Additionally, he noted that countries must continue to work for a common standard that "balances rights with responsibilities to keep the most vulnerable from harm and help strengthen and enrich our communities."
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari Monday declared his support for freedom of speech but said it must be balanced with responsibility.
The Nigerian leader made this known in a speech read by his Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari, at the opening session of the Global Media and Information Literacy week taking place in Abuja.
Mr Buhari said in confronting the challenges of rising misinformation and hate speech, "we must also come together to defend freedom of speech, whilst upholding other values that we cherish."
He said countries must continue to work for a common standard that "balances rights with responsibilities to keep the most vulnerable from harm and help strengthen and enrich our communities."
Most importantly, he added, was the need to strengthen trust and social cohesion by improving critical thinking competencies to adequately assess the quality of the information received and shared.
"Trust is a key ingredient of democracy and good governance. Without trust, our avowed pledge to deliver on our promises as leaders will be impeded by the lack of commitment from the governed," Mr Buhari said.
Acknowledging the opportunities technology and social media provides, Mr Buhari urged young people to harness these opportunities to strengthen the foundation of the Nigerian society and our common values.
Speaking on the dangers of misinformation, he said misinformation has been used to aggravate conflicts and crises, exacerbate insecurity, distort government efforts, fuel apprehension among the citizens and create distrust between the governments and their peoples.
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In his speech, the Assistant Director-General of Communication and Information at UNESCO, Tawfik Jelassi, said that partnerships between countries, media and journalists are needed to make cyberspace the public good.
He added that the task is incomplete without the technology companies and to achieve this, UNESCO will by February 2023 hold a conference to discuss regulating digital platforms to ensure that information is used for public good.
Rym Ali, founder of Jordan Media Institute, noted that social media can be used to build bridges across continents thereby fostering inclusivity and equality.
Although there are negatives, these negatives alert us to create boundaries where safety is concerned, he said.
