|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Claim: A popular Facebook user, Zainab Natural Remedy, posted a video, reporting that the Burkinabe Junta-leader, Capt. Ibrahim Traore has sold over $3 billion electric cars.
Verdict: False! Our investigation on Agence Information Du Burkina found no evidence supporting the claim. Also, the video has features of AI-generated content.
Full Text
The world is rapidly transforming to electric cars, while Africa is still largely lagging, according to the Energy for Growth Hub.
According to Energy for Growth Hub, only 12 African countries, such as Seychelles, Morocco, Mauritius, South Africa, Tunisia, Egypt, Rwanda, Cabo Verde, Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, and Namibia, are placed on the “Africa EV Readiness and Impact Index” due to their readiness and potential to embrace electric cars.
The International Energy Agency reported that global electric car sales exceeded 17 million in 2024, rising by more than 25%.
In Africa, IEA further reported that electric car sales “doubled to reach nearly 11,000 in 2024,” with sales still under 1%.
However, CGTN Africa reported five months ago that a Burkinabe local manufacturing company, Toll, had unveiled the country’s first electric car.
CGTN Africa reported that experts had projected a possible economic growth despite the country’s reliance on second-hand vehicles.
Yet, a recent video posted on Facebook by Zainab Natural Remedy alleged that Burkinabe Junta leader Capt. Ibrahim Traore has sold over $3 billion in electric cars.
Hours after the claim was posted, it had already gained public attention, hitting 433 likes, 38 comments, and 113 shares.
While the story appeared too good to be true, the majority of comments on the post believed the claim.
Screenshots of the comments on the post.
DUBAWA decided to fact-check the claim due to its mandate to amplify truth.
Verification
DUBAWA conducted a Google Keyword search to verify the claim but found that no credible news agency reported it.
We also verified the claim on the Burkinabe government’s official news website, Agence Information Du Burkina, and found no evidence supporting it.
We checked the International Energy Agency website and found that Burkina Faso is not among the countries with the highest sales of electric cars as of 2024.
Instead, we found that China is the only country whose electric car sales increased by 40% year-on-year in 2024, driving the highest sales of global electric cars according to the International Energy Agency.
We also found no current credible data supporting the sales of electric cars by countries in 2025.
Furthermore, DUBAWA decided to review the video and found that it has attributes of AI-generated content.
Below is what DUBAWA found on the video
- Visual inconsistencies: We observed visual contradictions in the video, a pattern primarily associated with AI-generated content. For instance, the video showed three different manufacturing companies in other frames.
- The display of the Burkina flag: We observed that the Burkinabe flag appeared naturally, appearing almost in every frame.
- A fictitious news agency: We also observed that the news agency that reported the news does not exist.
- Fictitious EV company: We found that the EV company in the video is fictitious. Toll is the only local EV manufacturing company in Burkina Faso.
Conclusion
Our investigation found no credible evidence supporting Ibrahim Traore’s global sales of over $3 billion in electric cars. The video is AI-generated.
