NEWS
EU RAISES ALARM OVER RISING FOREIGN DISINFORMATION THREAT IN NIGERIA, WEST AFRICA
…as Ambassador Mignot Urges Journalists to Strengthen Professional Standards as Manipulated Content Undermines Democracy
The European Union has issued a strong warning about the escalating dangers of foreign information manipulation across Nigeria and the West African region, stressing that the growing sophistication of deceptive content now poses a direct threat to democratic institutions, media integrity, and public trust.
This warning was delivered in Abuja on Monday by the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Gautier Mignot, during a one-day workshop on Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) organised for members of the Diplomatic Correspondents Association of Nigeria.
Mignot expressed concern that disinformation is steadily eroding public confidence in both governance and the media, urging journalists to uphold higher professional standards as they remain prime targets for manipulation by malicious actors.
According to him, “False information, in whatever guise and for whatever motive, harms society. It compromises the integrity of the media, undermines trust in public institutions, and weakens people’s capacity to make informed decisions on issues that affect them.”
He noted that the consequences become even more dangerous when misleading content is “deliberately crafted with an intent to deceive and pushed into the public space to unsuspecting helpless citizenry.”
The ambassador emphasised that journalists, who serve as gatekeepers of public knowledge, are now major targets of manipulation schemes designed to exploit their role and influence.
He stated, “Journalists are multipliers in the information value-chain: they control what passes through the media channels into the public space. It is not surprising, therefore, that they can also be frontline targets of FIMI.”
Mignot highlighted how modern digital tools have worsened the challenge, enabling malicious actors to fabricate images, texts, and videos that closely mimic genuine content.
“Technologies have made communication easier and faster. But their uncanny ability to falsify or even recreate realities has also enhanced the ease and rapidity of producing and spreading deceptive content both online and offline, which is more and more difficult to distinguish from original content,” he said.
Drawing from a July 2024 European Parliament report, the ambassador said 85 per cent of people worldwide fear the impact of disinformation, while 38 per cent of EU citizens view misleading information as a direct threat to democracy. He explained that Nigeria is not spared, citing a 2020 report by the Centre for Democracy and Development which revealed that disinformation in the country has intensified historic ethnic and religious divides.
The report described Nigeria’s environment as one marked by a “big, strong, unimaginatively creative, but invisible rumour mill.” Despite this situation, Mignot expressed belief that the crisis offers an opportunity for journalists to restore public trust by prioritising accuracy over sensationalism.
“Media must remain reliable; they must be fact-checkers and make sure, in particular, that the research for the scoop does not beat the research for the truth,” he urged.
The envoy warned that online disinformation now spills into the mainstream press with alarming speed, creating difficulties in distinguishing social media rumours from professionally produced news.
“It is becoming increasingly difficult to draw a distinct line between content that is shared on social media and information reported or broadcast by print media, radio, and television,” he stated.
He attributed the rising glamorisation of anti-democratic forces in West Africa partly to deliberate information manipulation aimed at weakening democratic values.
Mignot outlined several EU-backed initiatives designed to strengthen Nigeria’s media resilience against disinformation. These include partnerships with fact-checking organisations like Dubawa, training programmes for journalists and editors, and opportunities for Nigerian media professionals to participate in media literacy programmes in Europe with some even including “a visit to the war-ravaged Ukraine for first-hand reportage.”
Explaining why DICAN was selected for the workshop, he said: “As field reporters, you are first-line purveyors of public information. As diplomatic and foreign affairs correspondents, you stand at the intersecting point between your country and the outside world.”
He praised the association for showing strong commitment to combating disinformation and expressed confidence that the training would enhance their professional capacity.
Also speaking at the event, Sebastian Babaud of the Strategic Communication Division, European External Action Service, Brussels, described FIMI as “a pattern of behaviour threatening values, interests, political processes, and international partnerships.”
According to him, elections across the world, including in Africa have become “testing grounds” for new forms of information manipulation and amplification. He warned that disinformation poses a real danger: “FIMI and disinformation can hurt national and global security, which needs to be addressed with proportional responses.”
Babaud stressed that combating the threat requires strong cooperation among all stakeholders in the “defender community.”
Experts note that Nigeria ranks among countries most vulnerable to politically charged misinformation due to its massive online population and complex ethnic and religious dynamics. Studies from organisations such as the Centre for Democracy and Development and the Africa Centre for Strategic Studies show that fabricated stories and manipulated videos spike during elections mirroring global trends where state and non-state actors exploit digital platforms to shape political narratives.
From the 2015 to the 2023 elections, researchers documented large-scale coordinated campaigns aimed at influencing public perception and deepening political polarisation.
The EU has, since 2015, increasingly expanded efforts to identify, monitor, and counter foreign information manipulation through initiatives like EUvsDisinfo.
Nigeria’s partnership with the EU now includes programmes to strengthen fact-checking capacity, support investigative journalism, and promote digital literacy for journalists and young people. These collaborations form part of a broader EU strategy aimed at strengthening democratic resilience, protecting media freedom, and countering harmful information ecosystems across Africa.