As part of major steps to boost safety on its platform, TikTok has launched its inaugural Safety Advisory Council for Sub-Sahara Africa. The council is the first-of-its-kind safety consultative group by any social media platform in the region.
The council was unveiled at a #SaferTogether summit held by the company in Nairobi, Kenya. At the event, content creators from the region, government representatives, strategic partners and media representatives hosted a night of games, drinks, conversations and networking. It also featured TikTok’s announcement of an expansion of its #SaferTogether community education campaign.
Speaking at the launch, Fortune Mgwili-Sibanda, Director of Government Relations & Public Policy for Sub-Saharan Africa noted that the announcement of the new council emphasises TikTok’s commitment to creating a safer space for all using an inclusive and collaborative approach.
“The community empowerment campaign highlights the importance of safety being a shared responsibility. With the additional layer that the Safety Advisory Council presents, we believe that safety can be achieved, collectively”, he added.
Members of the Sub-Saharan Africa Safety Advisory Council include:
Prof Guy Berger, Rhodes University (South Africa)
Dennis Coffie, Content creator (Ghana)
Peter Cunliffe-Jones, University of Westminster Visiting Research Fellow (UK)
Aisha Dabo, Co-Founder and coordinator of AfricTivistes (Senegal)
Lillian Kariuki, Founder and Executive Director of Watoto Watch Network (Kenya)
Dr Akinola Olojo, Expert on preventing and countering violent extremism (Nigeria)
Prof Medhane Tadesse, Policy academic on peace and security issues (Ethiopia)
Berhan Taye, Independent Researcher (Ethiopia)
Functions of the TikTok Safety Advisory Council
Since 2020, TikTok has established nine regional Safety Advisory Councils alongside the U.S. Content Advisory Council, each composed of experts in areas such as youth safety, free expression, and hate speech. These councils play a vital role in shaping TikTok’s policies, product features, and safety processes, ensuring the platform remains responsive to evolving challenges.
The newly launched Sub-Saharan Africa Safety Advisory Council will further this effort by bringing together local experts who will collaborate with TikTok to develop forward-looking policies and address regional safety concerns. Their input will help TikTok manage current issues and anticipate future challenges, reinforcing the platform’s commitment to user safety and fostering a positive online environment.
In a chat with me, Fortune explained that the council membership is for at least a year, but the members will achieve more impact if they serve for longer periods. “We are hoping that they will serve for a long time, and we will keep updating the council to reflect more diversity and replace those who can’t continue. But this sort of thing works better if they are with us for the long haul,“ he added.
He told me that the engagement will not be paid but the council members will be rewarded for their time: “Obviously, we will compensate them for their time, but that is the most important thing right now. The most important thing is the contribution they are bringing to Tiktok.”
The council will meet with TikTok’s global leadership team once every quarter to suggest guidelines and discuss its observations. Beyond this, there will also be numerous informal engagements. According to Fortune, TikTok’s topmost desire is innovative ideas and candour:
“We don’t want panellists who are always going to tell us that TikTok is cool. We want people who will challenge us and tell us areas where we can improve. We want ideas that are not only relevant for today. We want stakeholders who will help us to start thinking about future challenges”, he explained.
At the core of the council’s tasks is helping TikTok to fine-tune its Community Guidelines by providing suggestions that fit the African cultural nuances and social realities. These recommendations if globally applicable will help users across the globe better engage with the platform.
“Alongside the other 9 councils, it doesn’t matter if a suggestion comes from a regional council from South America or Africa, as long as this applies to global challenges around online safety, they will be incorporated across the board”, he explained.
This is not the only forum that TikTok has created to solicit input from stakeholders. Recall that 4 months ago, TikTok launched its Global Youth Council, a group of 15 dynamic teenagers aged between 15 and 18 representing diverse communities and countries, including the US, UK, Brazil, Indonesia, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, and Morocco that will provide insights from the teenagers’ perspective.
“These are some of the many layers of engagement where we are taking input from stakeholders to improve how we moderate our platform”, Fortune concluded.
Stakeholders’ engagement in Kenya
By partnering with key stakeholders, including policymakers, members of the academia, NGOs, and community leaders, TikTok aims to foster a collaborative approach to ensuring a secure and positive platform environment.
Earlier this year, TikTok announced the official partnership with the African Union Commission’s Women, Gender, and Youth Directorate (WGYD) at the inaugural TikTok Safer Internet Summit in Ghana. This partnership will help deliver digital literacy programmes across Africa.
In the same vein, the launch of its Safety Advisory Council for Sub-Sahara Africa in Nairobi was attended by representatives of the Kenyan government. These include Ms Mary Kerema, Secretary of ICT, e-Government and Digital Economy at the Kenyan Ministry of Information and Raymond Ochieng, the Secretary of Youth Development, State Department for Youth Affairs at the Kenyan Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports.
Speaking at the event, Ms Mary Kerema lauded TikTok’s approach to community safety and content regulation. According to her, TikTok has done more than just issue guidelines and enforce disciplinary measures when users violate them. They also engage stakeholders to ensure that the community rules are fair and understood:
“First, I applaud them for hosting this summit and launching the council. Second, I find it very unique that TikTok uses partners to educate down to the level of secondary schools. They are also engaging parents to help manage how their kids interact with the platform. No other social media platform has done this”, she explains.
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