Wikibase in Nigerian Libraries/Phase One

Wikibase in Nigerian Libraries

• Overview
• Phase One
• Phase Two - Pilot Project
• Partnership and Implementation team
• Participants and Wikibase Instances Created
• In-person Workshop Program of Activities
• Resources and Videos
• Project Reporting

In the first phase of the Wikibase in Nigerian Libraries Project, a virtual Webinar was organized for Librarians in Nigeria, as part of the activities to mark the 2022 International Open Access Week. The event was organized in partnership with the Nigerian Library Association, Edo State Chapter and the Wikimedia Deutschland. The Webinar focused on Linked Open Data and Wikibase for Libraries with notable examples of how libraries are leveraging on the Wikidata and Wikibase innovation.

The event was facilitated by Alan Ang, Partner Manager at Wikimedia Deutschland and Mohammed Sadat Abdulai, Community Communications Manager, Wikidata/Wikibase. It started at about 11:10am Nigerian Time and lasted for about 90mins. With about 90 participants in attendance, webinar was considered a huge success as the facilitators were able to enlighten the participants on Linked open Data, Wikidata, and the application of Wikibase in Libraries. The facilitators gave notable examples of Libraries already leveraging on Wikibase technology, with the German and French National Libraries being notable examples. It should be noted that even though the event was organized for Nigerian Librarians, there were also participants from other countries such as Kenya, Ghana, South Africa and India.

LIMITATION

Although the event was considered a huge success, there were however, some limitations:

1. Some participants had difficulty understanding some of the technical terms and advocated for an in-person Workshop were they can be trained on Wikidata and Wikibase

2. We could not offer data support for participants outside Nigeria due to limited funding

3. The duration for the event was not enough for hands-on training.

THE WAY FORWARD

Given that the participants for this event were from different libraries, it will be helpful if we can have an in-person Workshop for Librarians were they can learn more on Wikidata, Wikibase and Wikibase.cloud. This will go a long way in ensuring that libraries in Africa are able leverage on these innovations for better accessibility to library resources.

Link to the Webinar

The recording of the Webinar on `Linked Open Data and Wikibase for Nigerian Librarians` can be viewed on the Facebook page of the Nigerian Library Association, Edo State Chapter.