The government of Tanzania has cut off access to the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, saying the move is necessary to curb the spread of pornography and protect public morals.
The country’s Minister for Information, Communication and Information Technology, Jerry William Silaa, made the announcement during a televised interview this week. The decision, he said, was deliberate.
“We’re doing this to protect our people,” Silaa said. “To protect public morals and to uphold our national laws.”
Silaa pointed directly to recent changes in the platform’s content policy. In May 2024, X updated its guidelines to allow sexually explicit material, including same-sex pornography — a shift that Silaa said runs afoul of Tanzanian regulations.
“Since X updated its content policies, it has permitted explicit sexual material,” he said. “Including same-sex pornographic content, which directly contradicts Section 16 of the national online ethics guidelines.”
The government, Silaa argued, has a duty to act.
“As a government, our duty is to ensure the safety and well-being of our people, especially the youth,” he said. “Everything we do is aimed at protecting Tanzanians.”
Silaa also invoked the power of online platforms to shape discourse and public behavior.
“Because the internet is like the sky,” he said. “What you say here will be heard by Tanzanians, whether they like it or not. That’s why the government needs to ensure that online content aligns with our national values and laws.”
For now, Tanzanians are unable to access X without turning to workarounds like Virtual Private Networks, or VPNs. These tools allow users to mask their location and encrypt internet traffic, sidestepping blocks on websites and apps.
But X isn’t the only platform under scrutiny.
Silaa said the country has also begun limiting access to certain content on YouTube, part of what he described as a broader effort to bring the online world in line with national policy.
“Even on YouTube, you might notice that some content is inaccessible,” he said. “That’s part of our broader effort to protect consumers and ensure that all online platforms operating in our country comply with our laws.”
The announcement has sparked debate in a country where access to the internet and digital media has expanded rapidly in recent years — and where government efforts to regulate speech online have drawn criticism from rights groups.
Still, officials maintain the move is about safeguarding values, not silencing voices.
“We’re not against technology,” Silaa said. “We’re against harm.”
