Uganda: The Role Marketing Platforms Play in Uganda’s Content Creator Economy

The business of creating digital content is becoming more and more successful. Statistics estimate that content marketing sector will generate around 66 billion dollars in sales in 2021 worldwide. It is expected to rise to 76 billion in 2022 and continue to expand over the following years to reach 137 billion in 2026.

With influencers and creators using this opportunity to promote Africa to the world, content creation has become a powerful force on the African continent. Youths in Uganda are taking advantage of this chance to gain global exposure on social media sites like TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, among others. Most people enter this field to capitalize on their creativity.

Creating and sharing content is easier thanks to the availability of smartphones and internet access. However, the monetization process is difficult.

Additionally, it is challenging for creators to directly benefit from their audience due to Uganda’s low disposable income. Opportunities like brand advertising, sponsorship deals and affiliate marketing are fragile because the creator is only as relevant as the buzz they create. Because sponsorship deals depend on brands, creators have no ownership or equity. They are completely under the control of the organizations that pay them to promote their goods and services. Uganda does not have the tools to compensate inventors like the Western developed nations.

In September 2021, YouTube, the largest video sharing website in the world, announced a $100 million YouTube Fund to be distributed between 2021 and 2022. It will reward content creators who produce interesting and engaging content. Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya were among the nations with a large presence. The absence of Ugandan representation highlights some gaps. This is partly because Ugandan material is mostly only consumed domestically and has yet to gain international attention, something the Afro Mobile app seeks to remedy by rewarding Ugandan content creators.

Kevin Kaija, the General Manager of Afro Mobile, believes that paying content producers will encourage them to invest more and raise the standard of Ugandan media. But perhaps more crucially, it will undoubtedly help develop it into a profitable industry like those in other areas. For example, if you Google “The Guardian”, you first have to pay a subscription to get the full site item, and they go one step further and explain why you need to subscribe.

With the move to commercialize the Afro mobile app, Ugandans can support their favorite content producers by giving them as little as UGX 500 per day, UGX 1500 per week and UGX 5000 per month in Uganda. Those living abroad can do the same by paying as little as $2.99 ​​per month, $7.99 per quarter, and $34.99 annually.