TechSocietal Gets Google’s $600k for Study of Nigeria’s Youth Digital Risks

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The sum of $600,000 has been provided to the TechSocietal Development Foundation by Google to conduct Nigeria’s first baseline study of youth digital risks, surveying 2,000 adolescents across all six geopolitical zones.

The organisation will also use the funding support to deliver its Safety First curriculum to 5,000 teachers and school administrators, and train 200 community champions to reach up to 10,000 parents and caregivers.

This is part of Google’s efforts to boost child online safety in Nigeria and conduct research on how young people use the internet, with hands-on training for the parents and teachers closest to them.

More than 22 million Africans turn 18 every year, many of them on phones shared by several family members, and as governments around the world, including Nigeria’s, weigh how to protect children online without cutting them off from what they learn there.

Apart from this funding package, Google is also bringing Meet LEO, short for Learn and Explore Online, to Nigeria in the program’s first pilot in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Delivered by Tech Hive Advisory across four states, it will train 500 educators and youth leaders to set digital ground rules with tools such as Google Family Link, SafeSearch and YouTube Supervised Experiences, and equip them to pass that training on to 2,500 more students and community members.

“It takes a village to raise a child, and today that village extends into the digital world, where protecting our children must never mean disconnecting them from their future.

“We build protections into our products by default, and by pairing them with local research through TechSocietal and educator training through Tech Hive Advisory, we are helping every Nigerian child learn and explore safely online,” the Country Director of Google Nigeria, Mr Olumide Balogun, stated.

The National Commissioner of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, Mr Vincent Olatunji, said, “Protecting our children in the digital world requires active collaboration across government, technology platforms, educators, and families. The NDPC’s recent national consultations made it clear that Nigerians are deeply concerned about the risks young people face online.

“Google’s support for nationwide research through TechSocietal, alongside the practical, grassroots safety training being delivered with Tech Hive Advisory through the Meet LEO program, marks a significant and commendable step forward.

“By combining local evidence with hands-on digital skills, we are building a safer, more empowering digital environment where every Nigerian child can learn, explore, and thrive.”

Also commenting, the Executive Director of TechSocietal Development Foundation, Tope Ogundipe, said, “With this support from Google.org we are launching the country’s first nationwide baseline study of 2,000 adolescents across all six geopolitical zones, while equipping 15,000 teachers and caregivers with the skills to guide young people safely through the digital world.”

The Lead Partner at Tech Hive Advisory, Mr Ridwan Oloyede, said, “Bringing the first Sub-Saharan African pilot of Meet LEO to Nigeria puts usable safety tools directly in the hands of 500 frontline educators and youth leaders, creating a multiplier effect that will reach 2,500 learners.”