In Summary:
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A link going viral on Facebook and WhatsApp claims that the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning, in collaboration with the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), is offering grant funding to companies, cooperatives, and individuals across the country through an online application link.
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We have investigated this link by following each step outlined in the WhatsApp chat and found it to be fake.
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There is no such information on the official Website and Facebook Page of the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning.
A viral link claiming to be from the Ministry of Finance & Development Planning (MFDP) is circulating on social media, particularly Facebook and WhatsApp. The link claims that the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is offering a grant.
By Anitta N. Kollie/LVL Fact Checker
It encourages interested companies, cooperatives, and individuals across the country to apply by clicking on the link shared in the post.
The claim
The exact message in the link reads: “𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮, in conjunction with the 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸 and the 𝗜𝗠𝗙, is pleased to announce a 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 aimed at 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 and assisting struggling companies, cooperatives, and individuals nationwide.”
Rating Verification
To verify the authenticity of the link and determine whether MFDP is offering a “grant” to companies, cooperatives, and individuals, we reviewed the official website and Facebook page of the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, as well as platforms belonging to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). We found no evidence supporting the claim.
No such grant announcement appears on the Ministry’s official website or Facebook page. Furthermore, our review of the Facebook page circulating the claim shows that it is not affiliated with the Ministry.
Notably, the official page is titled “Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, and has a follower of 51k, not simply “Ministry of Finance – the page sharing the purported grant opportunity. This indicates that the page making the claim is likely impersonating MFDP.
Our fact-checker then tested the link by clicking on it and was automatically redirected to an unknown website. The site requested consent to answer a series of questions before granting access to the supposed grant, which the fact-checker granted.
During the application process, our fact-checker was asked to provide personal information, including name, email address, location of operations, phone number, and area of specialization.
The form also required details about any current projects and a brief description of how the requested funds would be used.
After submitting the responses, the fact-checker was redirected to another website that appeared unrelated to the original grant proposal.
Conclusion
Based on the findings, we have come to the conclusion that the viral link claiming that the Ministry of Finance is offering a grant is fake and misleading. The link is a scam designed to hack users’ accounts.
The public is strongly advised to avoid clicking, sharing, or engaging with such a link until it is verified.
