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Democratic
elections
are
hinged
on
informed
participation
where
citizens
can
make
choices
based
on
their
ability
to
distinguish
between
truth
and
fiction,
often
amplified
by
political
parties
and
their
allies.
Unfortunately,
electoral
environments
have
proven
to
be
breeding
grounds
where
misinformation
and
disinformation
thrive.
Although
not
a
new
phenomenon,
the
advent
of
technologies
like
social
media
platforms
has
encouraged
the
spread
of
misinformation
and
disinformation
at
unprecedented
speeds,
distances,
and
volumes,
particularly
during
electioneering
periods.
This
is
evident
in
how
political
parties
and
their
candidates,
including
the
general
public,
are
not
backing
down
from
throwing
mud
and
framing
false
narratives
at
each
other
as
they
canvass
for
votes
ahead
of
Ghana’s
December
2024
general
elections.
With
barely
five
months
until
Ghana’s
general
elections, there
is
an
urgent
need
to
safeguard
our
democracy
by
once
again
voting
peacefully
and
transitioning
governments
smoothly,
as
has
been
done
in
previous
elections.
The
need
to
enable
people
to
evaluate
information
and
separate
truth
from
fiction
with
media
and
information
literacy
(MIL)
is
also
clearly
evident
considering
the
influx
of
election
related
misinformation
and
disinformation
on
digital
platforms.
For
this
reason,
Penplusbytes
with
support
from
DW
Akademie
and
in
partnership
with
the
National
Commission
on
Civic
Education
(NCCE)
is
implementing
the “MIL
in
Elections
Campaign”.
The
project
seeks
to
firstly
train
officers
of
the
National
Commission
on
Civic
Education
(NCCE)
on
the
importance
of
media
and
information
literacy
in
elections,
how
to
recognize
and
combat
election
disinformation
and
misinformation,
and
then
equip
them
with
the
necessary
tools
to
disseminate
accurate
information
to
the
public.
The
trained
officers
will
go
on
to
use
information,
education
and
communication
materials
to
reach
out
to
their
communities
with
the
message
of
being
critical
about
consuming
media
during
this
election.
Providing
more
details
about
the
campaign,
Precious
Ankomah,
Head
of
Programs
at
Penplusbytes,
indicated
that
the
training
for
the
NCCE
officers
will
take
place
in
selected
regions
across
the
country.
“This
intervention
is
targeting
180
NCCE
officers.
We
are
hoping
that
at
the
end
of
it
all,
the
trained
officers
will
be
able
to
cascade
learning
to
the
general
public,
which
will
lead
to
increased
digital
literacy
levels
among
the
population
and
more
importantly,
enhance
the
capacity
of
NCCE
offices
to
deliver
accurate
messaging
to
combat
false
information
before,
during
and
after
the
elections,” she
added.
The
Deputy
Chairperson
in
charge
of
Finance
and
Administration
who
signed
the
agreement
on
behalf
of
the
National
Commission
for
Civic
Education,
Lawyer
Victor
Brobbey,
said
the
Commission
is
committed
to
this
project
because
of
what
it
stands
to
achieve.
He
further
explained
that, “the
NCCE
has
begun
public
education
to
fight
fake
news
and
misinformation
going
into
the
2024
elections.
It
is
one
of
our
primary
organizational
objectives
for
this
year.
The
partnership
with
Penplusbytes
will
further
deepen
our
commitment
to
creating
awareness
about
the
dangers
of
misinformation.
Officers
selected
for
the
training
will
be
equipped
with
the
knowledge,
skills
and
tools
to
identify
election
disinformation
and
misinformation.
This
will
go
a
long
way
to
support
public
engagement
efforts
by
the
Commission.”
The MIL
in
Elections
Campaign forms
part
of
Penplusbytes’
activities
for
the
2024
MIL
project
year
which
aims
to reach
new
target
audiences
and
new
regions
of
the
country
with
media
and
information
literacy
(MIL)
education
as
the
country
prepares
for
its
general
elections
in
December
2024.