Winston Mwale

Freelance journalist

Winston Mwale is a Malawian journalist with years of experience across eastern and southern Africa – and beyond. He has racked up cross-continental bylines and regional awards on this journey. He specialises in investigative and solutions journalism.

Latest fact-checks

Hawks

Bushiri

South Africa’s Hawks tampering with Bushiri witnesses? No evidence

On 29 March 2021, during the hearing for the extradition case of the self-styled prophet Shepherd Bushiri, a court in Malawi ordered the South African government to ensure thatwitnessesto the case appear in Malawi. Since then, there have been posts circulating on Facebook claiming tha...

school

Malawi

No, photos of design concept, not actual school in Malawi

Images of an impressive-looking structure, apparently constructed out of wood and straw bales, are circulating on Facebook, with the claim they are photos of a secondary school in the southeast African country of Malawi. The caption to the photos says the school was “designed by Nuru Kari...

Tanzania

Covid-19

masks

No, photo of then-vice president of Tanzania doesn’t signal change in attitude to Covid-19

Barely hours after the announcement of Tanzanian president John Magufuli’s death on 17 March 2021, a photo started circulating on social media which users claimed “proved” that Tanzanians had subsequently started wearing face masks to prevent the spread of Covid-19. In one tweet, a photo sh...

Coronavirus

Covid-19

Vaccine

No, doctors aren’t ‘encouraging’ Covid-19 vaccine jabs in the penis

As Covid-19 vaccines are being rolled out in several countries, a screenshot of what seems to be an article with a startling headline is flooding social media. “Doctors encourage Covid-19 vaccine injections in penis,” its headline reads. Below a photo of a man in doctor’s whites and a lin...

Latest facts

Sex & gender

What proportion of trafficked persons in Nigeria are women?

Source

US Department of State: 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report - Nigeria

Short answer

What proportion of trafficked persons in Nigeria are women?

In 2023, the Nigerian government identified 1,634 victims of trafficking, including 841 victims of sex trafficking, 543 victims of labour trafficking and 250 victims of unspecified forms of trafficking. Of the 841 sex trafficking victims, 763 were women. Of the 543 victims of labour trafficking, 290...

Back Full answer

Health

How many cases of malaria are recorded in Zimbabwe each year?

Source

WHO: Country Disease Outlook ᠆ Zimbabwe

Short answer

How many cases of malaria are recorded in Zimbabwe each year?

The annual number of reported malaria cases in 2021 was 342,543 (at an incidence rate of 21.4 cases per 1000 people), resulting in 876 deaths. Zimbabwe’s malaria incidence rate has fluctuated, but has generally declined since 2015. ...

Back Full answer

Health

How many malaria deaths are recorded in Zimbabwe in a year?

Source

WHO: Country Disease Outlook ᠆ Zimbabwe

Short answer

How many malaria deaths are recorded in Zimbabwe in a year?

The annual number of reported malaria deaths in 2021 was in 876. ...

Back Full answer

Health

How many new HIV infections occur in Zimbabwe each year?

Source

UNDP Zimbabwe: Overview of The HIV Epidemic in Zimbabwe

Short answer

How many new HIV infections occur in Zimbabwe each year?

In Zimbabwe, the number of people becoming infected with HIV each year has fallen by more than half over the past decade. In 2022, about 0.17% of adults in Zimbabwe were infected with HIV, and the number of new cases fell in all age groups. Among adults, the number of new HIV cases fell by 7%, and a...

Back Full answer

Winston Mwale

Latest fact-checks

Latest facts

What proportion of trafficked persons in Nigeria are women?

How many cases of malaria are recorded in Zimbabwe each year?

How many malaria deaths are recorded in Zimbabwe in a year?

How many new HIV infections occur in Zimbabwe each year?

Meet our team

For reading our fact-checks!