UNICEF Kenya has termed it as a scam.

This Facebook post claiming that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is giving away KSh65,000 is a HOAX.

A screenshot of an M-PESA message showing that the sharer of the post received KSh65,000 from the UNICEF Foundation is attached.

Interested people are asked to follow a WhatsApp link to get the money. However, before receiving the money, one is asked to pay an activation fee of Ksh 1,299 .

Once you click the WhatsApp link, it leads you to a WhatsApp number with the username “UNICEF FUNDS STRATEGY. The WhatsApp number uses the UNICEF innovation logo.

A similar Facebook post bears a link that directs to a WhatsApp number registered under the username “UNICEF FOUNDATION PROGRAM” and uses a UNICEF logo on the profile photo but with some additional text on it. Above the UNICEF logo, the profile photo bears the words, “Certified by the Government of Kenya” while the writings below the logo read, “Sponsored by: World Help”. The phone number is registered under the username “Unicef Foundation Program” on Truecaller.

To confirm the authenticity of the cash giveaway, PesaCheck visited UNICEF Kenya’s official Facebook page, where the UN agency had termed the giveaway a scam.

“UNICEF Kenya is aware of a fake offer from ‘UNICEF Foundation’ circulating on social media and messaging platforms. The scam falsely promises funding to users,” UNICEF Kenya notes.

One person commented on the UNICEF post that they were conned KSh1,000.

The agency adds that “UNICEF ONLY WORKS directly with governments, donors and implementing partners. We DO NOT make payments directly to individuals. There is NO UNICEF Foundation in Kenya or elsewhere globally. Be aware that this funding promise is not a real UNICEF activity. Do not engage with the UNICEF Foundation on any social media platforms, share your personal details, or make any payment”.

PesaCheck has previously fact-checked other UNICEF promotions and found them to be scams as seen here.

UNICEF is a UN agency that works with over 190 countries to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfil their potential, from early childhood to adolescence.

PesaCheck has looked into this Facebook post claiming that the UNICEF Foundation is giving away KSh65,000 and finds it to be a HOAX.

 

This post is part of an ongoing series of PesaCheck fact-checks examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.

By partnering with Facebook and similar social media platforms, third-party fact-checking organisations like PesaCheck are helping to sort fact from fiction. We do this by giving the public deeper insight and context to posts they see in their social media feeds.

Have you spotted what you think is fake or false information on Facebook? Here’s how you can report. And, here’s more information on PesaCheck’s methodology for fact-checking questionable content.

This fact-check was written by PesaCheck fact-checker Naomi Wanjiku and edited by PesaCheck senior copy editor Mary Mutisya and chief copy editor Stephen Ndegwa.

The article was approved for publication by PesaCheck managing editor Doreen Wainainah.

PesaCheck is East Africa’s first public finance fact-checking initiative. It was co-founded by Catherine Gicheru and Justin Arenstein, and is being incubated by the continent’s largest civic technology and data journalism accelerator: Code for Africa. It seeks to help the public separate fact from fiction in public pronouncements about the numbers that shape our world, with a special emphasis on pronouncements about public finances that shape the government’s delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) public services, such as healthcare, rural development and access to water/sanitation. PesaCheck also tests the accuracy of media reportage. To find out more about the project, visit pesacheck.org.

PesaCheck is an initiative of Code for Africa, through its innovateAFRICA fund, with support from Deutsche Welle Akademie, in partnership with a coalition of local African media and other civic watchdog organisations.