Facebook opens new office in Nigeria

Facebook has announced that it will be opening an office in Lagos, Nigeria – its second office on the African continent. The move is aimed at supporting the whole of sub-Saharan Africa.

The office is expected to become operational in the second half of 2021 and will be the first on the continent to house a team of expert engineers building for the future of Africa and beyond.

Facebook’s office will be home to various teams servicing the continent from across the business, including sales, partnerships, policy, communications and engineers.

“The opening of our new office in Lagos, Nigeria presents new and exciting opportunities in digital innovations to be developed from the continent and taken to the rest of the world,” said Ime Archibong, Facebook’s head of new product experimentation.

“All across Africa we’re seeing immense talent in the tech ecosystem, and I’m proud that, with the upcoming opening of our new office, we’ll be building products for the future of Africa, and the rest of the world, with Africans at the helm.

“We look forward to contributing further to the African tech ecosystem,” Archibong said.

Big milestone

The investment in the new office follows the 2018 opening of NG_Hub, Facebook’s first flagship community hub space in Africa, in partnership with CcHub, and the 2019 opening of a small business group (SBG) operations centre in Lagos.

“Our new office in Nigeria presents an important milestone which further reinforces our ongoing commitment to the region,” said Kojo Boakye, Facebook’s director of public policy for Africa.

“Our mission in Africa is no different from elsewhere in the world – to build community and bring the world closer together – and I’m excited about the possibilities that this will create, not just in Nigeria, but across Africa,” Boakye said.

Supporting businesses

Since its first office in Africa opened in 2015, Facebook has made a number of investments across the continent, aimed at supporting and growing the tech ecosystem, expanding and providing reliable connectivity infrastructure and helping businesses to grow locally, regionally and globally. 

This includes the recent rollout of its SMB Grants programme in Nigeria and South Africa, which will support over 900 businesses by providing a combination of cash and advertising credits to help small businesses as they rebuild from COVID-19. 

The development of 2Africa, the world’s largest subsea cable project, will deliver much-needed internet capacity and reliability across large parts of the continent. It will also facilitate training programmes across Africa which support various communities, including students, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), digital creatives, female entrepreneurs, start-ups and developers.

“We’re delighted to be announcing our new office in Nigeria,” said Nunu Ntshingila, regional director for Facebook Africa. “Five years on from opening our first office on the continent in Johannesburg, South Africa, we’re continuing to invest in and support local talent, as well as the various communities that use our platforms.

“The office in Lagos will also be key in helping to expand how we service our clients across the continent,” Ntshingila said.

Head of Facebook Africa, @NunuNtshingila, talks the meaning of the Zulu word 'Ubuntu'. #OgilvyCannes #CannesLions pic.twitter.com/8S2Lvfs2R1

— Ogilvy South Africa (@OgilvySA) June 22, 2016

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