Meta Platforms Incorporated, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp has said that it will monetize Nigerian creators from June, 2024.
Meta made this known during a meeting with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu at the state house, Abuja on March 21, 2024.
Meta’s delegation for the meeting with the Nigerian government was led by Sir Nick Clegg, former UK Deputy Prime Minister and Meta’s President of Global Affairs.
Addressing the delegation from the tech giant, the Nigerian President said Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind in this age of technological advancements; hence, his administration is opening up channels of opportunities in information and communications technology, deepening capacity, and fostering partnerships.
President Tinubu emphasized his administration’s 3MTT programme, which is training three million Nigerian youths in digital technology and essential skills before deploying them to innovation hubs across the nation, the President emphasized that Nigerian youths are the most critical asset in Nigeria’s arsenal as it moves to achieve digital economic expansion.
“For us in Nigeria, we have a vibrant, gifted and resourceful youth population. Recognizing that the future is most likely to be AI-enabled, we have to prepare our youths and make them ready to compete and participate in the global economy.
“I can assure you that Nigeria is open for business. We want to lead the African continent in digital technology. Data is valuable to our development. We are ready to cooperate on technological advancements. It is the only way to go. We need a collaboration that will be a win-win for all,” President Tinubu said.
In his remarks, Sir Clegg thanked the President for an executive order he issued, which enabled the landing of the Meta-backed deep-sea cable in Nigeria.
“It is an extraordinary infrastructure project. When it comes on stream in the first quarter of 2025, it will be twice as much as the capacity of all subsea cables that exist. We buried the cable 50 percent deeper than any other subsea cables under the seabed. It is more powerful and more extensive in terms of its geographical connectivity. It could yield up to 37 billion dollars worth of increase in economic activity in the next two or three years across the African continent,” he said.
Sir Clegg also said Meta will introduce in June 2024 a feature on its Instagram app that will allow Nigerian creators to monetize their content to enable them to earn a living using the app.
“We have a lot to do with Nigeria to deepen partnerships,” he added.
The Nigerian government assured Meta of a shared future of digitalization and promised to foster policies that will encourage technology expansion in Nigeria.
Nigerian creators are currently not allowed to get monetized on all Meta platforms, a situation that has left thousands of creators frustrated in the country.
