Grants:Conference/Wikimedia Community User Group Rwanda/WikiIndaba Conference 2022/Report

Template:Conference Grant report/Final/Final

Guidelines on how to fill out this grant report

• If you wish to write your report in your native language, you are free to do so. Please indicate (in English) what language are you using.
• If you prefer to submit the narrative report in a video format, you can. The video should be in English. Please upload the video to Wikimedia Commons and share the link in your report page. Make sure to answer all the required questions. All Financial documentation will still need to be submitted in a written form.
• If you struggle with some of the questions, or wish to have a debrief meeting with your Program Officer before submitting your report, we are very happy to meet and walk you through the report template. This can be especially helpful if you want our help in identifying and reflecting on lessons learned. Please get in touch with your Program Officer.
• If you have other ideas, preferred methods on how to submit your Conference Grant Report or concerns - please reach out to us.

Outcomes and Impact

Thanks for bringing value back to the Wikimedia movement by sharing in this report. Everything you learned during your project is useful knowledge to offer future Wikimedians planning similar work.

In this first section you are asked to reflect on your initial goals and the impact the event had on your community. Remember there is no right or wrong answer. Even if your goals have changed over time, or the impact was different than what you expected. Feel free to share your long or short answer - we are happy to hear whatever you have to share.

• Did your event have any impact that you did not expect, positive or negative?

This was truly an African conference because all the African affiliates were represented in the conference albeit the limited number of full scholarships. There was an increased collaboration between Wikipedians from different African countries. As a new User Group we did not expect this number of Wikipedians who offered to assist us in organising the conference. This event was the first of its kind and brought people from across the continent together to collaborate and share ideas. Many of the attendees, some of whom had never met before, found that they had much in common and could learn from each other's experiences. As a result, the collaboration and networking between African Wikipedians was greatly enhanced. This has enabled African Wikipedians to work better together to improve their respective Wikimedia projects. There are also a few negative things which we will delve into later in the report.

• Please tell us about the top 2-3 innovative (new to you and your community) or things you tried this conference.

1. We tried a new format for WikiIndaba in 2022, which was a mix of online and in-person sessions. Seeing that there were only 40 scholarships and over 200 scholarship applications, we had dedicated online session, and with thanks to Wiki In Africa who sponsored us with their StreamYard platform we were able to reach a wider audience and also to ensure that those with access issues were not left out of the discussion. 2. We also tried out a new format for the WikiIndaba business meetings, which was a hybrid between the traditional roundtable discussion and a more structured workshop style. This allowed us to have a more productive discussion, as we were able to focus on specific topics and come to concrete conclusions about these topics.

• Were there any significant changes from the initial grant proposal?

Although there were no significant changes from the initial grant proposal for the conference. Since the main focus of the proposal was to provide funds for the organisation of the event, which included covering expenses related to travel, accommodation, and catering as well as expenses related to venue rental, audiovisual equipment, and other miscellaneous items. However, the delay of funds from the fiscal sponsor to reach Rwanda compounded by a strike action by pilots in the region which caused flights to be delayed and rescheduled caused a significant increase in the line items dedicated to Air travel, Accommodation and catering. The hotel charged us a penalty fee of 10 200 USD, while the flights increased by over 6 000 USD from what was budgeted for them, this then caused a shortfall of 16 240 USD which really caused a crisis at some point during the organising of the conference. The main problem that came with the late arrival of funds for the WikiIndaba conference was that we had to scramble to rearrange our plans for the event. This included having to postpone some of the planned activities for the conference. Additionally, the contingency was very small (only 3000 USD) and we had to find alternate sources of funding to cover additional costs that were incurred due to the delay. This put us under a lot of pressure and caused a lot of stress due to the time constraint. Also because the hotel was threatening legal action if we don’t pay a down payment to cover some of the services. In this regard we were forced to reallocate funds from the annual plan grant to use in the conference

• What do you think will be the long term impact of this conference?
• Do your best to estimate the number of attendees in your event that have never attended any Wikimedia event before. How were you able to support and engage this group?

We estimate 25 participants to those who had not attended any wikimedia event before , This achievement is particularly noteworthy because it reflects a successful effort to broaden Wikimedia Community by attracting new members who bring diverse perspectives and experiences additionally by connecting this newcomer with experienced volunteers. we facilitated the exchange of knowledge and promoted collaboration between different segments of the community . our initiative to engage New participants in the Wikimedia movement has proven to be successful and has resulted in the growth and strengthening of the community.

• Do your best to estimate the number of participants who have been involved in Wikimedia activities for more than 5 years. How were you able to support and engage this group?

We estimate 20 to be the number of participants who were involved in Wikimedia for more than 5 years, The majority were presenters of various programs during the conference.

Learning and next steps

Conferences and events do not always go according to plan! Please use this section considering the perspective of what future event organizers within our movement organizing a similar style conference can learn. Make sure to include lessons around work with external/ internal partners; your communication efforts; your work with the community and volunteers etc.

• What would you do differently next time and why? Please share with us if there's anything you wouldn't do or something future organizers should avoid.

If I were to organise a WikiIndaba conference again, I would make sure to involve the local community in the planning and implementation stages. This would ensure that the conference is tailored to the needs of our local community, and would also allow for a greater exchange of ideas and perspectives. Additionally, I would ensure that I find more partnerships and sponsorships to complement the funding from WMF and scholarships so that it remains inclusive and open to all. I would also make sure that I work closely with the fiscal sponsor to double check and even triple check that the correct banking details are provided before money is sent. Finally, I would also ensure that I have a clear budget months before the conference begins, and that all expenses are allocated and tracked properly.

• Was there any non-financial support that the Wikimedia Foundation could have provided that would have better supported you in achieving your goals?

The Wikimedia Foundation provided us with non-financial support such as guidance, raising awareness, WMF through the office of the CEO paved a way for us for the potential partnership with the Ministry of ICT & Innovation, and K-Lab which is an It innovation Hub and the technical support and event organisation tips that helped us in running a successful event , We couldn't ask for more.

• What would you recommend on a local and/or regional level as the best next step to leverage your success and momentum? (Please consider potential new allies and partners; internal wiki collaborations; future projects etc. We don't expect you to necessarily do those, we are only looking for more ideas from your own perspective.)

1. Develop a follow-up plan that includes activities to continue to engage the local and regional communities that participated in the WikiIndaba conference. This plan could include activities like organising local workshops, meetups, and hackathons to continue to share knowledge and build local capacity. 2. Establish a regional network of WikiIndaba organisers and participants and facilitate regular communication and collaboration between them. I think WISCom can play a crucial role here. Although there is an African mailing list and a Telegram social media group to share ideas and updates on upcoming events, resources, and initiatives, I think if there can be someone that actively engages volunteers to make sure that ideas shared during WikiIndaba are turned into actions ( it could be even a paid positions with the assistance of WMF). 3. Engage with local and regional governments and institutions to create partnerships and collaborations that can help further the goals of the WikiIndaba conference. This could include seeking funding for future events, providing training and capacity building to local organisations, and exploring ways to integrate Wikipedia into existing educational programs again, I think WISCom is best placed to initiate this.

• Does your organizing team / affiliate / user group have any plans to follow up with your attendees in the future or support efforts related to the outcomes of this conference within your community?

We are working with WISCom and Belinda and her team (Winnie) to follow up with the attendees of the conference to determine the support they need.

• Please add any 3 operational recommendations for future events organizers.

1. Utilise online tools and services to streamline the registration process for participants, including creating a central portal to manage registration information and payments. 2. Encourage collaboration between WikiIndaba organisers and other Wiki initiatives, such as WikiTribune and Wiki Loves Monuments, to create a more integrated experience for participants. 3. Design a conference schedule that allows for ample networking and collaboration time between sessions to facilitate knowledge-sharing and idea-generation.

Financial documentation

This section describes the grant's use of funds

Budget table

Please list all project expenses in a table here, with descriptions. Review the instructions here. These expenses should be listed in the same format as the budget table in your approved submission so that anyone reading this report may be able to easily compare budgeted vs. actual expenses.

Item	Expenses (In USD)	Notes
Amount received From WMF
The total amount received from WMF	138,325$
PRE-CONFERENCE
LOC Project Management (Transport for meetings, food during meetings, etc.)	1,500
CONEFERE DAYS
Conference venue food	12,455
Dinner	5,375
Conference venue	2,400
Hotel venue (Accommodation)	33,800
Penalty fee for late payment of Hotel.	10,200	Initially the hotel gave us a discounted price. However, they revoke the discount and added a penalty fee of 10 200 USD for late payment. This amount is inclusive of accommodation, conference venue and catering.
Livestreaming & video recording	5,000
Awareness & SWAG merchandise
T shirts	2,200
Banners & Branding	1,000
SWAG	1,375
On Ground travels
Local scholarship (in form of transport)	2,100
Air travels
Airfare	46,075	There were number of people who's flights had to be rebooked, other's had to reschedule their flights because of the pilots strike action which coincided with the conference. Including 3% of the travel booking agent fee for every rebooking and rescheduling of flights.
Visa & Travel Insurance
Visa	470
Travel Insurance	2,100
COVID-19 protocols
Departure tests - PCR	1,040
Entertainment & Excursions
Traditional dance	1,000
Kigali tour	2,000
Food at Kigali tour	1,500
Event management company	6,000
Communication & Media Management	600
Social event Venue	200
Childcare	750
Bank charges	1,350	There was an increase in the total bank fees associated with paying fees to expedite the funds to reach Rwanda.
Genocide memorial donation	1,000
Car hire (Airport pick ups, delegate officials transportation)	500
Fiscal sponsorship	12,575
TOTAL	154, 565
Shortfall Balance	16,240

If you have any tips or insights on creating a budget or allocating funds, please feel welcome to share!

Summary of funding

Total project budget (from your approved grant submission):138,325$

Total amount requested from WMF (from your approved grant submission):138,325$

'Total amount spent on this project (this total should be the total calculated from the table above): 154, 565 $

Total amount of WMF grant funds spent on this project:138,325$

Are there additional sources of revenue that funded any part of this project? List them here. Annual support Grant

Remaining funds

Are there any grant funds remaining?

NO.

There is no remaining amount but we have a Shortfall Balance of 16,240 $

Please list the total amount (specify currency) remaining here. (This is the amount you did not use, or the amount you still have after completing your grant.)

Evaluation

Optional - Event Evaluation Toolkit - In this page you can find a list of basic questions that the Wikimedia Foundation uses to evaluate large movement events like Wikimania and other regional and thematic events. Feel free to use any part of these questionnaires to evaluate your own event. You will find: Registration Questions; Post-event questions for participants and Follow-up questions for participants.

Anything else

Is there anything else you want to share about the conference or event?