The #ActionOifProjetEOF « OpenStreetMap, Free GIS (QGIS) & opendata in Haiti & Western Africa » as of 16-October 2017

As part of its 2017 information, outreach and training activities around OpenStreetMap (OSM), Free GIS and opendata tools, methods and practices in Haiti and Africa, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF/DFEN) supports the capacity building program that the association Projet Espace OSM Francophone (Projet EOF) will implement in coordination with OSM members active in these territories within informal collectives or associations.
Throughout this project, 30 Projet EOF and OSM Project folks will work with 150 individuals from the fields of Geomatics, Free software and Opendata, ICT and community-based development within Civil Society, Private Sector and Academics in Haiti, Senegal, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Togo and Benin.

Here’s an update, as of 16-October 2017, of how stand preparatory actions (Haiti, Senegal, Mali, Burkina and Ivory Coast) and first realizations (Togo, Niger and Benin)  of the #ActionOifProjetEOF operational framework described in a previous post October 2017 Action OIF-ProjetEOF « OpenStreetMap, Free GIS & OpenData in Haiti and Western Africa »

Preparatory work

During October 2017 week 2, throughout Haiti, Senegal, Mali, Burkina and Ivory Coast, over 20 members of Association Proje tEOF have been active preparing for all activities enclosed in #ActionOifProjetEOF program for the second half of October in Haiti et and Western Africa. Folks have been busy selecting participants among OpenStreetMap, free software, opendata, GIS and academic communities, securing logistics for the many workshops (ensuring access to « community-friendly » workspaces, Internet resources and food) as well as building activities schedules and curricula.

First workshops

Meanwhile close to 20 Association Projet EOF members carried out « OpenStreetMap, Free GIS and opendata » activities for close to 50 people. In Togo and Niger, the first #ActionOifProjetEOF camps coupling 5 days training and 1 day mapathon were successfully held while Benin, Burkina and Ivory Coast organized as well their first one day event mixing conference, technical hands on sessions and mapathon.

#ActionOifProjetEOF getting full speed this 16-October 2017 with 10 six days workshops and 3 one day actions

In Western Africa, this Monday 16-October 2017, over 30 members of Association Projet EOF members are active with over 100 participants in running the Niamey mapathon and leading 10 workshops in Dakar (Sénégal), Bamako and Kayes (Mali), Niamey (Niger), Ouagadougou (Burkina-Faso), Abidjan and Bouaké (Ivory Coast), Cotonou and Adjara/Porto Novo (Benin),  which will mix 5 days training on « Free participatory mapping (OpenStreetMap), Free GIS (QGIS) and opendata » with 1 day mapathon to add to the OSM map of those territories.

It’s expected that this OSM, Free GIS and OpenData animation program worked out by experienced OSM folks members or collaborators of the Association Projet EOF tailored to technical and organizational needs of South Francophone countries and designed for audience of OSM, Free GIS and OpenData newbies will result into more continued and regular activities (information, outreach, data creation, trainings) in the capitals and regional towns of the countries targeted by this OIF-Projet EOF project. In the meantime, 3 one day actions around OSM, Free GIS and OpenData have been organized in Togo and Burkina.

It’s equally expected that the way these activities will be conducted will translate directly into improved capacities of newbies, an enlargement of the local OSM community as well as an increased number of OSM partners in these countries.

It’s finally expected that via the responsibilities they will have to fulfill and the experience they will gain throughout the course of this project, association Projet EOF members, collaborators and partners will build up their skills around the technical and organizational aspects required for the design, implementation and reporting of such programs.

Follow #ActionOifProjetEOF #OpenStreetMap #Libre #OpenData in Haiti and Western Africa throughout October 2017.

We will communicate on this OIF – Projet EOF program on the OSM lists, blogs et social media in use by Projet EOF (@ProjetEOF) and other local OSM collectives or associations in Africa and Haiti that are part of this initiative to further build the OpenStreetMap space in South Francophone countries.