After two years of Covid disruption and virtual meetings, the Africa Facts network of fact-checkers will again be gathering in person. And this time, it’ll be our largest meeting yet.
The two-day Africa Facts summit, to be held in Kenya’s capital of Nairobi from 9 to 10 November 2022, will bring together fact-checking organisations and experts from all corners of the continent.
In 2017, at the first Africa Facts meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, only two of the network’s organisations were fact-checking regularly. Today, the network is made up of more than 20 organisations from across Africa – from Burkina Faso in the west to Ethiopia in the east and Zimbabwe in the south. This is testament to the growth of fact-checking on the continent over the past five years.
“We are excited to be hosting this important gathering of African fact-checkers, to share ideas and best practice in effective ways of combatting the scourge of misinformation on our continent,” said Noko Makgato, executive director of Africa Check.
At the inaugural summit, fact-checkers will discuss several topics on strengthening fact-checking in Africa. These will include obstacles in the fight against misinformation, why media literacy matters, and fact-checking in challenging environments.
The summit will conclude with the highly anticipated African Fact-Checking Awards gala dinner. This is the longest-running awards programme honouring fact-checking journalism in Africa.
“The awards aim to bolster fact-checking excellence throughout the continent,” said Dudu Mkhize, Africa Check’s outreach manager. “This year we have more than 200 entries from over 20 African countries, making it clear that fact-checking is growing across the continent.”
The awards have three categories, with honours going to a winner and a runner-up. The categories are:
- Fact-Check of the Year by a Working Journalist
- Fact-Check of the Year by a Professional Fact-Checker
- Fact-Check of the Year by a Student Journalist
The winners of the working journalist and professional fact-checker categories will each get a prize of US$3,000. The runners-up will receive $1,500. The winner of the student journalist category will be awarded $2,000, and the runner-up $1,000.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected], or email Dudu Mkhize, the conference organiser, at [email protected]
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