Strategy in Motion

From the ED's Desk

"The difference between an organisation that struggles and one that thrives lies in its people."

— 'Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director

Dear Team, At Paradigm Initiative, we are blessed with a galaxy of amazing people – a Board that commends and corrects, a Leadership Team that picks up dropped balls without noise, a team that blends innovation with impact, and a group of partners that ensure the work is done in a conducive environment. When I look at the numbers for Paradigm Initiative's first quarter (Q1) of 2026, I am reminded of the efficiency of our galaxy of amazing people.

From our people-facing Partnerships & Engagements and Programmes teams to our back-end support teams – Administration, Finance, Information Technology, Measurement, Evaluation, Research and Learning, Operations, and People & Culture – and the teams that straddle both worlds through Communications, it is very clear that each team brought a lot to the table in order to achieve these numbers and ensure the impact we promised for Q1.

With Q1 now behind us and momentum building towards mid-year, I am excited about what the team will deliver in the second quarter to solidify a first half of an important year that is right in the middle of our 2024–2028 Strategic Management Plan. Through the Organisational Mapping Tool, a process we started in Q4 2025 and that continued through to Q2 2026, we have identified areas that need more attention, and we have sprung into action to confront these challenges and reduce any gaps in order to ensure that a team that brings its A-game works from the best place possible.

A huge thank you for the impact delivered in Q1 and the promise of impact for the rest of the year. Take a bow, mark all those tasks as completed on Zoho, and get ready for an even more exciting Q2. Let's go!

AngelaBridgetteChitiGiyoIhuezeJoshuaJudithKennethKhadijahMiriamMoussaMuhammedNnamdiNnennaPeculiarSamuelSaniSoukeynaThobekileUcheVenessa

Learning & Attention

↗ Momentum

Capacity-building activity nearly doubled year-on-year (854 vs 445 trained), spread across DRA Kisumu/Homa Bay, DRA Machakos, NHRC Nigeria, and DREAM Djibouti.
Ripoti active users rose from 639 to 8,353 year-on-year — a substantial platform-engagement gain.
Net Rights Coalition membership and activity grew: 9 new members (+125% YoY) and a learning call/webinar drawing 43 active participants.
Social media reach rose 80.3% year-on-year, alongside a community of 201,937 followers.

◉ Watch

Media reach declined roughly 13% year-on-year.
Departmental strategic-goal percentages did not sum to exactly 100% in a few places (organisation-wide 99%; Communications & IT 102%; Operations 101%; Programmes 101%) due to rounding.
No Q4 2025 baseline was available, so every movement shown here is year-on-year only, not quarter-on-quarter.

Pinnovator Spotlight

"I can easily lose track of time watching documentaries, especially anything about history, business, leadership, or politics. For some reason, I am fascinated by American politics and can spend hours following elections, debates, and political analysis. Ironically, I have almost zero interest in African politics, which always surprises people when they find out! If you ever need a documentary recommendation, I'm probably your guy."

Click to flip →

Nnamdi Dim

Senior Officer, Finance.

Documentary buff, self-declared US-politics obsessive, and your go-to for a recommendation — just don't ask him about African politics.

Supporting Data

1,047,062,487

Media reach / mentions across platforms (terminology under review — see glance note above)

14,139,784

Social media reach

201,937

PIN community followers

3,712,517

Viewership for PIN's short films

18.3%

Newsletter open rate (0.85% click rate)

DREAM Djibouti

32 participants reached (13 male, 19 female)

National Human Rights Commission, Nigeria

30 legal officers trained

DRIF Session Evaluation

449 session proposals reviewed and assessed for DRIF26

DDF Grant Review

81 proposals screened under the Global South Alliance Datafication and Democracy Fund
9 grantees selected (a separate cross-unit shortlisting supported 8 recipients)

Net Rights Coalition Growth

9 new members added
Learning call/webinar drew 43 active participants

Educational Interventions

423 educators registered for the Anglophone West Africa 2-day Virtual Teachers Workshop
Daily participation: 199 (Day 1), 188 (Day 2)

Data Privacy Day Webinar

150 registrations, 86 concurrent participants
Representing 23 countries across multiple continents

DREAM Congo-Brazzaville Webinar

59 individuals registered
30 live event participants

DIPES Series Footprint

40 participants at DIPES Bujumbura
30 participants at DIPES Senegal

DRIBLE Outreach

54 students across 4 universities — DRIBLE Namibia
~100 students — Multimedia University of Kenya edition

20,775

Total resource downloads (publications & toolkits)

3,951

Londa 2024 Report downloads this quarter (lifetime total: 11,194)

Times the Ayeta game was played

6,183 / 6,171

Ayeta website active users / new users

342

Ayeta copies downloaded

8,353 / 8,251

Ripoti active users / new users

New incident reports logged on Ripoti

1,091

Zoom webinar registrations (491 total attendance)

$830

Platform revenue — redeveloped DRIF26 ticketing app

9 / 86

Local / international flight tickets issued

6 / 12

Local / international accommodation bookings

3 / 3

Local / international car hire contracts

53 / 61

Bolt trips / Uber rides processed

105

Official invitation letters drafted & distributed for DRIF26

All Q1 workstreams in progress

DRIF26 (Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum)

Finalising agenda, participant travel support, communications plan, and logistical coordination with CIDDH in Abidjan (12–17 April).

Abidjan · 12–17 April

Londa 2025 Report

Design in progress; translation 90% complete; score index validation meetings held with authors.

90% translated

Digital Rights On-Demand Learning (DROL)

5 new courses recorded (13 total); finalising French translation for launch at DRIF26.

13 courses total

NYEAKA (Device Sharing Platform)

New architecture documented; development structure finalised on Zoho Projects.

DRIBLE (Board Game)

Production vendor selection in process; dissemination plan awaiting cross-team feedback.

External Audit (FY 2025)

Engagement letter signed; currently providing auditors with required schedules.

Zoho Platform Transition

Migration of MERL, People & Culture (Zoho People), and project management from Smartsheet is ongoing.

Ajegunle Legacy Project

Continued stipend, rent, and accommodation payments for Taiwo Bankole scholars.

Policy Library

Four HR policies formally published; more under review.

4 policies published

A quarter of impact, measured in motion.