Do you want to strengthen information integrity in Côte d’Ivoire or Senegal?
Code for Africa (CfA) is offering 40 Mythbusters Fellowships to community influencers in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. During the six-month fellowship, fellows will serve as messengers to counter disinformation and advance information resilience in these target communities. These part-time fellowships are part of a joint initiative between CfA and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH to strengthen information integrity through disinformation alerts and awareness campaigns in the two countries.
Successful applicants will work with CfA’s forensic investigation team, iLAB, and the PesaCheck team to share evidence-based reports designed to prevent information manipulation in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. The fellows will use their visual storytelling skills or significant social media presence to amplify the investigative findings. They will produce short, engaging content in graphic, audio, or video formats, primarily in local languages.
Académie.AFRIQUE will train fellows on fact-checking, ethics, and accuracy in reporting, and a team of international experts and investigative analysts from iLAB and social media engagement professionals from CfA’s Engagement team will mentor them. Fellows will develop the skills to recognise manipulative claims and demand reliable information from the media and watchdog civil society organisations.
The fellowship programme will include:
Stipend: Fellows will receive a competitive monthly stipend.
Networking: Fellows will be part of the Congress for Peace (COPP) influencers network and will be invited to speak at network events or present at major continental conferences.
Are you eligible?
The Mythbusters Fellowship seeks to empower Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal-based nano- and micro-influencers to become champions of information integrity. These influencers will use their digital platforms to highlight the dangers of manipulative content in the two countries. Their role involves leading local discussions on the harmful impact of misleading information.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- You must be a social media influencer with a large following that actively engages with your content. We will give priority to trusted local messengers working as nano- or macro-influencers.
- You must be non-partisan, with no ties to government agencies, paramilitary organisations, political parties, state-affiliated media, or other bodies that may create the perception of partisanship during elections.
- You must commit to publishing/disseminating your work on an appropriate public platform. CfA will assist with partnerships/syndications, where appropriate.
- You must be fluent in French and preferably Wolof (for those in Senegal), as well as the local ethnic languages dominant in the country where you have influence.
- You must have access to a reliable laptop or desktop computer with stable internet connectivity to participate in programme activities and online courses/mentoring.
- You must commit to sharing your new skills and knowledge in your organisation, with your followers, and with the wider journalism/research community, by showcasing your projects and techniques to your peers.
- You must commit to using your social media channels to amplify the activities and work completed during the fellowship.
- You must be available for at least two weekly one-hour virtual meetings.
The deadline for applications is 15 May 2025.
To apply, please fill out this form.
Questions? Reach out to mitchelle.awuor@codeforafrica.org and hadeye.toure@codeforafrica.org
About the partners:
Code for Africa is Africa’s largest civic technology and open data incubator. The organisation supports digital democracy and investigative data journalism initiatives to give citizens access to actionable information and amplify citizen voices to make society more responsive and accountable. CfA’s mission is to leverage technology and data to foster digital democracies and empower citizens by providing actionable information.
The African Digital Democracy Observatory (ADDO) is the only continent-wide research coalition focused on understanding how disinformation and influence or information operations are being used to subvert African democracies or watchdog institutions. The initiative is member-driven, consisting of 15 organisations that run substantive Africa-focused analytical research or investigations. Find out more about ADDO’s activities and members here.
The Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a development agency that provides tailor-made, cost-efficient, and effective services for sustainable development across the world. The agency is registered in Bonn (HRB 18384) and Eschborn, Frankfurt (HRB 12394), with VAT ID no. DE 113891176.
To all recruitment agencies: CfA does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our employment application line, CfA employees, or any other CfA contact. CfA is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.
Please note: Due to high volumes of applications, we are unable to respond to each one individually. If you are selected for an interview, we will contact you.