In line with its commitment to building a safer online world for all, Facebook supported Safer Internet Day with a campaign spanning 15-plus African countries. Safer Internet Day (SID) 2019 js a day set aside to promote the safe and positive use of digital technology especially among children and young people.
Aligning with the Safer Internet Day call to action – “Together for a better internet” – Facebook joined hands with more than 20 non-profit organisations and government agencies, the campaign aims to raise awareness about Internet safety and security concerns such as cyberbullying and cyber-crime.
Facebook supported the Safer Internet Day by sponsoring the printing of online safety awareness booklets, facilitating training sessions and creating a family-friendly animation to help raise awareness of the Facebook Safety Centre.
“We know that safety is a shared conversation, which is why we are excited to be working with so many stakeholders around the continent to make the Internet a better place,” said Sherry Dzinoreva, Public Policy Programs Lead at Facebook Africa. “Together, with Safer Internet Day as a platform, we can address emerging online concerns, so that people and especially children and the youth, can get the most from their Internet experience.”
The campaign covered most of sub-Saharan Africa, including Benin, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
In South Africa, Facebook is partnered with The Film and Publication Board (FPB), Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), Google, Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (DTPS) to launch the Web Rangers Programme 2019. Facebook is also supporting this effort with educational content. Facebook’s Emilar Gandhi will participate in panel sessions to talk about how Facebook strives to keep its community safe.
In Kenya, Facebook supported Watoto Watch’s Safer Internet Day event for students at Ngunyumu Primary School in Nairobi. The event is the launchpad for the “A Million Campaign”, which seeks to raise awareness about online safety among schoolchildren. Facebook is providing ad credits and safety booklets for the event.
In Nigeria, Paradigm Initiative Nigeria ran workshops on safer internet use as part of its LIFE program in Kano, Lagos and Aba. Facebook’s Safe Online trainers also ran two-hour workshops in both PIN’s LIFE Centers and at schools in Kano and Lagos for this initiative.
