Facebook is expanding its Coronavirus Information Center to 17 more countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The center has already launched in South Africa, it will now be expanded Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire and Ethiopia.

Others are Gabon, Guinea, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Seychelles, The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Togo.

The Information Centers form part of Facebook’s effort to help the global fight against COVID-19 by providing people with the latest news and information from trusted health authorities as well as resources and tips to stay healthy and support their family and community.

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information Center is featured at the top of News Feed, that provides a central place for people to keep informed about the virus.

It includes real-time updates from national health authorities and global organisations such as the World Health Organization, as well as helpful articles, videos and posts about social distancing and preventing the spread of COVID-19.

Facebook users can opt in to follow the center to get notifications and see updates in their News Feed from official government health authorities.

Last year Facebook announced local language support for several African languages as part of Facebook’s Third-Party Fact-Checking programme – which helps to assess the accuracy of news on Facebook and aims to reduce the spread of misinformation.

Facebook’s Head of Public Policy, Africa, Kojo Boakye comments about the expansion;“We’ve built the information centers, in collaboration with national health partners, to ensure that people can get access to information from trusted health sources.

“The launch of the COVID-19 Information Center on Facebook in more than 17 countries across sub-Saharan Africa aligns with our commitment to making accurate, timely information about the pandemic accessible to all communities.”

Source: appsafrica.com