability, while aligning to the WMF goals and vision. It will feature networking, training, workshops, hackathon and mentorship opportunities for in-person attendees, and a host of online-participants, with the goal of inspiring future contributors and community leaders. For instance, the Wiki Mentor Africa partnership for the Wiki Indaba 2026 hackathon will be addressing the product and technology knowledge gaps (Coding, UI/UX and technical documentation) that we experience in the African community. This year’s Wiki Indaba hackathon will have pre-conference onboarding sessions to onboard first-time hackathon participants and newbies. The participant will be put into group projects to foster collaboration, then will compete all through the conference. Prizes for various categories will be awarded at the end of the Wiki Indaba 2026 hackathon. Furthermore, there are currently 55 African extended rights users, most of whom are on Wikipedia, a situation we would very much love to change, as the number is not enough, and more projects in African languages outside the Wikipedia could really use more extended rights users. So, we plan to have the extended rights users’ summit where 10% attendees who will be participating in it for the first time can be exposed to the behind-the-scenes activities across Wiki projects, and possibly roped into extended rights users mentorship within three months after the conference. This summit will also serve as a Wiki policy education session where the Africa Wiki admins will explain the various policies that guide the Wikimedia projects, and how contributors could avoid or navigate reversals, deletions, IP blocks, among other things. The Wiki Indaba 2026 conference will be a memorable one, as it will promote a more hands-on program approach to organizing the Wiki Indaba conference.
- 14. Based on survey responses, what are the most important things your community should do at the conference to achieve these objectives?
According to the survey, the most important topics that communities wants to discuss are: Leadership and Capacity Building (Article and Editor Retention, Lack of African Admins and Stewards, Lack of a learning culture, Lack of understanding of the policies) - 79.4% Community Trends and Innovations - 72.5% Equity in Representation (WMF Board of Trustees -voters education, Participation in Global Events/ Dialogues, Leadership and Community Building, Regional Hubs) - 65.7% Areas they think need to be focused on during the WikiIndaba Conference are: Networking and Mentorship Programs - 90.2% Roundtable Discussions on Global Collaboration - 70.6% Innovation Labs for Technology integration - 55.9% The most important goal, problem, or obstacle they think the African community should focus on in the next 12 months are: Enhancing collaborations - 76.5% Supporting new initiatives - 70.6% Expanding Wikimedia awareness - 62.7%
- 15. Please state if your proposal aims to work to bridge any of the identified CONTENT knowledge gaps (Knowledge Inequity)? Select up to THREE that most apply to your work.
Content Gender gap, Age (regency) , Geography, Language
- 15.1. In a few sentences, explain how your work is specifically addressing this content gap (or Knowledge inequity) to ensure a greater representation of knowledge. (optional recommended).
Several approaches will be implemented during Wiki Indaba to address the knowledge inequality gap. First, hackathon, training and workshop sessions on various contributions (Wikimedia project and technical) and sharing experiences will be scheduled for advanced contributors to share with beginners. Secondly, there will be time for discussion and reflection to identify the best ways to collectively respond to the challenges of geographical and linguistic representation and new important topics (e.g. the environment, AI) on Wikimedia platforms. Thirdly, respondents propose holding editing sessions during the Wiki Indaba to encourage African contributions during the Wiki Indaba. WISCom will officially launch its Wikipal peer-to-peer mentorship pairing at Wiki Indaba 2026 to enable newbies to be mentored by experienced Wikimedians from the conference.
- 16. Please state if your proposal includes any of these areas or THEMATIC focus. Select up to THREE that most apply to your work and explain the rationale for identifying these themes.
Education, Advocacy, Human Rights, Public Policy, Culture, heritage or GLAM , Diversity
- 17. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities?
Sexual Orientation, Geographic , Linguistic / Language, Age, Digital Access
- 18. Do you intend to invite or engage with non-Wikimedian individuals or organizations? If so – can you explain your intention for this outreach?
Wiki Indaba is an opportunity to raise awareness of the movement, its members and its projects among individuals and organisations outside the movement who may wish to join us and/or support our actions and groups. Although Wikipedia is very well known, the same cannot be said for the Wikimedia community and its affiliates. We therefore plan to invite partner organisations to Wikimedia CIV, like the Association of Information and Documentation Professionals (Apsid-Ci), Comnat UNESCO, the schools and universities where we have clubs such as the Groupe scolaire Madeleine-Daniélou, ISTC (Institut des sciences et techniques de la communication Polytechnique), University Félix Houphouet Boigny of Abidjan, University Jean Lorougnon Guédé of Daloa.
- 19. What will you do to make sure participants continue to engage in your activities after the event?
Since the Wiki Indaba 2024, we have been engaging participants and African Wikimedians via the Afrika Baraza, where topics like Wikimedia Foundation Annual Plan & Global trends, Hubs conversations in Africa, and Pan-African hub framework were discussed. WISCom aims to escalate the amount of engagements for future Indabas. We plan to set up an adhoc committee for following up on 2026 indaba attendees to follow-up on the respective conference goals and metrics
- 20. In what ways do you think your proposal most contributes to the Movement Strategy 2030 recommendations. Select a maximum of THREE options that most apply.
Increase the Sustainability of Our Movement, Provide for Safety and Inclusion, Coordinate Across Stakeholders, Invest in Skills and Leadership Development
Logistical Aspects
[edit]- 21. Do you have any proposed venue for the event?
We plan to hold the conference and accommodate participants at the same venue. 1- Radisson Hotel 2- Novotel Hotel - Le plateau 3- Noom Hotel 4- Sofitel Hotel
- 22. Is the event venue and hotel accessible for people with physical disabilities?
Yes
- 23. How many scholarships would you like to offer?
We aim to offer a total of 121 scholarships as follows: 75 international full scholarships 5 Micro grants for satellite events 30 Local scholarships 5 Local Organizing team 7 Partial scholarships
- 24. What expenses will the scholarship cover?
Full Scholarship: Covers flights (round trip), visas, accommodation, meals, conference access, visa and social events. Partial Scholarship: Covers flights. Virtual/Micro Grant: Covers local ground travel, snacks, childcare, and venue hire. Local Scholarship (Cote d’Ivoire Users only): Covers ground travel, accommodation, meals, conference access, and social events. Organizing Committee: Receives full scholarship benefits.
- 25. How will scholarship recipients be selected?
Scholarship recipients will be selected according to the Wiki Indaba Guidelines and based on: Affiliate representation Gender parity (As much as possible), 60% Experienced vs 40% Newbie split, Proposal for speaking at the conference
- 26. In which ways can Wikimedia Foundation staff support your event onsite?
We would appreciate the following support from WMF Staff: Legal and Safety support, Outreach and Communications support, Community resource & Grant making support, Partnership support, Affiliate recognition support, Community Strategy support, Media training
- 26.2. Do you intend to invite any WMF staff members to your event? (please note that all WMF staff travel and accommodation costs will be covered by the foundation). Please indicate what is the limit number of WMF staff members you would like to welcome at your event.
15 members of the Foundation may be invited, depending on the conference program the availability of the WMF staff.
- 27. Please outline the roles and responsibilities of the organizing team for the conference.
The organising team shall be responsible for: Drafting event proposal and grant request Co-Selection and awarding of scholarships with WISCom Soliciting suppliers for reasonable Venue and Conferencing facilities Working with a travel agent to book and coordinate flights Organising Accommodation and Airport transfers Co-designing conference program with WISCom Managing finances and payments General marshalling of conference participants Assess and provide support for safety and security during stay in Abidjan. Solicit an event organiser for conference planning. Marketing and communication - increasing the visibility of the event in the media. Resource mobilisation - sourcing partnership and sponsorship for the event.
- 28. Do you have plans to co-organize the event with other Wikimedia communities, groups or affiliates?
Yes
- 28.1. If yes, can you please explain how you are going to co-organize the event and what responsibilities each partner will have.
Since WikiIndaba is coming to the West African region for the second time, we plan to work with the Wikimedia communities in the region. We are also looking to have WISCom take oversight responsibilities on the programme and scholarships selection. Communications will be led by WISCom Executive Coordinator and will be assisted by from WMF Movement Comms, Scholarship will be led by Emmanuelle Guebo from Wikimedia Côte d’Ivoire and will be assisted by Isaac Olatunde from who is a member of WISCom. Programme will be led by Donatien Kangah and Evrard Kouadio who will be supported by WISCom members. Overall, we will have subcommittees headed by various members of the Local Organising Team, and supported by WISCom. Local logistics will be handled by Wikimedia Côte d’Ivoire while the WMF handles flights and hotel bookings.
- 29. What kind of risks do you anticipate and how would you mitigate these?
Côte d’Ivoire has largely been peaceful since after the 2010 civil war. We chose the November 2026 dates for the conference as there are no national events happening that period, just a National Peace Day holiday on 15th November 2026, which is not marked with any activity. Luckily, the general elections in Cote d’Ivoire already took place in October 2025, and it was a peaceful election season, as there was no pre nor post elections violence in the country. We are liaising with the national police around the conference to ensure the safety of all attendees. We also are reaching out to nearby hospitals to know which of the hospitals accept our insurance document in case of a medical emergency. We equally shall be sharing the national emergency numbers on the conference attendee guide. This document will also have clear instructions on how attendees should navigate safely during the conference. There will also be Donatien Kangah who is the lead organizer, to work with the Wikimedia Foundation Trust & Safety team to monitor and analyze related risks. He will be leading the local T&S team, as he is equally a seasoned journalist. We plan to have the local T&S team trained by the WMF T&S team before the conference. WISCom will also send the Executive Coordinator, Ceslause Ogbonnaya to Cote d’Ivoire to support the risk assessment process. There are mainly logistical and financial risks. In terms of logistics, visa issues could pose obstacles for participants who need them, if not handled carefully. We will ensure that we collect all the information relating to the process, provide useful contact details to facilitate the procedure, and follow the process until each participant has obtained their visa. In addition, we are working with the Ivorian administration to manage visa applications, which made our task easier during the 2023 Francophone WikiConvention in Abidjan, where we did not record a single visa refusal.
In addition to this, there is another risk related to language (English and Arabic), as the African community is multilingual, particularly in English and Arabic, whereas we come from a French-speaking, non-bilingual background. To address this challenge, our approach is based on two pillars:
- engaging a partner firm to provide real-time translation support during communications;
- enlisting the community's help by recruiting multilingual volunteers.
- 30. Friendly space policy - Please add the link to the friendly space policy that your community will be using for this event.
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Friendly_space_policies AND https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Universal_Code_of_Conduct
Learning, Sharing, and Evaluation
[edit]- 31. What do you hope to learn from your work organising this conference?
We see WikiIndaba 2026 as a conference that truly brings Africans together regardless of the language barriers. We would like for this conference to be truly inclusive for French, Arabic and English speakers. We also hope to learn the challenges facing these diverse communities while they’re participating in a Wiki Indaba conference strategies they use to activate and retain new users strategies they use to support their existing communities and if they are able to Fundraising outside of WMF, how are they doing so. Finally, we would like to learn about how various communities resolve/manage conflict if/how various communities are working or intend to work towards the Africa Agenda We will also be implementing the volunteer support at the conference instead of the usual post-conference scholar reporting. This ensures we have notetakers who will be documenting each session of the conference for future consultation purposes and institutional memory. These documented session outputs shall be consolidated at the and of the conference and kept by WISCom, who will be consulting these outputs and following up on action items as part of its efforts in executing its mandate. WISCom will hand over this document to the next Wiki Indaba host for consultation to know what was discussed at the last conference, and be able to build a bridge between that and the next conference.
- 32. Main open metrics
| Main Open Metrics | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Newbie Editor Activation | A percentage of Newbie editors who are motivated and activated to lead or be part of initiatives in their communities/countries.
At least 20% of newbie editors who attended the conference have been part of designing, implementing or participating in at least one Wikimedia related initiative within their local communities or countries within six months after the Wiki Indaba 2026 conference. A committee will be set-up by WISCom for this task. |
N/A |
| Movement growth and regional cooperation | A percentage of invitees from Countries without Affiliates, start plans to organise their communities
At least two countries initiate formal affiliate set-up processes from countries without an existing Wikimedia affiliate within 6 months after the conference. A committee will be set-up by WISCom for this task. |
N/A |
| Regional leadership development activation | Activation of regional leadership and cooperation
At least one collaborative project involving at least two affiliates from different geographic regions is supported within 6 months after the conference. At least three community members who attended the conference formally volunteer to support the WISCom's annual workplan within three months after the conference. A committee will be set-up by WISCom for this task. |
N/A |
| Raise Wikimedians awareness | Number of Wikimedians who have had their article tagged for speedy deletion, IP blocked in English, Arabic and French Wikipedia. What do they understand about policies in these languages?
At least three users with extended rights (administrators or stewards) attend and actively participate in policy-awareness sessions, focusing on issues such as speedy deletion, IP blocks, and cross-language policy interpretation on English, Arabic, and French Wikipedia, to improve understanding of Wikimedia policies across languages. |
N/A |
| Gender equity | Ensure that different genders are represented in the conference, in an equal manner
A minimum of 40% of conference participants identify as non-male, across speakers, facilitators, and general attendees. |
N/A |
Financial Proposal
[edit]- 33. What is the amount you are requesting from Wikimedia Foundation? Please provide this amount in your local currency.
138555072
- 34. Select your local currency.
XOF
- Requested amount in USD
- 249399.13 USD [note 1]
- ↑ a b The following amount in US dollars was calculated by Wikimedia Foundation staff using the fixed currency rates. This amount is approximate and may not reflect the actual currency exchange rates on the day of submission or distribution. If the application is funded, the funding will be sent in the recipient’s local currency.
- 35. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it.
- 36. Do you expect to receive funding for this conference from other organizations to support your work?
No
- 36.1. If yes, what kind of resources are you expecting to get?
- We/I have read the Application Privacy Statement, WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
Yes
- Please use this optional space to upload any documents that you feel are important for further understanding your proposal.
- Other public document(s):
Endorsements and Feedback
[edit]Please add endorsements and feedback to the grant discussion page only. Endorsements added here will be removed automatically.
Community members are invited to share meaningful feedback on the proposal and include reasons why they endorse the proposal. Consider the following:
- Stating why the proposal is important for the communities involved and why they think the strategies chosen will achieve the results that are expected.
- Highlighting any aspects they think are particularly well developed: for instance, the strategies and activities proposed, the levels of community engagement, outreach to underrepresented groups, addressing knowledge gaps, partnerships, the overall budget and learning and evaluation section of the proposal, etc.
- Highlighting if the proposal focuses on any interesting research, learning or innovation, etc. Also if it builds on learning from past proposals developed by the individual or organization, or other Wikimedia communities.
- Analyzing if the proposal is going to contribute in any way to important developments around specific Wikimedia projects or Movement Strategy.
- Analysing if the proposal is coherent in terms of the objectives, strategies, budget, and expected results (metrics).