"We will protect them from the digital Wild West," Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said.
Spain will ban social media platforms for children under the age of 16 and platforms will be required to implement age verification systems, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Tuesday at the World Government Summit in Dubai.
"Social media has become a failed state, where laws are ignored, and crimes are tolerated," he said.
"We will protect them from the digital Wild West."
He added that his government would also introduce a new bill next week to hold social media executives accountable for illegal and hateful content.
The announcement follows Australia's world-first social media ban for children under 16 in December.
Australia's internet regulator said last month that social media companies have removed around 4.7 million accounts held by under-16s to comply with the law, which came into effect on December 10.
However, there are reports that children are finding ways to get around the restrictions, including scrunching their faces to mimic wrinkles.
Other European countries are also considering similar measures, including the United Kingdom, Denmark, and France.
Last month, French lawmakers approved a bill banning social media for children under 15. French President Emmanuel Macron said, “Because our children’s brains are not for sale — neither to American platforms nor to Chinese networks. Because their dreams must not be dictated by algorithms.”
Macron has requested that the legislation be fast-tracked, and it will now be discussed by the Senate in the coming weeks.
