By Stephanie Shakaa 

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen some of Nigeria’s most visible digital creatives post their Meta earnings and if we’re being honest, it’s crumbs compared to the content they dish out daily.

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Take, for instance, someone like Tunde Ednut or Aproko Doctor, churning out dozens of posts a day, commanding the attention of millions. You’d expect Meta to be raining Millions of Naira but many of these creators are not smiling to the bank. Not the Nigerian bank, anyway.

A content creator like Tunde posts anywhere from 20 to 30 times daily. That’s roughly 900 posts a month, each with hundreds of thousands of reactions and tens of thousands of shares and likes. If that account were based in the United States, Meta would likely be paying out in hundreds of thousands of dollars so fat they’d need a CBN truck to deliver it.

They call them influencers. Trendsetters. some of the most brilliant, hardworking content creators go to bed unsure of where their next paycheck will come from. They engage relentlessly, and build digital communities that rival global standards,yet many of them remain financially stranded. Why? Because Meta’s monetization systems were never designed with the African creator in mind.

Meta Doesn’t See Us

We have influence without Income

Passion Isn’t Enough.

We saw it with Korra Obidi and Hair tutorials and lifestyle earning a living purely from Facebook. Korra  moved to the US and Hair tutorials moved to the UK and suddenly their content had value. Not because they changed but because the location did.

In Nigeria, even the big names Taaooma, Mr Macaroni, Sabinus, Lasisi Elenu, Bovi, Layi Wasabi don’t make what their Western counterparts do on the same platforms. Why? Geography. It’s not about talent. It’s about territory.

If you told the average Nigerian politician that there’s a digital economy where people sell “content,” they’d think it’s a scam. Maybe until someone like Nyesom Wike pulls Zuckerberg by the neck and drags him to Apo to explain how someone can be “verified but broke.” Because that’s the paradox. You can have a million followers, trend on Twitter for days, and still owe rent.

Let’s not even talk about people like Brainjotter, SoftMadeIt, or content queens like Jennifer Ijeoma or Maryam Apaokagi (Taaooma), who have built massive followings with consistent, engaging storytelling yet still need brand gigs, YouTube, or skit partnerships to stay afloat. These are people who, if they were in Europe or North America, could retire off their Facebook pages alone.

Watch “Kidfluencer” on Netflix and see a 10-year-old girl, Piper Rockelle, cashing 500,000 US dollars monthly from her content. That’s over 750 million naira a month a figure some governors only whisper about.

In Africa, even features like Stars, Gifting, or Bonus Earnings are either disabled or inconsistently applied. Nigerians are paying for Meta Verification out of pocket with no meaningful monetization tools in return.

The blue badges  offer very little in return, while the actual features that help creators make a living,like tipping or subscriptions,are not activated for most of the continent. It’s a case of buying into a system that gives visibility, but not viability.

 It’s like renting a shop in a mall and not being allowed to sell.

Picture the comedic genius of someone like MC Lively, the energy of Broda Shaggi, or the cultural reach of Taooma. Their content regularly racks up millions of views. But how many of them are cashing out the way a similar creator in the US or UK would? Very few. Not because their content isn’t world-class, but because the platforms that host their brilliance do not reward them equitably.

In America, a Facebook creator with 100,000 followers could potentially take home hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. Monetization tools  are open to them without friction. Meanwhile, many Nigerian creators are locked out of these same tools,either due to regional restrictions, opaque eligibility criteria, or the lack of payment integration that works seamlessly for African banks.

Still, Nigerian creators are relentless. They don’t just wait for Meta.

So what’s the way out?

Use your page as a CV. I’ve gotten gigs writing for international organizations and been invited to high-level panels simply because I post thoughtful commentary. My Facebook timeline got me into spaces where degrees alone wouldn’t.

Sell something beyond the content. Many Nigerian creators have monetized by becoming influencers, launching digital courses, skincare brands, or fashion lines essentially selling visibility. The page itself isn’t the product. What you attach to it is.

Build a community then serve it.  They hustle. Use your platform like a digital CV,it could get you consultancy gigs, media jobs, and political appointments based on the strength of your posts. Others build massive communities around their craft, then sell books, promote events, or offer services directly to their followers.

Innovative monetization. Some, like Sisi Yemmie or Diary of a Naija Girl, have turned their platforms into businesses with subscription models, exclusive newsletters, or sponsored live sessions. It’s direct, grassroots, and it works. Nobody tells you how hard it is to build a digital community in Nigeria, let alone monetize it.

When someone  writes about governance and gets called up by an NGO to write policy briefs, or when someone  shares stories and ends up with a publishing deal, that is value being created despite Meta,not because of it. So why aren’t our governments asking Meta questions? Why aren’t Nigerian ministries like Youth and Sports, Digital Economy, or Information engaging Meta on fair creator policies? Why is Africa still at the mercy of tech giants who don’t value African engagement as economically worthy?

China created its own social platforms. Tiktok pays hugely. Why can’t we build a pan-African digital economy that values content?

Must we send Nyesom Wike to go and drag Mark Zuckerberg by the collar?

Because if Aproko Doctor, Bovi, or Taaooma had been born in Belgium instead of Benin City, they’d be millionaires in Dollars already.

The real shame is that content creation could be an economic lifeline for Africa. With the right monetization systems, a creator  could employ a team of videographers, editors, copywriters, marketers,generating not just content, but jobs. But for now, most creators can’t afford to do that. They work alone. They burn out. They post, not because it pays, but because they must. We cannot keep normalizing this digital disparity. If African governments have departments of ICT and digital economy, they must ask hard questions. What exactly is the deal with Meta and African creators? What is being done to localize monetization policies and payment structures for this continent? If China can create TikTok and set its own rules, why can’t we demand our own inclusion?

Until then, remember this. Content creation in Nigeria is not just a career. It’s a calling and passion is the only fuel we have until the system changes.

Social media is not just entertainment. It is a new economy. And in that economy, Nigerians are not asking for favors. We are asking for fairness.

Because passion can open doors, but passion alone cannot pay rent.

The future is digital, but if platforms continue to ignore African creators, we will remain on the sidelines of a game we helped to build.”

Meta must not just open its platforms to our content it must open its purse.

Stephanie Shaakaa.

shaakaastephanie@yahoo.com 

08034861434

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