Online Coalition Tasks African Leaders On Safeguards

The National Online Safety Coalition (#FWDwithFacts campaign) has condemned Meta’s recent decision to end partnerships with third-party fact-checkers and significantly weaken content moderation across its platforms.
The coalition called on Nigerian and African leaders to immediately mandate transparency from tech platforms like Meta to publicly publish their strategies for managing misinformation and harmful content in Nigeria.

It also urged African leaders to establish legal frameworks that hold tech platforms responsible for enabling the spread of harmful content and partner with civil society organisations to educate Nigerians on identifying fake news, understanding the risks involved with spreading fake news, and engaging responsibly with digital platforms.

In a statement signed by Gatefield Impact, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa) and 18 others, the coalition said Meta’s decision was particularly problematic for Nigeria and Africa, where unchecked misinformation and purposefully orchestrated disinformation campaigns had cost lives and destabilised communities.

It said Meta’s actions signaled a troubling shift among big tech companies where permissive policies are prioritised over accountability, adding that the trend threatened global stability and poses especially severe risks to regions like Nigeria and Africa, where misinformation and disinformation has violent consequences.