This is the central documentation page for the mentorship relationship between the Nupe Wikimedia community and the Wikimedia Language Diversity Hub (LDH).

Overview

Mentored Language: Nupe (nup)
Mentorship Start Date: Dec. 2025
LDH Mentor(s): Sadik Shahadu
Primary Community Contact: Ibrahim Yakubu
Key Partner: Independent Language Learning & Education Centre (ILLEC)
Community Page:
Related Projects:
- Wikipedia: nup.wikipedia.org (Graduated)
- Wiktionary Incubator: Incubator:Wt/nup
- Wikiquote Incubator: Incubator:Wq/nup

Midterm Mentorship Check-in: Nupe Community

Date: June 30, 2026

Mentor: Ibrahim Yakubu

Mentee: Ibrahim Yakubu

Facilitator: Tochi Precious

Participants:

Ibrahim Yakubu
Sadik Shahadu
Tochi Precious

Check-in Summary

The meeting focused on reviewing the progress of the Nupe community during the mentorship programme, identifying key achievements and challenges, assessing community growth, and co-creating priorities for the next six months.

Biggest Wins

Ibrahim shared that the Nupe community has made significant progress during the mentorship programme.

One of the community's biggest achievements has been its legal registration in Nigeria. This represents an important milestone in strengthening the community's organisational structure, credibility, and ability to engage with partners and institutions.

The community has also established partnerships with relevant organisations, including:

Staunch Vision Hard Development Initiative — to gain better insight into gender-based organising and explore ways to increase the participation and involvement of women in the community.
Indigenous Language Learning Centre (ILLEC) — to strengthen collaboration around indigenous language learning and preservation.

Additional achievements include:

Growth in the number of active editors from approximately 12–13 to 29–31.
Increase in content from over 500 articles to approximately 930.
Graduation from the Wikimedia Incubator, which has improved the community's activities and visibility.
Development of a clearer governance structure with defined leadership roles.
Improved inclusion and participation within the community.
Regular bi-monthly community meetings.
Strong retention of new editors, with contributors remaining active on a monthly basis.

Biggest Challenges

No major challenge was identified during the check-in.

The community expressed appreciation for the strong support provided by the mentor, which has helped advance its activities and development.

The main area of ongoing focus is ensuring that the community's governance and activities remain inclusive and that all members have opportunities to participate meaningfully.

What Surprised You Most?

The mentee highlighted the strong commitment and enthusiasm of the mentors to ensure that language communities are heard and represented within the wider Wikimedia movement and global ecosystem.

This commitment helped the community feel recognised, supported, and connected to the broader language diversity movement.

Recommendations for the Language Diversity Hub

The community recommended continued engagement and support beyond the formal mentorship period.

Key recommendations included:

Organising regular post-mentorship check-ins to maintain communication and support.
Creating opportunities for former mentees to continue engaging with one another after the mentorship programme.
Establishing regular gatherings or peer-learning sessions for mentees to share experiences and knowledge.
Creating opportunities for former mentees to become mentors and transfer the knowledge gained during the programme to other language communities.
Maintaining strong communication and ensuring that communities continue to receive support after the formal mentorship period ends.
Using WhatsApp as a practical channel for continued communication and engagement.

Community Health

Overall community morale was described as very positive.

The community considers itself highly inclusive and feels that its members are recognised, supported, and not marginalised within the wider Wikimedia movement.

The community is active, growing, and increasingly organised, with regular meetings, defined leadership roles, strong editor retention, and growing institutional partnerships.

Progress Review

Area	Current Status	Assessment
Active editors	Increased from approximately 12–13 active editors to 29–31 active editors.	🟢 Green
Content growth	Content increased from over 500 articles to approximately 930 articles.	🟢 Significant growth
Technical milestones	The community graduated from the Wikimedia Incubator, improving its activities and development.	🟢 Improved
Community structure	Leadership is now clearly defined, with established governance structures and defined roles.	🟢 Improved
Retention	New editors are remaining active and contributing consistently on a monthly basis.	🟢 Green
Partnerships	The community has established partnerships with relevant language and development organisations, including the Indigenous Language Learning Centre.	🟢 Positive
Funding	The community has applied for funding opportunities, including the Nigerian National Funding Programme, but has not yet secured funding.	🟡 In Progress
Communication	The community holds regular bi-monthly meetings.	🟢 Positive

Six-Month Co-Created Action Plan

Priority 1

Apply for official Wikimedia User Group recognition through the Affiliations Committee by September 2026.

Priority 2

Continue and strengthen the partnership with the Indigenous Language Learning Centre without relying solely on external funding.

Priority 3

Ensure the production of high-quality translations and content in the Nupe language.

Support Requested from the Language Diversity Hub

The community requested:

Access to micro-funding opportunities to support community activities, where available.
Possible small-scale hardware support, such as computers, to strengthen community participation and content production.
Continued communication and engagement after the formal mentorship period.
Regular post-mentorship check-ins and opportunities for peer learning and knowledge exchange.
Continued use of WhatsApp as a practical channel for communication and community support.

Success Indicators (Next Six Months)

The community considers the mentorship successful if the following outcome is achieved:

The Nupe community receives official recognition as a Wikimedia User Group through the Affiliations Committee.

Additional indicators of progress include:

Continued growth in active contributors.
Sustained partnership with the Indigenous Language Learning Centre.
Continued production of high-quality Nupe-language content.
Stronger post-mentorship engagement and knowledge exchange.
Continued retention and active participation of community members.

Action Items

Action	Responsible	Deadline
Share the meeting notes with participants.	Tochi Precious	Pending
Share the Nupe community's six-month action plan.	Ibrahim Yakubu	12 July 2026

Community Assessment Summary

(Based on initial diagnostic call)

Current Status & Strengths

Stage: Recently Graduated (Wikipedia). Actively incubating Wiktionary and Wikiquote.
Active Contributors: ~20 active editors, with growth observed post-graduation.
Strong Organization: Formal leadership structure with intentional gender inclusion ("sensitive positions" for women).
Strategic Partnership: Formal collaboration with the Independent Language Learning & Education Centre (ILLEC), which teaches Nupe from scratch.
Resource Access: Has 3-4 dedicated PCs for supporting activities and uses Kiwix for offline reading.
Recruitment Model: Effective outreach using digital literacy appeal and hands-on PC access to excite new contributors.

Primary Goals

Re-apply for and secure Wikimedia User Group/Affiliate recognition (after a previous denial).
Integrate Wikipedia into the ILLEC classroom (develop teacher guidance, assignments).
Secure funding to advance outreach and scale the digital literacy model.
Gain buy-in from linguists, language enthusiasts, and the broader community.
Develop templates and bots to support Wikipedia and incubating projects.

Identified Challenges & Support Needs

Affiliate Recognition: Previous AffCom denial is a major strategic barrier. Need a clear strategy for a successful re-application.
Funding & Resources: Need micro-funding for outreach and potentially additional PCs to scale their proven recruitment model.
Technical Skills: Need assistance with template and bot development for Wikipedia and incubating projects.
Partnership Expansion: Need to follow up and formalize partnerships with universities (e.g., Federal University of Lapai) and cultural institutions.
Capacity Building: Desire to learn from the experiences of other recognized communities.

Mentorship Action Plan

Phase 1: Strategy & Proposal Development (Months 1-3)

Objective: Develop a robust Affiliate recognition strategy and deepen institutional partnerships.

Action Item	Lead	Status	Notes/Deadline
1. Co-draft "Nupe UG Recognition Strategy" Document	Community + LDH Coordinator	Pending	Review previous denial reasons and outline a compelling re-application plan.
2. Create "Partnership Proposal Package" for ILLEC & University	Community + LDH Mentor	Pending	Draft formal proposals for collaborative projects (e.g., "Wikipedia in the Classroom" pilot).
3. Facilitate Peer Connection	LDH Coordinator	Pending	Connect community with leaders of recognized Nigerian affiliates (e.g., Yoruba, Hausa) for advice.
4. Audit & Prioritize Template Needs	LDH Mentor + Community	Pending	Identify one high-impact template project (e.g., country infobox) to start.
5. Step Down Training (SDT)	LDH Mentor	Pending	"Identify community active editors and set an active working step down training".

Phase 2: Execute Partnerships & Prepare Application (Months 4-6)

Objective: Launch partnership projects and prepare the Affiliate application.

Launch the "Wikipedia in the Classroom" pilot with ILLEC.
Support submission of a micro-grant application for additional PCs.
Begin drafting the formal Affiliate Recognition application.
Host a workshop on "Advanced Templates for Content."

Phase 3: Scale & Showcase Impact (Months 7-9)

Objective: Demonstrate growth and strengthen the recognition case.

Organize a joint edit-a-thon with university students on gender gap topics.
Prepare a "Community Impact Report" showcasing outreach numbers and partnership results.
Deepen technical capacity with a bot configuration workshop.

Phase 4: Recognition & Sustainability (Months 10-12)

Objective: Achieve affiliate status and ensure long-term sustainability.

Submit the final Affiliate Recognition application.
Develop a sustainability and succession plan for community leadership.
Create a post-recognition strategy to leverage new status (e.g., for AGILE girls' project).

Meeting Notes & Logs

December 2025

Initial Assessment & Planning. Discussed the community's post-graduation strengths and the strategic priority of securing affiliate recognition. Agreed to focus on building a strong re-application case through deepened partnerships and documented impact.

Key Resources & Links

LDH Mentorship Program Page: Wikimedia Language Diversity Hub/Activities

Contact

On-wiki: Sadik Shahadu
Community Lead: 787IYO
Key Partner: Independent Language Learning & Education Centre (ILLEC)

This page is maintained collaboratively by the Nupe Community and the LDH team. Please feel free to add updates, notes, and reflections below.