Meta, which owns Facebook has finally rolled out features which will allow content creators on its platform in Kenya to earn revenue from short-form videos via advertisements, the social network has said.
The tech multinational on Tuesday unveiled two monetisation options, ‘in-stream advertisements’, which show before, mid, or after videos posted on Facebook, and ‘ads on reels’ that accompany short videos posted on the platform.
Kenya is now one of the 12 African countries where Meta shares revenues earned from advertisements with creators. Others are Egypt, Nigeria, Rwanda, Ghana, and Seychelles, among others.
“This expansion will empower eligible creators in the vibrant creative industry in Kenya to earn money, whilst setting the bar high for creativity across the world and making Meta’s family of apps the one-stop-shop for all creators,” said Moon Baz, Meta’s global partnerships lead for Africa, Middle East and Turkey.
The journey to expanding Meta’s monetisation features into Kenya began in March when Meta’s President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg visited the country and met with President William Ruto.
The plan had been to roll out the features on both Facebook and Instagram by June, but Instagram creators might need to wait longer as Meta has only announced monetisation on Facebook.
To qualify for the new programme, creators will need to have at least 5,000 followers on Facebook and have more than 60,000 minutes of total watch time over the last two months.
Facebook is currently the most popular social media platform in the country, used by at least 52 percent of Kenyans aged 15 and above, according to the latest statistics by the Communications Authority of Kenya.
Other Meta platforms popular in Kenya are WhatsApp – used by 48.5 percent, and Instagram – used by 11.5 percent of the population.
Currently, only YouTube and X have been sharing revenues from advertisements with creators.
