The DUBAWA Week For Truth schools visitation campaign is a sensitisation campaign to create awareness and amplification of truth in public discourse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is held annually in various West African nations, including Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia, and The Gambia, where DUBAWA<\/a> operates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The objective is to enlighten high school students on the significance of fact-checking and to make them meticulous about how they consume information and share it with the public. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This year\u2019s WFT online training for volunteers covered essential topics, including information disorder: misinformation and disinformation, how to spot fake images, steps to follow when verifying \u2018false information,\u2019 and how volunteers should comport themselves while on the field representing the reputable organisation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The campaign also provided a golden opportunity to inform citizens about the significance of the DUBAWA ChatBot App, created by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), to help verify claims. <\/p>\n\n\n\n About a thousand Sierra Leonean students benefitted from the WFT training this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Out of the 15 volunteers recruited for this year\u2019s Week For Truth campaign, five (5) were selected from the North, three (3) from the East, and the rest from the Western Area, Freetown, all in Sierra Leone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This year\u2019s \u2018Week For Truth\u2019 campaign targeted dozens of students in Sierra Leone, including the schools\u2019 instructors and authorities, from the country’s junior and senior high school levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Sierra Leone, 15 volunteers were recruited for this year\u2019s DUBAWA\u2019s Week For Truth Schools Visitation<\/a>. On Oct. 27 and 28, 2024, the volunteers visited numerous \u2018junior and senior high schools\u2019 and took them through the \u2018essence to verify every piece of information\u2019 on their social media handles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Solomon Dickson, a volunteer in Freetown<\/a>\u2014who has volunteered with DUBAWA for the past two years, told DUBAWA this year\u2019s Week For Truth Schools\u2019 Visitation campaign is a huge success, adding that\u2014the number of students the campaign was able to reach this time around, was higher than the other years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe campaign organised by DUBAWA on the importance of verifying and fact-checking information is highly relevant and impactful, especially in today\u2019s world where misinformation can spread rapidly. It taught me the practical steps for assessing the credibility of information, which is essential for making informed decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBy critically using the DUBAWA ChatBot, I learned how to better verify social media messages and even information from mainstream media. Overall, the DUBAWA Week for Truth 2024 campaign has reinforced the significance of approaching information responsibly,\u201d volunteer Dickson told DUBAWA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alusine Rhemie Wilson is a multimedia journalist and fact-checker<\/a> residing in Makeni City, Northern Sierra Leone, and has volunteered with DUBAWA in the past Week For Truth campaigns in the country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Wilson shared his experience with DUBAWA during this year\u2019s school visitation campaign, Wilson said he is grateful to always be a part of the Week For Truth Team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He noted that being part of the team to amplify truth and raise awareness of media and information literacy in the country is something he holds dear to his heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cServing as a volunteer for DUBAWA didn’t only offer me the opportunity to improve my fact-checking knowledge but also re-energised me to share my experiences about fact-checking with students, teachers, and my social media audience across the globe,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The students were not left out of the experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mohamed Bangura, an SSS2 pupil of the Albert Academy, expressed interest in learning about the functions of the DUBAWA ChatBot App, which helps people quickly and smartly verify \u2018claims\u2019 or \u2018false statements\u2019 made by people in authority or places of thrust. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Matilda Thomas, a pupil of the Government Model Secondary School (GMSS)<\/a> in Freetown, said she was happy about the great campaign, remarking that she had never heard such information before. <\/p>\n\n\n\n She added that, with the knowledge gained from the volunteer who visited her school, she will make sure that she passes it on to other people, including her family members and friends at home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe training is a valuable idea. This is the first-ever training we have received on the topic you have just taught us. This training on fact-checking and media literacy will go a long way in shaping our future as students,\u201d Mariatu Kamara, a pupil beneficiary attending the Heritage High School in Makeni City,<\/a> said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ms Kamara added that the all-important training by one of our volunteers in Makeni, Alusine R. Wilson, is a huge step in the right direction, stating, <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe little knowledge gained during the training will greatly help me to fact-check information I come across on social media because I have active social media handles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Experiences from Northern and Eastern parts of Sierra Leone: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Students and school authorities commended DUBAWA and pleaded for more such initiatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Students and teachers at the Missionary Church Africa Junior and Senior High School<\/a> in Magburaka Town, Tonkolili District, Northern Sierra Leone<\/a>, expressed satisfaction with the training. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Adam Kamara, who visited this school, said the authorities beamed joy after the learning opportunity for the students and their teachers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRaising awareness at the Heritage High School and the United Methodist Secondary School, both in Makeni, in the North of Sierra Leone, was a great feat,\u201d Kamara said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kenema Town, Eastern Sierra Leone, was not left out of the show. One of DUBAWA\u2019s volunteers in that part of the country noted that the campaign was more than \u2018exceptional.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n A volunteer from Kenema City expressed his huge thanks and appreciation to DUBAWA\u2014for the great opportunity to work with the revered fact-checking institution in West Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Like the other volunteers, Fidential Mamadu Bailor Bah<\/a> said that this year\u2019s school visitation campaign was the best for him, describing it as \u201cimpactful and very timely.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe students actively participated, asking insightful questions about WeekForTruth2024, which the volunteers comprehensively addressed. Teachers from the participating schools also gained valuable insights through these engagements,\u201d \u2014 Bah added. <\/p>\n\n\n\nVolunteer training<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Impact of WFT in Sierra Leone <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Testimonials<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Views from the Eastern part of Sierra Leone <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What are schools\u2019 authorities saying? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n