Australia said on Tuesday it planned to introduce legislation this year to ban children from using social media platforms, citing the risks it could pose to physical and mental health.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his center-left government would begin an age verification trial over the next few months.
"I want to see kids off their devices and onto the footy fields and the swimming pools and the tennis courts. We want them to have real experiences with real people because we know that social media is causing social harm," Albanese told national broadcaster ABC News.
He did not specify the age limits for the ban but said he was "looking at the range between 14 and 16."
Albanese said he was concerned about the impacts of cyber bullying on the mental health of children and the easy exposure to content on social media that could harm them.