UNESCO, Partners Target Fake News With Media Literacy Books For Children

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and its partners have unveiled media and information literacy workbooks for children aged six to 10 to equip them with skills to identify fake news, verify information and think critically before sharing content.

The workbooks, presented at an event at the United Nations House in Abuja, are designed to help children recognise misinformation, disinformation, hate speech and other forms of harmful online content.

Speaking at the event, UNESCO Representative to Nigeria and Head of the UNESCO Abuja Office, Dr Isaías Barreto da Rosa, said education remained a vital tool for addressing the growing spread of false information.

He said teaching children to check facts, question information sources and avoid sharing unverified content would contribute to building a more informed society.

Barreto da Rosa said UNESCO’s media and information literacy programmes were aimed at helping people understand and use information responsibly, adding that the organisation supported the initiative because of its potential to build these skills from an early age.

Similarly, the Secretary-General of the Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO, Dr Lateef Idowu Olagunju, said children needed practical tools to assess information in an increasingly complex digital environment.

He noted that children should learn to question who created a piece of information, the motive behind it and whether it had been verified before sharing it.

Olagunju also highlighted the use of short animated videos to make media literacy lessons more accessible to children, including teaching them to verify announcements such as claims that schools would be closed.

1. The Director of the International Media and Information Literacy Institute (IMILI), Dr Sharon Omotoso, called for a collective effort by parents, educators and other stakeholders to guide children’s engagement with media and technology.

She said parents must not only monitor what children consume online but also educate themselves about digital risks, including scams, online exploitation, privacy breaches and the misuse of artificial intelligence.

Omotoso stressed that the information environment required guidance and responsible conduct from all stakeholders, adding that children needed the skills to protect themselves from harmful content and unsafe online interactions.

In her remarks, Executive Director of the Media and Information Literacy and Intercultural Dialogue Foundation (MILID Foundation), Chiamaka Okafor-Onumah, said the initiative was developed in response to the need to establish responsible information habits before children grow older.

She said the workbook, known as Young Truth Detectives, contains six missions designed to make learning interactive and engaging, alongside a facilitator’s guide for teachers, parents and community groups.

According to her, the materials are intended for use beyond formal classrooms, including churches, mosques and other community settings.

Okafor-Onumah said the foundation planned to work with partners to distribute copies to schools, including those in rural communities, through a school-adoption approach. She added that the books were not currently for sale and that future plans included translating them into local languages to expand access.

The initiative was organised by the MILID Foundation in partnership with the Two Books and One Pen Initiatives and Zedx Original, with support from UNESCO.

The organisers said the broader goal was to promote responsible information consumption among children and strengthen efforts to address misinformation and information manipulation in Nigeria.