The American microblogging and social networking service, Twitter, on Monday, announced that it would open an office in Ghana for wider reach across the African continent.
“Twitter is now present on the continent. Thank you, Ghana, and @NAkufoAddo,” the company’s CEO, Jack Dorsey, tweeted.
Some Nigerians have seen the move as a slap on the country given the fact that there are more social media users in Nigeria than in Ghana.
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As of January 2021, Nigeria had about 32 million active social media users, while Ghana accounted for about 8 million active social media users, according to Statista.com.
Explaining its decision to start off in Ghana, the social media company stated that the country modelled what true democracy was all about.
It added that the country was the least place in the continent where free speech (on social media) is being suppressed.
“Today, in line with our growth strategy, we’re excited to announce that we are now actively building a team in Ghana. 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.
“We are looking for specialists to join several teams including product, design, engineering, marketing and communications.
“Full details on current job openings can be found on the Twitter Careers site. Aligned with our existing WFH policies, we look forward to welcoming and onboarding our new team members remotely so that we can make an immediate impact while we explore the opportunity to open an office in Ghana in the future.
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“As a champion for democracy, Ghana is a supporter of free speech, online freedom, and the Open Internet, 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,” Twitter stated on its website.
Reacting to the development, the President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, thanked Jack for the consideration while assuring him of a good working environment.
“The choice of Ghana as HQ for Twitter’s Africa operations is EXCELLENT news. Gov’t and Ghanaians welcome very much this announcement and the confidence reposed in our country,” he tweeted.
The choice of Ghana as HQ for Twitter’s Africa operations is EXCELLENT news. Gov’t and Ghanaians welcome very much this announcement and the confidence reposed in our country. 1/3 #TwitterInGhana #TwitterGhana https://t.co/HdCqFgXK0x
— Nana Akufo-Addo (@NAkufoAddo) April 12, 2021