Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has said his government arrested TikTok content creators in order to reprimand them. He said the government had a duty to protect not only the country but also its people from cyber terrorists and attacks, adding that the influencers were detained on that basis. “Ethiopia does not have the capacity to control platforms, filter content or set age limits,” he said, adding that the government needed to reprimand and correct influencers.

The prime minister was speaking at the launch of a national digital transformation roadmap, Digital Ethiopia 2030, which the government says aims to position technology as a central pillar of economic growth, governance reform and social inclusion over the next decade.

“The content creators are necessary for Ethiopia. They joined the platform, they create content, and they should be encouraged. We want to support them, but when they learn from outside influences, they should safeguard our culture and national interests,” the prime minister said. “So we decided to advise them and reprimand them through arrests,” the prime minister said. Abiy cited Australia’s recent decision to ban children under 16 from using social media.

On 12 December 2025, Ethiopia’s federal police arrested nine influencers for allegedly dressing in a way authorities said “violated the country’s values and cultural norms.” The arrests followed the 2025 Ethiopian TikTok Creative Awards, which celebrated the country’s emerging digital creators. Most of those arrested were later released from prison.

Several TikTok creators this week took part in visits to development projects in Addis Ababa and were invited to a meeting with the city administration to discuss how the platform could be kept peaceful and positive.