Leaders of the G7 and partner countries, including Kenya, participate in a roundtable discussion during the G7 Summit in Evian, France, on June 17, 2026/ PCS
Kenya has joined G7 nations in calling for stronger protections for children and young people online, urging governments and technology companies to create safer digital spaces amid growing concerns over harmful content, artificial intelligence and online exploitation.
In a joint declaration issued on Wednesday, leaders of the G7 and partner countries, including Kenya, Brazil, Egypt, India and South Korea, committed to ensuring that digital platforms are safe, secure and age-appropriate for minors.
The leaders said children and youth should have online experiences that support their development, education and well-being.
“We are committed to providing a safe digital space for our minors, which include children and youth under 18, for their development, for their education and for their well-being,” the leaders said in the declaration.
The statement recognised the growing role of digital technology in expanding access to education, healthcare and social connection, while noting that online services can also expose children to harmful content and interactions.
The leaders said some digital services incorporate features designed to maximise attention and engagement, raising concerns about compulsive behaviour and its impact on the mental health and well-being of children and youth.
The declaration called on digital service providers to adopt safety-by-design approaches, including privacy-preserving settings, age-appropriate experiences and parental control tools enabled by default.
“Digital service providers have the important role and opportunity to provide digital platforms which are safe-by-design, secure, privacy-preserving, age-appropriate and protective of children and youth,” the leaders said.
The leaders also urged parents, guardians and carers to play an active role in guiding minors’ online experiences through the use of parental controls and digital literacy.
Artificial intelligence featured prominently in the declaration, with leaders acknowledging both its opportunities and risks.
They noted that conversational AI tools have the potential to support innovation, education and development but warned that they could also undermine children’s well-being and safety if not properly regulated.
“It is important for providers to develop and apply safety settings by default for children and youth, including parental control tools and age assurance solutions, to make conversational artificial intelligence tools safer,” the declaration states.
The leaders further emphasised the need for children and young people to distinguish authentic content from synthetic content generated using artificial intelligence.
They encouraged digital service providers to improve transparency and strengthen mechanisms that help users understand the origins of online content.
The declaration also reaffirmed a commitment to combating child sexual abuse material, online grooming, sexual exploitation and non-consensual intimate imagery, including deepfakes involving minors.
“We remain strongly committed to prohibiting the generation, the manipulation and the distribution of child sexual abuse material and criminal activity related to non-consensual intimate imagery, including deepfakes particularly when they involve children and youth,” the leaders said.
The statement highlighted concerns that some online harms disproportionately affect girls and young women, while also exposing boys and young men to harmful content and behaviours.
The leaders also called for stronger efforts to prevent children and youth from being exposed to violent extremism, organised crime and drug trafficking online.
They urged digital service providers to work closely with law enforcement agencies to reduce online recruitment and targeting of minors by criminal groups.
The declaration also called for greater research into the impact of digital technologies and artificial intelligence on children and youth, stressing the importance of evidence-based policymaking.
The leaders welcomed the adoption of a G7 Common Set of Principles on creating safer digital spaces for minors and directed ministers to assess progress on the initiative by the end of the year.
The call followed discussions among G7 members and partner countries, including Kenya, reflecting a growing international focus on protecting children in an increasingly digital world.