Ghana’s TikTok data reality highlights why Africa must act now to protect children online

­­Child Online Africa calls for stronger safeguards and a social-media delay for children.

According to the National Communications Authority, MTN Ghana held 81.29% of Ghana’s mobile-data subscriptions in February 2026. MTN Ghana CEO Stephen Blewett has stated that TikTok is the largest consumer of data on its network. These figures underscore the rapid reach of social media across an increasingly connected Africa.

The critical question is whether African children are gaining access to social-media platforms faster than governments and technology companies are putting effective safeguards in place.

Children across the continent are accessing smartphones and social media at younger ages, exposing them to sexual and violent content, cyberbullying, grooming, sextortion, harmful challenges, and misinformation—risks many lack the maturity to navigate safely.

Child Online Africa’s petition to the African Union, “Africa’s Children Are Under Attack Online,” calls for a minimum age of 16 for social-media access, supported by privacy-respecting age assurance and safety-by-design requirements, plus an African eSafety Commission and stronger investment in digital literacy and child protection. The organization describes this as a “social media delay”—not a ban, but time for children to develop the skills needed to engage online safely.

What is happening in Ghana reflects a wider African reality. From Ghana to Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and beyond, digital access is expanding rapidly. Africa cannot wait for every country to suffer the same harms before acting. A common continental standard that prioritises the best interests of the child is urgently needed.

The African Union’s 2024 Child Online Safety and Empowerment Policy already provides a foundation. The petition seeks to turn those commitments into enforceable protections.

A Call to Africa Child Online Africa urges:

• The African Union to strengthen continental protections;
• Governments to consider a social-media delay and minimum-age rules;
• Technology companies to implement effective age assurance and safety-by-design;
• Parents, educators, civil society and citizens to demand safer digital environments and to sign the petition.

This is not about keeping African children away from technology. It is about ensuring technology does not outpace childhood.

Africa’s children deserve time to learn, play and develop healthy relationships before facing the full force of algorithm-driven platforms.

Sign and share the petition: Africa’s Children Are Under Attack Online — Demand the African Union Act Now to Save Them THE PETITION