WikiAfrica Hour #41: Let’s celebrate our community’s projects & achievements! 

The final episode of 2024, and 41st broadcast of WikiAfrica Hour, is a special edition! We are showcasing some of the African communities and individuals whose achievements over the past year have contributed to raising our voices as African Wikimedians. As a space where Africa’s Wikimedians can share their work and knowledge, and digest those learnings, WikiAfrica Hour has become “the voice” of the community. What better way to close out the year than with a celebration of those voices!

In this episode, our guest host Justice Okai-Allotey talks to some of the facilitators and community leaders of key African projects about what inspired them to found their projects. We also have explored what it takes to facilitate those projects and the challenges they’ve faced along the way. As African Wikimedians, we know about the importance of collaborations, so we also take a look at partnerships those projects have developed, both within and outside of the Wiki landscape. 

The WikiAfrica Hour In Focus segment was a video about echoes from WikiArabia and WikiIndaba 2024. 

“What is very interesting in the Wikimedia Community is collaboration. We used to collaborate with many people in the community. When we have some issues, you just have to ask for help, and somebody will come and give you a hand. “ – Fatima Oury Sow Gueye

“One thing that really worked well and helped the community sustain was the support that we had from not just only the foundation, but also the people around. So we had collaborations. And also we spoke to both people who are in wiki, and also we also spoke to people who are not in the wiki media space.” –Robert Jamal

This WikiAfrica Hour episode’s guest host is Justice Okai-Allotey ,  a digital engagement strategist and enthusiast with core skills in communications, business development, social media strategy, management, content creation and curation. He is also a  Ghanaian Wikipedian and interim Board Chair of the Wikimedia Ghana User Group, leading efforts to improve Ghanaian articles on Wikipedia.

Our guests include:

• Barakat Adegboye, Wikimedian-in-Residence for the Wiki Imagine Lagos project.
• Loubna Ait Oumasste, a teacher and a member of the communication team at the Wikimedia Morocco User Group. she prepares and presents the WikiPodcast program and contributes to organizing some projects that Wikimedia Morocco is working on
• Robert Jamal, co-founded the Fante Wikimedians Community and is an administrator on the Twi and Fante Wikipedias. Robert is also a Specialist for the Wikimedia Ghana User Group and an active volunteer within the community, advocating for open knowledge.
• Fatima Oury Sow Gueye, Co-founder of the Wikimedia Community User Group Senegal, Fatima Oury Sow Gueye is a librarian who joined the Wikimedia projects in 2020. After two years of Wiki training, first through IFLA and then AFLIA, she and her colleague Adjovi Essenam FUMEY set about organising Wikimedia events in Senegal.

Thanks to Ezin Ronny, we have a French facilitation for two guests during the episode.

Credits to people who joined us in the echoes video:

From WikiIndaba 2024:

• Reda Benkhadra: Wikimedia Morocco User Group
• Ibrahim Elaidy: Egypt Wikimedians User Group
• Mahmoud Sabir: Wikimedia Community User Group Tchad
• Ahmet Mohamed Taher: Wikimedia Community User Group Tchad
• Robert Jamal: Wikimedia Ghana User Group
• Habib M’henni: Wikimedia Tunisia User Group

From WikiArabia 2024:

• Ahmed Nagi: Egypt Wikimedians User Group and Wikimedians of the Islamic Civilization User Group
• Loubna Ait Oumasste: Wikimedia Morocco User Group
• Mohammed Amine Benloulou: Algerian Wikimedians User Group
• Salema: Wikimedia Libya Community

This WikiAfrica Hour episode aired live: check out our Website or the WikiAfrica Hour meta page to watch this or previous episodes.  All WikiAfrica Hour episodes are available on YouTube.