The Spanish Embassy in Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening credible journalism and combating electoral disinformation by equipping Nigerian journalists with advanced fact-checking skills ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The embassy, through its Cultural Office, organised a two-day advanced course on electoral disinformation and fact-checking for Nigerian journalists in Abuja on July 9 and 10. The training focused on the uses and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) in newsrooms, while providing participants with practical tools to identify, analyse and counter electoral disinformation.
The programme was organised by the Spanish Embassy in Nigeria alongside Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation and Casa África’s PeriodismoAfrica programme, in collaboration with the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Maldita.es, EFE Verifica, the European External Action Service (EEAS) and Alkalanci.
Speaking at the workshop, the Cultural Adviser at the Spanish Embassy in Nigeria, Eva Barta Martin, said the initiative was aimed at equipping journalists with the skills needed to identify and counter disinformation, particularly during election periods.
She stressed that access to credible information remains critical to informed public participation and democratic development, noting that strengthening fact-checking capacities and media literacy would help build public trust in the information ecosystem.
Martin added that collaboration among journalists, fact-checkers, civil society organisations and international partners remained essential in tackling the rapid spread of false information across digital platforms.
“We have organised this electoral disinformation and fact-checking training in Abuja in collaboration with Casa Africa and with CJID. This is the second edition, so to say, that we organised of this training. We had one already on fact-checking and disinformation in 2023 and it’s also one among a series of trainings that we have held on journalism.
“We have also done in the past health misinformation and disinformation in the field of health. At a time when elections are very affected by disinformation and misinformation, we thought that it was the right time to organise this training to strengthen fact-checking skills and also to promote responsible journalism.
“At the same time, for the Embassy, it’s a small way to give back to the journalists who always support us in the activities we organise and they come and join us to cover the activities.”
On the significance of the training, Martin said Nigerian journalists demonstrated remarkable talent but often lacked access to specialised verification tools.
“As we have experienced today, there are many very talented Nigerian journalists. Maybe sometimes they don’t have the opportunity to reach out to some of the tools that are available. So, I think this is an eye-opener. It’s also about sharing experiences.
“The Spanish journalists that came have also had the opportunity to see from ground what are the feelings, what are the experiences, what are the challenges, what are the assets of the local journalist. And at the same time, the local journalists get to know from other perspectives.”
Also speaking, Head of Media Relations at Casa África, Joan Tusell, said the growing threat of disinformation, particularly during elections, informed the decision to organise the training.
According to him, the programme combines Spain’s expertise in media verification with the experience of Nigerian fact-checkers to strengthen journalists’ capacity to tackle false information.
“Working with Casa Africa, you know it’s a public diplomacy institution in Spain, in the last 10 years we have been working with journalists around Africa and doing some trainings. The last few years we have seen disinformation is the most important issue around journalists. I would say the most critical issue right now because we really can’t let things happen. It’s really harming democratic and electoral processes.
“So we took advantage that in Spain, we have some media expertise and we brought them here to Abuja to partner with the local fact-checkers here. We thought that this advanced know-how of the Spanish part combined with the high expertise and knowledge of the Nigerian scenery of Nigerian fact-checkers could be a good combination to set up a training and be helpful.
“What we are trying to do today is to foster this debate among journalists on the importance of how to act and face disinformation and also very importantly, how to face this new scenery that AI is bringing.
“We had almost 400 applications to enter this training. We decided that 30 would be the number to manage well and be really fruitful. But we think the outcome of the discussions can be shared with everybody in the country as Nigeria prepares for the elections next year to curb disinformation.”
Meanwhile, Publisher of Alkalanci (The Arbiter), Alhassan Bala, called for increased investment in local-language fact-checking, describing it as a critical step towards curbing electoral disinformation and protecting Nigeria’s democracy.
Bala, whose organisation is Nigeria’s first Hausa-language fact-checking and media literacy platform, said misinformation spreads rapidly in indigenous languages, particularly through social media and community-based communication channels.
He noted that strengthening the capacity of journalists and fact-checkers to verify claims in local languages would significantly reduce the impact of disinformation campaigns during elections.
“There are more than 250 local languages in Nigeria, and people tend to understand and think in their local languages than in the English language. Local language disinformation evades detection because fact-checkers are trained in foreign languages and media organisations invest more in non-local-language fact-checking.”
According to him, local-language content remains particularly vulnerable because most social media trust and safety teams, as well as AI moderation systems, are primarily trained on English-language content.
“There are fewer trained fact-checkers in local languages than in English.
“Broadcast narrations often spread disinformation in formats that are more difficult to search, archive and flag than written text.
“In many cases, the messages come from familiar community voices, which increases perceived credibility and makes audiences more likely to trust and share them.”
Highlighting the relevance of the training, Bala said journalists who fail to verify information risk becoming tools for disinformation actors.
“This training will help journalists not fall into the trap of disinformation actors while doing their jobs, whether in broadcast, online or print media.
“If they don’t get this kind of training, there is a possibility that many journalists can fall into the trap of disinformation actors by not verifying information clearly before publishing it or before editing a video, maybe it’s AI-generated or an altered picture.
“As the 2027 election approaches, we are likely to see AI-generated voice cloning, manipulated voice notes and other forms of deceptive content in local languages. Journalists must understand that not every statement posted on social media or passed through word of mouth is true, even if it is communicated in a local language.”
On practical verification tools, Bala urged journalists to prioritise verification over speed.
“Number one, if it is a video or picture, they can quickly do a Google reverse image search, which is one of the easiest ways to know whether that video or picture has been used before.
“They can also use TinEye and many other applications to trace the origin of a video or picture. For AI, there are several AI detection tools that can determine whether an image has been generated or manipulated.
“If journalists don’t verify every video or content they receive, it is going to be dangerous for Nigeria’s fragile democracy because information is very powerful.
“If you are not sure, don’t publish it. Forget about breaking news. If you are not careful, that breaking news will break the media organisation. You will end up making the media organisation apologise for what could have been avoided,” he said.