The Gambia Wikimedia Community
 | Affiliate Applicant This group is currently in the process of applying to become a Wikimedia movement affiliate to the Affiliations Committee. To find the list of active Wikimedia affiliates, please visit the formal list of Wikimedia Movement Affiliates. |
| Home | History | Objectives | Activities | Contact Persons | Interested participants |
|---|
| The Gambia Wikia media Community  | |
|---|---|
.svg) The Gambia | |
| Location |  The Gambia |
| Country code | GMB |
| Official language(s) | English |
| Other language(s) | Mandinka, Fula, Wollof |
| Key people | Gayo Bah(talk) Ramatoulie Touray(talk) |
| E-mail address | wikimediausergroupthegambia@gmail.com |
| Wikimedia User Group The Gambia | |
- CH Wikimedia CH
- GB Wikimedia UK
- KR 위키미디어 한국
- US-NYC Wikimedia New York City
- CAT Amical Wikimedia
- ESP-WE Wikiesfera Grupo de Usuarixs
- H-GAPS H-GAPS User Group
- NGA-HA Hausa Wikimedians User Group
- NGA-IG Igbo Wikimedians User Group
- US-NE New England Wikimedians
- WJ WikiJournal
- WK? Whose Knowledge?
Wikimedia User Group the Gambia is as a result of our volunteers (Gayo Bah and Ramatoulie Touray) experience at the WikiIndaba conferences. We recognize the transformative power of Wikimedia projects in providing free and open knowledge to communities and individuals.
The aim of this group is to serve as a hub for promoting Wikimedia projects in the Gambia and fostering collaboration among volunteers, educators, librarians, researchers, and anyone passionate about knowledge sharing. Through collectives efforts, the group seeks to support the growth and accessibility of knowledge while encouraging active participation in various Wikimedia initiatives
The Gambia
[edit]The Gambia is one of the smallest countries in the world and the smallest in main land Africa and has a narrow strip of land that follows the path of the Gambian River,extending around 400 kilometers inland from the Atlantic coast moreover,surrounded on all sides by our neighboring country Senegal.Its population is about 2.8 million is incredibly diverse and rich in tradition and culture that comprised of 10 tribes (Mandinka, Fula, Wollof, Jola, Sarahule, Serer, Aku, Manjago, Balanta And Bainunka) each with different culture, custom traditional outfits etc yet they leave in peace and harmony. the Gambian culture is rich in oral history,music and storytelling however,traditional instrument like the kora and balafon are central to music scene . The Gambia is one of the most peaceful county's in Africa. One unique culture that help to foster peace and unity is the joking relationship between the tribes. The Gambia is a majority Muslim country with 10 to 15% of the population is Christians but there is strong religion tolerance.
History
[edit]The founders of this group were inspired by experiences and collaborations gained from participating in various Wikimedia events, particularly the WikiIndaba Conferences held in 2023 ( Morocco) and 2024 (Johannesburg); Wikidata training sessions and the AFLIA 1Lib 1Ref campaigns. Members of the group were moved by the dynamic contributions of other Wikimedia user groups across Africa, experiencing firsthand the positive impact they make in their respective communities.
Objectives
[edit]- To raise awareness and actively promote Wikimedia projects in The Gambia in order to increase public understanding and engagement with free knowledge platforms by building a supportive network of volunteers,editors,and advocates to encouraging participation in editing and improving Wikimedia projects.
- Encourage the use, contribution, and promotion of Wikimedia platforms such as Wikipedia, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikisource within The Gambia,to advocate for open access to knowledge by training and mentor new contributors to ensure sustainable community.
- Collaborate with schools, universities, and research institutions to integrate Wikimedia projects to advance its mission by fostering a vibrant,inclusive,and informed community that contributes to the growth of free knowledge into educational and academic activities.
- Advocate for open access to information and resources in alignment with the global Wikimedia movement’s mission to promote free and open knowledge by the use and creation of free accessible,reliable and verifiable content on wikimedia platforms.
- Forge partnership with Wikimedia User Groups and organizations across Africa and globally to exchange best practices and collaborate on mutually beneficial projects.
- The group will establish structures for the long-term sustainability of Wikimedia activities in The Gambia, including securing partnerships and funding.
- the group would create an environment that would championing Diversity and Inclusion by creating a welcoming space for people of all backgrounds,to ensure equitable participation across gender,region,language,and identity.
Activities
[edit]2024 Activities
The first activity of this group is to organize a campaign which run from December 2024 to January, 2025 with the aim to enhance the quality and depth of Wikipedia articles about Gambians. With over 598 stub-level articles and 389 start-level articles, most of the Gambia’s rich history, culture, and contributions remain underrepresented. The campaign aims to enhance the quality of these articles by incorporating reliable reference and enriching them with comprehensive detailed contents. This was a pilot project to bring together Wikimedia volunteers and give them firsthand knowledge about participating in Wikimedia campaigns.
2025 Planned/ Upcoming Events
[edit]April-June
Wiki Loves Africa in the Gambia,
We intend to organize a two-month edit-a-thon from April to June 2025. During this period, participants will be encouraged to contribute to Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, with a particular focus on improving and creating articles about the Gambia. We will particularly try to improve articles in the WikiProject Gambia where we have so many articles that needs to be improve.
Participation in #1Lib1Ref: African Librarians Week (May 2025)
[edit]The Wikimedia User Group the Gambia is proudly taking part in the #1Lib1Ref African Librarians Week 2025, a continent-wide initiative to improve the quality of Wikimedia projects through the addition of reliable references.
Our goals for this campaign include:
- Strengthening the referencing culture among Gambian librarians, archivists, and young writers.
- Enhancing the quality of articles related to the Gambia and West Africa by adding citations from verifiable and local sources.
- Building the capacity of library and information professionals to contribute to Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects.
- Promoting collaboration between libraries, Wikimedia communities, and information stakeholders in the Gambia.
Through this campaign, we aim to contribute actively to knowledge equity and help close the content gap on African topics.
Proofread of the Month June 2025
[edit]Over the past few weeks we have trained several passionate volunteers from the Gambia National Library on how to contribute to Wikisource. These sessions focused on the basics of proofreading, using tools like OCR, and understanding the importance of making public domain texts more accessible. These newly trained volunteers are now actively participating in the Proofread of the Month challenge on Wikisource. They’re not only contributing consistently but also enjoying the process of learning and preserving knowledge in a collaborative environment. This is a big step for our user group as we work to build a stronger, more diverse editing community in The Gambia. More training is planned soon, especially focusing on the Wiki Incubator, where we aim to contribute in Mandinka and other Gambian languages.
Contact Persons
[edit]Interested participants
[edit]- Gayo Bah(talk)
- Ramatoulie Touray( talk)
- Isatou Sowe
- Saikou Jammeh
- Modou ML Jallow
- Lamin .B. Fatty
- Muhammed Camara
- Maimuna Bah
- Bamba ML Jaiteh
- Alex David Pratt
- Isatou Darboe
- Kabiro Janneh
- Lamin Bayo
- Isatou Sisawo
- Fatou S Trawally
- Sering Abdou Jobe
- Mansata Sanyang
Gallery
[edit]-
Wikimania Opening Ceremony -
Wikimania 2025 Participants -
Wikimedia Projects Awareness campaign in the Gambia -
User Group Banner -
session going on during wikimedia project awareness campaign in the Gambia. -
President of GAMLISA during the training. -
Wikimania
