Application Deadline: August 22, 2026 at 23:59 WAT
Applications are now open for the Africa Factchecking Fellowship Cameroon. The Africa Factchecking Fellowship Cameroon – #AFFCameroon is a flagship program of r0g_agency and Civic Watch, which seeks to strengthen Cameroon’s information ecosystem by building a network of trained fact-checkers and information integrity defenders within the confines of the project: Protecting Civic Space Online and Offline: Countering Hate, Discrimination and Media Repression. In the context of increasing misinformation, disinformation, hate speech, AI-generated manipulation, and Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI), increasingly contributing to a surge in intentional policies and actions, shrinking civic space and silencing critical voices, keeps ideals like democracy and good governance under constant threat.
The Africa Fact-Checking Fellowship – #AFFCameroon is an initiative within the “Protecting Civic Space Online and Offline: Countering Hate, Discrimination and Media Repression” joint project by r0g_agency and Civic Watch aimed at:
- Recruiting and training a cohort of fellows capable of detecting, verifying, and countering harmful information online and offline.
- Strengthening local capacity to respond to FIMI operations and coordinated influence campaigns targeting Cameroon’s civic and political space while joining a national network of emerging fact-checkers.
- Promoting information integrity through evidence-based verification and responsible information sharing.
- Building a sustainable network of community-based fact-checkers serving as trusted information relays.
- Improving preparedness for election-related disinformation and AI-enabled manipulation.
Selection Criteria
Fellowship selection is highly competitive and based in the first instance, on excellence in the context of the applicant meeting the stated eligibility criteria which expects candidates to be:
- Journalists or media educators
- Bloggers or content creators
- Civic tech actors
- Digital/Human rights defenders
- Researchers / OSINT practitioners
- Community leaders or youth advocates
- Final year students
- Election observers and legal practitioners
- Be resident in the Northwest, West, Southwest, Littoral or Centre region
Added to the aforementioned eligibility criteria, applicants must:
- Demonstrate strong interest in fact-checking and digital rights
- Have basic digital literacy
- Accept diversity and be politically impartial
- Be active online or within communities
- Be committed to ethical information sharing and
- Be available for the full fellowship duration
Required Skills (Preferred)
Aspirants into the Africa Fact-Checking Fellowship – #AFFCameroon are expected to have the following skills:
- Fact-checking / verification experience
- OSINT skills
- Research and analytical skills
- Social media monitoring
- Writing and communication
- AI literacy (basic knowledge is an asset)
Duration
The Fellowship duration is expected to be 3 months (blended learning + field deployment) of active participation of the fellows ensuring the realization of the respective deliverables of the Fellowship.
Benefits
Applicants at the end of the fellowship are expected to have the following but not limited to the aforementioned benefits of the fellowship program:
- Gain experience in information verification and fact checking
- Join a national network of emerging fact-checkers
- Gain knowledge on responding to election-related information threats
- Exposed to a platform that can publish produced fact-checking articles
- Open to existing opportunities in the domain of fact checking
The fellowship shall provide a monthly/quarterly stipend and other necessary logistics during the cohort period.
Application Requirements
Interested applicants are required to submit a complete application comprising the following documents:
- A Curriculum Vitae (CV) highlighting relevant academic qualifications, professional experience, and any work related to journalism, fact-checking, digital rights, OSINT, media, research, civic engagement, or information integrity.
- Evidence of Previous Fact-Checking or Verification Work, which may include:
- Published fact-checking articles;
- Verification reports;
- Investigative or analytical publications;
- OSINT investigations;
- Relevant media content demonstrating verification skills.
Applicants without prior published fact-checks may submit other evidence demonstrating strong research, verification, or analytical capabilities.
- A Fact-Checking Project Pitch (maximum 300 words) outlining:
- A misinformation, disinformation, AI-generated manipulation, or FIMI challenge affecting Cameroon or their community;
- Why the issue is important;
- How they would investigate and verify the issue;
- The expected public value or impact of the proposed fact-checking project.
- Applicants may submit one recommendation letter from an academic institution, employer, media organization, civil society organization, or community leader attesting to their integrity, professionalism, and suitability for the fellowship. While not mandatory, a recommendation letter will be considered an added value during the selection process.
Complete applications should be submitted to [email protected] / [email protected] by August 22, 2026 at 23:59 WAT. All documents should be labelled accordingly with “Application AFFCameroon_Your Name_2026” in the subject line.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Africa Factchecking Fellowship Cameroon
