Admin
- February 10, 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Abuja, Nigeria – February 10, 2026: As the world marks Safer Internet Day, a worldwide effort to promote safer and more responsible use of digital technologies, Digicivic Initiative joins the global community in reaffirming the need for a safer, more inclusive, and rights-respecting digital environment for all- particularly women, children, elderly, journalists, human rights defenders, and other at-risk groups.
This year’s theme, “Smart tech, safe choices – Exploring the safe and responsible use of AI”, reflects the growing influence of artificial intelligence in our online lives and the need for everyone to understand how to navigate digital spaces safely, responsibly, and with dignity.
Safer Internet Day serves as a timely reminder that while the internet has become a powerful tool for participation, innovation, and expression, it has also increasingly become a site of harm. Across Nigeria and Africa, individuals continue to face online threats including technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), data breaches, privacy violations, disinformation, surveillance, cyberstalking, and the misuse of digital and cybercrime laws to suppress freedom of expression.
At Digicivic Initiative, we emphasize that online safety must not come at the expense of fundamental human rights. The same rights guaranteed offline must be protected online. A safe internet is not one built on censorship or excessive surveillance, but one grounded in accountability, digital literacy, strong data protection frameworks, and respect for human rights.
As digital technologies evolve rapidly, AI and smart tools are increasingly embedded in social media platforms, online learning environments, tools for work and creativity, and everyday applications. While these technologies offer opportunities for innovation and empowerment, they also raise critical concerns about privacy, bias, misinformation, surveillance, and digital harms.
We stress that online safety must be rooted in respect for human rights, freedom of expression, and access to information. Policymakers, technology developers, civil society, and communities must work together to ensure that emerging technologies support inclusion, transparency, accountability, and fairness -not censorship, exclusion, or discrimination.
On this Safer Internet Day, Digicivic Initiative calls on:
- Government and policymakers to advance digital governance frameworks that promote human rights, protect privacy and data, and support responsible AI that benefits society;
- Technology companies to build safer platforms, improve transparency around AI tools and content moderation, and ensure safety features that respect rights and user agency;
- Civil society, educators and media to strengthen digital literacy, encourage critical engagement with smart technologies, and empower citizens with skills to make safe, informed choices online;
- Internet users exercise digital responsibility, to think critically about AI content, protect personal data, and create respectful, safe digital spaces for all.
Digicivic Initiative reaffirms its commitment to advancing digital rights in Africa through advocacy, research, capacity building, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. On Safer Internet Day and beyond, we remain dedicated to shaping a digital ecosystem where smart technology enhances human dignity, safety, and democratic participation.
For more information, please visit Digicivic Initiative’s Instagram, X and LinkedIn or contact:
Morisola Alaba-Akinlabi
Program Coordinator, DigiCivic Initiative
digicivicinitiative@gmail.com
