Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2022-08-01/Election guide/Candidate Op-Ed, Tobechukwu Precious Friday


 * Each of the six shortlisted Board of Trustees candidates were offered an Op-Ed space in The Signpost to express their thoughts. Friday requested we republish their candidate statement. This article is an opinion piece and reflects the views of Friday, rather than The Signpost. –E

Personal: Editorial:
 * Name: Tobechukwu Precious Friday
 * Location: Nigeria
 * Languages: English, Igbo, basic German and basic French.
 * Wikimedian since: 2017
 * Active wikis: Meta-Wiki, Igbo Wikipedia, Wikidata, Wikiquote, Commons, Mediawiki, Incubator wiki

Introductory statement
I became a Wikimedian in 2017, cofounded a user Group in 2018, became a Wikimedian in Residence and have since carried out various projects in both with Wikimedia Communities and trying to grow new communities. I’m one who strongly believes in volunteerism, community organizing, diversity and inclusion and making knowledge freely accessible to everyone. My professional career has been focused on project and program management, organizational strategy, translation, teaching and mentoring, community management, outreach management. If given a chance, my goals are: to advocate for diversity in its many forms including content, editors, enthusiasts etc., more support for community organizations in order to provide more equitable models for advocacy, capacity building, resource allocation etc., be a strong supporter of the Movement Strategy Recommendations, especially numbers: 1 (Increase the Sustainability of Our Movement), 6 (Invest in Skills and Leadership Development), 8 (Identify Topics for Impact).

Contributions to the Wikimedia projects
I've been involved in the global Community since 2017.
 * Co-founder and Program Co-ordinator m:m:Igbo Wikimedians User Group
 * Outreach Coordinator Wiki Mentor Africa program.
 * Member Wiki Loves Women Focus Group member
 * Wikimedian in Residence Moleskine Foundation, where I work under the WikiAfrica Education project
 * Mentor and initiator Makhuwa Wikipedia in the incubator and the group of volunteers in Mozambique where there was no Wikimedia presence.
 * Member Strategic Wikimedia Affiliates Network (SWAN) Planning Committee
 * Speaker at the Wikidata Conference where I spoke about Igbo and Abstract Wikipedia with Denny Vrandečić - the Wikidata Founder
 * Speaker WikiIndaba Conference 2021 where I talked about Wikimedia Lexicography: From word recording to Lexemes and Beyond.
 * Speaker, maiden edition WikiMove podcast where we discussed Knowledge As A Service organized by Wikimedia Deutschland.
 * Member Wikimedians in Residence Exchange Network.

Expertise in skill areas
I am skilled in Organizational Strategy, Program and Projects Management, teaching and mentoring, community management, outreach management by having worked in the pioneer Technology Incubator and Accelerator in Nigeria (Wennovation Hub), I hold a Bachelor's degree in Foreign Languages and Literatures (German and French) and am currently pursuing a Masters degree in Project Management. My professional career is focused on Program & Project Management, Community Management, Teaching and Translation, language activism. I am the founder of Smarter Languages Hub- a language services company. A Alumnus of Cherie Blair Foundation Women in Business Mentorship Program. In 2018, I was appointed the Ambassador, The Next Economy Nigeria Program funded by the Netherlands Ministry Of Foreign Affairs. In 2018, I also served as a Mentor for the Zimba Women in Business Mentorship Program, Uganda.

Lived experiences in the world
Although I haven’t lived in other regions, I was born in Nigeria, live and work in the African region, one of my experiences is the knowledge gap. Wikipedia for example has more information about Paris, a city in France than Africa as a whole. Also, coming from a marginalized community in Nigeria whose language is predicted by UNESCO as an endangered Language has better shaped my mind to understand and relate to some of the challenges faced by some Communities in the region. I’m a strong supporter of the Movement Strategy Recommendations, especially numbers: 1 (Increase the Sustainability of Our Movement), 6 (Invest in Skills and Leadership Development), 8 (Identify Topics for Impact), and try as much as possible to uphold them in my region. One example is the volunteer community in Mozambique which I’m mentoring and have helped to put their Makhuwa Language Wikipedia into the incubator and support them in becoming knowledge producers. Other projects I’ve been involved in which promotes the aforementioned Movement Strategy recommendations in Africa are: AfroCuration Mozambique 1.0, AfroCuration Mozambique 2.0, AfroCuration Zimbabwe, AfroCuration South Africa, AfroCuration Event with African Leadership Academy. These have further deepened my experience working in the region. With a younger population than other continents, there's still a lot of knowledge gap in the African continent which makes it a place with great opportunity for the Wikimedia Movement to thrive. If given the opportunity, I would use my experiences to help accomplish this.

Cultural and linguistic fluency
My background as a graduate of Foreign Languages & Literatures, as a translator, who is also currently a Masters in Project Management Student at Rome Business School (where I'm learning Italian), a language activist has further opened my mind to people and national cultures. I'm a language enthusiast, one who appreciates languages and cultures and which has helped me become more accommodating and open to learning. I'm a native Igbo Language Speaker, I speak fluent English, I can read and write good French and German but have basic to mid speaking ability. As a startup founder of Smarter Languages Hub (a language services start up which helps to bridge the language gap), I have taught and networked with people from various continents and countries. In the various Wiki projects I have organized, I've also got help from volunteers from different Wiki communities in South Africa, Portugal, Brazil, Tanzania, Ghana, Italy, Israel and so forth. This further demonstrates my open mindedness in working and collaborating with people from different walks of life.

Experience as an advocate
As a Nigerian, I have experiences regarding censorship and repression but I would prefer not to include details. I'm an advocate for Human Rights especially in the area of Human Trafficking where I've worked with Devatop Centre For Africa Development and A-TIPSOM (Action Against Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling of Migrants in Nigeria) to create awareness of human trafficking on Igbo Wikipedia in other to make the knowledge accessible. As a member of the Wiki Loves Women Focus Group, I organize and host events to bridge the internet gender gap. Some of my most recent projects can be found here Wiki Loves Women Focus Group SheSaid Nigeria campaign and Igbo Wikimedians User Group WikiGap Challenge.

Experience in...a group that has faced historical discrimination and underrepresentation
In my country, I come from an ethnic group which is underrepresented in terms of power. I would prefer not to share more details.