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Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Expanding Wikimedia Engagement and Representation across Private Universities through Mentorship (ID: 23626514)/Final Report

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Abdullahalaba
Expanding Wikimedia Engagement and Representation across Private Universities through Mentorship
01 February 2026 - 28 February 2026
Report ID: 13461
Report status: Accepted
Report due date: 30 March 2026
Grant ID: G-RF-2510-20571
Amount funded: 2275000 NGN, 1483.18 USD
Amount spent: 2275000 NGN
Rapid Fund Final Report

Application type: Standard application

Part 1: Project and impact

1. Describe the implemented activities and results achieved. Additionally, share which approaches were most effective in supporting you to achieve the results. (required)

1. Awareness Creation Awareness about Wikimedia projects was strategically disseminated among students and academic communities in private universities across Nigeria. This was achieved through online publicity campaigns, student networks, and institutional group engagements. These efforts introduced participants to platforms such as Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons, highlighting their importance in contributing to open knowledge.

2. Training and Recruitment The awareness campaign led to the successful recruitment of over 80 participants from private universities. Comprehensive training sessions were conducted both virtually and physically, equipping participants with the necessary skills to edit and contribute effectively to Wikimedia platforms. These sessions covered account creation, editing techniques, referencing, data structuring, and media uploads.

3. Content Enhancement (Edit-a-thon) An Edit-a-thon was organized as a core activity of the project, focusing on creating and improving content related to private universities in Nigeria. Participants actively contributed by adding new articles, enhancing existing ones, and uploading relevant media on Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons, thereby helping to bridge content gaps related to private university representation.

4. Community Building A sustainable community focused on Wikimedia activities in private universities was established at the end of the program. Additionally, ambassador groups were created across participating private universities. These ambassadors are responsible for ongoing publicity, coordination of future activities, and maintaining engagement within their respective institutions.

5. Sustainability Measures To ensure long-term impact, a WhatsApp group was created to serve as a continuous support and engagement platform. This group allows participants to interact, ask questions, seek guidance, share challenges, and continue learning beyond the duration of the project.

2. Documentation of your impact. Please use space below to share links that help tell your story, impact, and evaluation. (required)

Share links to:

  • Project page on Meta-Wiki or any other Wikimedia project
  • Dashboards and tools that you used to track contributions
  • Some photos or videos from your event. Remember to share access.

You can also share links to:

  • Important social media posts
  • Surveys and their results
  • Infographics and sound files
  • Examples of content edited on Wikimedia projects

Link to the Meta-Wiki page of the project: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Event:Expanding_Wikimedia_Engagement_and_Representation_across_Private_Universities_through_Mentorship

Link to the certificate presentation to the outstanding participants, facilitators and volunteers: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1X86ZX1W2l38AAmRKPljaaLddm8CpolJ8

Link to the pictures taken during the events: 1st physical event: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1RsBSxxqTXbcEmhV8T9ix-MIzCE5f7dAE 2nd physical event: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1X1Fb4e7GAgD6PqQBCJdivjm5pKKKPtGF

Link to the program dashboard: https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/courses/Individual/Expanding_Wikimedia_Engagement_across_Private_Universities/home

Link to the sustainable group created: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CT1NNCQhcUOAbJarW6GUxY?mode=gi_t

Link to the ambassadors group created: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GmkuIoFV5tRGaKbdOdJ1KH?mode=gi_t

Additionally, share the materials and resources that you used in the implementation of your project. (required)

For example:

  • Training materials and guides
  • Presentations and slides
  • Work processes and plans
  • Any other materials your team has created or adapted and can be shared with others

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Dates_and_numbers#Dates,_months_and_years https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Nigeria/Nigerian_sources https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTZGSNkNP70

3. To what extent do you agree with the following statements regarding the work carried out with this Rapid Fund? You can choose “not applicable” if your work does not relate to these goals. Required. Select one option per question. (required)

Our efforts during the Fund period have helped to...
A. Bring in participants from underrepresented groups Strongly agree
B. Create a more inclusive and connected culture in our community Strongly agree
C. Develop content about underrepresented topics/groups Agree
D. Develop content from underrepresented perspectives Agree
E. Encourage the retention of editors Strongly agree
F. Encourage the retention of organizers Agree
G. Increased participants' feelings of belonging and connection to the movement Strongly agree
F. Other (optional)

Part 2: Learning

4. In your application, you outlined some learning questions. What did you learn from these learning questions when you implemented your project? How do you hope to use this learnings in the future? You can recall these learning questions below. (required)

You can recall these learning questions below: Did the project train new and existing editors in private universities to gain the skills needed to edit Wikimedia projects? Did the project help close the knowledge equity gap by improving the visibility of Nigerian private universities, their people, and their contributions? Did the project increase representation of diverse voices and reduce systemic bias on Wikimedia platforms? Was the project beneficial to the participants in terms of knowledge gained and satisfaction with the training? Did the participants contribute quality content to Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons about private institutions? Did the project establish sustainable Wikimedia clubs or ambassadors within private universities to ensure ongoing engagement?

Did the project train new and existing editors in private universities to gain the skills needed to edit Wikimedia projects? The project successfully trained more than 80 editors, equipping them with the necessary skills to effectively contribute to Wikimedia platforms.

Did the project help close the knowledge equity gap by improving the visibility of Nigerian private universities, their people, and their contributions? The project contributed significantly to closing the knowledge equity gap by improving the visibility and documentation of Nigerian private universities and their contributions.

Did the project increase representation of diverse voices and reduce systemic bias on Wikimedia platforms? There was a notable increase in the representation of diverse voices, helping to address content gaps and reduce systemic bias across Wikimedia platforms.

Was the project beneficial to the participants in terms of knowledge gained and satisfaction with the training? Participants gained valuable knowledge and skills, and feedback indicated a high level of satisfaction with the training and overall project experience.

Did the participants contribute quality content to Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons about private institutions? Participants contributed and improved quality content across Wikipedia, Wikidata, and Wikimedia Commons, particularly on topics related to private universities.

Did the project establish sustainable Wikimedia clubs or ambassadors within private universities to ensure ongoing engagement? The project established both a sustainable editors’ group and an ambassadors network within private universities to ensure continued engagement and long-term impact.

5. Did anything unexpected or surprising happen when implementing your activities? This can include both positive and negative situations. What did you learn from those experiences? (required)

During the implementation of the project, a few unexpected situations arose, both positive and challenging.

Some participants experienced difficulties creating Wikipedia accounts due to IP address blocks, which required additional guidance and support to resolve. Additionally, the high cost of commodities in Nigeria at the time increased operational expenses; however, resources were carefully managed and discounts were secured to ensure the project was executed successfully.

On a positive note, there was strong interest from participants in contributing to indigenous language Wikipedias such as Igbo, Hausa, and Yoruba, leading to increased article creation and improvements in these languages. It was also encouraging to see alumni of private universities actively join and contribute to the project.

These experiences highlighted the importance of flexibility, effective resource management, and providing technical support, while also showing the value of inclusivity and local language engagement in Wikimedia projects.

6. What is your plan to share your project learnings and results with other community members? If you have already done it, describe how. (required)

The results and insights from the project are shared with the Wikimedia Nigeria User Group through the distribution of links to the project dashboard. In addition, top editors are publicly recognized through announcements that highlight their contributions and achievements, helping to motivate other participants. This approach ensures that valuable lessons are shared while also celebrating the successes of contributors within the wider Wikimedia community in Nigeria.

Part 3: Metrics

7. Wikimedia Metrics results. (required)

In your application, you set some Wikimedia targets in numbers (Wikimedia metrics). In this section, you will describe the achieved results and provide links to the tools used.

Target Results Comments and tools used
Number of participants 100 113
Number of editors 80 86
Number of organizers 4 4
Wikimedia project Target Result - Number of created pages Result - Number of improved pages
Wikipedia 100 323 706
Wikimedia Commons 80 300 17
Wikidata 50 71 1980
Wiktionary
Wikisource
Wikimedia Incubator
Translatewiki
MediaWiki
Wikiquote
Wikivoyage
Wikibooks
Wikiversity
Wikinews
Wikispecies
Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia

8. Other Metrics results.

In your proposal, you could also set Other Metrics targets. Please describe the achieved results and provide links to the tools used if you set Other Metrics in your application.

Other Metrics name Metrics Description Target Result Tools and comments

9. Did you have any difficulties collecting data to measure your results? (required)

No

9.1. Please state what difficulties you had. How do you hope to overcome these challenges in the future? Do you have any recommendations for the Foundation to support you in addressing these challenges? (required)

Part 4: Financial reporting

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10. Please state the total amount spent in your local currency. (required)

2275000

11. Please state the total amount spent in US dollars. (required)

1483.18

12. Report the funds spent in the currency of your fund. (required)

Provide the link to the financial report https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1f1t7JyrudcD5zKsp9FU6BuWrZwja77XPvkLMxIqeSZQ/edit?usp=drivesdk


12.2. If you have not already done so in your financial spending report, please provide information on changes in the budget in relation to your original proposal. (optional)


13. Do you have any unspent funds from the Fund?

No

13.1. Please list the amount and currency you did not use and explain why.

N/A

13.2. What are you planning to do with the underspent funds?

N/A

13.3. Please provide details of hope to spend these funds.

N/A

14.1. Are you in compliance with the terms outlined in the fund agreement?

Yes

14.2. Are you in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations as outlined in the grant agreement?

Yes

14.3. Are you in compliance with provisions of the United States Internal Revenue Code (“Code”), and with relevant tax laws and regulations restricting the use of the Funds as outlined in the grant agreement? In summary, this is to confirm that the funds were used in alignment with the WMF mission and for charitable/nonprofit/educational purposes.

Yes

15. If you have additional recommendations or reflections that don’t fit into the above sections, please write them here. (optional)