5. CHALLENGES IN THE FIGHT AGAINST INFORMATION DISORDER Financial and material resource constraints are major challenges for most initiatives in the region. Organizations lack funding for day-to-day operations as well as for the specialized activities needed for fact checking and related functions. Some specific areas of need mentioned during the interviews were for resources to provide training on fact checking, to expand training to more languages, and to acquire computers and office space. High levels of dependence on donors and term-limited funds also lead to sustainability problems, for example when funded projects end before the target issues are resolved. As one respondent put it, “Our projects come to an end while the pandemic and the subregional crisis are still with us.” Reliance on foreign donors could also lead to perceptions of foreign influence and lack of independence; however, interviewees did not raise this as a critical issue. Linked to financial constraints is the challenge of human resource capacity. Several respondents indicated that inadequate staffing was a significant factor inhibiting their work. It limits their ability to consistently scan media and respond to false information. Staff size varies widely, ranging from as few as three full-time employees to over 300 employees. Generally, the smaller organizations are those whose core activity is fighting information disorder, whereas the larger organizations have a broader and pre-existing mandate. As such, even for the larger organizations such as the WHO and the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), there could be capacity constraints, since employee time is not solely dedicated to countering information disorder. Dependency issues arise here also, with several organizations noting that they are dependent on interns, volunteers, and the general public to get their work done. For example, some organizations cannot do their own environmental scanning and therefore only fact check content that is submitted to them by the public. Organizations lack access to data and information sources for fact checking due to a lack of regulation and unwillingness on the part of public officials to share information. Data culture is poor in general and governments do not systematically collect economic, political, and social data that could I N FO R M ATI O N D I SO R D ER IN THE GLOBA L SOUTH provide the foundation for debunking falsehoods. On the industry side of things, many organizations do not make relevant information public and some do not even have websites. Other barriers include little or no access to subject matter experts for consultation, and lack of physical access to particular locations, for example in conflict zones. A critical constraint is the availability of tools to respond to constantly changing trends related to information disorder. Technological capabilities are constrained in several ways. These include a lack of tools for more sophisticated tracking and analysis, inadequate equipment to check images and video content, and the rapid redundancy of tools as new forms of mis- and disinformation emerge. Although technology plays a crucial role for some actors, others noted the limits of software and the need for sustained human involvement. In the African context, organizations are unable to target false information spread on encrypted platforms such as WhatsApp. Since these encrypted platforms also tend to be more popular in Africa, organizations resort to volunteers to monitor and provide information on these types of platforms. The lack of a holistic approach to addressing issues contributes to sustainability challenges. As a result, most initiatives can only address certain aspects of information disorder, for example by providing fact-checking training for journalists. However, as one respondent noted, sustainable models need to include post-training activities or resources if they expect to demonstrate an impact and thereby maintain the momentum created by efforts The lack of a holistic made. Despite the fact that approach to addressing most actors we interviewed issues contributes to combine various tactics to sustainability challenges. tackle different dimensions of information disorder, there was a general view that more coherent and cohesive efforts are needed. Further studies must be carried out to understand what components would be required for initiatives to be adequately holistic. Developing effective networks also presents difficulties. For instance, it is not always immediately clear who the right actors are to partner with to ensure common interests and genuine commitment to project goals. Partnerships also need to be flexible to respond to changing environments and partner needs, which can put a strain on resources, timelines, and relationships. Greater collaboration is needed, as the multiplicity of initiatives is making it difficult to build and establish credibility. Sub -Saharan Africa – 1 57