Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Fante Wikimedians Community Activities – 2026 (ID: 23747857)
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Applicant Details
[edit]- Main Wikimedia username. (required)
Robertjamal12 (talk • accounts • contributions • edit count)
- Organization
Fante Wikimedians Community
- 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)
I'm a group leader of an informal Wikimedia group.
- Describe all relevant roles with the name of the group or organization and description of the role. (required)
Founder - Fante Wikimedians Community
Main Proposal
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal. This will also be the Meta-Wiki page title.
Fante Wikimedians Community Activities – 2026
- 2. and 3. Proposed start and end dates for the proposal.
2026-04-05 - 2026-05-31
- 4. Where will this proposal be implemented? (required)
Ghana
- 5. Are your activities part of a Wikimedia movement campaign, project, or event? If so, please select the relevant project or campaign. (required)
Not applicable
- 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)
The change we are seeking through this round of the Rapid Fund is to strengthen, stabilize, and sustain Fante-language participation and content on Wikimedia platforms during a critical transition period following the formal registration of the Fante Wikimedians Community as a nonprofit organization. This transition marks a shift from informal, project-based engagement to a more structured, accountable, and community-led model, aligning our growth with the Wikimedia 2030 Movement Strategy and enabling long-term sustainability for Fante-language knowledge on Wikimedia projects.
Although we have been active since 2022, our work has largely operated through informal volunteer networks supported by short-term Rapid grants and affiliate partnerships. While this approach enabled early growth, it has also presented persistent challenges. The Fante language remains significantly underrepresented online, and key parts of the Wikimedia ecosystem are still not fully accessible or visible to native Fante speakers, particularly due to incomplete interface translations and limited localized outreach. Awareness of the Fante Wikipedia also remains low, especially among students, cultural practitioners, educators, and community historians who could meaningfully contribute local and cultural knowledge.
Another major challenge is editor retention, continuity, and leadership development. Previous workshops, edit-a-thons, and campaigns successfully onboarded new contributors; however, the absence of a formal organizational structure limited our ability to provide consistent mentorship, follow-up engagement, role clarity, and accountability mechanisms. As a result, contributor activity often declined after short project cycles, making it difficult to sustain long-term participation and grow local leadership capacity.
Now formally registered as a nonprofit organization, the Fante Wikimedians Community is better positioned to address these structural challenges in a coordinated and accountable way. Our nonprofit status enables clearer governance, improved financial and programmatic accountability, structured volunteer coordination, and stronger documentation and reporting. It also allows us to intentionally link onboarding, mentorship, community retention, and movement participation into a continuous and sustainable community pathway, rather than isolated activities.
This round fund will support short-term, high-impact, and time-bound activities that respond directly to the challenges identified above while leveraging our new organizational structure.
- 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.
Between April and June 2026, the Fante Wikimedians Community, a formally registered nonprofit organization, will implement a set of focused, time-bound activities designed to strengthen Fante-language content, participation, and community continuity on Wikimedia platforms. These activities respond directly to challenges identified in previous projects and align with Wikimedia’s 2030 Movement Strategy by supporting local language growth, community sustainability, and equitable access to free knowledge.
As a newly registered nonprofit organization, increasing visibility and building partnerships is a key priority. We will implement a light but targeted awareness campaign to introduce both the Fante Wikipedia and the Fante Wikimedians Community as a nonprofit, while inviting collaboration from institutions and individuals. This activity will strengthen our Radio Awareness Tour project and will include live radio engagement with Radio Windbay 93.1 and other radio partners, introducing: (a)The Fante Wikipedia, other Wikimedia projects and its importance. (b) The formal registration of the Fante Wikimedians Community as a nonprofit. (c) Opportunities for educators, cultural practitioners, media houses, and institutions to collaborate with us.
We will also use social media outreach and distribution of posters in selected educational and cultural spaces to reinforce the message and reach online audiences. This approach allows us to reach both offline and online communities within the imeframe and position the community for future partnerships.
Following the awareness campaign, a priority technical activity will be completing the remaining Fante translations on translatewiki.net as community members are now contributing to other Wikimedia projects aside Wikipedia including Wikiquote (see [1] and here. We will organize a short, focused translation sprint supported by in-person coordination and online follow-ups to complete outstanding MediaWiki interface messages. This activity will improve the usability of Wikimedia platforms in Fante and lower interface barriers for new contributors who are introduced through the awareness campaign.
Building on the awareness and improved interface accessibility, we will organize in-person workshops and mini edit-a-thons to onboard new contributors and strengthen the skills of existing editors. Participants will receive hands-on training on editing Wikimedia projects in Fante, using translated interfaces, and improving articles
To support organizational growth following our nonprofit registration, selected community leaders and members will:
- Participate virtually in Wikimedia movement conversations and regional activities
- Engage in peer learning and capacity-building exchanges with other Wikimedia affiliates and nonprofit user groups in the region, focusing on governance, volunteer management, documentation, and sustainability best practices
- Take part in a local virtual reflection session to share lessons learned and adapt relevant insights within the Fante Wikimedians Community
This will strengthen movement alignment while building internal organizational capacity in a cost-effective manner.
Throughout the project period, we will maintain light but consistent retention activities, including: (a) Pairing new contributors with experienced editors. (b) Monthly virtual check-ins (c) Continued recognition through our “Editor of the Month” initiative
- 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.
"Following our formal registration as a nonprofit organization, we have strengthened our internal team structure to ensure clear roles, accountability, and effective delivery of activities under this Rapid Fund.
Executive Director (Volunteer / Lead) Wikimedia Username: Robertjamal12 The Executive Director provides strategic oversight, liaises with the Wikimedia movement, funders, and partners, and ensures alignment with organizational goals, compliance, reporting, and documentation. The Executive Director will supervise all project activities during the grant period.
Programs and Projects Coordinator Wikimedia Username: Assilidjoe This role manages the day-to-day planning, implementation, and monitoring of project activities, including community engagement campaigns and in-person workshops and mini edit-a-thons. The Coordinator will track timelines, support volunteers, and ensure milestones are achieved within the implementation window. The role will be hired on a short-term stipend
Community Engagement & Training Leads Wikimedia Username: KISUMAR123 & Gloria Adokoh This team designs and facilitates training activities, including contributor onboarding, edit-a-thons, and mentorship support. They work closely with experienced editors to pair new contributors with mentors and support sustained participation. This role may receive a stipend for hands-on training sessions if needed.
Communications & Outreach Officer Wikimedia Username: Blanche Micah-Davis This officer manages public awareness and outreach activities, including coordination of the radio engagement, social media campaigns, poster distribution, documentation of activities, and engagement with potential partners. They also support reporting by capturing outcomes, photos, and key metrics from activities. This role may be paid a stipend
- 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)
Our program is designed to engage a diverse range of participants, including existing members of the Fante Wikimedia Community, Fante natives, and anyone who can contribute to the project in Fante. We understand the importance of maintaining communication with our participants and plan to use various platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and social media to achieve this.
To ensure continued participation and retention after the project implementation, we have developed a series of strategies. First, we will collect usernames and contact information through feedback forms to keep track of our participants. Additionally, we will offer optional mailing lists and social media groups for those interested in staying updated on future events.
We also plan to identify the most active, knowledgeable, and motivated contributors and invite them to future events, providing them with opportunities to take on leadership roles within the community. Finally, we will add new participants to the existing WhatsApp/Telegram group to encourage continued discussions and collaborations.
- 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.
See [Wikimedians Community]
- 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)
Language
- 13. Does your proposal include any of these areas or thematic focus? Select one option that most applies to your work. (required)
Culture, heritage or GLAM
- 14. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Linguistic / Language
- 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)
Our main learning questions include:
How does formal nonprofit structure improve coordination, accountability, and delivery of Wikimedia activities? As a newly registered nonprofit, we want to learn how defined roles, stipends, and basic governance support improve planning, execution, and reporting compared to our previous informal structure.
What awareness approaches are most effective for increasing visibility and trust in a newly registered Wikimedia nonprofit? Through the radio engagement and outreach campaign, we aim to learn how offline media and community-based messaging influence awareness of both the Fante Wikipedia and our nonprofit status.
How does completing MediaWiki interface translations in Fante affect contributor onboarding and editing confidence? We want to learn whether improved Fante-language interfaces lower technical barriers for new editors and increase participation during workshops and edit-a-thons.
Which engagement activities most effectively convert awareness into active contribution? We seek to understand how awareness efforts translate into concrete participation during in-person workshops and mini edit-a-thons.
What lightweight retention and mentorship practices best support short-term editor continuity? We want to learn which retention strategies, mentor pairing, monthly check-ins, and recognition initiatives are most effective within a Rapid Fund timeframe.
How can lessons from movement participation be applied locally to strengthen community sustainability? We aim to learn how insights from Wikimedia movement conversations can inform local strategy, leadership development, and future project design.
- 18. What are your Wikimedia project targets in numbers (metrics)? (required)
| Other Metrics | Target | Optional description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 80 | Participants we will engage within the period |
| Number of editors | 25 | Volunteer editors who will continue editing during the project period |
| Number of organizers | 4 |
| Wikimedia project | Number of content created or improved |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | 100 |
| Wikimedia Commons | 30 |
| Wikidata | 70 |
| Wiktionary | |
| Wikisource | |
| Wikimedia Incubator | |
| Translatewiki | 50 |
| MediaWiki | |
| Wikiquote | 50 |
| 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)
Event registration tool, Program and Events Dashboard, Wikimedia Hashtag Tools
Financial proposal
[edit]- 21. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it. (required)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11ysfYrODACgFIEWnlhiNIxAQVVk0nW_OVF2PrnE7X-0/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)
38500 GHS
- 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.
3489.97 USD
- By submitting your proposal/funding request you confirm that you have read and agree to the Application Privacy Statement, WMF Friendly Space Policy, and the 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).