Call for applications: AfricTivistes CitizenLab Mauritania

Background  

AfricTivistes is launching CitizenLab Mauritania, an accelerator programme designed to boost young people’s participatory engagement in strengthening democracy. It is a hub for innovation and the production of valuable content, based on digital projects dedicated to democracy. AfricTivistes CITIZENLab Mauritania is an innovative civic hub whose aim is to support, guide and equip Mauritanian civil society actors through training, the development of tools, and support for innovation and co-creation.

This citizen innovation laboratory aims to build the capacity of young members of Mauritanian civil society in the area of civic participation. It provides Mauritanian civil society with both media solutions and valuable content on enhanced citizenship. 

The project is being implemented with the involvement and participation of the AfricTivistes network in Mauritania, civil society media organisations and media professionals, drawing on a policy of access to information and the principles of good governance.

It is a digital innovation hub where the three key elements that drive it come together: Stakeholders, Ideas and Technologies. It forms part of a cross-cutting approach that brings together discussion, the development of civic tech tools, community building, collaborative workspaces, … 

As part of the implementation of the CitizenLab Mauritania project, AfricTivistes is recruiting a team of seventeen (17) people to be based in Nouakchott for a period of twelve (12) months. 

Are you a professional journalist, citizen journalist, blogger, IT specialist, cameraman, multimedia content management specialist or community manager? Do you enjoy innovating, are you already working on a project, or have you simply had some ideas for civic tech projects? Would you like to join AfricTivistes and become part of a community of pan-African change-makers? Our AfricTivistes CitizenLab project is just the thing for you.

The objectives of AfricTivistes CitizenLab Mauritania 

Through this project, AfricTivistes aims to promote participatory democracy and build the capacity of Mauritanian civil society organisations in the areas of engagement, innovation and civic participation.

It also aims to support, assist and equip Mauritanian civil society organisations through training, the development of tools, and support for innovation and co-creation. 

More specifically, its objectives are as follows: 

• To build the capacity of young people involved in Mauritanian civil society.
• To foster a new momentum for civic engagement.
• To create a network of committed stakeholders to identify, study, reflect on and propose solutions to relevant societal issues through the production of content and the development of innovative tools and solutions.

AfricTivistes CITIZENLab Mauritania helps to establish a network of stakeholders committed to working towards the consolidation of democratic gains. It also aims to foster a new civic movement centred on participation and co-creation.

The AfricTivistes CitizenLab Mauritania team

This recruitment campaign is designed to establish the project team. Based in Nouakchott, this team works closely with the coordination and monitoring team at the AfricTivistes Regional Office in Dakar. It forms the project team responsible for coordination and monitoring, and comprises three units: 

• The Fact editorial team (for the web platform)

This team is responsible for editorial planning, as well as for producing, approving and publishing content to be hosted on AfricTivistes’ open and participatory citizen web platform, CITIZENLab Mauritania. These team members, who come from a variety of backgrounds, are also responsible for developing the various topics for radio and television programmes. 

• The Voice Audio editorial team (for the mobile app)

The main remit of this team is to devise, produce and publish content for the 100 per cent audio app, which is available in four national languages and also addresses the demand for access to information as well as the need for an inclusive approach. It works in collaboration with the Fact team on the web platform. 

• The team of translators for productions in national languages

This team is responsible for translating content for productions in the national languages, which will be published on AfricTivistes’ 100% audio mobile app, CITIZENLab Mauritania. The translations are carried out in the project’s four languages, namely: Hassania, Wolof, Soninke and Pulaar.

Selection is based on several criteria, including: 

• Availability,
• Proven technical skills, 
• Experience in web projects,
• To be a key player in the media (whether a professional or a member of civil society),
• Be able to produce and manage web content,
• Be able to produce and manage web content,
• Be resident in Mauritania,
• Be able to speak one of the project’s four languages fluently (Hassania, Wolof, Soninke, Pulaar),
• Be able to work as part of a team

What types of knowledge are sought after?

The AfricTivistes CitizenLab initiative is based on an implementation framework that requires four types of knowledge: 

• – The art of INNOVATION – understanding the challenges and the role of civic tech in a world moving towards digitalisation, robotics and artificial intelligence. Launching a relevant, innovative and high-value-added participatory democracy project requires a thorough understanding of the current environment and potential target audiences.  
• – Expertise – methodology and tools for civic tech project management. Ingenuity alone is no longer enough; we must understand and harness technology by offering digital solutions that meet the demand for greater democracy. Mastery of design, publication and co-creation technologies is key to effectiveness.
• – The ability to MANAGE – understanding the challenges involved in effective project coordination and those relating to long-term sustainability. There can be no sustainability without a business model. Even community projects that are not intended to generate financial profit must ensure their sustainability by generating or securing financial resources. From this perspective, a firm grasp of the principles of results-based management and of monitoring and evaluation are considerable assets.
• – The art of COMMUNICATION – Understanding media issues and the importance of community dynamics. Developing any project involves responding to a need or proposing something new and different to spark interest and/or create a need. However, it is essential to be able to persuade others to join the project, whether they are individuals, organisations or funders.  In this regard, communication and community-building skills are essential. At the same time, one must be able to persuade, mobilise and mak an impact through a sound grasp of media relations techniques. This involves communicating via our own channels (web platform, mobile app, blog, social media) as well as through more traditional media (television, radio, etc.). It is also important to know how to speak to journalists and to understand the challenges and constraints of the media world.

Profiles sought

• Mauritanian residents aged between 18 and 40;
• – Toute personne engagé(e) pour les actions citoyennes en ligne ou hors-ligne;
• – Journalistes (professionnels ou citoyens);
• – Blogueur 
• Videographer;
• student;
• IT specialist;
• Multimedia content manager;
• Anyone with proven knowledge and experience in the digital sector
• A motivated, open-minded person with the ability to work as part of a team. 

NB: 

• Applications from AfricTivistes members are encouraged;
• Applications from women are strongly encouraged.

AfricTivistes CitizenLab Mauritania provides the project’s editorial team with:

• A workspace,
• A cloud-based technical platform with all the digital and multimedia resources,
• A support programme comprising two sessions of practical and theoretical training,
• A supervisory team based in Dakar,
• A monthly salary for the duration of the contract.

During the project’s start-up phase (selection and training), the project is presented as a citizens’ laboratory, and the members of the editorial team taking part in the training sessions will be tasked with leading the discussions and planning to ensure the project’s relevance and direction.   

The recommendations and conclusions from these workshops enable the technical team to draw up the specifications and concept note for the tools to be developed.

I’m signing up! 

To apply, please click on this link and provide the following information:

• A CV setting out:
  • projects you have already been involved in;
  • level of education;
  • personal civil status information;
• A covering letter explaining why you are applying;

The Programme

Two training sessions will be organised:

Programme contact: abdou.cisse@africtivistes.org