Barbados will soon be implementing regulations on social media and artificial intelligence to protect young people.
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley yesterday warned that technology was increasingly shaping their mental health, behaviour and sense of self in ways society did not yet fully understand.
Speaking at the official launch of the Young People’s Village at Holders, St James, Mottley said the world had reached a point where governments could no longer ignore the impact of technology on children and adolescents and regulation was now necessary to ensure balance and fairness.
“We are at a stage, not just in Barbados but across the world, where many young people sometimes feel rudderless and not rooted, where they are asked to compare themselves to what they see on screens . . . and because technology can perfect images and make unreal many things, the comparisons are very much underwhelming and undermining people,” she said.
The Prime Minister warned that technology had turned many young people into “addicts of the screen” instead of using digital tools for empowerment. She said Cabinet had already begun educating itself on artificial intelligence as Barbados prepares for the digital age.
“Our Government is very, very clear . . . regulation is absolutely necessary to ensure that there is balance and fairness in this space,” the Prime Minister said. (CLM)
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