The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD West Africa) has warned that misinformation, disinformation and hate speech pose serious threats to governance, public trust and democratic stability.
The Director of CDD West Africa, Dr. Dauda Garuba, stated this on Monday in Abuja during a Project Impact Dissemination on Sustaining Information Literacy and Social Cohesion (StILASC) in Nigeria.
Speaking at the end-of-project phase, Garuba said the growing spread of false information was no longer a peripheral issue but a core challenge undermining national stability.
He called for sustained efforts to strengthen information literacy and adopt community-driven approaches to promote social cohesion in Nigeria and across West Africa. According to him, the integrity of information ecosystems is central to achieving democratic governance, human security and inclusive development in the region.
Garuba noted that throughout the StILASC project, CDD collaborated with a wide range of stakeholders, including community dialogue committees, civil society groups, security agencies, journalists, women and youth organisations, as well as persons with disabilities, to tackle the problem at the grassroots.
“These structures have shown that when communities are equipped with the right tools, such as information literacy and verification skills, they become powerful actors in countering harmful narratives and safeguarding peace,” he said.
He added that societies where citizens can critically assess information and resist manipulation are better positioned to strengthen accountability and sustain democratic processes.
Garuba also expressed appreciation to the Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRiNG) Project for supporting the initiative, reaffirming CDD’s commitment to advancing sustainable democracy and development. He stressed that protecting the integrity of the information space must remain a shared responsibility at all levels of society.
Also speaking, the Team Leader of SPRiNG, Dr. Ukoha Ukiwo, said the UK-backed programme, which began in May 2024, was designed to reduce violence and strengthen community resilience in Nigeria.
He explained that the initiative also targets hate speech and misinformation, identified as key drivers of conflict in parts of the country.
Ukiwo said findings from early engagements with stakeholders in the North-West and North-Central zones showed that divisive narratives, misinformation and hate speech were major triggers of violence. This, he said, informed the decision to invest in interventions addressing harmful content, particularly on rapidly expanding social media platforms.
“It is against this backdrop that the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) leveraged the experience and social capital of CDD to implement this intervention,” he said.
He emphasised the importance of stakeholder engagement, urging community actors, media practitioners and government officials to interrogate findings, ask critical questions and adopt evidence-based approaches to counter violence.
In his remarks, Pirmah Rimdans, Conflict Adviser and Programme Responsible Owner of SPRiNG, said the project was designed to address challenges facing conflict-affected communities.
He noted that misinformation, disinformation and hate speech often interact with historical grievances, economic pressures, identity politics and insecurity, acting as triggers that escalate tensions into violence.
“The project explores how strengthening information literacy and creating spaces for inclusive dialogue can help communities become more resilient to harmful narratives,” he said.
Rimdans added that the initiative recognises credible information, trust and dialogue as practical tools for peacebuilding, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected settings.
He stressed that sustainable peace cannot be achieved if significant segments of society are excluded, noting that the project was structured with inclusivity in mind.
According to him, the SPRiNG programme remains committed to preventing violence by addressing root causes of conflict, strengthening local capacity and amplifying community-led solutions.
The dissemination meeting also provided an opportunity to explore how successful strategies from the project can be institutionalised within governance frameworks and replicated across the region.
Participants were urged to move beyond reflection and commit to embedding community-led approaches into policy and practice, while strengthening the link between grassroots resilience and national stability.
Those in attendance included traditional rulers, community and youth leaders, as well as government officials from Kaduna, Katsina, Plateau and Benue states, who attested to the programme’s positive impact.
