FOLLOWING Australia’s example, the United Kingdom has announced a ban on social media for children aged less than 16 years. This is a great step to protect children from misleading and vulgar content available on social media platforms. Several reports indicate that social media does not make children happy; it makes them anxious and depressed. In fact, it is depriving children of what they should be doing to be happy, like playing with their friends, reading good books and spending time with their families.

All parents worldwide tell their children not to speak with strangers, but on social media, children can communicate with strangers without parents knowing about it. This is proving to be very harmful.

So far, two developed countries — Australia and the UK — have banned social media platforms for children under 16 years of age. As we all know, today’s children are the future of our country. Therefore, better-guided and raised children will give a better future to their respective countries. All developing countries, including Pakistan, should do the same because they are in need of better future leaders. The government should consider taking the lead on this matter.

Ejaz Ahmad Magoon
Dubai

Published in Dawn, August 1st, 2026