Tl;dr: Are you from Africa and looking for other opportunities to contribute your knowledge and skills to Wikimedia or learn how to make valuable contributions to Wikipedia? Join the Africa Growth Project Pilot on WikiLearn to grasp the basics of contributing to Wikipedia and explore the various contribution options within the movement! Applications are accepted from August 4 - 16, 2023. 

Dear Wikimedians,

About a month ago, the Wikimedia Foundation announced the idea of an Africa Growth Project and initiated a curriculum consultation which concluded on 21 July 2023. The pilot project, as highlighted in the original email, seeks to enhance community efforts by creating a more effective online learning experience to improve the retention of new volunteers. 

Why the Africa Growth Project?

Investing in community capacity has been emphasized in various discussions within the Movement. These needs have been explicitly outlined in the Movement Strategy and, more importantly, the recent request for help with editor growth and retention from the communities in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Africa Growth Project is a pilot that aims to experiment with a course to provide a strong foundation in Wikipedia policies and collaboration norms, closely guided by our hypothesis of providing high-quality structured training to new and existing Wikimedians covering the basics of contribution to Wikimedia (including introducing the many ways to contribute beyond article writing) can double the retention rates of active editors in the region.

What can I expect?

The program will consist of a 4-week online learning experience in September. It will prepare participants to understand the fundamentals of contributing to Wikimedia and the range of contribution options available within the movement. For the initial iteration of this project, the course will only be offered in English. We intend to expand to other languages in the future if the piloted approach proves successful.

Participants will leave the course with:

• Basic familiarity with the Wikimedia landscape

• Awareness of the many different contribution options available to volunteers, over and beyond writing encyclopedia articles

• The ability to write in an encyclopedic tone and grasp the concept of a neutral point of view

• Understanding of reliable sources, referencing them, and the concept of "verifiability, not truth".

Who is eligible?

We invite all Africans, both experienced and new, who have an interest in developing or refreshing a clear understanding of the basics of contributing to Wikimedia and exploring the opportunities that exist for them in the Wikimedia volunteer journey.

Only 150 slots are available, selection will be based on the level of interest shown in the response, and users with accounts that are 6 months old or older will have an advantage.

Applications are open from 4 - 16 August 2023, and you can apply by completing the attached form before the deadline. If you wish to learn more, join us (in person or online) at our session at Wikimania on August 17 at 2:20 UTC. Alternatively, you can contact us through our meta page talk page or reach me at fnartey@wikimedia.org.

Best,