Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/1Lib1Ref Tanzania 2026:Empowering Librarians and Students to Improve References on Swahili Wikipedia (ID: 23757034)
This is an automatically generated Meta-Wiki page. The page was copied from Fluxx, the web service of Wikimedia Foundation Funds, where the user has submitted their application. Please do not make any changes to this page because all changes will be removed after the next update. Use the discussion page for your feedback. The page was created by CR-FluxxBot.
Applicant Details
[edit]- Main Wikimedia username. (required)
Husseyn Issa
- Organization
N/A
- If you are a group or organization leader, board member, president, executive director, or staff member at any Wikimedia group, affiliate, or Wikimedia Foundation, you are required to self-identify and present all roles. (required)
N/A
- Describe all relevant roles with the name of the group or organization and description of the role. (required)
Main Proposal
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal. This will also be the Meta-Wiki page title.
1Lib1Ref Tanzania 2026: Empowering Librarians and Students to Improve References on Swahili Wikipedia
- 2. and 3. Proposed start and end dates for the proposal.
2026-04-15 - 2026-05-15
- 4. Where will this proposal be implemented? (required)
Tanzania
- 5. Are your activities part of a Wikimedia movement campaign, project, or event? If so, please select the relevant project or campaign. (required)
1Lib1Ref
- 6. What is the change you are trying to bring? What are the main challenges or problems you are trying to solve? Describe this change or challenges, as well as main approaches to achieve it. (required)
As of January 2026, the Swahili Wikipedia contains approximately 104,032 articles[1]. While exact live counts for poorly referenced articles are not publicly aggregated in a single real-time total, several key data points reflect the state of its citations:
- Total Articles: 104,032.
- Quality Content: Only 42,903 articles (roughly 41%) were classified as "Good Articles" or met higher quality benchmarks by late 2025, suggesting a large portion of the remaining ~61,000 articles may lack substantial depth or rigorous referencing.
- Sourcing Challenges: A significant number of articles are identified as "stubs" or "shells"—brief entries (often created by bots) that may consist of only a few sentences and limited linguistic or reference content.
- Active Maintenance: In January 2026, maintenance categories specifically track new backlogs for articles with "bare URLs" for citations and those "lacking sources" entirely to facilitate systematic cleanup by volunteers.
This page [2] lists the "1,000 basic articles" every Wikipedia should have, many of which are noted as being "too short" or requiring better quality and expanded text.
Research regarding "shell" articles (stubs with minimal linguistic or citation content) in Swahili can be explored in technical analyses such as Why Wikipedia Cannot Solve NMT [3]. Which now brings us to why this annual campaign by the foundation is one among the key in combating this challenge and it can not work for only one community but all of us to work in improving it.
We are working to improve the quality, reliability, and credibility of Swahili Wikipedia by addressing the persistent challenge of articles that lack adequate and reliable references.
At the same time, there is still a gap we are having which is opportunity within two key groups: librarians and students. Librarians possess strong skills in information literacy, research, and source evaluation, while students bring energy, digital engagement, and long-term potential as contributors. However, these two groups rarely work together within Wikimedia spaces, and many lack structured entry points, training, and mentorship to contribute effectively to Swahili Wikipedia.
We aim to connect librarians and students into a collaborative editing community focused on improving references through the 1Lib1Ref approach.
With what we believe is the impact we can have, as last year we had one event which we invited participants from different education institutions and we had 3 University Lectures who was amazed with the work we have been doing and gave us different approaches of making our work reliable and with citations and referencing at its peak. We aim to deliver hands-on training and focused edit-a-thon with Librarians and existing wikipedians in the community with focus in Wikipedia editing, sourcing, and citation practices, followed by mentorship and post-event engagement. And thus reduce the number of poorly referenced articles on Swahili Wikipedia, improve the reliability of existing content, and build a sustainable group of contributors who continue improving content beyond the project period.
- 7. What are the planned activities? (required) Please provide a list of main activities. You can also add a link to the public page for your project where details about your project can be found. Alternatively, you can upload a timeline document. When the activities include partnerships, include details about your partners and planned partnerships.
The project will begin with outreach, marketing, and a public call for interest targeting librarians, libraries, and information professionals. This will be done through social media, direct communication with libraries, and Wikimedia community channels to raise awareness about Swahili Wikipedia, the 1Lib1Ref campaign, and the opportunity for librarians to contribute their research and sourcing skills.
An online introductory session will be organized to onboard interested participants. And the session will introduce Wikimedia projects, Swahili Wikipedia editing basics, and citation practices, and will act as a practical demonstration to prepare participants for in-person activities.
Following the online session, an in-person training workshop and edit-a-thon will be held, focusing on improving under-referenced Swahili Wikipedia articles. Participants will work collaboratively to add reliable references, guided by experienced Swahili Wikipedia contributors and admins.
The project will be implemented by targeting partnership with the Tanzania Library Board [4], which will support outreach to librarians and provide institutional coordination. Continued engagement will be supported through post-event communication channels to encourage sustained contribution beyond the project period.
- 8. Describe your team. Please provide their roles, Wikimedia Usernames and other details. (required) Include more details of the team, including their roles, usernames, Wikimedia group, and whether they are salaried, volunteers, consultants/contractors, etc. Team members involved in the grant application need to be aware of their involvement in the project.
1. Hussein Issa (User:Husseyn Issa) Will be responsible for overall project execution and coordination. His role includes proposal preparation, activity planning, budget oversight, grant compliance, and reporting. He will also oversee partnerships, ensure alignment with Wikimedia policies and goals, and coordinate documentation and learning on Meta.
2. Pellagia Njau (User:Pellagia Njau) Will serves as the Partnerships and Outreach Officer. She will lead engagement with libraries and institutional partners, particularly coordinating outreach to librarians and supporting collaboration with the Library Services Board. Her role includes participant mobilization, communication with partners, and supporting inclusive participation, with a focus on engaging new contributors and ensuring balanced representation.
3. Johnson Massawe [User:Jonny Frosty) Will be the Training and Mentorship Lead. He will design and deliver training sessions on Swahili Wikipedia editing, referencing, and Wikimedia policies. During the edit-a-thon, he will provide hands-on technical support and mentorship to participants, and he will continue supporting contributors through post-event follow-up channels. His role also includes tracking participant contributions and supporting contributor retention beyond the project activities.
- 9. Who are the target participants and from which community? How will you engage participants before and during the activities? How will you follow up with participants after the activities? (required)
The target participants are librarians and library staff from public and academic libraries, alongside university students, mainly drawn from the Swahili community. Participants will be engaged before the activities through targeted outreach, social media calls for interest, and institutional networks, followed by an online introductory session and onboarding materials to prepare them for editing and referencing on Swahili Wikipedia.
During the activities, participants will take part in hands-on training and an edit-a-thon focused on improving under-referenced Swahili Wikipedia articles, working in mixed groups with continuous mentorship from experienced Wikimedians. After the activities, engagement will continue through follow-up communication channels, mentorship, and editing challenges to support retention and long-term contribution within the Swahili Wikipedia community.
- 10. Does your project involve work with children or youth? (required)
No
- 10.1. Please provide a link to your Youth Safety Policy. (required) If the proposal indicates direct contact with children or youth, you are required to outline compliance with international and local laws for working with children and youth, and provide a youth safety policy aligned with these laws. Read more here.
N/A
- 11. How did you discuss the idea of your project with your community members and/or any relevant groups? Please describe steps taken and provide links to any on-wiki community discussion(s) about the proposal. (required) You need to inform the community and/or group, discuss the project with them, and involve them in planning this proposal. You also need to align the activities with other projects happening in the planned area of implementation to ensure collaboration within the community.
We have actively informed the Global WikiEducation Community and several Assistant Lectures and Librarians about this project through WhatsApp and Telegram groups. To support open communication and gather valuable feedback, we’ve set up a discussion page connected to our Meta page [here](https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Global_WikiEducation_Initiative). This platform facilitates detailed exchanges, allowing community members to provide feedback, ask questions, and share their ideas effectively.
- 12. Does your proposal aim to work to bridge any of the content knowledge gaps (Knowledge Inequity)? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Other Important Topics (topics considered to be of impact or important in the specific context)
- 13. Does your proposal include any of these areas or thematic focus? Select one option that most applies to your work. (required)
Education
- 14. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Digital Access
- 15. In what ways do you think your proposal most contributes to the Movement Strategy 2030 recommendations. Select one that most applies. (required)
Increase the Sustainability of Our Movement
Learning and metrics
[edit]- 17. What do you hope to learn from your work in this project or proposal? (required)
1. How effective is librarian–student collaboration in increasing the number and quality of references added to Swahili Wikipedia articles? 2. What training and support approaches best enable new contributors to confidently add reliable references and continue editing after the activities? 3. What factors influence participant retention, especially among librarians, following training and edit-a-thon activities? 4. How do partnerships with library institutions, such as the Tanzania Library Services Board (TLSB), support outreach, participation, and sustainability of Wikimedia activities?
To answer these questions, we will collect both quantitative and qualitative data, including the number of participants trained, references added, articles improved, and active contributors after the project through our set dashboard, as well as participant feedback and reflections. These learnings will help improve future librarian-focused Wikimedia activities in Tanzania and inform similar initiatives within the Wikimedia movement.
- 18. What are your Wikimedia project targets in numbers (metrics)? (required)
| Other Metrics | Target | Optional description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 30 | |
| Number of editors | 20 | |
| Number of organizers | 3 |
| Wikimedia project | Number of content created or improved |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | 200 |
| Wikimedia Commons | |
| Wikidata | 10 |
| Wiktionary | |
| Wikisource | |
| Wikimedia Incubator | |
| Translatewiki | |
| MediaWiki | |
| Wikiquote | |
| Wikivoyage | |
| Wikibooks | |
| Wikiversity | |
| Wikinews | |
| Wikispecies | |
| Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia |
- Optional description for content contributions.
N/A
- 19. Do you have any other project targets in numbers (metrics)? (optional)
No
| Main Open Metrics | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
- 20. What tools would you use to measure each metrics? Please refer to the guide for a list of tools. You can also write that you are not sure and need support. (required)
Program Dashboard, Event Registration Tool and Categories
Financial proposal
[edit]- 21. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it. (required)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1GVVOvYErYlyfq5385F-3A6KPCzgeOXyMNsm6VXLRGEU/edit?usp=sharing
- 22. and 22.1. What is the amount you are requesting for this proposal? Please provide the amount in your local currency. (required)
11500000 TZS
- 22.2. Convert the amount requested into USD using the Oanda converter. This is done only to help you assess the USD equivalent of the requested amount. Your request should be between 500 - 5,000 USD.
4485 USD
- We/I have read the Application Privacy Statement, WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
Yes
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).