Suggested changes to the National Health Act have kicked up a public storm. Analysts say the way they have been put together doesn’t help.

Nigeria spends more on national assembly than on education? Analyst gets it wrong

With Nigeria set to hold elections next year, the search for a new president is gathering momentum. But does a claim about the current leade...

ANALYSIS: Ashwagandha supplements might reduce stress and improve other parts of life – but it’s too early to say

A quick internet search yields scores of adverts for supplements containing ashwagandha. But is the plant all it's made out to be?

SCREENGRAB/NTV

William Ruto

Presidential campaign

Economy

Ruto on the campaign trail: Grading some of Kenyan deputy president claims about his record in office

William Ruto hopes to be president come August 2022. We fact-checked some of the claims he’s made on the campaign trail.

Health Act

amendments

law

government

ANALYSIS: Explaining proposed amendments to South Africa’s health law

budget

national assembly

Economy

Education

Nigeria spends more on national assembly than on education? Analyst gets it wrong

Ashwagandha

supplement

stress

Health

plant

ANALYSIS: Ashwagandha supplements might reduce stress and improve other parts of life – but it’s too early to say

William Ruto

Presidential campaign

Economy

Ruto on the campaign trail: Grading some of Kenyan deputy president claims about his record in office

Featured

[BLOG] Fact diplomacy: Telling friends and family they’re wrong without ruining the party

Africa Check’s Fact Ambassador programme has boosted our multi-tentacular approach to fighting false information online and offline.

ANALYSIS: Explaining proposed amendments to South Africa’s health law

Suggested changes to the National Health Act have kicked up a public storm. Analysts say the way they have been put together doesn’t help.

ANALYSIS: Ashwagandha supplements might reduce stress and improve other parts of life – but it’s too early to say

A quick internet search yields scores of adverts for supplements containing ashwagandha. But is the plant all it's made out to be?

Numerology

science

media literacy

[BLOG] The pseudoscience of numerology: treating predictions as facts

Watchdogs, watch yourselves! Why South African media should be wary when communicating pseudoscientific predictions to their audiences.

statistics

stats

fact-checkers

Why good statistics are so important for fact checkers

Andrew Dudfield, Head of Product at Full Fact, presents the high-level insights following interviews with fact checkers around the world abo...

2021 African Fact-Checking Awards entries now open

Journalists and journalism students across the continent can enter the awards, now in their eighth year.

technology

What’s up with your data on WhatsApp? Explaining the app’s new privacy terms

Experts have described the changes as cosmetic, but that did not stop a pushback by users, many who sought options.

ANALYSIS: Fact-checking claims about service delivery in South Africa since 1994

With South African municipal elections set to take place in 2021, we can expect a lot of service delivery comparisons. They may not all add ...

journalists

science journalism

COMMENT: We need science journalists not press release cheerleaders

Science journalism, unlike science communication, exists to serve the reader. Getting it wrong can only undermine the public's trust in scie...

Has pandemic raised South Africans’ stress levels by 56%? And is cannabis the answer? Two claims in news article checked

A article suggests CBD as a way to reduce stress and that stress of South Africans is up 56% since the start of the Covid pandemic.

Did journalists’ TV ‘hangout’ get facts about healthcare in Nigeria right?

Discussing the state of healthcare amid a crippling doctors’ strike, a TV panel made several claims. We checked them out.

Fact-checked: 9 claims about South African schools from Ernst Roets

A member of management for the Afrikaner-rights group AfriForum rubbished the state of South African education. We sorted the wheat from the...

Nairobi’s Covid-19 positive cases tie Kenyan president, health ministry and major media house in knots

In a random sample of five people in the capital, three are likely to be positive, said Uhuru Kenyatta. We took a closer look at this claim.

Cities

dangerous

Six South African cities in top 20 of world’s ‘most dangerous’? Crime index based on website users’ opinions

The country is infamous for high rates of crime and violence. But a widely reported crime ranking of its cities was based on the perceptions...

SONA

debate

gender-based violence

Education

Debating the state of South Africa: did members of parliament get their facts straight?

Was there a 64% drop in gender-based violence in 2020? Will half of grade 1 pupils never make it to their school-leaving exams? We check the...

PIUS UTOMI EKPEI / AFP

FACTSHEET: Understanding Nigeria's new varsity admission rules

A recent amendment to Nigeria’s higher education admission policy has rekindled debate about access to tertiary institutions in the country.

FACTSHEET: Excess deaths in South Africa explained

The number of excess deaths may be a more accurate and concerning measure of the Covid pandemic than the daily death toll. But how are exces...

Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp

FACTSHEET: How deaths are recorded in South Africa

Covid has trained a spotlight on causes of death and how deaths are recorded across the world. We disentangle what paperwork has to be filed...

PIUS UTOMI EKPEI / AFP

Oil

gas

industry

FACTSHEET: Five questions about Nigeria’s ‘secretive’ oil and gas industry

Nigeria is a major oil producer, and wants the real owners of assets in the crucial industry to be known. Why does this matter?

FACTSHEET: Abortions in Africa

This factsheet looks at estimates of the number of abortions in the region and explains the broad categories of abortion laws.

AFP

FACTSHEET: Not Bitcoin … So what is Nigeria’s new eNaira digital currency all about?

President Muhammadu Buhari was enthusiastic as he launched the continent’s first central bank digital currency. But what is it all about?

Guillem Sartorio / AFP

FACTSHEET: The leading causes of death in Africa in 2019

The latest data from the World Health Organization is likely to be the last major update not to feature Covid-19 statistics.

LOCAL ELECTION FACTSHEET: Housing in South Africa

Ahead of the local government elections, our factsheet answers voters’ questions about housing.

LOCAL ELECTION FACTSHEET: Sanitation in South Africa

We answer these and other sanitation questions in the run-up to the 2021 municipal elections.

Economy

Africa Month Quiz

It’s Africa Month! Take our quiz to see how much you know about your Africa.

#WeekendWrap | Quiz | 8 October 2021

How much do you know about women’s health in Africa? We look at maternal mortality, female genital mutilation, c-sections and whether women ...

#WeekendWrap | Quiz | 24 September 2021

Do you know how to sort fact from fiction when it comes to edible Covid-19 ‘cures’? Test your knowledge in this week’s #WeekendWrap quiz! Sh...

Info Finder

Economy

What is South Africa’s GDP per capita?
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The country's GDP per capita (nominal gross domestic product divided by the mid-year population) was US$4,740 in 2020. The economy slumped by 7% compared with 2019. This is the biggest annual fall in economic activity the country has seen since at least 1946. Related: Still misleading t...

Source

International Monetary Fund: World Economic Outlook (South Africa)

Verified Date

Mon, 10/12/2020 - 12:00

#YouAsked

Welfare & population

Ghana’s projected population for 2020 stood at 30.96 million.

Source

Ghana Statistical Service

Verified Date

Thu, 07/23/2020 - 12:00

28 July 2020

Elections & political parties

What was the voter turnout during South Africa’s last national election?
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During the 2019 national election, South Africa recorded a voter turnout of 66%, a decrease from 73.5% in 2014. More: South Africa’s 2019 election in numbers ...

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Electoral Commission of South Africa

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Tue, 07/23/2019 - 12:00

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Covid-19

Does heat kill the new coronavirus?
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The World Health Organization has warned that neither taking a hot bath nor exposing yourself to sunshine or temperatures higher than 25°C will prevent Covid-19. Using a hand dryer also doesn’t kill the virus. More: Hot baths, hot hand dryers and other heat will NOT kill coronavirus ...

Source

World Health Organization

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Wed, 04/01/2020 - 12:00

#YouAsked

Covid-19

Is the new coronavirus airborne?
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The new coronavirus spreads through droplets, which are produced when someone sneezes, coughs or talks. If you are close to someone when this happens, you could breathe in the virus. According to the World Health Organization, “studies to date suggest that the virus that causes Covid-19 is main...

Source

World Health Organization

Verified Date

Fri, 04/03/2020 - 12:00

Featured Spot Checks

Nairobi governor hopeful Polycarp Igathe recycles wrong claim about Kenyan capital’s share of national GDP

No, Nigeria’s Covid cases did not jump 45% in first nine days of April 2022

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Ignore WhatsApp message warning that Nigerian Inec voters’ cards must be revalidated

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Nairobi governor hopeful Polycarp Igathe recycles wrong claim about Kenyan capital’s share of national GDP

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No, South Africa’s late Zulu king Zwelithini didn’t get a R71.3 million salary

Still no evidence for #15MillionIllegalMigrants in South Africa

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South Africa’s economy contracts by 51% in the second quarter of 2020? Not so fast

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Podcasts

Did WHO-recommended ratio of doctors to patients, as former Nigerian senator claimed?

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Promise Tracker

They campaigned and promised to change your life for the better. You voted for them. But have they kept their word? We have picked out 10 key promises made by governments in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya and are tracking progress on them.

ANC Tracker
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ANC Tracker

The African National Congress (ANC) has been in power since 1994. In 2019, it faced South African voters for the sixth time. But what is the status of promises it has made to voters in the last 10 years?

APC Tracker

Nigeria’s All Progressives Congress was re-elected in 2019. As it made its case to voters, how did it perform on some of the main promises it made ahead of its 2015 win? EDITOR'S NOTE: These pledges are collated from the party’s manifesto and its covenant with Nigerians. The latter document was subject to much debate after the party sought to disavow it. The APC did walk back promises for its first 100 days in office. Other publications have collated more promises. Also, the president’s first term in office ended officially on 29 May 2019 when he had spent four years in office.

Jubilee Party Tracker

Kenya’s Jubilee Party has been in office since 2013, and last year won re-election. But has it delivered on the promises it made ahead of those two elections? We tracked key ones.

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Africa Check sorts fact from fiction

ANALYSIS: Explaining proposed amendments to South Africa’s health law

Nigeria spends more on national assembly than on education? Analyst gets it wrong

ANALYSIS: Ashwagandha supplements might reduce stress and improve other parts of life – but it’s too early to say

Ruto on the campaign trail: Grading some of Kenyan deputy president claims about his record in office

Featured

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What is South Africa’s GDP per capita? See answer Hide answer

Ghana’s projected population for 2020 stood at 30.96 million.

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Podcasts

Did WHO-recommended ratio of doctors to patients, as former Nigerian senator claimed?

Does Nigeria rank number one in open defecation worldwide? (Radio One 103.5 FM Lagos)

Claims about education in Nigeria checked (Radio One 103.5 FM Lagos)

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What is South Africa’s GDP per capita?
See answer Hide answer

What was the voter turnout during South Africa’s last national election?
See answer Hide answer

Does heat kill the new coronavirus?
See answer Hide answer

Is the new coronavirus airborne?
See answer Hide answer