Grants:Conference/Algeria Wikimedians User Group/WikiArabia 2021 Conference

statusDraft
Algeria Wikimedians User Group/WikiArabia 2021 Conference
5th annual conference for Wikip(m)edians from across the Arabic world
targetWikimedia projects in Arabic
strategic priorityImproving Quality and Increasing Participation
event datesApril 2021
amount-local8 927 664 DZD
amount74 772 USD
typegroup
nonprofitYes
creatorReda Kerbouche
contact• vikoula5(_AT_)yahoo.fr , bachounda(_AT_)gmail.com

Event overview

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Purpose and vision

Please give a brief description of the event you are planning. What do you hope to accomplish during the event? Why is this event important for your community?

The purpose and the vision of WikiArabia 2021 is to provide an opportunity to the Wikipedians/Wikimedians of the Arab region to interact and to share their experiences and their activities. It is also a chance for the Arab community to bring up organisational problems and discuss possible solutions in order to enrich the quality and quantity of the content of Arabic projects. This edition is Also the conference where an Arab World Affiliate Committee will be established. This year's event will also serve to create several other affiliations across the Arab world.

Important details

Please add key information to the table below. The dates, location and number of participants can be estimates and do not need to be finalized at this time.

Proposed date(s) April 2021
Proposed location Algiers, Algeria.
Number of participants 65
Event page WikiArabia/2021
Primary contact person Reda Kerbouche
Mohammed Bachounda

Background

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Community input

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Context

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It is helpful to get an understanding of why this event is important to your community, and what experiences you have had in the past. Please answer the applicable questions below.

1. What inspired your community to begin planning this event?

After a long discussion between all the MENA Wikimedians, there a lot of changes in the movement and in their strategy. The community decided to start an Arab steering committee, we wish to announce it in Algeria. Also, we want to organize this conference to bring together the Wikipedian in Algeria so that they discover the Arab community. The conference will give a new start to the cooperation with the other UGs. and our objective is to find new contributors in the Arabic language.

2. How does this event relate to other activities that your community is working on?

The need for the conference was demonstrated some years ago. after each conference, many contributors come back home full of ideas to apply the acquired knowledge with their groups. Four conferences were held until now, this edition will be in line with the previous ones.

3. Please list the priorities identified in the report from the last conference organized by this community. What progress have you made in those areas?

The report from WikiArabia 2019 in Morocco listed several priorities such as dialogue sessions and meetings, the community asked the future conferences to be more open to the free meetings. Dealing with new wikipedians, we need to setup a strategy regarding new contributors, also, we noted that we need to discuss Wikipedia policies. find new ideas to increase knowledge content of the arabic world.

4. If your community has hosted a similar conference in the past, what key lessons were learned, and what would you like to improve on?

Like the past event and based on the report from the previous conference, many lessons have been mentioned such as following-ups, importance of social media usage, good communication. However, documentation and reporting could be improved.

Plan

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Venue and Logistics

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1. If the venue is more than 1 hour away from a major airport or transportation hub, how will participants travel to the event venue?

There is a big international airport in Algiers close to the city centre. All the participants will come through.

2. Is the event venue within walking distance from the hotel? If not, how will people travel between the two locations?

The event is planned to take place at the same place where the participants will be accommodated.

3. Is the event venue and hotel accessible for people with physical disabilities?

The venue is equipped to facilitate the accessibility to people with physical disabilities.

Friendly space policy

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Friendly space policy for Wikimedia Foundation events will be used for this event.

Participation

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It is crucial that most participants have a minimum level of Wikimedia experience so that they can engage actively in workshops and discussions. Please answer all applicable questions below.

1. Please describe the target audience for this conference or event.

Attendees are active Arab speaking contributors on Wikimedia projects, and also other people working on open knowledge questions, as well as local Algerian contributors.

2. If your conference has an outreach component, how will you ensure engagement with these participants after the conference, and what impact do you see them having on the projects?

Since the participants will be chosen based on their activity and therefore their commitment, the follow-up will be done through social networks and online meetings. An email will be sent three months after the conference to the participants to hear from them and get their updates.

3. Are you thinking about inviting WMF staff to attend or participate in the event? If yes, please list individuals or teams who you may want to invite, or describe how you would like WMF staff to be involved in the event.

The Foundation's staff will be invited, we wish to invite the current executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation, and the co-founder of Wikipedia (Jimmy Wales) in order to encourage the local community and promote the foundation and the open knowledge work in Algeria. Among the teams of the Foundation we’re thinking on inviting members working on the following fields: Wikipedia Education Program, Community Resources team, the legal team, Communications, Learning and Evaluation (Operations), Community Programs, Talent and Culture, LangCom.

Scholarships

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1. How many scholarships would you like to offer?
A total of 65 scholarships will be offered, including 45 for international participants and 20 for locals.
2. What expenses will the scholarship cover?
The scholarship will include travel expenses from the participants' hometowns to Algiers airport as well as accommodation, catering, and visa fees for internationals. Office tools such as pen, notebook and small bag for each participant will also be covered by the scholarship.
3. How will scholarship recipients be selected?
Scholarship recipients will be selected based on a clear defined and transparent criteria taking into account:
  • The involvement of the candidate in Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects
  • The involvement of the candidate within their communities to promote the Wikimedia projects,
  • The involvement of the candidate to promote the Open Knowledge. The participation in similar events. In case of equality between highly qualified candidates, priority will be given to the candidate that has never attended WikiArabia. This will give them the opportunity to experience this event similarly to their colleagues.
Diversity - In case of equality between highly qualified candidates, priority will be given to the candidate coming from an underrepresented fraction (gender, region, minority). The reason is that the their candidates will be more likely to promote Wikimedia within their community and close the gaps experienced in the region.
A scholarship form will be published and shared via different communication channels (mailing lists, social media channels, conference page on meta). Wikimedians will be invited to submit their scholarship requests.

Resources and risks

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Describe the resource potential for successfully executing this project and the key risks/threats.

Resources

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Organizing team
Team User Names
WMF Liaison Reda, Bachounda
Logistics ASCA
Conference Program Bachounda, Ismail Trabelsi, Mekkia Benama, Flouer, Fayçal R.
Scholarships Reda, Ahmed Houamel, Nacim Aboura, Zakaria Mimouni
Communications Ahmed Yahoui, Ahmed Houamel
Volunteer Coordinators Bachounda, Nahla
Administration Reda
Other team members Zakaria M., Muhammed amine benloulou.

Risks

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Budget

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Please provide a detailed breakdown of project expenses according to the instructions here. See Budget Guidelines.

Event budget table
Nr. Item description Unit Quantity Cost in DZD Cost in USD Comments
1. Travel costs & visas 39260 USD
1.1 International travel costs participant 45 3602416 DZD 30100 USD
1.2 Domestic travel costs participant 20 179522 DZA 1500 USD Transportation of local participants from other cities of Algeria to Algiers Airport.
1.3 Visas participant 26 497622 DZD 4160 USD Cost of a single Algerian visa is 160 USD
1.4 Visa travel - - 239241 DZD 2000 USD Travel costs for those applying for a visa outside of their hometown or country.
1.5 Traveling Agency - - 179431 DZD 1500 USD Fixed cost.
2. Accommodation & catering 23815 USD
2.1 Accommodation double rooms * nights 40 2641924 DZD 21177 USD Accommodation in double rooms (including breakfast, lunch, and dinner). Participants will travel in the night of third day depending on the flight tickets availability.
2.2 Coffee breaks - - 195000 DZD 1638 USD
3. Venue costs 4620 USD
3.1 Conference room days 1 x 3 550008 DZD 4620 USD The venue will be located at the same place where participants will be accomodated.
4. Additionnal expenses 7077 USD
4.1 Materials and gifts for participants participant 65 292500 DZD 2457 USD Pens, notebooks, t-shirt, bags (4500 DZD/participant)
4.2 Social event - - 300000 DZD 2520 USD Social event
4.3 Emergency & contingencies - - 250000 DZD 2100 USD
TOTAL 74772 USD
Total cost of event
The total estimated cost of the event is around 74 772 USD.
Total amount requested from the Conference and Event Grants program
The total amount requested from the conference and event grant program is 74 772 USD.
Please confirm that you are aware that changes to the approved budget beyond 10% in any category must be approved in advance.

Yes, we do confirm that we are aware that changes to the budget beyond 10 % needs approval in advance.

Discussion

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Endorsements

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Do you think this project should be selected for a Conference Grant? Please add your name and rationale for endorsing this project in the list below. Other feedback, questions or concerns from community members are also highly valued, but please post them on the talk page of this proposal.