Sodiq Ojuroungbe
Civil society organisations, anti-trafficking agencies and other concerned stakeholders have urged the Federal Government to prioritise children’s protection online.
They called for the implementation of stringent regulations on all social media handles due to a surge in online sexual abuse.
The experts made the call on Wednesday in Lagos while speaking at the National Consultation of Sexual Exploitation of Children in Nigeria organised by the Women’s Consortium of Nigeria in partnership with Ecpat International.
The stakeholders stressed the need for policies aimed at protecting vulnerable young users and combating exploitation.
The concern raised is against the backdrop of a recent study published by the University of Edinburgh’s Childlight Global Child Safety Institute, which revealed that more than 300 million children worldwide are subjected to online sexual exploitation and abuse each year.
The researchers found that in the past 12 months alone, nearly 13 per cent of the world’s children running into millions of young people have been victims of non-consensual taking, sharing, and exposure to sexual images and videos.
They carried out the study by analysing tens of millions of reports from the five main global watchdogs and policing organisations including, the Internet Watch Foundation, the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, the International Association of Internet Hotlines, and Interpol’s International Child Sexual Exploitation database.
They discovered that In addition to the non-consensual sharing of sexual content, there were similar numbers of cases involving solicitation which includes unwanted sexting and requests for sexual acts by both adults and other youths.
In response to the disturbing discovery, the stakeholders said stricter regulation of social media in the country would ensure the safety and well-being of children online and prevent further exploitation and abuse.
The Programme Director, the Action Against Child Sexual Abuse Initiative, Juliet Obiora highlighted the vulnerability of children to exploitation online, emphasising the need for robust policies aimed at protecting young users.
She said sexual abuse of children online is a growing problem because the world has become a global village.
Obiora said there is a need for government, tech companies, civil societies and internet service providers that host these platforms locally to come together to ensure that they prioritise the safety of children in these spaces.
The child advocate stated, “Today, we can say more children have access to the internet and digital devices and it has led to growing concern of children being sexually exploited online.
“This growing problem is a completely old system problem; it means that the government, the tech companies, the civil societies and the internet service providers that host these platforms locally have to come together to ensure that they prioritise the safety of children in these spaces.
“It is unfortunate that many of these platforms were built without putting children in the centre. These platforms were built without a concept called safety by design.
“So, today we are working backwards to look at how these platforms can accommodate children, but this is a growing problem and in fact, a public health problem.
“We must as a people come together to prioritise, work on legislation, sensitisation. We must make laws to address these issues.
“It is also important to have a law that is more robust or more specific, especially with the evolving nature of these crimes.
“It is very important we involve in safeguarding children as a priority because when we can nurture and have well-developed children, we can have an organised and prosperous future.”
On his part, the Regional Coordinator for Africa at Ecpat International, Willy Buloso, said the organisation is a network of 126 civil societies with the common aim of fighting sexual exploitation of children.
He said fighting the sexual exploitation of children in Africa became imperative because many of the governments in the region are weak and cannot protect children.
Boluso explained that Ecpat International in partnership with WOCON organised the forum to discuss and bring change to national strategies in protecting Nigerian children against sexual exploitation through trafficking and online.
He listed poverty and ignorance as contributory factors to the sexual exploitation of children, noting that they are often unaware of the risks and red flags.
Boluso, however, stressed the importance of involving children in the solution-finding process and educating them on how to identify potential abusers and report suspicious activities.
He added, “The focus of the discussion was the sexual exploitation and trafficking of children for sexual purposes, which has become increasingly prevalent online.”
On her part, the Director of WOCON, Morenike Omaiboje, said culture and religious beliefs affect children in the country and also expressed concern over the increased rate of sexual child exploitation.
She said there are too many interferences from family and friends, which are major factors contributing to the sexual exploitation of children.
“The people who exploit these children are not strangers; they are uncles and aunties around.
“We are very careful to ensure that children know what they are supposed to do and that is why we work with rural communities where there is no awareness.
“The government needs to pay more attention to our children. They need to join hands with civil societies in prioritising the needs of children.
“Government should make sensitisation more available in rural communities, which are the most vulnerable,” she advised.
A member of the team that conducted research on sexual exploitation of children in Nigeria, Femi Abe said it was discovered that online child sextortion, increased sexual exploitation of boys, and online blackmail, among others, are becoming emerging trends in the country.
He said while carrying out the research, the team also discovered that poor policy enforcement, an inadequate reporting system, limited helplines, insufficient manpower and financial support, and a delayed justice system were key issues contributing to the surge in child sexual exploitation.
Meanwhile, the Lagos Zonal Coordinator of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Comfort Agboko, lamented that the burden of children and women involved in trafficking is enormous.
She expressed concern over the indiscriminate use of children’s images online, saying cases of trafficking, especially sexual-related offences are being reported daily at NAPTIP offices.
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