Africa is growing rapidly and so is internet penetration on the continent. The use of mobile phones and increasing availability of Wifi has enabled users across Africa to become more active on social media platforms such as Facebook.
Recently, the founder and CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg paid a visit to Nigeria, the country with the second highest Facebook users in Africa. According to a report by CNN Nigeria is the first Sub-Saharan African country that has Zuckerberg visited.
With a total of 330 million internet users in Africa and over 44% of them on Facebook, IT News Africa has put together a list of Africa’s leading countries on the social network by subscriber numbers. Seeing the subscriber numbers below, it is no surprise that Zuckerburg decided to visit the continent recently.
1. Egypt 27 million
Officially the People’s officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a Middle Eastern country in North Africa. Egypt boasts a population of 90,067,793 people with 29,809,724 Internet users. Egypt is the sixteenth most populous country in the world and is the country with the most Facebook users. It is also ranked 20th in world for the most Facebook users.
2. Nigeria 16 million
A country in West Africa and the most populous country on the African continent. With a population of 186,879,760 people, 52.0% of the population in Nigeria use the internet to which 11.3% penetration rate. The Nigerian government was headquartered in Lagos with the fastest growing technology hub in Africa and budding tech entrepreneurs.
3. Algeria 11 million
The People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria is the second largest country on the African continent, Sudan being the largest. It has a population of 40,263,711 and 15,000,000 Internet users.
4. South Africa 13 million
Located in Southern Africa. It has a population of 54,300,704 people and 28,580,290 Internet users. South Africa is the 25th largest country in the world by land area and has close to 55 million people population.
5. Morocco 10 million
A constitutional monarcy, located in the north west of Africa, Its area of 458,730 sq. km. (172,413 sq. mi.) Morocco has a population of 33,322,699 and 20,207,154 Internet users.
6. Kenya 5 million
Officially named The Republic of Kenya – is a country in Eastern Africa. It has 31,985,048 Internet users and a population of 45,925,301. Also the fastest growing ICT, sector Kenya takes the 6th place in the list with 11.3% Facebook penetration rate.
7. Ethiopia 3.7 million
The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, as officially known, is a country situated in the Horn of Africa. It is the 2nd-most populous nation in Africa, it has a population of 102,374,489 population and 4,288,023 Internet users .Unique among African countries, Ethiopia was never colonised, maintaining its independence throughout the Scramble for Africa onward, except for a five-year period (1936-41) when it was under Italian occupation.
8. Angola 3.3 million
Located in Southern Africa, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Namibia and Democratic Republic of the Congo. Angola has 20,172,332 people and 5,951,453 internet users. It is the second largest producer of oil in sub-Saharan Africa, and the recent rise of oil prices has led to continuous GDP growth of around 20% for the past three years.
9. Ghana 2.9 million
The second last country with the least Facebook subscriber, the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It has a population of 26,908,262 and 7,958,675 internet users. Upon achieving independence from the United Kingdom in 1957, the name Ghana was chosen for the new nation as a reference to its ancient roots in the Empire of Ghana.
10. Libya 2.4 million
Officially the Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya – is a country in north Africa. Libya is the fourth largest country in Africa by area, and the 17th largest in the world. It has a population of 6,411,776 and 2,400,000 internet users with a 37.4% penetration rate. The three traditional parts of the country are Tripolitania, Fezzan, and Cyrenaica. Libya has a high GDP, due to its large petroleum reserves and low population. The flag of Libya consists of a green field. It is the only national flag in the world with just one color and no design, insignia, or other details.
[H/T:itnewsafrica.com]