Grants talk:Programs/Wikimedia Community Fund/Rapid Fund/Wiki Loves Earth 2024 in Togo (ID: 22680682)/Final Report

Serious problems on Wikidata

I am not able to identify the specific contributions associated with this project, but I have reviewed the Wikidata contributions of three identified editors: @Alfrednadjere, @Bamouzou, and @Akouete. All three have a substantial history of creating Wikidata items than do not establish notability, many of which have now been deleted. Two have failed to respond to any feedback. The general picture here is that these contributions have made a considerable mess for other editors to clean up, leading to the definite possibility that this program has been a net negative contribution to the Wikidata project. It appears that many of issues were raised with these editors before the start of this program. I have not reviewed their contributions to other projects.

I have the following recommendations:

• No further funds be assigned to projects associated with these editors until there is some evidence that they will conform to policy and make positive contributions.
• Review in general how it comes to be that the WMF is apparently spending money to make more work for project volunteers.
• Review specifically how this grant was approved despite the participants failing this criterion:

Applicants have not been repeatedly blocked or flagged for the same issue on a Wikimedia Project. If a block/ban is recorded in the applicant's account history, the applicant is required to demonstrate learning and understanding in regard to the cause for the block, such that they are ready to serve as a role model for others as a grantee.

Thanks, Bovlb (talk) 21:16, 19 November 2024 (UTC)

@Bovlb

I am reaching out to address the concerns raised about our contributions, which I feel have been misrepresented. Allow me to clarify a few points:

Firstly, I have successfully completed training with both AFLIA and Wikimedia France, earning certifications that attest to my competence and dedication. Our team operates in Togo, where we are committed to documenting valuable works to build a robust knowledge base for our country.

Far from being isolated, we actively engage with the global Wikimedia community and participate in foundation conferences, contributing to shared goals.

Regarding the Wiki Loves Earth campaign, our journey to the northern regions of Togo to explore animal parks, wildlife, and mountainous landscapes was made possible through a grant. It is important to note that such endeavors, which aim to highlight our country’s natural heritage, could not have been sustained with personal funds alone. This illustrates the genuine necessity of financial support for impactful documentation efforts.

We believe in constructive dialogue and appreciate feedback that focuses on improvement rather than disparagement. Criticism should aim to guide and correct, fostering collaboration and mutual respect within the contributor community. We hope for a discourse that uplifts the contributions of African communities rather than casting doubt on their integrity. Alfrednadjere (talk) 23:42, 19 November 2024 (UTC)

I commend you on taking appropriate training and in seeking to improve our coverage of traditionally under-served areas. I have no reason to doubt your good intentions. Unfortunately, intentions are not everything. Nothing you have said here appears to refute my characterisation above. Bovlb (talk) 06:13, 20 November 2024 (UTC)

@Bovlb I'm replying here to your post on Maryana's talk page. Thank you for bringing these concerns to our attention. I acknowledge that funding applicants or trainers who do not have adequate experience can have disruptive or problematic outcomes for Wikimedia projects and other contributors.

As we have shared in the past, we are continuously working to improve our grantmaking efforts, especially in how we support newcomers. In many cases we rely on the information provided by the applicant in terms of the team they would be working with, especially as newcomers are working towards advancing their contributions while being supported by others. Importantly, when applicants or relevant trainers clearly lack adequate on-wiki experience we ask applicants to identify a trainer with relevant experience or to reapply after building more on-wiki skills related to their proposal. Furthermore, when other contributors bring constructive concerns or advice to applicants, we expect them to be responsive to that feedback as a part of good community engagement practices. We also recognize the need to do more beyond our intentions and are working to achieve a better balance between supporting newcomers and making clear expectations around preparedness to lead movement activities and projects

Thank you for the recommendations made on how we can filter for some of these areas in the application process, we will be reviewing them as part of our continuous improvement efforts. I am happy to connect on this and more on grants, you can also connect with @VThamaini (WMF)who is supporting the regional grant program officers via vthamaini@wikimedia.org RWeissburg (WMF) (talk) 16:19, 21 November 2024 (UTC)