By Muhammed Nasiru Tunkara
TikTok has taken a significant step towards enhancing user safety by establishing its first Safety Advisory Council for Sub-Saharan Africa. This initiative, unveiled at the #SaferTogether summit in Nairobi, Kenya, marks a pioneering move in the social media landscape of the region, reflecting TikTok’s deepening commitment to addressing the unique safety challenges faced by users in Africa.
The council’s formation underscores TikTok’s dedication to creating a safer digital environment through an inclusive and collaborative approach. Fortune Mgwili-Sibanda, Director of Government Relations & Public Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa, emphasized the importance of shared responsibility between platforms, governments, and communities in achieving safety on social media. He highlighted that TikTok is keen on fostering a culture of trust and transparency where users feel secure to express themselves.
Comprising eight distinguished members from diverse backgrounds, the council includes academics, content creators, researchers, and experts in fields such as digital safety, free expression, and countering hate speech. These individuals bring a wealth of experience in areas critical to the online safety discourse, including child protection, privacy rights, mental health, and the prevention of misinformation and online abuse.
The council’s primary function is to provide localized insights and recommendations to help shape TikTok’s policies, product features, and safety processes. This approach is designed to tackle region-specific challenges and anticipate future issues, ensuring that TikTok remains responsive to the evolving needs of its growing user base across Africa. By tailoring safety measures to the regional context, TikTok is ensuring that users in Sub-Saharan Africa are better protected while maintaining a high standard of community engagement.
Council members will serve for a minimum of one year, with the possibility of extended terms to maximize their impact. While not a paid engagement, members will receive compensation for their time, effort, and invaluable contributions to the platform’s safety goals. TikTok seeks innovative ideas, critical evaluations, and candid feedback from these experts, ensuring that its safety framework evolves continuously to meet emerging risks.
One of the council’s key focuses is refining TikTok’s Community Guidelines, ensuring they align with African cultural nuances, social realities, and linguistic diversity. These recommendations, while rooted in the African context, could potentially shape global standards, benefiting users worldwide by making the platform more inclusive and respectful of different cultures.
The launch event in Nairobi was attended by high-level government representatives, including Ms. Mary Kerema, Secretary of ICT, e-Government, and Digital Economy, and Raymond Ochieng, Secretary of Youth Development. Ms. Kerema praised TikTok’s proactive approach to enhancing community safety and regulating content in ways that protect vulnerable users while promoting free expression. She lauded the platform’s efforts to involve stakeholders from diverse sectors and to provide user education, particularly among Africa’s youth.
Beyond the council, TikTok’s safety initiatives extend to partnerships with key institutions. The platform has joined forces with the African Union Commission’s Women, Gender, and Youth Directorate to deliver digital literacy programs across Africa. This collaboration, first announced at the TikTok Safer Internet Summit in Ghana, aims to promote responsible digital citizenship by equipping African youth with the knowledge and skills to navigate the digital space safely and responsibly.
The formation of the Sub-Saharan Africa Safety Advisory Council is part of TikTok’s global safety strategy, which includes nine regional Safety Advisory Councils and a U.S. Content Advisory Council. These groups play a critical role in addressing both regional and global safety concerns on the platform, helping TikTok to refine its policies and ensure they are relevant to the diverse needs of its global audience.
TikTok’s approach to safety involves multiple layers of engagement. In addition to the regional councils, the platform recently launched a Global Youth Council, consisting of teenagers from various countries. This council is designed to gain insights from a younger perspective, allowing TikTok to better understand and address the concerns of its youth demographic.
By engaging diverse stakeholders, including policymakers, academics, NGOs, community leaders, and the youth, TikTok aims to create a collaborative ecosystem for ensuring a secure and positive online environment. This multifaceted approach to platform safety sets a new standard in the social media industry, particularly within the African context, where internet access is rapidly expanding, and with it, the need for robust digital safety mechanisms.
The launch of the Sub-Saharan Africa Safety Advisory Council represents a significant milestone in TikTok’s efforts to tailor its safety measures to regional needs while maintaining global standards. As the platform continues to grow in popularity across Africa, these initiatives are vital in fostering a responsible, secure, and engaging digital space for all users, ensuring that TikTok remains not only a platform for creativity and connection but also one that prioritizes the safety and well-being of its community.
