WikiChallenge African Schools – Botswana

Project Title:

Training of Trainers Workshop for the WikiChallenge African Schools 2024/2025 – Botswana Edition

Organized by:

Orange Botswana Foundation
Wikimedia Community User Group Botswana
In collaboration with the Ministry of Child Welfare and Basic Education

Date: February 2025

Location: Orange Digital Center, Gaborone, Botswana

Overview

The Orange Botswana Foundation, in collaboration with the Wikimedia Community User Group Botswana and the Ministry of Child Welfare and Basic Education, successfully hosted a Training of Trainers (TOT) workshop to prepare for the 2024/2025 edition of the WikiChallenge African Schools.

This capacity-building workshop brought together facilitators from the Ministry and Orange Foundation to equip them with the knowledge and tools to support participating primary schools in contributing to Vikidia, a child-friendly online encyclopedia.

Led by trainer Candy Khohliwe, the sessions focused on storytelling, digital literacy, and collaborative content creation, empowering educators to guide students in documenting local knowledge and culture.

Objectives

Train Ministry and Orange facilitators to support school participation in the WikiChallenge African Schools.
Introduce Vikidia and how to contribute educational content suitable for children.
Promote digital literacy, creativity, and local heritage preservation through storytelling.
Prepare trainers to facilitate school-based workshops across Botswana.

Participants

Facilitators (Ministry of Education TOTs & Orange Facilitators):

User:Zumba
User:Nseane
User:Tselemela
User:G Dan Khethiwe
User:Kbmotswagole
User:James.marumo
User:Kmusimuriwa
User:Eamolapisi
User:Ojphale
User:Stegling
User:Mananga
User:Shoodho

Participating Schools

Mafitlhakgosi Primary School
Siga Primary School
Letsebe Primary School
Lekgolobotlo Primary School
Dikgonye Primary School
Magopane Primary School
Lesetlhana Primary School

Articles Written in 2025

Madikwe River – Letsebe Primary School
Baherero – Mafitlhakgosi Primary School
Culture of Balete – Siga Primary School
Motshelo – Magopane Primary School
Letesi (Fabric) – Lesetlhana Primary
Mmalaegage Gorge – Lekgolobotlo Primary School

Highlights

Over 15 facilitators trained in Wikimedia tools and child-friendly content editing.
Hands-on sessions using laptops and Wikis to simulate school workshops.
Collaborative learning environment hosted at the Orange Digital Center, a key tech empowerment hub.
Participants learned to guide children in writing encyclopedia-style articles about their cultures, history, and geography.

Gallery

Hashtags

#WikiChallengeAfricanSchools
#OrangeDigitalSchools
#MinistryofChildWelfareandBasicEducation
#WikimediaBotswana

Contact Us

Facebook page; Wikimedia Community User Group Botswana
Instagram: WikimediaBw
Twitter:WABCUser Group
Youtube:Wikimedia Community User Group Botswana