Advocacy

In remote communities like Kailahun District, smartphones have become more than just gadgets, they are lifelines. Farmers use them to track produce en route to markets. The elderly rely on them to stay in touch with family in distant towns. Nurses send updates on medicine stock-outs at rural health centers. Children use them to catch up on schoolwork and reconnect with absent classmates. And increasingly, entire communities are staying informed through radio apps or messaging platforms like WhatsApp.

For 16-year-old Jeminatu, however, a smartphone is both a powerful tool and a potential threat.

“This device is a huge blessing, but it can also be a curse,” she says soberly.

Jeminatu is a child advocate and a passionate member of the Girls’ Platform, a peer education forum supported by Ndomakeh Federation, a local partner of ChildFund. In this safe space, girls openly discuss critical issues such as child marriage, teenage pregnancy, child labor, and corporal punishment. But recently, their conversations have turned toward a lesser-known, and deeply troubling topic: Online Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Children (OSEAC).

“ChildFund introduced us to this new topic that we were not even paying attention to, yet it tends to destroy our future,” Jeminatu explains.

A Growing, Global Threat

OSEAC is one of the fastest-growing forms of child exploitation worldwide. It includes any instance where a child is sexually abused online, whether through explicit photos, videos, or live-streams. Perpetrators may be strangers, or even family members in cases of extreme poverty, where children are traded for money.

Technology has made this crime easier than ever. With over 175,000 children accessing the internet for the first time every day, and an estimated 750,000 predators online at any given moment, the threat is constant and often invisible.

Smartphones, while useful and widely embraced, also increase children’s exposure to potential harm. Predators exploit anonymity and access through social media and messaging apps, grooming children and normalizing abuse.

Turning Awareness into Action

Jeminatu is no longer unaware, and no longer afraid. With the knowledge and training gained through ChildFund, she now uses her phone intentionally and safely.

“Now we know that we can be abused online. We have been taught how to use our phones positively. When I go online, I search for topics that pertain to my education,” she says.

This empowerment is part of ChildFund’s larger goal to keep children safe, and to help them protect themselves and others. As a global leader in the fight against online sexual exploitation and abuse of children (OSEAC), ChildFund is raising awareness, promoting better data collection, and pushing for stronger laws and protections. This includes working with governments to create and enforce policies that protect children’s rights online.

Children themselves are given the platform to raise awareness on issues affecting their online well-being via radio discussions, speaking opportunities during world calendar events and on special occasions.

During the development of the organization’s advocacy strategy, representatives from the Children’s Forum Network (CFN) of Sierra Leone, made their voices heard on the issue of OSEAC and how it can be addressed nationally. 

The Children’s Forum Network (CFN) is Sierra Leone’s leading child advocacy network, established in 2007 and led by children and youth. Its mission is to advocate for children, prevent and respond to abuse, and create a society where children can thrive. CFN operates through various programs, including radio shows, seminars, workshops, community engagements, school visits, and other educational events. 

ChildFund is part of international efforts to combat online abuse of children, such as the ChildFund Alliance’s WEB Safe & Wise campaign, which focuses on empowering children to become smart digital citizens. 

In Africa, ChildFund has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the African Union Commission to co-lead regional initiatives aimed at preventing and addressing online sexual exploitation and abuse of children.

Crucially, the organization believes in placing children at the center of the response. That means engaging them directly in conversations about their safety, listening to their voices, and arming them with the tools they need to recognize and report abuse.

A Voice for Change

Jeminatu is already taking what she’s learned beyond the Girls’ Platform.

“Now that I know that children can be exploited online, I will continue to tell my colleagues and friends at school and in my community,” she says with quiet determination.

In places where resources are limited and threats are evolving, knowledge is the first line of defense. Thanks to initiatives like this and the work of brave young advocates like Jeminatu, that defense is growing stronger. 

ChildFund and its partners have reached over 1,000 children and young people with important knowledge and skills to help them stay safe online. Children like Jeminatu are now more confident using the internet wisely. This shows that when communities, government, and organizations work together, we can create real and lasting change. Together, we are helping build a safer and better future — one child at a time. Children themselves are leading this campaign through Girls Platforms in communities.