Regionally located along the Niger River, the main river of West Africa, Dendi is used as a trade language across northern Benin. It is a Songhay language which forms a dialect cluster with Zarma and Koyraboro Senni and is heavily influenced by Bariba. Dendi has approximately 470,000 native speakers in Benin, with speakers also in parts of Niger, Togo, and Nigeria.

Although used as a trade language in parts of the region, the language is severely under-resourced and does not have much of a digital presence. Ross’s goal of creating digital space in his language is unprecendented, as there are no other language revitalization or digitalization projects focused on the Dendi language. This year, Ross will work with a team of linguists and Wikimedians to create a Wikipedia edition for Dendi. His long-term objective is to establish a user-group dedicated to the language, ensuring its media reach.