Yea,to effectively #mapthedifference2019 from Nigeria local openstreetmap community ,I hosted a planing meeting of team coordinators and leaders of the mappers teams I created and mentor in various Nigerian Universities.These teams are affiliated teams of #uniquemappersteam network,nigeria,#hotosm and #youthmappers..The following were present:

1. Ikenna Arungwa - Team leader-#absumappersteam -Abia State University,Uturu
2. Ezekiel Annointing -Team Leader #unimaidmappersteam-University of Maiduguri,Borno
3. Dr Uluocha Nnabugwu and Mr Chukwuma Okolie-Team Coordinator & Team Leader-#unilagmappersteam-University of Lagos
4. Mrs Mary Marcellineous -Team Coordinator -#oyomappersteam -Federal School of Surveys,Oyo
5. Saviour Owujie and Mercy Bannu,Team Leader and Team Secretary General -#uniquemappersteam Network ,-Port Harcourt
6. Kingsely Chukwu,Vyvian Amara Ugwudinso and Victor Ezeugwu ..Team Ledaers #lionmappersteamenugucampus ,,University of Nigeria Enugu Campus.
7. .Victor N.Sunday -Team Coordinator/mentor #osmnigeria #uniquemappersteam With these passionate osmites we had a 2-hour briefing and deliberations on the way forward as local OSM community in Nigeria.

Our deliberations was as listed below:

1. Kick-starting our national #mapperswanted training webinar series which was agreed that for this year it should be forth nightly(twice in a month)instead of weekly.
2. Conferences and OSM/OSGEO opportunities for the year,including HOT microgrant application,which I encouraged all the university team/community to apply,while #OSMNigeria will also apply for the benefit of all the teams
3. OSM Nigeria Community 2019 programs and projects
4. Individual team/community capacity building via training and expansion of the community and participation in projects and global HOT community webinar.They were also encouraged to feature actively in #osmafrica community activities and planning meetings for the forth coming state of the map Africa in November 2019.

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I am so excited we are getting right from the start as we take off for the year,hosting webinar planing meetings with the team leaders of our local community teams in various universities in Nigeria. Starting with contacts with the team leaders of UniqueMappersTeam,then AbsuMappersTeam and today ,a successful webinar deliberation with the team leaders of LionMappersTeam-Enugu Campus;Kingsely,Vyvian and Victor Ezeugwu.The meeting gave direction to the new year’s activities and proposals. Following this,webinar training will commence to strengthen the capacity of each team. As the Coordinator of these teams,I look forward that each of them will certainly do exploit in OSM community this year!!!

A review of my OSM activities for 2018 is noteworthy and sharing .And sincerely,I wish to appreciate all community members who worked with me,assisted me and contributed to these listed moments and milestones of 2018.

1 ..In January,we started with a GIS/Remote Sensing Seminar…Creating awareness of OSM data application.Thanks to Team leaders @uniquemappersteam

2 .March,I successfully hosted the International Women’s Day tagged Geospatial Technology:The Solution for Women Transformation featuring Reasons for International Women’s Day,OSM;the voice for Vulnerable Women,Mapathon Party for Vulnerable Women

3 .In March,I co-founded UnMaidMappersTeam-University of Maiduguri,Borno State with Mamman Ali ,a student of Geography Department ,who visited University of Port Harcourt for one-one training with me and my team leaders.Subsequent training and mentoring continued via webinar and whatsApp chat group for the team that accommodate more than 50 members

4 .I created #AbsuMappersTeam-Abia State University -co-founding with Professor J.U.Ogbonna,the Team Coordinator and Faculty Advisor mentoring via whatsapp chat group,visitation and webinar training

5 . Also in April, we had the emergence of #ImsuMappersTeam-Imo State University,Nigeria in April,with Mr.Lazarus of Geography and Environmental Studies as the Team Coordinator.I mentor via webinar training and whatsapp chat group\

6 . Also a platform was created to establish #FutoMappersTeam and this effort is in progress

7 . In April,I became a HOT-Micrograntee for Nigeria and had the funding support for the purchase of devices (Smartphoines,Laptops and other equipment as well as internet data subscription for community mapping efforts @Uniquemappersteam.

I was also nominated and elected into HOT Voting Membership

8 . in June ,we had our 1st Anniversary mapathon,OSMfight that scaled up edits of uniquemappersteam from 4000 to more than 15,000

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Thanks to Ambrose,Dubem,Precious and Ify for you amazing contributions to FGM Mapathon last weekend.Thank you UniquemappersTeam see leader board http://www.missingmaps.org/leaderboards/#/map2endfgm

I wonder why I spent so much time in and out on US Visa application when I can invest such time helping out my brothers in Philippines being ravaged by disastrous Typhon!!! Just occurred to me I can leave the Visa system for a while to cool off while I contribute to task #5236.And it was a great idea coz I just mapped a number of buildings.Let’s keep mapping using every slight opportunity on net!!!!#uniquemappersteam Now I can check back on the US visa application system to continue!!!

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After series of failed appointment in the past 5 weeks,we at last succeeded with our corporate target outreach to Nigerian Red Cross,Rivers State branch,Port Harcourt. With a team of 7 leaders of UniqueMappersTeam,we had almost a 3-hour deliberation involving knowledge sharing,Video presentations and local partnership MOU initiation. While planing on how to effectively reach out these guys with our mission of geographic data and disaster response,I thought,about the best ways to get at them,and on point ,were the following videos: 1)Mapthedifference 2018 2)Mapping for Good-Red cross 3)The map that saves Just barely,before,we could run through the videos,they were eager to ask for explanations. Thanks to our #Microgrant ,2018 devices,coz,we did not want to take chances,so we had to go with our newly purchased projector and Sound PA system.It was quite an interesting meeting as we seized the opportunity to share with the organization about our current microgrant project of mapping flood vulnerable communities and oil spill in Rivers State. On the other hand it was an opportunity to also share from the Nigerian Red Cross Rivers State,about their activities Thanks to #Chukwudubem Nzewi and Saviour Owuji for carrying out the task,I gave to them,to prepare slide presentations on: ##Critical Geospatial Data for Humanitarian Response and ##UnquemappersTeam Activities Thanks to Godslove Ishola,Blessing Oshoma,Edward Ojodomo,Emmanuella and Honesty,you guys were wonderful,without,you there will be no team and local community leadership.

lets keep the team with a unique action !!!

I added buildings to the mapping task for colombia flood disaster:#108 - Bajo Cauca - Emergencia HidroItuango

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As a positive result from the GIS/Remote Sensing Semina,Miss Salome,M.Sc Student,Animal and Environmental Management Biology,went back to her department and informed others about UniqueMappersTeam of Africa!!!!! And there comes immediately,Sylvia Ezinne Egbom,a Phd Student,Deaprtment of Animal and Environemtal Biology,University of Port Harcourt,who is working on:Mapping of Malaria Parasitaemia/case events to join UniqueMappersTeam as a members ,being excited and ready to learn and start mapping. I had to add her to our whatsapp chat:LetGirlsMap for ladies’ mappers and then Let’s Map our World Chat group-our general chat group.Sylvia introduced herself and was welcomed by many of the ladies and female students in the LetGirlsMap chat group. It was not long when, Rebecca Firth,OSM-Working group and HOT Community Partnership Relations Mananger,came on board to create excitement in the chat group as she welcomed the new female Phd researcher,and started giving her links to facilitate her research on Malaria mapping!!!! starting with the team in Colombia doing malaria mapping:http://blog.openstreetmap.co/2016/o7/13/mapathon-guap and lots more!!! You can imagine the excitement as students of Animal and Environmental Bilogy thumbed up in the chat group with this power of global networking and connectivity provided by OSM community and UniqueMappers of Africa,University of Port Harcourt. Thank you so much Rebecca Firth for being there for us in the chat group:LetGirlsMap ,You are doing a great job!!!!Keep the good work!!!!

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Its so exciting to see the progress of my research about VGI and Crowdsourced mapping becoming a passion-driven campaign for humanitarian mappers among the University Youths in Nigeria. When,It become obvious last year,2017,that I am going to rely on the openstreetmap platform for my crowdsourced mapping research ,the next issue was ,how to raise the crowd and engage them to mapping.My research linked me up to the OSM community in Africa ,where, I met a good friend Geoffery Kateregga ,who was organizing the State of The Map African Conference in Uganda last year,2017. I was introduced to OSM Africa working group and though I was unable to secure travel fund to Uganda for SOTM-Africa,i got on with the community meeting and online discussion with the help of Mr.Geoffery Kateregga.I also got in contact with Nathelia of Mali and Madam Janet Chapman of Crowd2Map Tanzania,all on whatsapp chat,communicating and receiving motivations for work. I was able to create .mentor and coordinate to full establishment ,the UniqueMappersTeam-University of Port Harcourt,Nigeria,as a YouthMappers Chapter between June and December,2017 Our first Mapathon in July had an attendance of more than 100 students and staff ,signing up for OSM account to join us as a humanitarian mapper.

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The month of June,2017,became a busy month for me with the planning and prepartion to launch a new chapter of youthmappers in Nigeria,the UniqueMappersTeam(UMT)Port harcourt,Nigeria domicilled in University of Port harcourt,where,I work as a Principal GIS-Cartographer in the department of Geography and Environmental Management. I started with raising a team of students I intend mentoring in my field of geoinformatics,assisting to secure internship for their 6 months industrial training and spending the first and second week of june to give them leadership training to work as a team,getting them sign-up for OSM and teaching them to map with OSM and then using peer-learning to get them prepare their own training manuals. On 12th June,2017,I created a whatsapp chat group where I made some of them administrator and we were able to have 40 members who join the chat group by the same week ending 17th June.These chat group members were made up of undergraduate students,post graduate students, and some departmental staff to observe the on going development.I linked up a survey form to campaign for volunteers and amazing was the response. We proceeded to upload our training manuals on how to use OSM to map,linked them to www.learnosm.org and guide them through the essence of the chat group.We uploaded our leaders training session pictures to motivate them and then prepared them for our upcoming mapathon and inaugural the following week.