Librarians play an important role in documenting, preserving, and disseminating knowledge, yet many are unaware of how Wikimedia projects can serve as powerful tools for open knowledge sharing and cultural preservation. As information professionals, librarians possess the skills necessary to contribute meaningfully to Wikimedia projects, but they often lack the training and awareness to actively engage with these platforms. This session will explore a targeted initiative that sought to bridge this gap by upskilling librarians in Gombe State, Nigeria, to contribute to Wikimedia projects, ensuring their participation in the open knowledge movement.

Through this campaign, 62 librarians were trained on Wikimedia projects, equipping them with the necessary skills to edit, improve, and create content on wikimedia platforms such as Wikipedia, wikidata and Wikimedia Commons. The training aimed to:

Introduce librarians to Wikimedia’s role in open knowledge dissemination and its relevance to libraries.

Identify gaps in Nigerian content on Wikimedia and empower librarians to address these gaps.

Train participants on how to edit and improve Wikimedia articles with a focus on Nigerian libraries and librarians.

Encourage the use of reliable references to improve content credibility.

As a result of this training, the librarians made substantial contributions to Wikimedia projects, leading to the improvement of 62 articles and the addition of 88 references. Beyond these immediate outcomes, the training ignited some of the participant’s interest and engagement, in continuing to contribute beyond the program.

This session will discuss the strategies used to engage librarians, the challenges encountered during implementation, and lessons learned from the training program. It will also highlight the impact of librarian engagement in Wikimedia projects, and explore how libraries can integrate Wikimedia into their services.

Additionally, the session will emphasize the importance of partnerships between libraries and the Wikimedia movement, demonstrating how training librarians can increase access to local knowledge and preserve cultural heritage on digital platforms. Attendees will gain practical insights on how to implement similar training programs in their communities, ensuring the sustainability of librarian participation in Wikimedia projects.

Aims and Objectives:
By the end of this session, participants will:

Understand the role of librarians in Wikimedia projects and how their participation can strengthen open knowledge ecosystems.

Learn best practices for engaging librarians in Wikimedia projects, including effective training methodologies and motivation strategies.

Explore the impact of librarian training on Wikimedia contributions, particularly in documenting Nigerian heritage and culture.

Gain insights into the challenges and solutions in implementing Wikimedia training for librarians.

Discover strategies for sustaining librarian participation in Wikimedia projects beyond the initial training phase.

Identify ways to replicate and adapt similar initiatives in other regions, fostering increased representation of local knowledge.

This session is ideal for librarians, GLAM professionals, Wikimedia volunteers, educators, and advocates of open knowledge who are interested in leveraging libraries as hubs for Wikimedia engagement. It will serve as a roadmap for fostering sustainable collaborations between the library and Wikimedia communities, ultimately enhancing access to underrepresented knowledge and promoting cultural preservation through open access platforms.