{"id":106011,"date":"2025-12-09T09:04:41","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T09:04:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=106011"},"modified":"2025-12-09T09:04:41","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T09:04:41","slug":"african-governments-urged-to-adopt-australia-style-social-media-delay-for-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=106011","title":{"rendered":"African governments urged to adopt Australia-style social media delay for children"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Executive Director of Child Online Africa, Awo Aidam Amenyah, is urging African governments to take a cue from Australia\u2019s newly passed legislation that delays social media access for children under 16, a move he describes as a \u201ccritical step towards safer digital childhoods.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr Amenyah stressed that Australia\u2019s policy is not a ban but a strategic delay aimed at shielding young people from the risks associated with early online exposure.<\/p>\n

\u201cDelaying social media use allows children to develop essential social skills, emotional resilience, and critical thinking before engaging fully in the digital world,\u201d he said in a press statement issued on Tuesday, December 9.<\/p>\n

He noted that research consistently shows children\u2019s developing brains are more vulnerable to addictive algorithms, cyberbullying, misinformation, and mental health challenges such as anxiety and low self-esteem.<\/p>\n

Under the Australian framework, social media platforms are required to implement age verification systems, with parental consent available for children aged 13 and above. Mr Amenyah described this as a balanced approach that protects young users while giving families greater control.<\/p>\n

He urged African leaders, including those in Ghana, to engage parents, educators, technology professionals, and child rights advocates in crafting culturally relevant policies that delay social media access for younger users.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfrica has an opportunity to set a benchmark in digital child protection, just as Australia has done. Protecting our children\u2019s digital futures is a shared responsibility,\u201d he emphasised.<\/p>\n

\u201cChild Online Africa calls on other governments, particularly Ghana\u2019s and the African continent, to adopt a similar social media delay through inclusive consultations with stakeholders, including parents, educators, tech experts, and child rights advocates,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Child Online Africa has also launched the AfricaESafetyNow campaign, calling for urgent policy action to ensure children across the continent can thrive online in safe, controlled, and age-appropriate environments.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"AfricanThe Executive Director of Child Online Africa, Awo Aidam Amenyah, has called on African governments to adopt measures similar to Australia\u2019s new legislation that delays social media access for children under 16, describing the policy as a \u201ccritical step towards safer digital childhoods.\u201d<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1972,5745,8830,13587,1883,10,9,3976],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-africa","category-australia","category-child-online-africa","category-governments","category-national","category-politics","category-popular","category-social-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=106011"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106011\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=106011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=106011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=106011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}