Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, has issued a scathing rebuke of the growing flood of sexually explicit content on TikTok, describing the trend as “completely unacceptable” and “against Ghanaian culture and norms”.
Speaking at a ministerial press briefing in Accra to outline developments in the digital sector for the second quarter of 2025, the minister warned that the government would take decisive action to curb the spread of adult material on the popular video-sharing platform.
“Live sex and explicit material on TikTok are completely unacceptable and against our culture and our norms,” Mr George declared. “These were part of the conversations I held with TikTok’s team to ensure content moderation in-country.”
The minister disclosed that he had formally engaged TikTok’s West African government relations team on June 26 to demand stricter content control measures. Among the government’s key demands was the establishment of a Ghana-based content moderation unit to monitor and filter out content deemed sexually explicit, culturally offensive, or inappropriate for minors.
Mr George explained that Ghana’s request was for moderation by locally trained teams who understand the country’s cultural and moral boundaries, rather than relying on generic global policies that often overlook regional sensitivities.
He also proposed the creation of a local content governance framework, which would align TikTok’s operations with national regulatory standards and reinforce protections for young and vulnerable users.
“We cannot allow foreign digital platforms to become unregulated zones where anything goes. If we value our cultural identity and the safety of our youth, we must act — and we will act,” he said firmly.
To back this move, the Cybersecurity Authority has been directed to monitor TikTok content in real-time and flag sexually explicit or culturally inappropriate material. Accounts found violating content standards will be taken down and permanently banned, the minister added.
This is part of a broader digital sanitation push by the government, which has expressed increasing concern over the psychological, moral, and social implications of unfiltered online content — particularly as it affects youth and children.
While firm on content moderation, the minister also welcomed TikTok’s introduction of a STEM-focused content feed and proposed its alignment with Ghana’s One Million Coders Initiative—a flagship programme aimed at equipping young people with in-demand digital skills.
Mr George further urged the platform to ensure fair monetisation for Ghanaian creators, whose original content he said contributes significantly to TikTok’s reach and revenue. “Our creators deserve fair value for the traffic they drive and the cultural export they enable,” he noted.
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