Osinbajo and African Lawyers Demand Tech Companies to Protect Children Online

Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and African legal experts are calling for tech companies to be more accountable for their products that put children at risk online. They want these companies to take responsibility for harmful content and exploitation that children face on digital platforms.

This demand was made on Monday at a session on children’s digital rights during the 16th Annual Conference of the Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU) in Cairo, Egypt, from August 31 to September. The session was called “Guardrails, Not Gates: Protecting Children in the Digital Age.” It was organized by the Justice Research Institute (JRI) in partnership with the African Alliance for People-Centred Justice, supported by Luminate. Foluso Idumu-Shado, JRI’s Director of People-Centred Justice, shared this information with PREMIUM TIMES in a statement on Wednesday.

The experts looked at a proposed Cairo Declaration on Child Rights and Design Accountability in the Digital Age. This declaration aims to set common rules for designing and regulating digital products used by children across Africa.

Mr Osinbajo, who led the session, emphasized that companies should not pass the responsibility of managing risks onto children and their parents. He stated, "We cannot build digital environments in which the risks are engineered into the product and then expect children and parents to carry the responsibility for managing those risks."

He mentioned that the focus should be on creating safe digital spaces that allow children to enjoy technology without facing unnecessary dangers. He said, "The objective is not to build gates that exclude children from technology. It is to establish guardrails that ensure technology works for children rather than exploiting their vulnerabilities."

This discussion happens as concerns grow about children being exposed to harmful content, exploitation, and misuse of their personal data online. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child spoke on children’s rights in the digital world in General Comment No. 25 in 2021. This guidance covers issues related to technologies like artificial intelligence, algorithms, data analytics, and connected devices.

In 2024, the African Union introduced its Child Online Safety and Empowerment Policy. This policy recognizes children’s rights to safety, privacy, and participation online. It also emphasizes that children’s best interests should guide efforts to improve their digital environment.

The Cairo Declaration aims to strengthen these efforts by highlighting the responsibilities of tech companies that create digital technologies. According to the statement, delegates discussed new threats to children and the challenge of regulating digital platforms while ensuring access to their benefits and avoiding too much surveillance.

They reviewed six key pillars for the declaration. These include safety requirements for digital products for children, limits on exploitative targeting, age-appropriate design standards, and increased transparency around algorithms that may promote harmful content.

The proposals also call for better protection of children’s personal data and systems that verify age while respecting privacy and rights. JRI stated that African countries should have a stronger say in setting the rules for technologies children use in the continent.

The statement said, "Children in Africa are entering a digital environment largely designed elsewhere. We must ensure that African children are not merely protected from the consequences of technology but that their rights and interests are considered in how digital technologies are designed, deployed, and regulated."

The declaration could provide African lawyers, regulators, civil society groups, and technology stakeholders with a united position while allowing countries to create laws that fit their situations. After the session, a draft of the Cairo Declaration, including changes and priorities from delegates, was presented to PALU leaders for review.

The initiative also suggests model laws and regulations that national lawmakers, data protection bodies, and other regulators can adapt. JRI mentioned that a working group on child-centered digital governance was set up after the meeting in Cairo. This group will include PALU delegates, member bars, and other experts, with JRI acting as the technical secretariat.

Further discussions on the declaration and proposed laws will continue, with updates planned for PALU’s 17th Annual Conference. The goal is to shift responsibility from parents and children to the companies that create the digital spaces where children spend so much of their time.