The Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) will hold a regional media summit in Accra, Ghana, on 9 July. The focus will be on the growing impact of fake news on democratic governance in West Africa.
The summit is themed "Defending Democracy in West Africa: The Role of Media." Journalists, policymakers, civil society leaders, academics, and representatives from local and international organizations will gather. They will discuss ways to ensure accurate information and protect democratic institutions.
This event also celebrates seven years of CJID’s work in Ghana. Through DUBAWA Ghana, its fact-checking project, CJID has been fighting misinformation, improving media literacy, and supporting fair elections.
Before the summit, CJID will host a regional Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) workshop. Fifteen journalists from across West Africa will attend this training.
The training aims to help journalists verify digital content, investigate coordinated influence campaigns, and deal with challenges from artificial intelligence, fake media, and cross-border fake news.
The summit will feature a keynote speech from George Sarpong, the Executive Secretary of Ghana’s National Media Commission. The Minister of State for Government Communications in Ghana will also speak.
Representatives from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union, the United Nations, and other diplomatic and development partners are expected to join.
A panel discussion will focus on policy and media responses to the rise of fake news in the region. Journalists, academics, media experts, and press freedom advocates will participate.
CJID Executive Director Akintunde Babatunde spoke about the summit. He mentioned that the rise of artificial intelligence and coordinated influence campaigns brings new challenges to democracy.
He said, "The quality of our democracies will increasingly depend on the quality of our information ecosystems." He added that stronger collaboration in the region and better-trained journalists are crucial for maintaining public trust and accountability in democracy.
CJID was founded as a pan-African media development organization. It operates in 13 African countries and leads efforts to promote investigative journalism, fact-checking, and digital resilience. Through DUBAWA, CJID has helped media organizations and journalists in West Africa fight misinformation and improve access to verified information.
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