Fact-check: International Education for Global Minds scholarship for South Sudanese is a scam

The page is part of at least two others (there could be more) that use the promise of a scholarship to get South Sudanese to give up personal information like IDs and academic credentials, as well as money.

Writer: Modi Moses Eyobo

A Facebook page post that has been shared and forwarded widely in WhatsApp groups about a scholarship offer to Sudanese and South Sudanese is false. 

The post sought to ask South Sudanese, and Sudanese senior four leavers who scored 65% and above as well as graduates who are looking for jobs or else want to further their education to contact an MTN Ugandan number for any assistance on the matter.

The page and its posts looked suspcious and then 211 Check mounted an investigation.

It appeared that a similar scam was debunked by 211 Check earlier in 2021 which was found to be a hoax. At the time, it was known as “Madam Atong Foundation,” but it was later renamed “Mudam Atong Foundationn.”

The helpline telephone number provided for in the claim for assistance is registered by a Uganda-based subscriber named Ivan Mukisa, when verified using MTN Uganda Mobile Money. 

When the number was verified on WhatsApp to determine whether the number was for official use by the organization, what turned out more suspicious was the individual picture on the WhatsApp status instead of the organization logo.

Besides, a reverse image search of the WhatsApp picture was run on Yandex search engine and it appeared to be associated with the Twitter handles of several users which include Getrud Kei, Prophet Frank Mo1, GAM-20, Spiritual Man, Rich Hingi, and Ray Kanungu. And all of them never tweeted anything related to the International Education for Global Minds.

The same email address [[email protected]] used for the debunked Mama Atong Foundation was recycled again for the International Education for Global Mind scholarship.

When 211 Check engaged the number on WhatsApp conversations to extract email that could be used to share documents for the scholarship, here is how it went.

And even the photos accompanying the claim on Facebook don’t match any event related to the International Education for Minds scholarship when verified using both the Google lens search, and Yandex image search.

We also found out that there are three of these pages that talk about the same scholarship offer and use the same email ([email protected]) and WhatsApp number (+256770671123) so interested applicants can contact them. 

“International Education For Global Minds,” “Mudam Atong Foundationn,” and “South Sudanese scholarships 2021_2025” are the names of these three related Facebook pages.

Information about transparency shows that these pages were made between July 2020 and May 2021 and managed from Uganda.

What is the International Education for Global Minds?

According to a Google search, the International Education for Global Minds is a leading university representative and educational consultant that recruits students from Germany and Austria for universities around the world. IEC began operations in Germany in 2001.

More information about their services can be found on their website and LinkedIn profile. There have been no updates on their platforms indicating that they are offering scholarships to South Sudanese and Sudanese students.

Conclusion:

A viral post on a Facebook page named International Education for global minds and shared on WhatsApp alleging they offer Sudanese and South Sudanese scholarships is a hoax.

 This fact-check was published as part of an assignment for the Empowering Fact-checking in South Sudan (EFiSS) Training Program by 211 Check.