Fighting Falsehoods in The Gambia: A New Era of Verified Journalism
December 2025
More than 200 fact-checks published, 80 journalists trained, and a national platform recognized by election observers—PBF-supported fact-checking is strengthening peace and accountability.
Before 2021, not a single formal fact-check had ever been published in The Gambian news media. Journalists routinely verified information as part of their work, but the discipline of systematic, evidence-based fact-checking was virtually unknown. At the same time, the country was navigating a delicate transition after the end of 22 years of authoritarian rule. Newly won freedoms — including a surge in media outlets, up more than 50 percent according to the Gambia Press Union — created space for public debate, but also for misinformation and disinformation to spread rapidly.
Research by the showed how this expanding media environment, combined with limited verification skills and elite fragmentation, allowed false narratives to shape political discourse and sharpen ethnic and political divides. In a context where rumors have previously been used to inflame hatred, the absence of fact-checking posed serious threats to social cohesion and stability.
To strengthen the credibility of the Gambian information space, the UN Peacebuilding Fund financed two successive initiatives led by UNESCO, in partnership with UNDP, UNFPA, and the International Trade Centre. Together, these projects laid the foundation for a fact-checking culture that is now reshaping journalism, safeguarding elections, and helping protect public discourse in the country’s fragile democracy.
Building a New Skillset for a New Media Era
The first project, Young Women and Men as Stakeholders in Ensuring Peaceful Democratic Processes and Advocates for the Prevention of Violence and Hate Speech (2021–2022), trained more than 50 journalists — including 22 women — from over 20 media houses. While most had at least five years of newsroom experience, over 80 percent had never received training in fact-checking.
A second PBF-funded initiative, Strengthening the National Infrastructure for Peace to Promote Social Cohesion (I4P), expanded the effort from 2023 to 2025, training an additional 30 journalists in advanced fact-checking skills, particularly for election coverage.
This capacity-building work was essential preparation for what came next.
A National First: The Birth of FactCheck Gambia
Drawing on lessons from the region, trained journalists launched the country’s first-ever national fact-checking platform, FactCheck Gambia , in October 2021, with UNESCO’s technical support. Managed by the Media Academy for Journalism and Communication (MAJaC), under the Gambia Press Union, the platform became the central hub for verified information in the country.
From zero fact-checks in early 2021, the platform published more than 100 articles — fact-checks, explainers, and fact sheets, by the end of its first year. Since 2023, output has averaged about 100 fact-checks annually, and several media outlets have now established fact-checking desks of their own.
Modou S. Joof,?Editor?of FactCheck Gambia
Safeguarding electoral integrity
The impact was immediately visible during the 2021 presidential election — one of the most tense and competitive in recent Gambian history. Election observers took note.
The praised FactCheck Gambia’s role in countering misinformation online and urged election stakeholders to collaborate more closely with the platform. The similarly found that “national fact-checking fostered transparency and strengthened electoral integrity,” especially during the campaign period.
In a political context where disinformation has the potential to inflame tensions, these timely interventions played a critical role in promoting peaceful elections.
Beyond Politics: Health, Gender, Migration
FactCheck Gambia has also challenged misleading narratives in other sensitive areas. In 2024, when some lawmakers attempted to decriminalize female genital mutilation (FGM), fact-checkers that “there is no FGM in The Gambia.” Their explainers and fact sheets became an important resource for citizens and advocacy groups, contributing to the rejection of a bill seeking to repeal the 2015 ban.
Fact-checks related to have also helped protect students and social media users from exploitation.
By the end of 2024, the platform’s Facebook following had grown by 30 percent, reflecting rising public trust.
A Catalytic Shift Across the Media
The fact-checking movement is now spreading beyond the initial cohort of trainees. Editors like Yusef Taylor and Mustapha K. Darboe have institutionalized fact-checking within their own newsrooms — and later, in new outlets they founded.
Beyond the media, FactCheck Gambia is expanding its partnerships.
- In 2022, the EU provided approximately �34,000 for training and content production.
- IOM funded migration-related fact-checks.
- The Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism trained journalists on political fact-checking.
- UNESCO is supporting resource mobilization and membership in the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) — a major step toward long-term sustainability.
A Stringer Information Ecosystem for Peace
What began as a donor-funded experiment has evolved into a national movement that is reshaping journalism and strengthening democratic resilience. Media houses such as Malagen, The Republic, Askanwi, and Gainako now treat fact-checking as a standard editorial practice. Trained journalists are producing more accurate reporting, elevating public conversation, and pushing political actors to uphold higher standards.
With support from the Peacebuilding Fund, UNESCO helped put in place a sustainable system that curbs misinformation, counters hate speech, and protects the integrity of public discourse — essential foundations for peace and social cohesion in a fragile transitioning democracy.
FactCheck Gambia has already proven its importance in safeguarding elections. Its continued growth is helping The Gambia build an information environment grounded not in rumor or manipulation, but in verifiable fact — and that makes all the difference for peace.
