Johannesburg - Almost one-third of the global population is now on Facebook.
The world’s most popular social network reached two-billion users this week, its CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced in a post on Tuesday night.
"We’re making progress connecting the world, and now let’s bring the world closer together. It’s an honour to be on this journey with you,” he said.
Facebook said that two billion people are now connecting and building communities on the platform every month. Over 800 million people on the network “like” something on Facebook. Over 150 million people give a “love” reaction on Facebook each day with more than 1 billion people using Groups.
Naomi Gleit, Vice President of Social Good at Facebook said that the achievement would have not happened without the millions of smaller communities and individuals who share and make contributions every day.
“Our mission is to bring the world closer together. Reaching this milestone is just one small step towards that goal,” she said.
“We are excited to continue to build products that allow people to connect with one another, regardless of where they live, or what language they speak,” Gleit added.
Over 170 million people in Africa now access Facebook on a monthly basis. but the social network believed it could get even more Africans connected. Since 2015 the number of people connected to Facebook across Africa has grown to 42%. Estimates last year put South African users to around 14 million users
Two-weeks ago Facebook celebrated the completion of their brand new, custom designed African offices in Bryanston. Its focus here will be absolute growth into the Africa market.
READ: Inside Facebook's new Jo'burg office
Nunu Ntshingila, head of Facebook Africa, said its continental operations had expanded considerably from its initial five staff members and that the company needed bigger premises, which catered for Facebook's special needs.
The social network giant had previously rented office space in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg. The new building in Bryanston houses local Facebook employees, and boasts numerous meeting rooms that enables staff to connect with Facebook's international team.