Kenyan President William Ruto has encouraged content creators in Kenya to seize the opportunity to earn money from their work on Meta platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. This development is the result of an agreement between the Kenyan government and Mark Zuckerberg’s company.
“Beginning today, Kenyan content creators can monetise their videos on Meta platforms,” Ruto announced on Facebook on Tuesday, August 6. “We urge our creatives to take advantage of this opportunity to not only enhance their incomes but also create job opportunities for others. We will continue to seek more opportunities for our youth to explore their talents,” he added.
Meta’s recent announcement introduced two monetisation features for eligible content creators in Kenya: in-stream ads on Facebook and Facebook ads on Reels. These features will allow creators to earn money by producing original videos and building a community around their content.
“Every day, we’re inspired by the incredible African creators who use Facebook to tell their stories, connect with others, and bring people together,” said Moon Baz, Meta’s global partnership lead for Africa, the Middle East, and Turkey. “This expansion will empower eligible creators in the vibrant creative industry in Kenya to earn money while setting the bar high for creativity across the world and making Meta’s family of apps the one-stop-shop for all creators,” he added.
To qualify for monetisation, content creators must meet specific criteria, such as having at least 5,000 followers for in-stream ads. The discussions to enable monetisation for Kenyan creators began in March.
Kenya Media reports that eligible creators can monetise their video and reel content in over 30 languages, including Swahili. Participants must adhere to Facebook’s policies and be at least 18 years old. This initiative is expected to create more job opportunities and improve the lives of Kenyans through content creation on Facebook.
In 2022, Meta announced that content creators in 20 sub-Saharan African countries, including South Africa, the Seychelles, Senegal, Rwanda, Nigeria, and Kenya, could create and earn from Facebook Reels.
