Are you a research or media institution based in Côte d’Ivoire or Senegal interested in strengthening the capacities of your journalists in open source investigations?
Code for Africa (CfA) is offering eight African Digital Democracy Observatory (ADDO) Institutional Fellowships to strengthen the investigative skills of research and media institutions in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal. The programme aims to equip researchers and journalists at these organisations with open-source intelligence (OSINT) and social media intelligence (SOCMINT) forensic analysis skills to produce evidence-driven evaluation of information manipulation and interference (IMI) and coordinated inauthentic behaviour (CIB), and to support access to credible information.
Our goals for the fellowships are to:
- Equip investigative media organisations, research institutes, think tanks, and watchdog civil society organisations with open-source intelligence (OSINT) skills and tools to turbocharge their investigations into information manipulation.
- Support the selected organisations in establishing in-house teams that produce regular analyses tracking information integrity in their countries.
- Help the participating organisations reach larger audiences and build deeper engagement with the public for data-driven discussions on key issues.
- Build a strong pan-African network of OSINT investigators who can collaborate on transnational investigations with peers worldwide to unmask influence operations and information manipulation.
The fellowship programme
The fellowship, which will run for six months, aims to enhance information integrity in the target countries by tackling hate speech, misinformation, and propaganda, while strengthening local media and civil society resilience. Participants will gain access to digital forensic tools, resources, and expertise to counter information manipulation.
The programme will consist of:
- Grants: Organisations will receive a modest grant to cover eligible activities and costs.
- Training and mentorship: CfA will offer hands-on technical training, followed by one-on-one project mentorship with support from CfA’s data technologists, editors, and forensic investigators.
- Publishing investigative content packages: As a result of the training and mentorship, organisations will publish content packages including but not limited to articles, podcasts, videos, and reports on hate speech, misinformation, and propaganda issues in their platforms.
Still interested? Check if you are eligible:
- The organisations must be registered in Côte d’Ivoire or Senegal.
- The organisations must have a minimum of one year of experience, with a strong preference for expertise in analytical research or data journalism.
- The organisations must provide evidence of reports they have produced and published, with the most recent publication being no older than two months.
- The organisations must commit to timely and open communication from the management and assigned journalists.
- The organisations must commit to publishing/disseminating their work on an appropriate public platform. CfA will assist with partnerships/syndications where appropriate.
- The organisations must commit to agreed-upon online training and mentorship sessions.
- The assigned journalists must be fluent in either of the languages of tuition and mentorship: English or French.
If your organisation is eligible, apply by Thursday, 15 May 2025, by completing this form. Institutions with female researchers and investigative journalists are encouraged to apply.
Questions? Reach out to mitchelle.awuor@codeforafrica.org and kunle.adebajo@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.