Parents have been asked to create safe spaces in their homes to ensure that they can supervise their children as they interact with technology.
According to Nyeri Director of Children Services, Kung’u Mwaniki, stakeholders in the children’s welfare sector have identified cyber security as a leading threat to child protection.
Mwaniki says that even with laws such as the Computer Misuse and Cyber Crimes Act and the Children Act 2022, if left unchecked, unsupervised interaction with technology could expose children to online abuse, internet addiction and exposure to harmful content.
“Online child abuse is now real. We are asking parents to supervise their children as they interact with technology so that they know who their children chat with online. Once the parents know this they can ensure that they create spaces for these children to live safely and advance into adulthood,” said Mwaniki.
The children’s officer at the same time underscored the importance of collaboration between the government and stakeholders in the private sector in addressing emerging threats namely climate change and radicalization which continue to hinder the proper growth and development of a child.
“We are now faced with a new crop of challenges which include climate change, radicalization and cyber security. There is need to work with partners to come up with income-generating activities and strengthen households so that they are able to take care of their children. There is also need to sensitise the community about violent extremism so that both parents and children do not fall into dangerous spots,” he said.
Mwaniki was speaking at the D.E.B. Muslim Primary and Junior Secondary School in Nyeri Friday, during this year’s celebrations to mark the Day of the African Child.
The celebrations are held on June 16 of each year. The day provides an opportunity to reflect on the progress made in advancing children’s rights and also highlight the challenges that hinder African children from enjoying their rights.
This year’s commemoration was themed “Education for All Children in Africa: The Time is Now,” underscoring the importance of equitable, quality and inclusive education for all African children to enable them to contribute to the continent’s sustainable development.
In line with the theme, the Forum for African Women in Education county coordinator, Esther Mutegi said that they are partnering with the Ministry of Education to implement the School Re-entry Policy, which will ensure that learners who drop out of school are given an opportunity to complete their education.
“We are doing interventions in schools with teenagers to make sure they remain in school. One of them is the School Re-entry Policy which will allow children who drop out of school for whatever reason to be readmitted and continue with their education and pursue their dreams,” said Mutegi.
On her part, Nyeri Assistant County Commissioner, Daisy Mumbi said the government is committed to availing resources to causes that promote children’s rights.
Mumbi said that the government was also doubling its efforts to address challenges such as drug abuse, gender-based violence, early marriages and female genital mutilation that prevent children’s rights from being upheld.
Additionally, she said the government has also stepped up the sensitization of both parents and children about the emerging threats of cyber security and radicalization, with the aim of equipping them with knowledge on how to protect them from being predated on.
“If we look at the population trends across the world, the African child bears the biggest population, so the future is reliant on a well-equipped, well-educated, and well-prepared African child. As a government, we are looking at harnessing the strengths of the African child by availing resources, be it in health, education or all other aspects they require, for them to grow and develop into formidable human beings in the future,” said Mumbi.
“We are also cautioning parents and children against violent extremism and radicalization, which have been on the rise, while ensuring that our children have a safe space to grow and develop,” she added.
By Wangari Mwangi and Brenan Atubwa
