Accra, Ghana — 20 March 2025 – FactSpace West Africa has conducted a comprehensive training session for the staff of MTN Ghana, the leading telecommunication company in the country.
The engagement was centred around understanding the civic space, misinformation, and disinformation. The session, held on 19 March, equipped participants with critical skills to identify and counter false information in today’s digital landscape.
The training was led by Rabiu Alhassan, the Executive Director of FactSpace West Africa (FSWA), who provided an in-depth overview of the growing challenges of misinformation and disinformation in the civic space.
Participants were introduced to FactSpace’s approach to combating false information, including its methodologies, partnerships, and impact over the years.
Our reports – Hundreds dead in Bawku chieftaincy conflict and the Wagner-backed shadowy online network formed key parts in the discussion, pointing to the use of social media to endanger the information ecosystem.
“Invest in social media analytics tools to help monitor conversations about the brand online and to detect who and where conversations are usually generated from,” Rabiu Alhassan urged MTN Ghana.
A key highlight of the session was the practical demonstration of using fact-checking tools.
Attendees learned how to verify digital content using modern verification techniques and tools. This hands-on approach empowered participants to apply fact-checking skills in their professional and personal engagements.
Georgina Fiagbenu, the Head of Corporate Communication at MTN Ghana said she found the training insightful, stating: “It will help me verify information that is sent to me, for example, if I am doing research, it will help me. For communication people, we are always verifying information, cross-checking and fact-checking.”
Participants were introduced to tools including InVID verification, FotoForensics, Advanced Searches on Facebook and X, and the Wayback machine.
Other participants shared their insights and experiences, emphasising the significance of fact-checking in their daily work.
Maxwell Nartey, an intern said the session was fun and that the tools learned “will help in verifying videos and pictures that we see online to determine whether they are true or not.”
Samuella A. Boakye found the training session very educative. She said: “I learnt how to use Google reverse image search to verify the source of information, its accuracy and who posted it first.”
The training session is part of FactSpace West Africa’s commitment to fostering media literacy and enhancing the capacity of institutions to detect and combat misinformation. We look forward to collaborating with more corporate entities to promote accuracy, credibility, and informed decision-making in Ghana’s digital ecosystem.
See some pictures from the training:
