Fighting Fake Climate News: Experts Unite to Shield Nigerians From Digital Harm
By: Abudu Olalekan
Nigeria’s top climate experts, journalists, and activists unite in Lagos to battle deadly misinformation—before it’s too late. Here’s what went down.
The Media Awareness and Information for All Network—folks just call ’em MAIN—teamed up with UNESCO Abuja to run this workshop. It aint no stuffy seminar where you scribble notes and forget everything by dinner. This was the kind where you argue a little, draft real plans, and leave with a list of small, concrete things to do before the week ends. The goal? Stop climate misinformation before it does more avoidable harm.
Prof Jide Jimoh was there. He heads MAIN, and he’s dean at LASU’s communication school. He stood up halfway through the first day, and his voice didn’t raise. But everyone went quiet. “Climate change is dangerous,” he said. “But what kill faster these days? The lies about it.” He talked about how a silly conspiracy theory on WhatsApp can turn into a story that makes a farmer ignore a drought warning. How false posts delay policy action, confuse vulnerable communities, and break trust in the science that could save them.
Yachat Nuhu spoke for UNESCO Abuja that day. She didn’t mince words. “Africa’s stuck at a crossroads,” she said. “We got phones now, we get news in seconds. But those same phones carry lies that make people laugh at heatwave alerts. That make them refuse to move when flood warnings go out. Harmful narratives don’t just confuse us—they weaken our ability to fight what’s already here.” UNESCO reaffirmed it would keep helping journalists and communities learn to verify stories, counter lies, and use digital tools responsibly.
Dr. Goke Rauf, rector of DS Adegbenro ICT Polytechnic, brought up that brutal heatwave we all endured a few months back. “That heat was a rude awakening,” he said. “And it won’t be the last. Nigeria has to prepare. But how, when half the people online are calling it a hoax?” He talked about using AI and big data to track both emissions and misinformation, to strengthen early warnings and catch lies before they spread too far. He praised MAIN and UNESCO for not just talking—but acting, when clarity matters most.
Emmanuel Chidiebere was there for the Nigeria Environmental Society. “Climate literacy aint optional no more,” he said. “It’s a survival necessity. Like knowing how to boil safe water.” Taofeeq Adeosun, another NES leader, added: “We can have all the scientific data in the world. But if we can’t explain it to our neighbors? It don’t mean nothing.”
The two days wasn’t just talking. Folks mapped out simple digital tools to fact-check posts, drafted scripts for community town halls, and built frameworks to teach media literacy to rural groups. By the end, no one cheered real loud. Not because they weren’t hopeful. But because they knew the work aint done.
As folks packed their bags, one line echoed more than any other: “Climate misinformation aint just false. It’s dangerous. And stopping it is everybody’s responsibility.”
You can find the workshop’s basic takeaways at reportersroom.ng/climatemisinfo
