The young MICT Minister Emma Theofelus recently offered one of the clearest explanations yet on why Namibian content creators continue to struggle with social media monetisation.
Speaking on the Sharefest Podcast, the minister said government has done everything within its power to create an enabling environment and has repeatedly engaged major technology companies.
However, according to her, the ultimate decision lies with the platforms themselves. Her explanation was simple. The platforms view Namibia as a small market and do not believe they can generate enough revenue to justify the investment required to unlock monetisation features.
The minister also dismissed the idea that local authorities are somehow blocking the process.
“To unlock that there’s nothing the minister of ICT, the Bank of Namibia is doing to stop that process. If anything we are constantly and actively lobbying companies,” she said.
It is an important clarification because for years many creators have assumed that the problem lies with local regulations or government policy. If the minister’s comments are accurate, then the obstacle is not Windhoek.
It is Silicon Valley and the boardrooms of global technology companies.
From a business perspective, the argument makes sense. Platforms such as YouTube, TikTok and Meta do not unlock monetisation simply because users request it. They do so when they believe it makes commercial sense. Before monetisation can be introduced, companies must establish payment systems, compliance mechanisms, creator verification processes, customer support structures and various other systems that cost money to build and maintain.The real driver behind monetisation is advertising.
When a creator earns money from a video, that revenue is usually generated by advertisers. The more advertisers are willing to spend in a particular market, the more money is available to distribute among creators.This is where Namibia faces a challenge. With a population of roughly three million people and a relatively small advertising market, Namibia simply does not generate the same level of advertising revenue as larger economies such as South Africa, Nigeria, the United Kingdom or the United States.
From a purely financial standpoint, executives at major technology companies may look at the numbers and decide their resources are better spent elsewhere. However, that should not be the end of the discussion.
The “small market” explanation raises as many questions as it answers. Namibia is small, but it is not the only small country in the world. Countries such as Botswana, Jamaica, Lithuania and Estonia have populations that are similar to or even smaller than Namibia’s.
Yet creators in many of these countries enjoy access to monetisation programmes that Namibian creators are still fighting for.
This suggests that population size alone may not be the deciding factor. The more likely reality is that platforms consider a combination of factors including advertising spending, digital infrastructure, payment systems, regulatory certainty, internet penetration and the overall ease of doing business.
If that is the case, then Namibia’s challenge may be more complicated than simply being too small. The minister is probably correct when she says government cannot force multinational corporations to act.
No government official can simply order YouTube, TikTok or Meta to activate monetisation services. At the same time, saying the issue is outside government’s control should not mean the conversation stops there.The next step should be understanding exactly what the platforms are asking for.
Have they identified specific regulatory concerns?
Are there payment infrastructure issues that need to be addressed?
Do they require additional market data?
Are there regional barriers preventing rollout?
These are questions that deserve public answers because thousands of Namibian creators are directly affected by the outcome. If “small market” is the reason, then Namibia should be asking why some similarly sized countries have been able to secure monetisation opportunities while local creators continue to wait. And if there are additional barriers beyond market size, then government and the platforms owe creators a clearer explanation of what those barriers are.
For now, one thing is certain:
Namibian creators are producing content, building audiences and participating in the global digital economy. The question is whether the companies benefiting from that participation are willing to invest enough to let those creators fully share in the rewards.
But that’s just my unpopular opinion
