Accra, Ghana, October 24, 2026: More than 51,000 online child sexual abuse material reports were linked to Ghana in 2025.

The figures cited by UNICEF Ghana should force a difficult conversation about what happens to children when sexual exploitation enters the digital world, and whether the systems meant to protect them can keep pace.

At a Child Online Protection and Digital Parenting Forum organised by the Cyber Security Authority during the 2026 National Cyber Security Awareness Month, UNICEF Ghana Child Protection Specialist Miho Yoshikawa cited figures from the US-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

The figures, reported on 23 October 2026, showed more than 51,000 CyberTipline reports in 2025 relating to child sexual abuse material accessed, shared or produced from Ghana. In 2016, the corresponding figure was 750.

The distinction matters: these are reports, not a confirmed count of individual children abused. They do not tell us how many children were affected, how many investigations were opened or how many offenders were prosecuted.

But the scale of reporting demands attention. It raises urgent questions about the people producing and circulating abusive material, the platforms through which it spreads, and the support available to children whose exploitation may continue long after the original abuse.

A child’s abuse can become a permanent digital threat

Sexual abuse does not end simply because the physical encounter is over. When images or videos are recorded and circulated, the harm can follow a child across platforms, communities and years of their life.

A child may have no idea that an image exists, who possesses it or where it has travelled. Another may know that material is circulating and live with the fear that classmates, relatives or future employers could see it.

Some children may face threats, coercion or demands for money from people using intimate images to control them. Others may be manipulated into sharing material under pressure or through relationships in which an offender has deliberately built trust.

The digital environment can make this abuse easier to distribute and harder for victims to escape. Each new upload or share can extend the loss of control over a child’s image.

This is why child sexual abuse material must not be treated as simply offensive content circulating online. It is evidence of exploitation, and its continued circulation can compound the harm to the child depicted.

The gender lens: Who bears the consequences?

Girls face particular concerns in a society where female sexuality can attract disproportionate scrutiny, shame and punishment. When sexual images circulate, a girl may be blamed for the existence of the material, even when she was manipulated, coerced or abused.

Instead of asking who created the material, who distributed it and who exploited the child, adults may ask why she took a photograph, trusted someone or used a particular platform.

That reversal of responsibility can deepen the harm.

A child who fears humiliation may remain silent. A parent who fears social stigma may discourage a report. A school may worry more about its reputation than about the welfare of a learner. A community may condemn the child while treating the person responsible as a matter for private settlement.

These are risks that Ghana’s child protection response must confront.

Boys are also victims of online sexual exploitation and abuse. They may face the same threats and coercion while encountering additional pressure to hide their experiences because they are expected to be tough or are reluctant to admit vulnerability.

A gender-sensitive response must recognise these different pressures without assuming that every child experiences abuse in the same way.

The responsibility always lies with the person exploiting the child, not the child whose trust, image or vulnerability has been abused.

Parents cannot carry the burden alone

UNICEF Ghana has called for parents and caregivers to receive the information and support they need to protect children online.

That is important. Children need age-appropriate guidance on privacy, consent, online relationships, manipulation and reporting suspicious behaviour. Parents need to know how to listen without immediately blaming, threatening or withdrawing a child’s access to education and support.

But digital parenting cannot substitute for functioning protection systems.

Children may be harmed by people they know and trust, including adults who hold authority over them. They may also encounter offenders through platforms that make it difficult to establish identities or trace the movement of abusive material.

Telling children to be careful, refusing them access to the internet or instructing them never to speak to strangers does not address every form of exploitation.

Nor should children be expected to recognise and prevent every risk on their own.

The question for Ghana is whether a child who discloses abuse can reach a trained professional, make a report safely, receive appropriate psychological support and have the complaint investigated without being exposed to further humiliation.

Platforms must be part of the solution

Technology companies have a responsibility to prevent their services from being used to exploit children, detect and report suspected abuse in line with applicable laws, and respond to reports with urgency.

The scale of the Ghana-linked figures also makes cooperation between technology companies and law enforcement essential. Digital evidence can cross borders quickly, while investigations may require coordination between several jurisdictions.

The WeProtect Global Alliance’s Model National Response identifies legislation, specialist law enforcement, survivor support, public education, research and cooperation with the technology industry as essential elements of an effective response.

For Ghana, this means evaluating not only the number of reports received but also what happens after a report is made.

Are reports assessed promptly? Can investigators identify and pursue offenders? Can abusive material be removed or access restricted? Are children protected from repeated questioning and unnecessary exposure? Are support services available beyond the initial disclosure?

Without transparent answers, a growing number of reports may tell us about the volume of suspected abuse being detected, but not whether children are becoming safer.

From alarming numbers to measurable accountability

The Cyber Security Authority, Ghana Police Service, child protection agencies, schools, technology companies and civil society organisations all have roles to play. Their responsibilities should be coordinated rather than left to separate awareness campaigns and occasional public statements.

Ghana needs a clear picture of how online child sexual exploitation is reported, investigated and addressed. That requires reliable data, trained investigators, accessible reporting channels, survivor-centred services and public accountability.

It also requires careful public communication. The number of reports should not be presented as the number of confirmed victims, nor should the increase automatically be interpreted as proof that the actual prevalence of abuse has risen by the same proportion. Better detection and reporting may affect the figures, even as the underlying threat remains serious.

The figures should prompt authorities to explain the national response, identify gaps and demonstrate what is changing.

Schools must make reporting routes clear and ensure children can disclose abuse without fear of retaliation. Parents and caregivers need practical guidance, not just warnings. Platforms must act on suspected exploitation. Investigators need the skills and resources to pursue offenders, including those operating across borders. Children and survivors need confidential, appropriate support.

Above all, children must be heard when decisions are made about their safety.

The internet is not the offender. Exploitation is.

Digital technology gives children access to education, information, friendship and opportunity. Protecting them cannot mean excluding them from the digital world or treating their online presence as a problem in itself.

It means making that world safer and ensuring that people who exploit children face consequences.

The more than 51,000 reports linked to Ghana in 2025 are a warning. But the measure of the country’s response will not be the number of forums held, campaigns launched or statements issued.

It will be whether children can seek help and receive it. Whether abusive material is acted upon. Whether investigations lead to accountability where offences are established. And whether a child who has experienced sexual exploitation can begin to recover without being blamed for what was done to them.

Ghana must move beyond telling children to stay safe online. It must demonstrate that when children are abused, the systems responsible for protecting them will act.

Gender Lens Africa will continue to examine the institutions, policies and social attitudes shaping the safety and rights of children in Ghana.

Related reading: UNICEF Ghana: Child Online Protection | WeProtect Global Alliance: Model National Response | NCMEC: 2025 CyberTipline data