Tomorrow, on 5th February the world will be celebrating Safer Internet Day (SID) 2019, a day set aside to promote the safe and positive use of digital technology especially among children and young people.
To support this day, Facebook has announced that it has partnered with more than 20 African NGOs and government agencies in a campaign spanning 15-plus African countries. Aligning with the Safer Internet Day call to action – “Together for a better internet” – the campaign aims to raise awareness about Internet safety and security concerns such as cyber bullying and cyber-crime.
Facebook is supporting 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.”
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The campaign covers 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 partnering 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 is supporting 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 is running workshops on safer internet use as part of its LIFE program in Kano, Lagos and Aba. Facebook’s Safe Online trainers will run two-hour workshops in both PIN’s LIFE Centers and at schools in Kano and Lagos for this initiative.
Safaricom will also be hosting the annual Safer Internet Day (SID) at the Michael Joseph Centre, Safaricom House tomorrow. The event will be held at the Michael Joseph Centre – Safaricom House attended by Stephen Chege, the Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, at the company.
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