YouTube Commences Africa Creator Week

December 1, 2021
$100m YouTube Grant

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The second edition of the Africa Creator Week, an initiative put in place by YouTube to showcase the inspirational journeys of creators on the continent, has commenced.

It is part of the efforts of YouTube to support content creators from across the continent and its commitment to nurturing black creators and artists in the #YouTubeBlack Voices programme.

The YouTube Africa Creator Week 2021 kicked off on Monday, November 29 and will end on Friday, December 3.

Highlights of the week-long programme include three motivational creator talks and a masterclass focused on teaching creators how to diversify their revenue streams and increase their income.

A storyteller video series, Stories Behind the Storytellers (https://goo.gle/thestoryteller), will spotlight the journeys of nine top African creators who are growing their fandom through inspirational storytelling and will also premiere at the event.

The nine storytellers, from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa to be featured are Fashion Wizardry (Kenya), Alex Methange (Kenya), Mandi Sarro (Kenya), Miss Techy (Nigeria), Sisi Yemmie (Nigeria), Steve Nduku (Nigeria), Financial Bunny (South Africa), Nozibele Qamngana (South Africa), and Reggie Mohlabi (South Africa).

Participating event facilitators include Taiwo Aina (Nigeria), who will be sharing her experiences as a renowned YouTube filmmaker; Kukuwa Fitness (Kenya) who will be sharing how YouTube has been instrumental in assisting her to empower communities across the world; and DEFINING Media (South Africa) who will share how they are achieving their goals of empowering people using inspiring stories.

In addition to creator-led sessions, Dr, Ethel Nakimuli-Mpungu, a renowned lecturer and psychiatric epidemiologist at Makerere University College of Health Sciences, will spearhead conversations on mental wellbeing.

“Africa is filled with inspiring stories and YouTube is committed to supporting the growth of the continent’s storytellers. The YouTube Africa Creator Week intends to spotlight top African creators who are focused on their YouTube journeys and stirring engaging conversations among content creators in order to drive growth on the continent”,  says Adetutu Laditan, YouTube Creator Marketing Manager, EMEA

Recent YouTube statistics illustrate the significant growth of the creative community across Africa. Nigeria has over 500 channels that boast over 100 thousand subscribers, an increase of over 60 per cent from the previous year.

In Kenya, over 300 channels have over 100 thousand subscribers – an increase of over 90 per cent, year on year; while in South Africa, over 250 channels now have over 100 thousand subscribers – a year-on-year increase of over 60 per cent.

“YouTube has been a partner to a generation of creators, from around the world, who have turned their creativity into businesses.

“In Africa, we are working to advance the discovery and development of the next generation of creators. We are focused on investing with an emphasis on connection, inspiration and the celebration of the uniqueness of black African voices”, Awofisayo concludes.

In January, 19 creators and four artists from Sub-Saharan Africa were selected from 132 creators around the world to receive funding from the #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund as part of the 2021 #YouTubeBlack Voices Creator Class.

The #YouTubeBlack Voices Music Class of 2022, announced earlier this year, also includes eight artists, songwriters and producers from Africa. YouTube Shorts, which was introduced to the region this year, is also enabling creators to share their stories and creativity through catchy videos made using their mobile phones.

Modupe Gbadeyanka

Modupe Gbadeyanka is a fast-rising journalist with Business Post Nigeria. Her passion for journalism is amazing. She is willing to learn more with a view to becoming one of the best pen-pushers in Nigeria. Her role models are the duo of CNN's Richard Quest and Christiane Amanpour.

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