1. Introduction – The Fourth Estate

The Fourth Estate (“we”, “us”, or “our”) is a non-profit, public interest investigative journalism project of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA). We operate the website at thefourthestategh.com (the “Site”).

We are committed to protecting your personal data and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect when you visit our Site, subscribe to our newsletter, donate to support our work, or use our whistleblower portal — and how we use, store, and protect that information.

By using the Site, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

2. Who We Are (Data Controller)

For the purposes of Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843), the data controller responsible for your personal information is:

The Fourth Estate / Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)

Address: Accra, Ghana

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +233 20 133 7619

Website: thefourthestategh.com

3. What Information We Collect

3.1 Information You Provide Directly

We collect information you voluntarily provide to us, including:

• Newsletter subscription: your email address and, if provided, your name.
• Donations: payment information is processed securely through MFWA’s donation platform. We may receive confirmation of your donation and your contact details.
• Whistleblower submissions: any information you choose to share through our secure whistleblower portal, including documents, descriptions of events, and any contact details you voluntarily provide. See Section 8 for special protections.
• Contact and feedback: any information you provide when you contact us directly.

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit the Site, we may automatically collect:

• Your IP address and approximate geographic location.
• Browser type and version, operating system, and device type.
• Pages visited, time spent on pages, and links clicked.
• Referring website or source.

This data is collected via cookies and similar tracking technologies. See Section 6 for details.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information only for legitimate purposes, including:

• To send you our newsletter and editorial updates (where you have subscribed).
• To process and acknowledge your donations.
• To respond to your enquiries and feedback.
• To improve the functionality and content of the Site.
• To monitor the Site for security, abuse, and technical issues.
• To comply with our legal obligations under Ghanaian law.

We do not use your personal data for automated decision-making or profiling.

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data on the following grounds:

• Consent: where you have signed up for our newsletter or submitted information voluntarily.
• Legitimate interests: to operate and improve our Site, protect against fraud, and pursue our public interest journalism mission.
• Legal obligation: where processing is required under Ghanaian law.

6. Cookies

Our Site uses cookies — small text files stored on your device — to improve your experience. These include:

• Essential cookies: necessary for the Site to function (e.g. session management).
• Analytics cookies: help us understand how visitors use the Site (e.g. Google Analytics).

You may disable cookies through your browser settings. However, doing so may affect some functionality of the Site. By continuing to use the Site without changing your cookie settings, you consent to our use of cookies.

7. Sharing Your Information

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:

• Service providers: trusted third parties who assist us in operating the Site (e.g. email service providers, analytics platforms), who are contractually bound to protect your data.
• MFWA: as the parent organisation of The Fourth Estate, MFWA may receive relevant organisational data.
• Legal requirements: where we are required by law, court order, or regulatory authority in Ghana to disclose information.

We will never voluntarily share the identity of a journalist’s source or a whistleblower with any third party, including government agencies, unless compelled by a valid court order — and even then we will exhaust all legal options to resist such disclosure.

8. Whistleblower Protections

We take source protection extremely seriously. Our whistleblower portal is designed with security and confidentiality as a top priority.

• You may submit information anonymously. We strongly encourage you to do so if you are concerned about your safety.
• We will not voluntarily disclose your identity to anyone.
• We will not store more information about you than is necessary for us to conduct our journalism responsibly.
• Please be aware that no digital communication is entirely risk-free. For maximum protection, we recommend using secure tools such as Tor Browser when accessing our whistleblower portal.

If you have concerns about your safety in relation to a submission, please contact us securely before or after submitting.

9. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy, or as required by law:

• Newsletter subscriber data: retained for as long as you remain subscribed, and deleted within 30 days of unsubscription.
• Donation records: retained for a minimum of 7 years as required by financial regulations.
• Whistleblower submissions: retained for the minimum period necessary to support our journalism, then securely deleted.
• Analytics data: retained in anonymised or aggregated form.

10. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These include secure server configurations, encrypted transmissions (HTTPS), and access controls.

However, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure. While we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

11. Your Rights

Under Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843), you have the following rights:

• Right of access: to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification: to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Right to erasure: to request deletion of your data where there is no legitimate reason for us to retain it.
• Right to object: to object to the processing of your data in certain circumstances.
• Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on your consent, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of earlier processing.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at: [email protected]

12. Children’s Privacy

Our Site is not directed at children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

13. Links to Third-Party Sites

Our Site may contain links to third-party websites (e.g. MFWA, Fact-Check Ghana, partner organisations). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites and encourage you to review their privacy policies.

14. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Continued use of the Site following any changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

15. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact:

The Fourth Estate / MFWA

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +233 20 133 7619

Website: thefourthestategh.com

TERMS OF USE

1. Acceptance of Terms

Welcome to The Fourth Estate (“we”, “us”, “our”), an investigative journalism project of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA). By accessing or using thefourthestategh.com (the “Site”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use (“Terms”).

If you do not agree with any part of these Terms, you must not use the Site. These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and The Fourth Estate / MFWA.

2. About The Fourth Estate

The Fourth Estate is a non-profit, public interest investigative journalism platform. Our mission is to promote independent, critical, and research-based journalism that holds those in power accountable to the people of Ghana and West Africa.

The Site provides free access to our journalism, including investigative reports, news articles, fact-checks, opinion pieces, videos, and other editorial content.

3. Use of the Site

3.1 Permitted Use

You may access and use the Site for personal, non-commercial, and informational purposes. You may share links to our articles on social media or other platforms, provided you attribute the content clearly to The Fourth Estate.

3.2 Prohibited Use

You must not:

• Reproduce, republish, or redistribute our content in full without our prior written consent.
• Use our content for commercial purposes without a licence from us.
• Misrepresent or misattribute our journalism.
• Use the Site in any way that breaches applicable Ghanaian or international law.
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Site or its systems.
• Use automated tools (bots, scrapers) to harvest content from the Site without our permission.
• Use the Site to spread misinformation, defamatory content, or hate speech.

4. Intellectual Property

All content on the Site — including articles, photographs, videos, graphics, logos, and investigative reports — is the intellectual property of The Fourth Estate and/or MFWA, or is used with appropriate permissions from rights holders.

You may quote brief excerpts of our content for the purposes of commentary, criticism, or reporting, provided that:

• You clearly attribute the content to The Fourth Estate.
• You include a hyperlink to the original article on thefourthestategh.com.
• The excerpt does not constitute the majority of the original work.

Reproduction of entire articles or substantial portions thereof, in any medium, without prior written consent is strictly prohibited.

5. Newsletter Subscription

By subscribing to our newsletter, you agree to receive editorial updates and news from The Fourth Estate by email. You may unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any newsletter email or by contacting us directly.

We will not use your email address for any purpose other than sending you content you have requested. We will never sell your email address to third parties.

6. Donations

6.1 Nature of Donations

Donations made through our Site or via MFWA’s donation platform are voluntary contributions made to support the public interest journalism mission of The Fourth Estate. Donations are not purchases of goods or services and do not entitle you to any specific content, service, or benefit.

6.2 Non-Refundable

All donations are non-refundable unless required by applicable law or unless we determine, in our sole discretion, that a refund is warranted (e.g. in the event of a technical error resulting in a duplicate charge).

6.3 Use of Donations

Donations are used exclusively to fund the investigative journalism work of The Fourth Estate, including reporter salaries, editorial operations, training, and related activities. We are committed to transparency about how donations are used.

6.4 Tax

We are a non-profit project operating under MFWA. Depending on your jurisdiction, your donation may or may not be tax-deductible. We advise you to seek independent tax advice if this is relevant to you.

7. Whistleblower Portal

Our whistleblower portal is provided as a secure channel for members of the public to share information of public interest with our journalists. By using the portal, you understand that:

• You should not submit false, fabricated, or malicious information.
• Information you submit may be used as the basis for further journalistic enquiry and potentially for publication.
• We will take reasonable steps to verify information before publication.
• We will take reasonable steps to protect your identity, but we cannot guarantee absolute anonymity in all circumstances. See our Privacy Policy for more details.

Misuse of the whistleblower portal, including to submit false information intended to harm individuals or organisations, may expose you to legal liability.

8. Accuracy of Content

We are committed to accuracy, fairness, and rigour in our journalism. However, we make no warranties or representations as to the completeness, accuracy, or currency of any content on the Site.

Our journalism represents our editorial judgement at the time of publication. We will issue corrections where errors are identified. If you believe a factual error appears in our content, please contact us at [email protected].

9. User Comments and Submissions

Where commenting or user submissions are enabled on the Site, you are responsible for the content you submit. You agree not to post content that is:

• Defamatory, abusive, harassing, or threatening.
• Illegal, obscene, or in violation of any applicable law.
• Spam or unsolicited commercial content.
• Impersonating another person or organisation.

We reserve the right to remove any user-submitted content that violates these Terms or our editorial standards, without notice.

10. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Site and its content are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

We do not warrant that the Site will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free from viruses or other harmful components.

11. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by Ghanaian law, The Fourth Estate and MFWA shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of or related to your use of the Site, including but not limited to loss of data, revenue, or reputation.

Our total liability for any direct damages shall not exceed the amount you have donated to us in the twelve months preceding the relevant claim.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless The Fourth Estate, MFWA, and their respective officers, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms or your use of the Site.

13. Third-Party Links

The Site may contain links to third-party websites, including social media platforms, partner organisations, and referenced sources. These links are provided for your convenience only. We are not responsible for the content, practices, or policies of any third-party websites.

14. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Ghana. Any disputes arising out of or in connection with these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Ghana.

We encourage you to contact us first to resolve any concerns informally before pursuing formal legal proceedings.

15. Changes to These Terms

We reserve the right to update these Terms at any time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Your continued use of the Site after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

We encourage you to review these Terms periodically.

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Terms of Use, please contact:

The Fourth Estate / MFWA

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +233 20 133 7619

Website: thefourthestategh.com