The Federal Government plans to introduce regulated internet access for children below 16 years across Nigeria, Maruf Tunji Alausa, Minister of Education, says.

Alausa disclosed this while delivering a keynote address at the launch of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) initiative on zero-rated access to approved educational platforms and content.

The minister says the proposed regulation is part of broader government efforts to protect children from cyberattacks and harmful online content as digital technologies become increasingly integrated into education and everyday life.

“At some point, the full announcement will come. There will be regulated access to internet for every child in Nigeria that is below the age of 16 years,” Alausa says.

He says further details on the measure will be announced by the relevant security agencies in the coming days or weeks, including how the regulation will be implemented across the country.

“We will be regulating internet access to children below 16 years old. Further announcement on this will be coming from our security agencies, and they will roll out across this country to protect the dignity of every child in this country,” he says.

The proposed regulation adds a child-safety component to the Federal Government’s wider push to expand digital access and technology-enabled learning.

Alausa says increased connectivity must be accompanied by safeguards that allow children to benefit from digital technology while reducing their exposure to online threats.

Digital education and child safety

The minister linked the proposed internet regulation to the NCC’s zero-rating initiative, which is designed to allow learners to access approved educational platforms and content without paying for the associated data.

He says the Federal Ministry of Education recognises that digital inclusion involves more than providing internet connectivity, stressing the need to ensure that educational content accessed by learners is safe, credible and appropriate.

“Zero-rating should not mean indiscriminate access to every platform that describes itself as educational,” Alausa says.

He says content made available to children through the initiative must be “appropriate, credible, safe, and aligned with our educational objectives and our curriculum.”

The position comes as the government increasingly integrates digital technology into education reform, with internet access, education data and digital identity forming part of its transformation agenda.

Alausa says the government is implementing the Nigeria Education Sector Renewal Initiative, known as NESRI, with data and digitalisation at the centre of its education reform efforts.

He also says more than 240,000 schools have been geomapped and geolocated through government education data initiatives.

The government is also implementing the Learner’s Identification Number, which is expected to give Nigerian learners a unique education identity and enable their educational journeys to be tracked from primary through tertiary education.

Government targets wider digital inclusion

Alausa says the digital transformation of education must improve access and learning outcomes rather than deepen existing inequalities.

He says children in remote communities, those from low-income households and learners living with disabilities should also benefit from digital education.

“A child in Uga community should be able to access the same high-level quality learning resources as a child in Abuja or Lagos,” he says.

The minister also called for closer cooperation between the education and telecommunications sectors as Nigeria prepares young people for an increasingly digital economy.

He says the country’s objective should extend beyond producing technology consumers to developing young Nigerians who can create technology, develop solutions, innovate and compete globally.

The proposed under-16 internet regulation therefore introduces a child-protection dimension to Nigeria’s expanding digital education programme.

However, the government has yet to provide details of the proposed restrictions, including the specific forms of internet access that would be regulated, how age verification would work, which agencies would enforce the measure and whether the rules would apply to all internet services or specific categories of online platforms.

Further details are expected from the relevant security agencies as the government develops the framework for regulating internet access for children below 16.