Ok, we know that this heading’s a bit misleading, but there is some truth to it – the Ulwazi wiki currently contains just over 800 articles, that’s more than the Zulu Wikipedia that sits around 760 articles – impressive for a locally run organisation that’s drawing on far less contributors than the likes of Wikipedia. This was one of the facts highlighted in the Winter edition of Public Diplomacy, a publication of the University of California. The article was included in a chapter that focused on ‘public-private partnerships’, which is exactly what Ulwazi is. Funded by the eThekwini Municipality, the Ulwazi Programme works with digital consultants and the local community to gather information indigenous to KwaZulu-Natal, with a particular focus on Zulu culture. In addition to preserving indigenous knowledge for future generations, the programme also upskills the contributors who provide the stories for Ulwazi, and is a way of attracting young people back into libraries through the use of technology and locally relevant content.
Click here to read the full article which provides great context on how the Ulwazi Programme came to be.