Nigeria Elections: Google commits $2m to fighting misinformation

Google.org has announced a grant of $2 million for Nigeria Fact Checkers to fight against misinformation during the general elections.

Dawn Dimowo, Government Affairs and Public Policy Manager, Google Nigeria, announced this in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos.

Dimowo said that Full Fact, a UK-based charity, would partner with some organisations to fight misinformation during general election period.

The Full-Fact tackles misinformation through fact checks and campaigns.

Dimowo said that Google.org would continue to use its resources and technology to make a positive impact on society.

She said continued support for Full Fact in Nigeria was an exciting opportunity to help stop the spreading of misinformation.

It also helped to promote accurate information dissemination.

“This builds on our ongoing efforts to support local fact-checking initiatives.

“Google is proud to support the project and make a positive difference in the world.

“Collaborating with International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) members Africa Check, Dubawa, and FactCheckHub, Full Fact will expand the use of its Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to stop the spread of misinformation during the elections.

“The project made possible by a $2 million grant from Google’s philanthropic arm, Google.org, has seen remarkable results.

“Full Fact’s AI technology has seen a 1,000x increase in claim detection.

“This is possible with the support of seven dedicated technical Google.org Fellows, who worked on a pro bono basis.

“That is identifying which claims are most important to fact-check and help scale their fact-checks to appear in 237 million search results in 2020,” Dimowo said.

According to her, the technology developed by Full Fact in 2015, will be used in the Nigerian election for the first time.

Dimowo said that the technology would offer instant transcription services and real-time fact-checking during debates, speeches and throughout the election process.

This is to increase the speed and accuracy of information dissemination.

She said that Full Fact would also provide training and support to its local fact-checking partners during the election process.