Child online protection is government's priority - Gender Minister

The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), Mrs. Cynthia Morrison has expressed happiness about the Child Online Protection Reporting Portal, saying the portal would help protect the country’s children from internet fraudsters and abusers.

She made this known at the opening of the 2020 National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) and the official launch of the Child Online Protection (COP) Portal at the Accra Digital Centre on Thursday, October 1, 2020.

According to her, due to the adversities of the COVID-19, many children these days use the internet a lot to research, for classes and for socialization, hence making them prone to Child Sexual Abuse Materials.

She noted that many of the social networking tools that many children are using were not designed for them, hence putting many children at risk of cybersecurity issues.

Cyber Security achievement

The National Cyber Security Advisor, Albert Antwi-Boasiako, on his part said government is making strides in its fight against cyber-crimes.

He added that there’s commitment to improve the safety of businesses and the citizenry though the COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effects on individuals and the economy.

“Although efforts at the Government and policy level are important, we do not undervalue the need to also engage and empower citizens to ensure that efforts are being put in place to create awareness among our citizens who are the ultimate beneficiary of the work of the Centre. Indeed, the National Cyber Security Centre will continue to play the role it has been playing since its establishment; to continue to implement measures aimed at securing Ghana’s digital journey,” he said.

He added, “Ghana has also been recognized for her cybersecurity development by international partners including the Council of Europe, the World Bank, World Economic Forum, UNICEF, and the ECOWAS Commission, among others, with the ECOWAS Commission requesting Ghana to lead cybersecurity efforts in the African sub-region. Ghana was recently nominated to serve on the Independent Advisory Committee (IAC) of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT) with Ghana being the only African country.”



UNICEF applaud

The Country Representative of UNICEF, Ms Anne-Claire Dufay said since the emergence of COVID-19, children accessing the internet have increased globally.

UNICEF, she noted, was working with relevant organizations and institutions such as the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) to ensure the protection of children on the internet.

She mentioned the Ghanaians against Child Abuse (GACA) campaign as one of the interventions that UNICEF is jointly working on with other development partners and relevant government institutions and NGOs to ensure the protection of Ghanaian children and adolescents.



Cyber Security Bill

In a speech read on behalf of the Minister for Communications, Alexander Abban indicated the National Cyber Security Centre has drafted a Cybersecurity Bill to establish a regulatory framework for Ghana’s cybersecurity development, consistent with current trends and best practices across the world.

The bill, the Deputy Minister for Communication said is currently before cabinet for consideration is expected to be passed this year by parliament.

“To further improve the regulatory regime for cybersecurity, my Ministry has submitted a draft Cybersecurity Bill to Cabinet for consideration. Parliament is expected to consider this Bill before the end of the year. Ladies and Gentlemen, our work on cybersecurity at the domestic level has won admiration and commendation from the international community.

“The Council of Europe has recognized Ghana as the hub for cybercrime capacity building in the English-speaking ECOWAS region. The World Bank has praised Ghana’s formative developments in cybersecurity and has provided support to consolidate our modest gains. The World Economic Forum has identified Ghana for public-private sector partnership on cybersecurity.”

The National Cyber Security Awareness Month program is part of national efforts to build capacity and raise awareness on cybercrimes; and the need to improve Ghana’s cybersecurity readiness among children, the general public, corporate Ghana and government agencies.

The theme for this year’s National Cyber Security Awareness month is ‘‘Cybersecurity in the era of COVID-19”.