WASHINGTON, April 15 — The United Nations is calling on governments, schools, parents and technology companies to take the necessary steps to mitigate online harm as millions of children are forced to spend more time on virtual platforms amid the Covid-19 outbreak, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) said in a joint press release on Wednesday.
Key stakeholders for the care and education of children all have a major part to play in protecting children online, the release stated.
“Under the shadow of Covid-19, the lives of millions of children have temporarily shrunk to just their homes and their screens. We must help them navigate this new reality,” Sputnik news agency quoted Unicef Executive Director Henrietta Fore as saying in the release.
Unicef and its partners urged international governments to bolster vital child protection services and ensure that they can remain open during the pandemic. Additionally, social care workers must be given greater training in anticipation of the mental health and well-being issues that will be created by the Covid-19 outbreak.
The information technology industry, including social networks, is called to make sure that their online platforms have boosted safety measures.
Parents are urged to ensure that their children are accessing safe resources while online, and schools are called on to harmonise distance learning procedures with the provision of counselling services.
Unicef pointed out in the release that more than 1.5 billion children and young people have been impacted by school closures worldwide, which leads to many children taking classes and socialising online. Spending more time online can result in children becoming more vulnerable to sexual exploitation and grooming, the statement read.
The recommendations are part of the technical note issued by Unicef, Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, International Telecommunication Union, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), UN Office on Drugs and Crime, WePROTECT Global Alliance, World Health Organisation and World Childhood Foundation USA.
On March 11, the World Health Organisation declared the Covid-19 outbreak a pandemic. The total number of Covid-19 cases worldwide has surpassed 1,900,000 cases and the death toll had topped 126,000, according to the Johns Hopkins University.
— Bernama
