President William Ruto has announced that he will be speaking to the Global CEO of TikTok Shou Zi Chew on Thursday morning to agree on a mechanism to moderate and reduce negative content on the platform and leverage monetization that benefits more Kenyans.
“Tomorrow morning I will be speaking to the global CEO of TikTok so that we can agree on a mechanism to moderate content in their space to reduce the content that is negative and leverage on the monetization,” Ruto said on Wednesday.
President Ruto says he will be talking to the TikTok CEO tomorrow to moderate and reduce negative content. He however doesn't say who will be deciding what that is 'Negative' pic.twitter.com/8dV0vLQVq6
— Cyprian, Is Nyakundi (@C_NyaKundiH) August 23, 2023
This comes after Parliament received a petition seeking to ban TikTok in Kenya over the explicit sexual content it contains.
The petition was filed by Bob Ndolo, CEO of Bridget Connect, who wants the app outlawed for exposing children and teenagers to harmful influences.
However, TikTok has also become a popular outlet for many young Kenyans who feel cheated by Ruto’s government.
They have taken to the app to express themselves, sharing their frustrations and disillusionment, often to the embarrassment of government officials.
The TikTok revolution, as some have called it, has not sat well with the government who are now moving to have it moderated.
Critics have accused Ruto of trying to censor dissenting voices and stifle freedom of expression.
According to the data from Statista, there were about 5.8 million TikTok users in Kenya as of July 2023, which is about 10.4% of the total population.
This number is expected to grow to 6.4 million by 2025.
TikTok is one of the most popular social media platforms in Kenya, ranking fourth after WhatsApp, Facebook, and YouTube.
TikTok also offers opportunities for monetization and influencer marketing for its users.
It has been banned or restricted in several countries, including India, Pakistan, Indonesia, and the United States, over various concerns such as national security, privacy, and content regulation.
As the discussions unfold, the Kenyan public awaits the outcome with great anticipation, with this potential transformation in the digital landscape that could impact not only the content shared on TikTok but also the socio-economic prospects of the nation’s youth.
