Africa Leads Efforts to Combat Disinformation in Election Cycles

African Election Officials Unite to Combat Digital Disinformation Threats

Electoral officials from across Africa gathered in Abuja, Nigeria last week for a landmark workshop addressing one of democracy’s most pressing challenges: protecting elections from digital misinformation and disinformation campaigns.

The two-day “Regional Workshop on Protecting Elections in the Information Environment,” held August 27-28, 2025, brought together representatives from Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs), Regional Economic Communities, and election networks to develop coordinated strategies against information manipulation during electoral processes.

Organized in partnership with the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions (ECONEC) and supported by the European Union through the Strengthening Pan-African Capacities for Electoral Observation and Assistance (SPEC) project, the event highlighted the growing concern that elections in Africa are increasingly vulnerable to digital manipulation.

“Elections are no longer won or lost only at the ballot box; they are increasingly shaped by the narratives that circulate in the information space,” said Sergine Mamadou Ka, head of the Electoral Assistance Division at the ECOWAS Commission and Permanent Secretary of ECONEC. “At ECONEC, we believe that Electoral Management Bodies cannot address these challenges in isolation.”

Over the past decade, African elections have been increasingly influenced by online activities, with social media platforms becoming battlegrounds where fact and fiction compete for voters’ attention. The proliferation of false information can undermine public confidence in electoral systems and ultimately erode democratic foundations.

Reuben Alba Aguilera, Head of Governance, Security, and Migration Section at the European Union Mission in Nigeria and ECOWAS, emphasized that disinformation poses a global challenge. “There is a significant and impactful role disinformation plays in elections. This is the same for Africa and Europe, and this impact has significantly increased in recent years,” he noted.

The workshop placed particular emphasis on the accelerating threat posed by artificial intelligence technologies, which have dramatically lowered barriers to creating convincing false content. As these tools become more accessible, distinguishing authentic information from manipulation becomes increasingly difficult for voters.

“The role of Artificial Intelligence makes it more and more difficult to decipher facts from falsehood,” Aguilera added. “Anything that compromises the integrity of information reduces people’s capacity to take informed decisions in matters that affect them. And with elections, the implications are far-reaching.”

Experts at the workshop stressed that reactive approaches are insufficient against the speed and scale of modern disinformation. Electoral bodies often find themselves responding to viral falsehoods only after significant damage to public discourse has occurred.

Therese Pearce Laanela, Head of Electoral Processes at International IDEA, advocated for more systematic solutions. “To effectively counter misinformation and disinformation during elections, we must walk through the issues systematically and develop a concerted approach,” she said. “The goal is to put in place the building blocks of protective infrastructures that Electoral Management Bodies and countries can rely on.”

These protective measures go beyond traditional fact-checking to include comprehensive monitoring systems, strengthened legal frameworks, partnerships with technology platforms, and investments in digital literacy programs that help citizens critically evaluate information.

The timing of this regional initiative reflects growing recognition that Africa’s democratic progress faces serious threats from information manipulation. The continent is experiencing a surge in electoral activity, with numerous countries scheduled to hold critical elections in the coming years. Each election represents an opportunity for bad actors to deploy increasingly sophisticated disinformation tactics.

Olufunto Akinduro, Senior Adviser on Elections in Africa and West Asia at International IDEA, underscored the long-term implications of these threats. “If we are thinking of the future of democracy, we know now that democracy is now shaped by the digital world,” she said. “Disinformation doesn’t just attack election processes—it erodes public trust in democracy itself.”

The Abuja workshop is part of International IDEA’s broader global project on Protecting Electoral Processes in the Information Environment. Findings and strategies developed during the event will inform future initiatives across Africa and beyond, creating a knowledge base that can help electoral bodies anticipate and counteract emerging disinformation threats.

Participants departed with a shared understanding that protecting the information environment around elections requires sustained collaboration between governments, electoral commissions, civil society, and international partners—and that securing the digital information space is now as critical to democratic integrity as safeguarding physical ballot boxes.