Advocates urge N’Assembly to fast-track Child Protection Bill

Child rights advocates have called on the National Assembly to expedite action on a bill seeking to criminalise online abuse and strengthen protections for Nigerian children in the digital space, warning that millions of minors remain vulnerable to cyberbullying, sexual exploitation, grooming and other internet-related harms.

The call was made on Friday in Abuja during a stakeholders’ roundtable on the proposed Child Online Access Protection and Online Violence Against Nigerian Child Bill, which is currently before the National Assembly.

The proposed legislation seeks to establish a legal framework for protecting children from cyberbullying, cyber abuse, cyber extortion and other harmful online activities. It also places obligations on digital platforms and service providers to strengthen safeguards for children using their services.

Advocates argued that the bill has become increasingly necessary as internet access among children continues to expand across the country.

A 2018 UNICEF report warned that every half-second, a child goes online somewhere in the world, exposing millions to digital risks. In Nigeria, studies have shown that about 90 per cent of children encounter one form of online risk or another, including cyberbullying, exposure to inappropriate content, exploitation and online harassment.

Speaking at the event, the Country Director of Lawyers Without Borders in Nigeria, Angela Uzoma, said the legislation would directly affect the safety and well-being of Nigerian children.

According to her, increasing access to digital devices has exposed children to a wide range of online dangers that require urgent legislative intervention.

So every Nigerian, whether you are a biological parent or not, whether you are an aunt or an uncle, whether you are a child or an adult, you should be interested and should support this bill. When we talk about online harms that children are exposed to, it ranges from issues around cyberbullying, grooming, child exposure to sexual violence, and sexual abuse.

“We have children being groomed, we have children being threatened online. We have predators pretending to be children and targeting children. We have sextortion going on; children are being tricked into exposing intimate parts of their bodies to adults who are hiding and pretending to be children.

“So everyone in Nigeria should be interested in joining their voices to call on the Nigerian Senate to pass this bill,” she said.

Uzoma noted that with children increasingly accessing smartphones, tablets and internet-enabled devices at home, in schools and through peers, the need for stronger protections has become more pressing than ever.

Under the proposed legislation, funding for implementation would be partly generated through a 0.02 per cent levy on the assessable profits of search engines, telecommunications service providers, artificial intelligence companies, gaming platforms, streaming services and social media application vendors operating in Nigeria.

Also speaking, the Coordinator of the General Unit in the National Assembly, Christiana Eguma, said the bill was designed to address emerging threats confronting children in the digital age.

She expressed concern that many children now access the internet without adequate supervision from parents or guardians, making them easy targets for online predators and cyberbullies.

Eguma said the legislation would not only protect children but also compel technology companies and online platforms to take greater responsibility for content and activities hosted on their platforms.

“It puts accountability on the platform itself so that they can take responsibility of putting down some of these negative things early enough.

“It seeks to ensure that from the parents to the school, to the children, everybody is responsible enough to protect children online.

“So the bill seeks to ensure children are protected from the adult, and from even their own peers who are bullies, and we are calling on the National Assembly to pass the bill so that the Nigerian children can be protected from all harm,” she said.

An educationist, Oluwasesan Ifegbesan, stressed the need for collective action to address online threats facing children, noting that legislation alone would not be enough without active parental involvement and public awareness.

He said parents, teachers and guardians must remain vigilant and provide guidance on responsible internet and social media use.

The push for the bill comes amid growing global concerns over the impact of digital technology on children. Across several jurisdictions, governments have introduced stricter regulations requiring online platforms to verify users’ ages, remove harmful content more swiftly and strengthen child safety measures.

Advocates at the Abuja roundtable argued that Nigeria must not be left behind, insisting that the proposed law would provide much-needed legal safeguards for children navigating an increasingly complex digital environment.