Facebook has opened its first office in Africa to support the significant growth in businesses and people using Facebook in a region that boasts a population of more than 1 billion people. Facebook said that its active user population in Africa has grown 20% to reach 120 million in June 2015 from 100 million in September 2014 and more than 80% of these people access Facebook from their mobile phones. Based in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, Facebook's newest business office will be headed by Nunu Ntshingila, the company's new Head of Africa. A graduate of the University of Swaziland and Morgan State University in the US, Ntshingila helped drive the creation of Ogilvy’s network in Sub Saharan Africa and has also held senior positions at Nike and the South African Tourism board.
Facebook will initially focus on growing its business in anchor countries in the major regions of Sub Saharan Africa: Kenya (East Africa), Nigeria (West Africa), and South Africa (Southern Africa) and will partner with governments, telecom operators, agencies and other stakeholders to deliver localized solutions to advertisers and users continent-wide.
Nicola Mendelsohn, VP, EMEA, Facebook
We are inspired by the incredible ways people and businesses in Africa use Facebook to connect. This momentum in Africa comes on top of strong advertiser partnerships and excellent adoption of our products across all regions. In Q1 2015, 52% of our total ad revenue came from outside the US and Canada. But we’re just getting started. Mobile is not a trend; it’s the fastest development in communications we’ve ever seen. This couldn’t be more true in Africa – where so many people are mobile-only. This new office is a significant milestone for Facebook and our teams want to partner with businesses across the continent.
