virrac
Abstract
The invitation from the Rwandan Government to create a
Child Online Protection Policy was a singular opportunity
to consider how to conceive protection in a dynamic and
changing technological world.
Rwanda has set its sights on being a connected
nation, it has prioritised investment in developing skills
and innovation and it has collaborated with the
international community to make sure, as digital emerges
as the new norm in the way a society operates, that
Rwanda is front and centre of that change.
Child Online Protection is something that all nations
struggle with equally. The rapid growth of a technology
that did not at the outset envisage that it would be
an environment in which childhood would take place, the
network effect that super-charged communication, the
domination of a handful of companies that developed a
corporate model that relies on data gathering and profiling
created an environment in which children need
specific protections.
Digital technology does not have one responsible
stakeholder, it has many. From governments, regulators,
international institutions and the enforcement community
– to civil society, business, the tech sector, academia,
teachers, families, parents, even children themselves.
Child Online Protection relies on all of these stakeholders
working in partnership, each taking their part of that
responsibility, each doing what is necessary to
protect children.
The Child Online Protection Policy set out in this
report offers the opportunity for all to play their part.
Created in partnership between 5Rights Foundation,
University of East London, University of Rwanda and the
Government of Rwanda, it has benefited from input from
a remarkable range of experts. The resulting policy and
its high-level implementation plan offer an exemplar for
any nation considering Child Online Protection.
We would like to extend our thanks to all those who
gave their time, their expertise, told their stories and who
supported our work in multiple ways. We owe special
thanks to the Government of Rwanda for trusting us with
this work, our funders End Violence Against Children, and
our colleagues at 5Rights Foundation and UEL who
supported this endeavour particularly Project Coordinator
Kirsty Phillips.
As we go to press, it was announced that the
Government of Rwanda’s Cabinet formally adopted the
Child Online Protection Policy, listed as number 1 of
approved policies1
with the Ministry of ICT & Innovation
(MINICT)2
, which represents a step-change for the
children of Rwanda.
Children are essential for any nation’s development
and flourishing – to invest in their safety, and allow them to
access the digital environment creatively, knowledgeably
and fearlessly, is to invest in the future.
