PLDT, Smart recognized for whole-of-nation approach to child protection, reinforcing sustainability

MANILA, Philippines, Dec. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --The recent Global Child Forum brought to the fore, best practices of private companies worldwide, including PLDT and Smart's whole-of-nation approach to safeguard children.

Held at the Royal Palace in the presence of the King and Queen of Sweden, the exclusive invitation-only global forum, gathered thought leaders for a high-level discussion on children's rights and how businesses can work together to create safer online lives for the youth.

Representing the Philippines at the forum was PLDT and Smart's FVP and Head of Group Corporate Communications, Cathy Yang, who discussed the group's efforts to safeguard the welfare of Filipino children. In particular, PLDT was lauded for its multi-pronged and multi-stakeholder approach to promote the cyber safety and wellness of young Filipinos.

"We are grateful to be recognized for developing and implementing policies and practices that address the Group's impact on children's rights. Integrating child rights into the business helps us offer solutions and services that naturally contribute to positive value for children, and, in a whole-of-nation approach, serving as an anchor to our overall sustainability goals," Yang said.

PLDT and Smart recognize the important role of children as future shapers of the nation, and are working hard to build a better and safer world for them. Over the years, the group has promoted programs and strong alliances with government and private organizations to create safer spaces for children.

The group was the first Philippine corporate entity to integrate children's rights into business operations, made possible through the pilot of UNICEF's updated Mobile Operators Child Rights Impact Self-Assessment (MO-CRIA) tool. The MO-CRIA enabled PLDT and Smart to fully understand the challenges, opportunities, and impact of child rights to the conduct of business.

To underscore their commitment to align their child rights focus to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) pillars, PLDT and Smart also continue to provide relevant resources, tools, and training to their executives, employees, customers, and communities they serve.

PLDT and Smart have also invested significantly on cybersecurity technology to safeguard children online. The group's Child Protection Platform has blocked around 220,000 attempts to open online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC) as of end-September. To date, PLDT and Smart have blocked more than 1.3 billion attempts to access OSAEC materials after identifying around 465,000 URLs related to online child abuse.