With the support of the End Violence Partnership, UNICEF and its partners continue their efforts to strengthen the national child protection system to prevent and respond to online child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Antananarivo, 07 February 2023 - Strengthening national infrastructures such as the operationality of the child helpline 147 or the arozaza.mg, supporting the adolescents empowerment in the target regions to protect themselves and their peers from violence (including gender-based violence), exploitation, and online sexual abuse, reporting and seeking support services, promoting positive masculinity and helping adolescents to be a vector of non-violence... are among the actions planned with the support of the End Violence Partnership platform in Madagascar until 2025

Indeed, UNICEF and its partners, under the leadership of the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and Promotion of Women, continue to implement more effective and coordinated prevention and response interventions to protect children in Madagascar from online sexual exploitation and abuse and these resolutions are integrated into national systems and child protection programmes in the country.

A study conducted in 2021 by ECPAT France on children's exposure to online sexual exploitation and abuse in 6 urban centres, with the support of End Violence Partnership and UNICEF, revealed that 78% of more than 1,500 children aged 9-17 years use the Internet. 58% go online more than 5 times a week and 82% of the internet users spend more than 2 hours online each time they go online. On the other hand, only 50% of parents of the children included in the study use internet and 57% of them are concerned about their children's use of social media.

The programme is a continuation of the one we had before. Indeed, since 2015, in collaboration with the Global Alliance We Protect, the first interventions have been carried out and serve as a basis for the continuation of the programme with the main result being the establishment of a cybercrime unit within the National Police. Over 20,000 children have benefited from educational activities aimed at empowering them to prevent and report online sexual exploitation and abuse. This new support will help to sustain and consolidate the progress made.

 Celebrating International Safer Internet Day

On this World Safer Internet Day, a workshop on safe use of social networks, including Tik Tok, is being organized by UNICEF for some 30 young people and adolescents. Tik Tok allows users to watch, make and share short music videos. It starts to attract Malagasy youth, but few know how to use it.

Trained and framed on the use, limits and opportunities of this social network, the initiative with the support of the End Violence Partnership platform serves as a beacon to the crucial question. Coming from different backgrounds, these young people will be able to share and promote their knowledge and experiences with their peers and pass on awareness-raising messages to their peers, including the safe use of internet by youth. The topic of this day is: "What are our children doing online .... What about tomorrow?”.