From Wednesday, 1 February 2023 to Saturday, 16 December 2023, we held 341 awareness sessions and publicised ten information actions at major national and regional mass events, which covered 16,488 participants. The sessions took place in all regions of the country, with the North and Lisbon regions showing the highest participation rate. 

Naveg@s is an awareness and educational programme that fosters responsible and safe internet usage and enhances digital literacy. It achieves this by implementing short (45 to 60 minutes) awareness-raising sessions for groups of 25 to 30 participants.  

The animators of the “Naveg@s” sessions are young volunteers (aged 16 to 30) who possess expertise in information and communication technologies and effective communication skills. In 2023, 198 young people applied for the volunteer programme, of whom 59 were selected. The number of volunteers involved has increased significantly from 24 in 2022 to 59.

The sessions' participants were primarily teenagers (12 to 18 years old). The least significant groups are adults and seniors. Young people (aged 18 to 30) constitute 6 per cent, and children (aged 5 to 12) 15 per cent.  

Regarding the evaluation questionnaire, 1,697 responses were collected from participants in the sessions. From the answers obtained, we can conclude that most of the sessions were highly appreciated by the participants, with about 96 per cent indicating that they found the sessions interesting, instructive, and fun, while only 3 per cent said they found the session boring.  

We also organised the first in-person training meeting for young volunteers of the Naveg@s programme. It took place from 13 to Sunday, 15 October, at the Youth Hostel in Almada (Lisbon).

The meeting resulted in the production of four Naveg@s session plans by the young volunteers: 

• cyberbullying 
• hate speech and quality information 
• data protection and 
• social networks: opportunities or threats. 

The young volunteers commented on the meeting:  

"The only comment I can leave is that this meeting far exceeded expectations and was a very important step for those who are just starting to be part of this programme." 

"This was, without a doubt, an incredible experience. I cannot deny that it exceeded my expectations, and I know that I am leaving with a wealth of knowledge and a full heart!" 

Congratulations, and thank you, Naveg@s volunteers, for your commitment and participation! 

Find out more about the work of the Portuguese Safer Internet Centre, including its awareness raising, helpline, hotline, and youth participation services – or find similar information for Safer Internet Centres throughout Europe.