The Government has intensified efforts to protect children from online exploitation, cyberbullying, harmful digital content and misuse of personal data as internet access and digital platform usage continue to grow across the country.
This emerged during a Senate plenary session where Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, William Kabogo Gitau, responded to concerns raised by Senator Hamida Ali Kibwana regarding measures in place to safeguard minors in the digital space.
CS Kabogo told senators that the Government has anchored child online protection within the Constitution of Kenya, which guarantees every child the right to protection from abuse, neglect, harmful cultural practices and exploitative labour.
He said the Ministry, working alongside relevant State agencies, has operationalised key legal frameworks aimed at addressing online abuse, cyber harassment, exposure to harmful content and unlawful processing of children’s personal information. These include the Data Protection Act, the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, the Sexual Offences Act and the Kenya Information and Communications Act.
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The Cabinet Secretary noted that several agencies are jointly implementing child online protection programmes. Among them are the Communications Authority of Kenya, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the Media Council of Kenya, the Kenya Film Classification Board and the National Computer and Cybercrimes Co-ordination Committee.
Kabogo further told the Senate that the Government has strengthened enforcement and compliance mechanisms to ensure digital platforms and service providers adopt child-sensitive safeguards such as parental controls, reporting tools, age-appropriate content restrictions and responsible data collection practices.
He added that the enhanced Code of Conduct for Media Practice, 2025, now places stricter obligations on media houses and digital platforms to shield minors from exploitative content, online abuse and manipulative advertising targeting children.
The CS also revealed that Kenya has undertaken research and policy assessments to better understand emerging online threats affecting children.
According to Kabogo, the Ministry is reviewing international best practices from jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, Australia and the European Union to strengthen Kenya’s child online protection framework, particularly in areas of platform accountability, age verification systems and child-safety-by-design standards.
He further disclosed that the Government is developing additional policy interventions under the National ICT Policy Guidelines and the National Plan of Action to Tackle Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse for the 2027–2031 period.
Kabogo reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to creating a safer digital environment for children through stronger legislation, enhanced inter-agency collaboration, digital literacy programmes and greater accountability for online service providers operating in the country.
By Juma Ndigo
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