SOCIAL MEDIA

Facebook Reels is launched in 20 sub-Saharan African markets

By our News Team | 2022

Reels is the platform’s fastest-growing content format and acknowledges the massive increase in user demand for video.

Meta, the company that owns Facebook, has announced that it is expanding the availability of Facebook Reels for iOS and Android to more than 20 countries across sub-Saharan Africa.

It is also introducing better ways to help creators to earn money, new creation tools and more places to watch and create Facebook Reels.

Prior to this launch, Reels was only available on Facebook in India, Mexico, Canada and the US. Now it is available across sub-Saharan Africa in: Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Swaziland, South Africa, Seychelles, Senegal, Rwanda, Nigeria, Namibia, Mali, Malawi, Lesotho, Kenya, Guinea, Ghana, Cape Verde, Cameroon and Burkina Faso.

Commenting on the launch, Nunu Ntshingila, Regional Director for sub-Saharan Africa at Meta says: “We’ve seen that video now accounts for almost all of the time people spend on Facebook and Instagram, and Reels is our fastest-growing content format by far.

Photo courtesy of Facebook

Easy for users to find and share entertaining content

“This is why we’re focused on making Reels the best way for creators to get discovered, connect with their audience, and earn money. We also want to make it fun and easy for people to find and share relevant and entertaining content.”

In addition, Meta is creating a variety of opportunities for creators to earn money for their reels. The Reels Play bonus programme is part of the company’s US$1-billion creator investment, which pays eligible creators up to US$35,000 a month based on the views of their qualifying reels. In the coming months, the bonus program will be extended to more countries.

As part of the launch, Meta has also unveiled brand-suitability controls. These include including Publisher Lists, Blocklists, Inventory Filters and Delivery Reports for Banner and Sticker Ads in Facebook Reels

This gives advertisers more control over how their ads appear in places they don’t consider suitable for their brand or campaign. Additionally, Meta has been testing full-screen and immersive ads in between Facebook Reels since October of last year, and will roll them out to more places around the world over the coming months, the company says.

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