• Botswana, TikTok discuss fair content monetization to include local creators in global earning programs.
• Talks highlight need for whitelist inclusion to stop high-fee intermediaries and protect creator income.
• Move positions Botswana to lead Africa’s push for fair digital revenue access and creative economy growth.

The Government of Botswana disclosed it has opened direct talks with TikTok to address structural barriers preventing local creators from fully monetizing their content, marking a critical step in Africa’s broader struggle for fair inclusion in global digital revenue systems. The meeting, confirmed by the Ministry of Youth, Sport and the Arts, brought together Minister Jacob N. Kelebeng and Tholoana Ncheke-Mahlaela, TikTok’s Government Relations and Public Policy Manager for Southern Africa.

While both sides pledged to collaborate on awareness and training for creators, the key question remains whether Botswana will be added to TikTok’s global whitelist of countries eligible for direct monetization programs. The talks mark the first formal attempt by a Southern African government to directly engage the platform on creator monetization policy.

At present, Botswana, like most African nations, remains outside TikTok’s Creator Rewards Program, which allows eligible users in whitelisted countries to earn from video views and engagement. Instead, creators in non-whitelisted markets must rely on limited revenue streams such as live gifts, brand partnerships, or indirect earnings through third-party intermediaries that often charge commissions ranging from 15% to 30%.

For Botswana’s growing digital community, this exclusion translates into a digital paywall that undermines talent growth and creative sustainability. While the Ministry’s communiqué highlights plans for collaboration and capacity building, it stops short of confirming whether TikTok has committed to reviewing the whitelist criteria, a crucial step that would allow Batswana creators to earn directly from their audiences without intermediaries.

In the absence of whitelist inclusion, local creators may fall prey to offshore brokers that facilitate payouts in exchange for fees or partial ownership of content rights. These middlemen can take cuts of up to 30%, diminishing earnings and keeping creators dependent on opaque systems. For a country where digital entrepreneurship is still emerging, such leakage undermines the goals of Vision 2036 to create a knowledge-driven, inclusive economy. A direct, policy-led engagement ensuring transparent, platform-based monetization would protect both creators’ incomes and the country’s tax base.

Botswana’s engagement also exposes a continental issue: African creators remain the engine of global online culture but receive the smallest share of platform payouts. While African content drives massive engagement, only a handful of countries—most prominently South Africa—currently appear on TikTok’s official list of monetization-eligible markets. F

or the rest, creators depend on brand collaborations, donations, or unofficial agencies, perpetuating a creator inequality gap where African voices are celebrated but underpaid. Botswana’s negotiations therefore carry continental resonance. Success in securing whitelist inclusion could serve as a template for other governments, strengthening calls for fair representation in global digital economies and pressing platforms to treat African creators as legitimate economic actors rather than peripheral contributors.

For Botswana, the road ahead involves moving from dialogue to measurable results. The Ministry’s pledge to explore policy solutions should include tracking and publishing progress toward TikTok whitelist inclusion, engaging financial regulators to streamline digital payouts and, where appropriate, reducing the 10% VAT withholding on e-services that can erode creator margins.

Hikmatu Bilali