Did you miss the chance to join cohort one? Here’s your opportunity to be part of cohort two of the fellowship.
Code for Africa (CfA) is offering African Academy for Open Source Investigation (AAOSI) fellowships to mentor six journalists based in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. The programme aims to equip journalists from investigative media and watchdog CSOs/NGOs with open-source intelligence (OSINT) and social media forensics (SOCMINT) skills to produce evidence-driven analyses of information manipulation and interference (IMI) and coordinated inauthentic behaviour (CIB). The programme also seeks to support access to credible information.
About the AAOSI fellowship
AAOSI is part of a joint initiative by CfA’s forensic research team, iLAB; its AI/machine-learning team, CivicSignal; and its fact-checking team, PesaCheck.
Our goal for AAOSI fellowships is to mentor journalists, building their capacity to:
- Use OSINT and SOCMINT to investigate IMI and CIB.
- Produce compelling, evidence-driven investigations that strengthen public trust and information integrity.
- Contribute to a pan-African network of OSINT investigators and collaborate on transnational investigations with peers worldwide to unmask influence operations and information manipulation.
The fellowship will run for four months and aims to enhance information integrity in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal by tackling misinformation, hate speech, and propaganda, while also strengthening local media and civil society resilience.
The programme will offer:
- Financial support: A monthly stipend to cover eligible activities and costs.
- Technical support: Hands-on OSINT and forensic analysis training, plus one-on-one mentorship from CfA’s data technologists, data analysts, multimedia producers, and editors.
- Publishing support: Publish your work through your media outlet, with opportunities for international syndication and amplification.
Who is an AAOSI fellow?
AAOSI fellows are people with a track record of publishing in-depth research or articles, with special consideration given to candidates who have shown an interest in fact-checking or disinformation research. They include journalists and researchers from investigative media and watchdog CSOs/NGOs. Freelancers are also eligible to apply for the programme, as long as they show affiliation with a recognised publishing organisation.
Still interested? Check if you are eligible:
We’re looking for passionate and committed journalists who are ready to level up their investigative skills. To be eligible, you must:
- Be based in Côte d’Ivoire or Senegal and affiliated with a registered and recognised media house, digital news outlet, or CSO/NGO that focuses on audiences in Africa.
- Have at least one year of journalism or research experience, preferably in investigative or data journalism.
- Show proof of recently published work (within the past two months).
- Commit to weekly online training and mentorship sessions.
- Commit to timely and open communication about your progress.
- Be fluent in English or French (the fellowship’s working languages).
- Be willing to share your new knowledge within your newsroom or organisation.
- Commit to publishing/disseminating your work on an appropriate public platform. CfA will assist with partnerships and syndications where appropriate.
- Ensure your affiliated organisation is willing to publish the evidence-based content packages you produce during the fellowship.
The first cohort of the AAOSI fellowship uncovered coordinated online campaigns that targeted political debates, exposing disinformation networks and tracking digital propaganda linked to regional elections. Their work has been featured by leading media outlets. Catch up with their investigations here, here and here to see how they are shaping the fight against disinformation across the continent.
If you are eligible, apply no later than Saturday, 15 November 2025, by completing this form. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
Questions? Reach out to @kunle.adebajo@codeforafrica.org @mitchelle.awuor@codeforafrica.org
About the partners:
Code for Africa is Africa’s largest civic technology and open data incubator, and supports digital democracy and investigative data journalism initiatives as part of our mission to give citizens access to actionable information and to 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.