Child Online Africa has raised serious concerns after the Education Minister’s revelation that some Senior High School students have accessed pornography on government-issued tablets, highlighting risks linked to delays in activating promised content restrictions.
In a statement signed by the Executive Director, Awo Aidam Amenyah, the organisation emphasised that while every child has the right to learn through digital tools, they also have the right to be protected from harmful online content.
The group called on the government, industry, schools, teachers, parents, and students to take immediate action to safeguard digital learning.
Child Online Africa urged the Ministry of Education, Ghana Education Service, Ministry of Communication and Digital Innovations, National Communications Authority, and Data Protection Commission to roll out mandatory over-the-air updates within 30–45 days on all distributed tablets.
The updates, according to the group should include content filters blocking adult sites, gambling platforms, and explicit violence, as well as enforced Safe Search and YouTube Restricted Mode, alongside time-management and app-restriction controls.
The organisation also recommended establishing a National Education Digital Safeguarding Taskforce and incorporating “Safety by Design” and “Privacy by Design” principles in all future EdTech procurement.
Industry stakeholders, including suppliers, manufacturers, and telecom companies—were asked to provide filtering subscriptions and technical support at no extra cost.
Schools and teachers were urged to restrict tablet use to supervised sessions until content restrictions are active, deliver urgent online-safety lessons, and appoint a Digital Safeguarding Lead in every school.
Also, students were advised to use devices responsibly, while parents were encouraged to engage in open conversations about digital use.
Child Online Africa stressed that safe digital access is inseparable from the right to education and called for swift technical interventions and collaboration across all sectors to ensure government-issued tablets become secure learning tools.