Kusaal Wikimedia Community End-of-Year Annual Report 2023

January 17, 2024

The Kusaal Wikimedia Community, initiated in late 2022 by Nurudeen Mohammed, aimed to establish a live Wikipedia for the Kusaal language. He worked with Isaac Awinimi Adakudugu, who started by teaching how to read and write in the Kusaal language online (on Facebook and YouTube). Despite its early stage with fewer than ten active members, rapid progress was achieved in translating the Most Used/Most Important Messages on Translate wiki within a month, thanks to the significant contribution of Mr. Michael Awimbilla, the Godfather of the Kusaal language.

Following the Translate wiki, the community focused on creating articles on the incubator, leveraging online engagement to train native speakers. An opportunity emerged for the co-leader to train Kusaal language teachers during a workshop, marking the only in-person engagement in the Kusaug area. Various contests, organised by the Dagbani Wikimedians User Group, were actively participated in, contributing to article development.

Leadership and Training, Community Development, and Success: A core leadership team underwent comprehensive training by our hardworking co-leader, Musah Fuseini, by username Musahfm, leading to the successful establishment of the Kusaal Wikipedia incubator. Continuous advocacy and workshops, both online and in person, were organised to fortify the community. Noteworthy successes include translating important messages, active participation in contests, extensive training impact, and substantial article development with a total of 1167 pages and 58 editors.

The Kusaal Wikimedia Community, while facing challenges in data acquisition, device accessibility, volunteer engagement, training opportunities, and financial independence, has demonstrated notable success. Addressing these challenges is crucial for future growth and achieving the ultimate goal of Kusaal Wikipedia approval.