Interest in the family has grown in an era of accelerating change, as the lives of individuals and societies face mounting tests and challenges. The family's situation in our current age is accompanied by risks — particularly for children — requiring attention not only at the local level but also internationally.
The family derives its importance from its role in building and developing society, providing it with its most precious resource: human capital.
There is no doubt that in our contemporary world, where digital platforms are accessible on multiple smart devices and within reach of children from kindergarten age up to 17 — the critical adolescent stage — children and teenagers live in a virtual world that captivates them and steers their abilities and energies with extraordinary speed toward involuntary attraction and interaction. They spend long hours in isolation, without oversight or accountability, inhabiting a virtual world that cuts them off from reality and leads them toward consequences that are deeply harmful. Among the most recent manifestations of this are games targeting all age groups, especially young people.
This has effectively ended the child's traditional role within the family — one of participation and collective interaction — increasing the risk of introverted and aggressive behaviour that can develop, without doubt, into complex psychological and aggressive disorders. This is especially true of games with tragic outcomes, which appear simple on the surface but unfortunately employ sophisticated psychological techniques to attract adventure-seekers and gaming enthusiasts, exploiting the competitive instinct under the guise of survival of the fittest.
It is from this standpoint, and driven by these justifications and motivations, and out of the concern of our wise leadership to avert the consequences of children's unrestricted use of social media platforms — with no oversight or accountability — given the grave risks this poses to children, to the family unit as the nucleus of society, and to the social and moral values of our country, that the Cabinet, chaired by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister, and Ruler of Dubai, may God bless him, issued a decision regulating children's access to social media platforms. The move reflects the UAE's direction toward establishing an advanced model for the protection of children in the digital space and strengthening the digital safety framework, in line with the rapid evolution of technology use. The decision aims to enable children to benefit from technology within a safe, balanced, and age-appropriate digital environment.
The decision comes amid the growing use of social media platforms by children and the associated increase in digital challenges and risks — including exposure to inappropriate content, unsafe interaction, collection of personal data, and patterns of excessive use. This calls for the development of a comprehensive national framework that balances empowering children to benefit from technology with strengthening their protection in the digital environment, and reflects the UAE's leadership in developing advanced legislative models that keep pace with global digital transformations, placing child safety and quality of life among its national priorities.
The decision also reinforces the coherence of the legislative framework related to child protection, which encompasses the Child Rights Law, legislation on combating cybercrimes, media regulation, and children's digital safety — entrenching the integration of institutional roles and the state's approach to providing a safer digital environment for children.
The decision covers social media platforms that allow users to create accounts or personal profiles, or enable them to interact socially and publish and circulate content.
Returning to the point: concern for children in the UAE draws its principles and values from the depths of our authentic human civilisation and the vision of the country's wise leadership since its founding by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul, who worked with complete dedication and sincerity to advance the welfare and reality of children in the UAE and across the world without exception.
The Cabinet decision, which sets 13 as the minimum age for creating personal accounts on social media platforms and prohibits their use for those below that age, represents a proactive step to enhance digital safety for children and define the responsibilities of technology platforms in protecting them. It is consistent with advanced global trends in digital child protection and presents a balanced model combining digital safety, family support, platform accountability, and practical enforceability. This supports the UAE's transition to an advanced stage in regulating the digital space — one grounded in proactive legislation, institutional integration, and a balance between innovation and protection — and reinforces the country's standing as a leading global model in child protection and ensuring their safety in the digital age, reflecting its enduring commitment to building a safe and sustainable digital society.