The volume of disinformation now circulating in Nigeria is unprecedented and is further exacerbating pre-existing ethnic and religious tensions, says a new Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) report. The study is based on more than sixty interviews with respondents across six (6) states – Borno, Kano, Lagos, Imo, Kogi and Bayela – each chosen to represent a geo-political zone. The report finds that “Nigeria’s political and ethno-religious landscape, challenged by insecurity, provides fertile ground for the spread of disinformation on Media platforms and private messaging applications that are growing in users month on month”. Though the report found that the potential for inter-ethnic strife driven by disinformation varies on a state by state basis.
