Meta is bringing Facebook Reels for iOS and Android to more than 20 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to help content creators monetise their work on the platform.
Reels is a Facebook tool that permits short-form videos akin to TikTok videos, and it will be available in Africa for the first time.
According to Meta, content creators in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Swaziland, Seychelles, Senegal, Rwanda, Nigeria, Namibia, Mali, Malawi, Lesotho, Kenya, Guinea, Ghana, Cape Verde, Cameroon, and Burkina Faso will now be able to use Facebook Reels.
Facebook Reels were previously accessible in India, Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
The popularity of online video is continuously increasing. According to Invideo, a global video creation company, the average consumer is predicted to spend 100 minutes per day watching online videos this year.
Nunu Ntshingila, Meta’s regional director for Sub-Saharan Africa, said of the availability of Facebook Reels in the continent, “we have noticed that video now accounts for virtually all of the time people spend on Facebook and Instagram, and Reels is our fastest-growing content type by far.”
“That is why we’re working hard to make Reels the best platform for creators to get noticed, engage with their audience, and make money.” We also want to make finding and sharing valuable and amusing content pleasant and straightforward.”
According to the social media company, it is deepening its relationship with content creators by providing a range of ways for them to make money from their Reels.
“As part of Meta’s US$1 billion creator investment, the Reels Play bonus programme pays eligible creators up to US$35 000 per month based on the views of their qualifying Reels. The bonus scheme will be expanded to more countries in the coming months, allowing more creators to be rewarded for creating Reels that their communities love.”
As part of the launch, Meta will also roll out brand suitability controls, “including publisher lists, blocklists, inventory filters, and delivery reports for banner and sticker ads in Facebook Reels in every region they are available. In addition, advertisers will be given more control over how their ads appear in places they don’t consider suitable for their brand or campaign.”
Meta also claims to have “been testing full-screen and immersive advertisements in between Facebook Reels since October last year, and will roll them out to more sites around the world in the coming months.” As a result, people can comment, like, view, save, share, and skip them just like they can with organic Facebook content.”
