NET prijatelji – app for children

UNICEF research (2016), conducted within the End Violence Online campaign, shows that 79% of children aged 9-11 use internet in Montenegro and they access it mostly through smartphones. Children at this age have the weakest digital skills and most need for support. 1 in 2 said not to feel safe online and not to know what to do when someone treats them online in a way that they don’t like. Therefore, with UNICEF’s support, NETprijatelji (NETfriends) app was developed for them.

It was developed in cooperation with children, parents, UNICEF Montenegro Goodwill Ambassador Antonije Pusic alias Rambo Amadeus, music author Vlado Maras, Studio for interactive design Fleka and experts in the field of child development, internet and violence.

The app contains an educational role-play game, which takes children through real life scenarios and makes them learn how to recognize, prevent, stop and report violence.

One third of children of this age say to know more about the internet than their parents. Moreover, 1 in 5 say that their parents don’t talk to them about what to do when something disturbing happens to them online. Every parent, regardless of his/her digital skills, can use the app to talk to the child and support him/her to learn how to be safe online and offline.

Also, NETprijatelji app can be used as an innovative tool in schools and help every teacher, regardless of his/her digital skills, to promote a culture of non-violence and teach children how to be safe in the digital age.

NETFriends can also be played at the website www.netprijatelji.me