Popular microblogging platform Twitter has announced that it is setting up shop in Ghana and is planning to hire its first product and engineering team in Africa, an effort to expand its workforce in emerging markets where the social-media company hopes to attract new users.
Kayvon Beykpour, The head of product at Twitter announced the plans in a blog post, calling the effort an “exciting” part of the company’s growth strategy.
“To truly serve the public conversation, we must be more immersed in the rich and vibrant communities that drive the conversations taking place every day across the African continent,” he wrote.
Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo also praised Twitter Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey for the expansion in his country.
As I indicated to @Jack in our virtual meeting of 7th April 2021, this is the start of a beautiful partnership between Twitter and Ghana, which is critical for the dev’t of Ghana’s hugely important tech sector. 2/3#TwitterInGhana #TwitterGhana
— Nana Akufo-Addo (@NAkufoAddo) April 12, 2021
Why Ghana?
Nigerians are not amused!
Another Big L for Nigeria who despite having the biggest active social media users, we got over looked for Ghana. This is obviously because of the anti-business policies of APC and Buhari. Shameful
— Honourable Oke Umurhohwo (@OkeStalyf) April 12, 2021
@jack : Nigerians should be given opportunity to work at Twitter Africa Head of Office. Don't forget,we remain the giants of Africa
— Eyes4news(21st Century Critic) (@sparklighto) April 12, 2021
Twitter, however, says Ghana is a champion for democracy, supporter of free speech, online freedom, and the Open Internet, all of which Twitter is also an advocate. “Furthermore, Ghana’s recent appointment to host The Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area aligns with our overarching goal to establish a presence in the region that will support our efforts to improve and tailor our service across Africa.” Reads the statement.
“Whenever we enter new markets, we work hard to ensure that we are not just investing in the talent that we hire, but also investing in local communities and the social fabric that supports them. We have already laid foundations through partnerships with Amref Health Africa in Kenya, Afrochella in Ghana, Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI) in Nigeria, and The HackLab Foundation in Ghana. As part of our long-term commitment to the region, we’ll continue to explore compelling ways we can use the positive power of Twitter to strengthen our communities through employee engagement, platform activation, and corporate giving.”
