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Executive summary

The current generation of children in Africa is the first across the continent to grow up with digital devices, services and products. Recognising the vital role of digital technologies in Africa’s future, decision-makers have acknowledged the need for targeted policy, programming, product design and practice to ensure that children of all ages, regardless of their circumstances, can safely and constructively access the benefits of the digital environment.  

Child consultation is a core principle of international and regional instruments guiding African leaders, including the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Rights of the Child’s UNCRC General comment No. 25 on children’s rights in the digital environment1 and the African Union (AU) Commission’s Child online safety and empowerment policy 2024.

This report documents the key concerns, insights and aspirations of 599 diverse African children, aged 9-18, from 14 countries, who participated in four child-centred consultations conducted between 2019 and 2024. It demonstrates that children across Africa are calling on their leaders to step up efforts to secure their rights in relation to the digital environment. 

While children in Africa report many opportunities and challenges similar to those experienced by children in other parts of the world; their digital practices, and their capacity to derive benefit from them, are profoundly shaped by the values, customs and sociomaterial factors of the diverse contexts in which they live and grow. Although not all African countries were included in this study, this report represents an important first step in calling for further research that links policy and practice interventions, including work that engages children in Francophone and Lusophone Africa. 

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