Africa Check

No evidence Fifa has granted Nigeria a direct play-off spot in 2026 World Cup qualifiers

BREAKING: Nigeria(Super Eagles) have been given the direct entry to the World Cup qualifiers play off. Dr Congo ELIMINATED,” ...
Africa Check

No, helping strangers use their smartphones will not expose you to ‘AI biometric identity fraud’

STOP HELPING STRANGERS WITH THEIR PHONES,” warns a frantic message that has been widely shared on Facebook and WhatsApp, where it has been ...
Africa Check

How many public high schools are there in Gauteng province?

The Department of Basic Education publishes quarterly data on schools in South Africa. The latest data from quarter three of 2025 lists 644 currently open ordinary (not special needs institutions) ...
Africa Check

No evidence Kenyan president has sued Nigeria at International Criminal Court over pro-Biafran leader Nnamdi Kanu

IN SHORT: Multiple online posts claim Kenyan president William Ruto has taken Nigeria to the International Criminal Court over the controversial 2021 seizing of Biafra separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu in ...
Africa Check

No evidence Trump warned Russian president Putin over recruiting Kenyans for war

IN SHORT: According to a viral graphic, US president Donald Trump warned his Russian counterpart of military action if he did not release Kenyans from combat duties in the war in Ukraine. However, the ...
Africa Check

Fake graphics claim that Kenyan president hinted at dropping his deputy as running mate for 2027 elections

IN SHORT: Graphics attributing a quote to Kenyan president William Ruto about seeking an alternative running mate to deputy president Kithure Kindiki for the 2027 polls are circulating online. However ...
Africa Check

GUIDE: Scam trends to watch out for in 2026 and how to stay safe online

In 2026, we expect scams to persist, especially as tools powered by artificial intelligence (AI) become more widely used. In this guide, we highlight several scam trends to watch out for and explain ...
Africa Check

FACTSHEET: Nigeria’s population figures

Controversy over Nigeria’s census figures is nothing new. Accusations that the country’s official population figures had been rigged date back to the 1950s and have continued unabated under military ...
Africa Check

Virginity testing ‘sacred’ but not a science

When a KwaZulu-Natal municipality introduced an academic bursary for young women who can prove that they are virgins it caused an uproar earlier this year. Each time, the same questions arise. How is ...
Africa Check

No, murder rate for women in South Africa hasn’t spiked by 117%

A TV programme on gender-based violence claimed there had been a 117% rise in the killing of women in South Africa since 2015, according to “UN estimates”. We traced the claim to a Statistics South ...
Africa Check

Do 400,000 whites live in squatter camps in South Africa? No

Are there really 400,000 “poor whites” living in abject poverty in squatter camps across South Africa? Are there 80 white squatter camps in the Pretoria area alone? These are the figures cited in a ...