Validating ‘the truth’ about SA’s education system
A “fact-based” account has Twitter talking about South Africa’s education system. But do its claims add up?
ReportsRSS
unproven
No way to tell that 70% of Nigerian inmates ‘have never been convicted’
A recent newspaper editorial claimed the “gross over-population” of Nigeria’s prisons was because about 70% of inmates “have never been convicted of any crime”. Is this correct?
incorrect
Do 1-in-5 Nigerian adults suffer from long-term depression? World Bank revises brief
Alarmed about what it said were rising suicides in Africa’s most populous country, a national newspaper in Nigeria attributed it to every fifth adult being chronically depressed.
incorrect
South African road agency gets traffic deaths stat wrong
In a recent tweet, South Africa’s Road Traffic Infringement Agency wrongly claimed that 47% of road traffic deaths were pedestrians.
checked
Does South Africa guzzle 235 litres of water per person daily?
How much water does South Africa consume on average? And how does it compare to international standards? We looked at the best available evidence.
unproven
SA’s serial murder & rape ‘ranking’ not supported by data
A South African newspaper claimed that the country is ranked third after the US and Russia for serial murders and rapes… but the data’s not convincing.
incorrect
Nigeria spends 5 times less per person on healthcare than SA – not 7
A major national daily said that South Africa spends seven times more per head on healthcare than Nigeria. But the latest available data shows the difference has narrowed.
incorrect
SA received R6.1 billion in 2017 from US – not R300 billion, as DA mayor claimed
A South African mayor got his numbers wrong on US aid to South Africa. But could aid be withdrawn if property rights are violated?
incorrect
Are Nigerian immigrants top of the class in the US?
Pushing back against US President Donald Trump’s allegedly disparaging comments against their compatriots, a diaspora group said Nigerians in the US top the education charts. Does the evidence support this?
correct
Is Nigeria’s unemployment rate 18.8%, as widely tweeted?
Employment figures are an important measure of a country’s economic health. Were people right to question the unemployment rate for Nigeria in a widely-shared tweet?