Kenya’s mobile sector, the regulator and the government moved to back a new push against online abuse targeting children, with the country’s leading operators lined up to sign a Child Online Protection Charter in Nairobi on Tuesday, November 20, 2018.
Airtel Kenya, Jamil Telecommunications, Safaricom and Telkom Kenya were named as signatories to the charter, which marked the first stage of GSMA’s We Care campaign in Africa. The Communications Authority (CA) of Kenya and the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology also supported the initiative.
GSMA said the agreement was meant to help create a safer and more reliable online experience for young Kenyans. Akinwale Goodluck, the group’s Head of Sub-Saharan Africa, said: “By signing up to the COP Charter, mobile operators in Kenya are demonstrating their commitment to working together to provide a safer and more reliable online experience for the country’s young citizens.”
Under the charter, the mobile industry and the regulator were expected to work together on awareness and education programmes around safe internet use and responsible use of ICTs. The plan also called for children’s rights to be reflected in corporate policies and management processes, while operators would support government agencies, law enforcement, civil society and other stakeholders in dealing with online abuse.
The initiative also included capacity-building workshops for authorities involved in setting up a support hotline for young people seeking information or emergency help on online safety issues. In addition, the operators and the CA were to produce an information booklet for Kenyan youth and sponsor National Music and Drama festivals with an online safety theme.
GSMA linked the campaign to its wider We Care programme, which focuses on digital inclusion, child protection, environmental care including eWaste management, disaster response, public safety and tackling handset theft. The organisation said We Care was launched in Latin America in 2014 and had grown to 14 campaigns across the region with local operators. Kenya’s charter was described as the first We Care initiative deployed in Africa.
