ZAGREB, 2 Sept (Hina) – The City of Zagreb has issued a recommendation to primary schools in the capital to ban the use of mobile phones, Deputy Mayor Danijela Dolenec said on Tuesday, expressing hope that schools will adopt the measure.

A number of Zagreb schools have already, on their own initiative, introduced house rules prohibiting mobile phone use among pupils, with specified exceptions and sanctions. Now, this recommendation is being extended to all schools, and “we hope that most of them will adopt it,” Dolenec stated at a press conference.

She added that the recommendation had been prepared over the past school year, with schools surveyed and the Cityв’s Commission for Addiction Prevention involved, which provided expert advice.

The use of mobile phones and smartphones by children has numerous negative effects: on mental health, sleep, concentration, family relationships, and exposure to online violence, as shown by numerous studies. As a result, a number of countries have launched various initiatives to limit or ban phone use in schools, Dolenec noted.

Dolenec also noted that a 2022 study by the Institute for Social Research in Zagreb showed that more than 85 percent of teachers support banning mobile phone use in schools, as does the majority of children up to Year 5.