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.

Derniers 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

#YouAsked

Covid-19

Does smoking have an impact on recovery from Covid-19?

Source

World Health Organization

Short answer

Does smoking have an impact on recovery from Covid-19?

Smoking is known to impair lung function, affect the immune system and can increase the severity of respiratory diseases such as influenza. Although no randomised controlled studies that have directly investigated the effect of smoking on people with Covid-19 are available at present, according to t...

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Welfare & population

How many people have access to mobile connectivity in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Source

GSMA:The Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa 2023

Short answer

How many people have access to mobile connectivity in Sub-Saharan Africa?

The GSMA (GSM Association) represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide. It brings together nearly 800 operators with more than 300 companies from the wider mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet companies. According...

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Education

Is media literacy taught in African schools?

Source

Misinformation Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa: From Laws and Regulations to Media Literacy

Short answer

Is media literacy taught in African schools?

A study of media literacy in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda found that media literacy was barely taught in the seven African countries, with only South Africa having elements of misinformation literacy. ...

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Welfare & population

How many people have access to a computer in the different countries in Africa?

Source

ITU Digital Development Dashboard

Short answer

How many people have access to a computer in the different countries in Africa?

The International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) Digital Development Dashboard provides a clear picture of digital progress around the world. Based on the latestITU figures, here are the percentages of households with computers in various African countries: Cameroon: 18%, Egypt: 70%, Kenya: 9%, M...

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Winston Mwale

Derniers fact-checks

Latest facts

Does smoking have an impact on recovery from Covid-19?

How many people have access to mobile connectivity in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Is media literacy taught in African schools?

How many people have access to a computer in the different countries in Africa?

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