A Safer Digital Playground:
Prioritising Children in the Digital Age at MWC24

While most of the 100,000-plus attendees of the recent Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2024 in Barcelona came for the latest in tech solutions, there was another critical conversation taking place in the corridors: the impact of technology and telecommunications on children and youth. Perhaps not as attention-getting as the flying cars and talking robots exhibit, but just as powerful and, dare I say, even more important.

It’s indisputable that this fast-moving digital playground has both positive and negative impacts on youth. This was the message that we shared on the main stage as a keynote panellist alongside Sigve Brekka, President and CEO of Telenor, and youth activists Tayma Abdalhadi, representing Generation Connect – Arab Youth Envoy, ITU, and Lara Padilla Perdomo, Member, Youth Advisory Group, Unicef Spain.

So what did I hear? These are my takeaways from the event:

Global Spotlight on Children’s Rights: At MWC24, Global Child Forum seized the opportunity to discuss its benchmark findings on how the tech and telecom sector is addressing children’s rights. Highlighting positive advancements as well as persisting risks and challenges, we showcased a comprehensive view of the sector’s impact on child welfare globally.

Children as Major Internet Users: Recognising that children constitute a third of all internet users underscores the imperative to design technology products and services with their needs and safety in mind. This demographic’s significant online presence demands that their voices and experiences shape the digital landscape.

Scaling Tech Solutions: There’s a pressing need for child-centric technology solutions to be accessible around the world, ensuring that innovations benefiting children’s safety and engagement online are not limited by geographical or socioeconomic barriers.

Safety by Design: Advocating for a ‘Safety by Design’ approach means integrating protective measures for children into technology from the outset. This proactive stance ensures that children’s safety is not an afterthought, but a foundational principle of tech development.

Youth Participation: It is crucial to empower youth to contribute their perspectives and experiences in technology design and policy-making. Mechanisms facilitating this participation can lead to more inclusive and effective solutions that resonate with young users. It was great to see some youth involvement, but many more initiatives are needed to bring in youth voices. The Generation Connect Visionaries Board, formed by ITU, is an example of an initiative aimed at amplifying young voices in the digital inclusion dialogue.

Positive Digital Experiences: Curating online environments that offer positive, educational, and enriching content for children is vital. Such efforts contribute to a safer internet that promotes learning and development.

Inequality and Access: Despite the growing ubiquity of digital technologies, disparities in access continue to exist, preventing the most vulnerable children from acquiring the necessary digital skills for the 21st century. Effective policy solutions must therefore ensure equitable access to technology and the internet, while promoting safe and constructive use​​. GSMA’s initiative, Breaking Barriers, aims to bridge the “usage gap.”

Investor Engagement: The role of investors is crucial in prioritising children’s safety in technology investments. Beyond acknowledging the issue, investors must actively incorporate child safety considerations into their investment decision-making processes.

Cross-sector Collaboration: Effective protection of children online requires concerted efforts from governments, regulators, legislators, companies, and youth. Collaboration across these sectors is essential for developing comprehensive strategies to safeguard young internet users. Guided by UNCRC General Comment No. 25 (#GC25), there was a collective urge for regulators, civil society organisations, and companies to intensify their efforts in creating safer digital environments, suitable for all ages, and empowering.

Legislation and Regulation: Various countries and states have initiated measures to safeguard children’s digital rights and privacy – from launching online services for reporting child abuse, and amending privacy acts, to implementing new laws that give parents control over their children’s online activities. Such measures are crucial steps towards creating a safer digital environment for children,​​ but the pace of legislation lags in relation to the pace of tech innovation. Tech companies must lead on these issues.

Business and Moral Imperatives: The tech industry faces both a business case and a moral obligation to protect children online. Recognising this dual imperative can drive more companies to commit to child safety in their operations and innovations.

Mainstreaming Children’s Rights: It was wonderful to see the children’s rights issues take the stage at MWC24, which I think marks a pivotal shift towards recognising the importance of incorporating a youth perspective within the tech sphere. By weaving the narrative of children’s rights into the broader technology and telecommunications dialogue, we underscore the collective responsibility to protect these rights. However, looking ahead, I think it’s important that this conversation is not isolated but becomes an integral part of wider tech discussions. Let’s continue to raise our voices on these issues, and interlace this crucial dialogue seamlessly into conversations about new services and solutions, ensuring it forms a core part of our technological future.

The Mobile World Congress was a significant milestone for Global Child Forum, marking an exceptional opportunity to take centre stage and share the critical findings of our benchmark in the tech and telecom sector. Reflecting on these key takeaways, it’s clear that the path forward requires a united front, leveraging the collective power of innovation, investment, and international cooperation to forge a safer, more inclusive digital world for our children.