Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)

Articles by Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)

A journalist, looking for information on his smartphone, reads an article on President Buhari during the suspension of Twitter, in Lagos, Nigeria, 10 June 2021, PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP via Getty Images

Nigeria’s press freedom record worsened by journalist’s killing, Twitter ban

Monitoring by Media Foundation for West Africa and Nigerian partner International President Centre indicates that press freedom continues declining.

Military officers from Ghana check a phone at the end of the first day of a conference gathering the Defence ministers and officials of 27 African and Arab countries, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, 24 March 2016, KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

High Court halts collection of personal data by Ghanaian government

Ghanaian lawyer Francis Kwarteng Arthur wins suit challenging government’s collection of personal data as High Court rules government’s action breaches Data Protection Act.

Excavators work on a small-scale mining site near Dunkwa-on-Offin, central Ghana, 16 June 2013, Chris Stein/AFP via Getty Images

Ghana’s RTI Commission rules on its first ever petition

In a landmark decision Ghana’s Right to Information Commission ordered an information request by journalist Evans Aziamor-Mensah be granted at a cost of US$0.33 and not the US$1,000 initially quoted by the Minerals Commission.

A roadside newspaper vendor in Ibadan, Nigeria, 16 February 2021, PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP via Getty Images

Nigerian government suspends controversial amendments to media laws

Sustained pressure from the media and rights groups forces Nigeria’s parliament to suspend the debate on the repressive Nigerian Press Council Bill and the National Broadcasting Commission Amendment Bill.

Nigerians take part in a protest against the Hate Speech and Social Media bills, in front of the Lagos State House Assembly, 27 November 2019, Olukayode Jaiyeola/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Nigerian President Buhari’s media freedom record tainted by killings and impunity

300 press freedom violations, including unresolved killings of 7 journalists, were recorded over 5 years in the ‘State of Media Freedom in Nigeria’ report launched by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in collaboration with MFWA.

The Ashanti Regional Police Headquarters in Kumasi, Ghana, 7 June 2019, MAHMUD MOHAMMED-NURUDEEN/AFP via Getty Images

Two protesters killed in Ghana

Two more protesters were killed, following demonstrations in the aftermath of the murder of well known social activist Ibrahim Anyass Muhammed, aka Kaaku, in Ejura, Ghana.

Dakar, Senegal, 23 August 2012. Senegalese journalist Madiambal Diagne (C) moderates a round-table discussion on human rights and freedom of expression in Gambia, SEYLLOU/AFP via Getty Images

Senegalese government asked to decriminalise libel

The MFWA calls on Senegal to decriminalise press offenses following journalist Madiambal Diagne’s punitive sentencing.

A protester wears a mask during an anti-government protest against bad governance and insecurity, as well as the Twitter ban, in the Ojota district of Lagos, Nigeria, 12 June 2021, Olukayode Jaiyeola/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Nigerian government blocked from prosecuting Twitter users

The ECOWAS Court of Justice rules in favour of citizens by restraining Nigeria’s Federal Government from prosecuting Twitter users.