The directive to have the companies set up offices in the country is to ensure that the government achieves accountability from the platforms, making them directly answerable for their usage.
The government has compelled the owners of social media companies, whose platforms are accessible to Kenyans, to set up offices in the country.
This directive, as announced by the Ministry of Interior, comes after months of complaints from senior government officials and a section of Kenyans about the misuse of social media, particularly among Kenyan youth.
The directive to have the companies set up offices in the country is to ensure that the government achieves accountability from the platforms, making them directly answerable for their usage.
“To ensure responsibility and accountability in the face of rising disinformation, social media manipulation, and online abuse, all social media organizations operating in the country must establish a physical presence within our jurisdiction,” the statement read in part.
The popular platforms targeted include Meta, which is owned by Mark Zuckerberg and has platforms such as Facebook (with 3.07 billion users globally) and Instagram (2.4 billion users globally), as well as X (600 million users globally) which is owned by American billionaire Elon Musk.
The order also affects TikTok, boasting almost 1.6 billion active users each month on its platform, which sits at position five of the world’s most monthly active users following Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp & Instagram.
This comes hours after a Kenyan went to sue X (formerly Twitter), accusing the Elon Musk-owned firm of allowing the publication and access by users to content bordering on hate speech, incitement to violence and promoting pornography, among other accusations.
More to follow…