Esan Wikimedians Community

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: WIKITECH BUILDERS PROGRAMME! What if your coding skills could do more? What if they could help shape the future of free and open knowledge? The Wikimedia User Group Nigeria is inviting applications for the WikiTech Builders Programme, an initiative designed to equip developers and tech enthusiasts with the knowledge, skills and opportunities to contribute to the technical ecosystem powering Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects. Whether you’re a developer, programmer or someone with a passion for technology and open-source innovation, this is your opportunity to move beyond writing code and start building solutions that make a difference. Through practical training, collaboration and hands-on learning, participants will explore the Wikimedia technical ecosystem, work with relevant tools and technologies and develop the skills needed to contribute meaningfully to open-source projects. And there’s more! The programme will culminate in a hackathon, where participants get to showcase their skills, build innovative solutions, and compete for exciting cash prizes. Your next line of code could help power the future of free knowledge. -Application deadline: November 4, 2026 Apply here: forms.gle/MwqgMvS2FRf5UdqF7 Don’t just be a user of technology. Be part of the community building it!

Join us for a Special Meet & Greet with James Heilman! We’re excited to invite you to an interactive session with James Heilman Founder of Wiki Project Med and former WMF board of trustee member hosted by Wikimedia Nigeria Foundation! Together, we’ll explore practical ways to strengthen open health knowledge, including: - Navigating health-related content on Wikipedia - ⁠Translating medical topics into local languages using a simple dashboard - Improving public health access through open media - Understanding and strengthening the Wikimedia community Date: Sunday, October 11th Time: 3:00 PM 📍 Join us in person by securing your spot: forms.gle/NYvsCKse4H7tE5PX9 Can’t make it in person? Join us virtually via Zoom here: us06web.zoom.us/j/8475888986… Whether you’re joining us in Lagos or online, we’d love to have you!

We are delighted to have sponsored four Wikimedians representing Wikimedia Nigeria at the Language Diversity Conference 2026 in Accra, Ghana. Led by our Programs Director, Ayokanmi Oyeyemi, the delegation joined conversations at the intersection of language, culture, technology and open knowledge, bringing the Nigerian Wikimedia community’s experiences and perspectives to the global conversation. The conference provided an important platform to raise our voices, share our experiences, and help shape narratives around the preservation, documentation and representation of Indigenous languages and their role in building a truly inclusive open knowledge ecosystem. For us, language diversity is more than preservation. It is about ensuring that everyone, regardless of the language they speak, can see themselves, their knowledge and their culture represented in the digital world.

PRESS RELEASE WikiHeritage Fellowship 2.0 to Document the Untold Stories of Women in Pre-Colonial Lagos Lagos, Nigeria | September 21, 2026 The WikiHeritage Fellowship returns for its second edition with a focus on Women of Lagos: The Pre-Colonial Era, an eight-week programme dedicated to researching, documenting and improving public access to the histories of women whose contributions to the development of Lagos have received limited recognition. The fellowship will bring together young history graduates, history enthusiasts and emerging heritage advocates, equipping them with practical skills in historical research, archival documentation, digital storytelling and leadership. Through collaboration with the Lagos State Records and Archives Bureau (LASRAB), participants will examine historical records and explore the contributions of women to the social, economic, cultural and political development of pre-colonial Lagos. Research will cover notable women, women's associations, entrepreneurship, community development and traditional institutions. The programme will also provide leadership training through the Young Innovation Leaders Foundation (YIL), preparing fellows to lead community-based heritage preservation initiatives and sustain their contributions beyond the fellowship. Experienced archivists and Wikimedians will train participants in archival research, digitisation, Wikipedia editing, reliable sourcing and open knowledge practices. Fellows will apply these skills to create and improve Wikipedia articles and, where copyright and institutional permissions allow, make selected historical materials available on Wikimedia Commons. Fellowship Timeline The programme will run from September 21 to November 6, 2026, following a preparatory period for applications and participant selection. * September 21 – October 9: Programme launch, orientation, leadership development, archival training and Wikimedia skills development. * October 12 – 16: Practical archival research and digitisation at LASRAB. * October 19 – 30: Wikipedia article creation, content improvement and peer review. * November 2 – 6: Public showcase, community engagement and fellowship close-out. The fellowship will conclude with a presentation of participants' research, an award ceremony and the launch of the Archives-to-Wiki Network, which will support continued collaboration and heritage documentation. By combining historical research with leadership development and open knowledge practices, WikiHeritage Fellowship 2.0 seeks to make the contributions of women in pre-colonial Lagos more accessible while developing a new generation of heritage leaders committed to preserving the state's history.

WikiGap Nigeria 2026 is our annual initiative to celebrate and document the achievements of Nigerian women. To mark International Women’s Day 2026, Wikimedia User Group Nigeria will roll out three key programmes to bridge the gender gap on Wikipedia and amplify Nigerian women’s stories: 🔹 March 1–31: Nationwide online campaign to create and improve articles about notable Nigerian women in English, Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo. 🔹 April 8 | Abuja: One-day capacity-building training for new female editors, followed by structured mentorship. 🔹 April 9: High-level symposium, “Give to Gain,” hosted at the Residence of the Swedish Embassy in Nigeria, featuring inspiring women leaders. In partnership with the Swedish Embassy in Nigeria, Women FM 91.7, NAWOJ, Girls Voices Initiative, and Africa Wiki Women. Let’s give to gain. Let’s document her story. Let’s close the gap. 💜 #wikigapnigeria2026 #iwd2026 #GiveToGain

Call for Applications – Entertainers Needed for NWCDA 2025 Are you a creative performer looking for an opportunity to showcase your talent? We’re giving you the chance to perform at the Nigeria Wikimedia Community Distinguished Awards (NWCDA 2025) in Lagos! Whether you sing, dance, act, tell jokes, perform poetry, spoken word, or cultural displays; we’d love to see your creativity bring the event to life. This isn’t a competition; it’s a platform to share your gift and creativity. Note: Preference will be given to performers based in Lagos or those who can conveniently make their way to Lagos for the event. Apply here: forms.gle/nsCmjBHxkkr1JyBQA Deadline: 9th November 2025

Tomorrow in Akure, Ondo State, South West, Nigeria, as part of our mission to expand our reach within our ecosystem to build a network of volunteers across the country and the continent to raise awareness for open knowledge. Our president. @oluwanishola73 and some community members will join @jci_nigeria for their 2025 National Convention Training. Wikimedians in Ajure are welcome to join us there.

We’re excited to announce the Nigeria in Data: Markets, Meals and Music contest, focused on improving existing items and creating new items about Nigerian markets, meals and music. We invite all Nigerian editors to join the contest from October 11 – October 31st, 2025, as we document Nigeria’s diversity, one Wikidata item at a time. There are amazing prizes to be won for top contributors! For more details, visit event page and register - w.wiki/Faiy Join the virtual launch this Saturday, October 11 by 4:00 PM WAT - us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi…

10 years of free knowledge, 10 years of community, 10 years of impact! Today, we at Wikimedia User Group Nigeria celebrate a journey that began in 2015 with a simple belief: knowledge belongs to everyone. For a decade, we’ve worked side by side with volunteers, educators, creators, and changemakers to bring Nigeria’s voices, cultures, and stories to the world through Wikipedia and its sister projects. This anniversary is not just about us, it’s about every editor who made a first edit, every volunteer who discovered the power of open knowledge, and every partner who believed in the mission. Here’s to 10 years of opening doors to knowledge and to the future we’ll continue to build together. 🚀 #wugnat10 #WikimediaNigeria #10YearsOfWikimediaNG

Faces in the Wikimedia Movement As we celebrate 10 years of Wikimedia User Group Nigeria, we pay tribute to Wikimedians who have stood the test of time, contributing for over a decade and still shaping the Wikimedia Movement today. From 2010 till now, their passion, resilience, and dedication continue to inspire us all. Here’s to our long-standing Wikimedians who remind us that the Movement thrives because of people like them! 🙌 #10YearsOfWikimediaNG #wugnat10 #10YearsofImpact

Get ready for an inspiring Naija Office Hour! We’re excited to host two incredible voices in heritage and knowledge sharing: *Ms. Toyin Ogunlana – Director General, Lagos State Records and Archives Bureau *Silvia Gutiérrez – Senior Program Officer, Libraries at the Wikimedia Foundation Together, they’ll take us on a journey into “Preserving Nigerian History and Identity.” Join the conversation and discover how safeguarding our heritage keeps our stories alive and strengthens who we are as a people. 📅 Saturday, 6th September 2025 🕛 12:00 PM (WAT) Register Here: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi… #naijaofficehour #wikimediang

Join us tomorrow for the 24th Edition of Naija Office Hour with the Wikimedia Nigeria community! Alongside our theme “Preserving Nigerian History and Identity,” you’ll get to hear conversations on the WUGN Strategic Plan, the WMF Board of Trustees Election, Africa in 90 Seconds, and a GLAM Community Talk. 🗓️ Date: Saturday, 6th September 2025 🕛 Time: 12:00 PM (WAT) 📍 Venue: Zoom Register Here to join: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi… #naijaofficehour #WikimediaNG #Wikimedia

📰 In the News! On August 9th, the world marked the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples 🌍. 📌 Tribune Online highlighted the role of Wikimedia User Group Nigeria through the Nigerian Language Oral History Documentation Project, an initiative dedicated to preserving and documenting Nigeria’s 520+ languages and rich cultural heritage. Read more about it here 👉 tribuneonlineng.com/is-inter… Learn more about the Nigerian Language Oral History Documentation Project meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Nige… meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Nige… #indigenouspeoplesday #wikimedianigeria #languagedocumentation

Our WPWP Office Hour on 16th Aug 2025 was packed with insights💡, from campaign goals to eligibility and more! For this year, only contributions to Nigeria-related articles/pages count. Remember to use both hashtags #WPWP + #WPWPNG in your edit summary. Exciting prizes await top contributors! Learn more: meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wiki… #WPWPNigeria #WikimediaNigeria

📢 AfroCreatives WikiProject+Films 2025 is here! 🎬 The Wikimedia User Group Nigeria (WUGN) is excited to announce the virtual launch of the AfroCreatives WikiProject+Films 2025 in Nigeria! 🚀 📅 Date: Wed, 20th Aug 2025 ⏰ Time: 4:00 PM UTC/ 5:00PM WAT 💰 Prizes for Top 3 Contributors: 🥇 ₦100,000 | 🥈 ₦70,000 | 🥉 ₦50,000 👉 Participants can now start contributing to Nigeria’s film industry-related articles on Wikipedia, visit Meta page for more information. Also, don't miss the virtual launch where you’ll learn how to contribute and get full details on the project 🔗 Launch (Zoom) Registration: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi… 🔗 Visit Meta Page for more information: meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Even… Let’s tell Nigeria’s film story together — one edit at a time! 🎬✨