Ghana Tops West Africa in Disinformation Resilience but Faces AI-Driven Threats – Report
Ghana has emerged as the most resilient country in West Africa in tackling disinformation, earning a score of 57 percent in the 2025 Disinformation Index Report released by Penplusbytes.
The country outperformed peer states including Côte d’Ivoire (53.9%), Mali (50.3%) and Burkina Faso (48%).
The report highlights Ghana’s strong detection rate of 95.8 percent and comparatively robust verification practices as key strengths.
However, gaps remain in reporting falsehoods to platforms and in addressing the rapid spread of AI-generated content.
According to the report, the just-ended 2024 general elections in Ghana were marked by a surge in disinformation driven by artificial intelligence tools, including deepfakes, fake graphics, and manipulated videos that spread widely across X, Facebook, WhatsApp and TikTok. While fact-checking organisations were active, the report notes that the scale and speed of digital falsehoods outpaced verification efforts, exposing vulnerabilities in digital literacy and weak regulatory frameworks.
“Disinformation has become one of the most pressing threats in the region – polarising communities, deepening divisions and undermining democracy,” the report stated, stressing the complexity of the evolving information ecosystem.
To counter these risks, the Index recommends a coordinated, human rights-centered approach, calling on governments to invest in legal reforms, real-time detection systems, and national Media and Information Literacy (MIL) integration.
It also urges support for media actors through ethical journalism training, newsroom verification tools, and journalist safety measures.
For technology platforms, the report advocates for localized content moderation, algorithm transparency, and stronger fact-checking partnerships, while urging ECOWAS and other regional bodies to integrate disinformation threats into peace and security frameworks, including the creation of cross-border monitoring hubs.
The 2025 Index is the first regional assessment of election and post-election disinformation across Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, and Burkina Faso.
