Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is downsizing its office space in Lagos, Nigeria, following workforce reductions in mid-2023 that affected at least 35 Nigerian employees, including the entire engineering team. The move, part of a regular review process to optimize its real estate footprint, will see Meta transition to a desk-sharing model for employees who primarily work remotely.
While Meta denies scaling back, it confirms it is no longer using engineers in Nigeria for its operations, with engineers now serving the region from global engineering hubs outside Nigeria. The reduction in team size has prompted Meta to renegotiate its tenancy agreement for its office space in the Kings Tower building in Ikoyi, Lagos, with a focus on reducing office space.
This move contrasts with Meta’s previous investments and commitments to Nigeria. In March 2024, Nick Clegg, Meta’s President of Global Affairs, announced monetization opportunities for creators in Nigeria and emphasized the platform’s recognition of Nigerian creators’ achievements. However, Meta’s recent operational changes in Nigeria align with a broader trend, as Microsoft also recently shuttered its African Development Centre and made operational changes.
shifts and operational changes globally.