Kenya: The Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) has affirmed its commitment to collaborate with TikTok and other VOD operators on content moderation and regulation to ensure that content conforms to Kenya’s culture, moral values, and national aspirations and, more importantly, to protect minors from exposure to inappropriate content.
Speaking today, 4th September 2023, during a training workshop for agencies championing child online safety that TikTok organized in collaboration with KFCB, the Board’s Ag. CEO Joel Wamalwa said that the Board is open to working with Tiktok on digital literacy programmes and campaigns targeting content consumers, as well as on content monetization for creatives.
Wamalwa applauded TikTok for creating a platform for agencies that champion child online safety, where content moderation, community guidelines, parental controls, as well as monetization, among other issues, were discussed.
“As the State agency mandated to regulate the creation, broadcasting, possession, distribution, and exhibition of audio-visual content in Kenya, we are confident that the discussions we are having with TikTok and other VOD platform operators will be fruitful in terms of ensuring that audio-visual content conforms to Kenya’s culture, moral values and national aspirations,” Wamalwa said.
He added that KFCB will continue to pursue partnerships with like-minded public and private sector agencies to create awareness of child online safety.
Fortune Mgwili Sibanda, TikTok’s Head of Government Relations and Public Policy, Sub-Saharan Africa, reiterated TikTok’s commitment to ensuring that content exhibited on the platform conforms to Kenya’s values and the existing community standards.
“TikTok is open to exploring how it can collaborate with Kenya, not only for the protection of children from exposure to inappropriate content, but also to ensure the safety of the user community. As a business, we can only thrive if our user community is happy,” Sibanda said.
Other agencies represented at the workshop included: the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), the Media Council of Kenya (MCK), the Kenya Police Service, the Directorate of Children Services, Judiciary and National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations – DCI (DCI), the Ministry of Information, Communications & The Digital Economy KE,, and Kenya Network Information Centre (KeNIC). Ministry of Youth Affairs, The Arts and Sports State Department for Youth Affairs & The Arts