Helena Lersch, TikTok’s vice president for Public Policy, and Solly Malatsi, minister of communications and digital technologies of South Africa

TikTok has pledged strict respect to data privacy regulations, engaging African governments to promote online safety at the 2nd Annual Sub-Saharan Africa Safer Internet Summit in Cape Town.

The company's second annual Africa Safer Internet Summit included government officials, regulators, and industry executives from across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Delegates from South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Kenya, and other countries met to discuss crucial topics such as online safety, content moderation, and digital policy development.

The Summit, the social media company said, also highlighted TikTok's continued efforts to prioritise user safety across Africa, as well as establish an open discussion with legislators to shape rigorous frameworks that safeguard users' rights while supporting digital innovation and creativity.

Solly Malatsi, South Africa's minister of communications and digital technologies, officially opened the Summit, pointing out the importance of collaboration between governments, technological platforms, and communities in creating a safer digital ecosystem.

Helena Lersch, TikTok's vice president of Public Policy, stressed the platform's dedication to user safety and the value of collaboration in creating a secure digital environment.

"Billions of people use TikTok every day to create, share, and connect, and we're always updating our policies and procedures to protect our platform and allow our community to discover and do what they love. This conference emphasises the need of collaboration among industry leaders and regulators in creating an innovative and secure digital environment," stated Lersch.

Fortune Mgwili-Sibanda, Sub-Saharan Africa's director of public policy and government relations, emphasised the importance of collaborative efforts in digital safety, stating that the Summit provides a valuable platform for sharing insights, strengthening collaboration, and ensuring that African users, particularly young people, are safe online.

During the conference, TikTok announced a huge spike in its content removal rate across Sub-Saharan Africa, with data showing a 249.81% increase from the second quarter of 2023 to the fourth quarter of 2024.

This enhancement, according to the company, is compatible with TikTok's global standards for content control and community guidelines enforcement.

TikTok's Community Guidelines Enforcement Reports reflect the platform's continued investment in automated moderation technology, which collaborates with human safety experts to identify and delete hazardous content before it reaches users, said the company.

It went on to say TikTok removed approximately 147 million videos globally between July and September 2024, with 118 million detected and removed automatically using these technologies.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, TikTok said it removed over 7.5 million videos in Q3 2024, increasing to more than 8 million in Q4 2024—a 14.06% quarterly increase.

Notably, 99.5% of these videos were removed before any user reports were submitted, highlighting TikTok's commitment to proactive moderation and quick action, TikTok said.

According to the company, a similar trend was seen in North Africa, where TikTok removed approximately 7 million videos in the third and fourth quarters of 2024.

It said this was an 8.70% increase in removals between quarters, with 99.3% of these takedowns occurring prior to user reports.

The company said: “These findings highlight TikTok's ongoing efforts to provide a secure and healthy online environment with comprehensive, technologically assisted content management methods.”

Furthermore, TikTok said it is increasing its efforts in Africa as part of a larger commitment to digital safety and education, including strategic partnerships and training initiatives that encourage digital literacy, safety awareness, and responsible content creation.