Global streaming platform Spotify has revealed that Nigeria ranks as the second-highest consumer of podcasts in Africa.
Ncebakazi Manzi, Spotify’s Podcast Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, made this announcement in celebration of International Podcast Day.
According to him, the rise of podcast listenership in Nigeria has been exponential in the past couple of years, increasing by 222% between 2021 and 2022.
“This places Nigeria as the second country consuming podcasts the most in Africa right after South Africa.
“Nigeria is followed by Kenya, Ghana and Angola. These five countries make up the top five African Spotify countries with the most podcast listeners.
“September 30 is International Podcast Day, and we have seen the podcast landscape continually evolve and gain traction in Nigeria.“
Why podcast consumption has grown in Nigeria
Manzi highlighted that Spotify’s data revealed, Nigerian Gen Zs aged between 18 years – 24 years constituted a sizable segment of podcast listeners, accounting for 50% of the total streams, for the last 90 days.
“The demographic at the forefront of this transformation is Generation Z (Gen Z).
“With its accessibility and diversity of content ranging from storytelling to information sharing and entertainment, podcasting has become a popular choice for Gen Z listeners.
He said they were followed by listeners aged 25 years – 29 years contributing 21% of the streams.
Interestingly in the Sub-Saharan Africa region, Gen Z also tops the listenership rate with 39% of the total streams coming from them.
“Gen Z is revolutionising the podcasting landscape, and their appetite for diverse content is shaping the future of audio entertainment in Nigeria.
“We remain committed to elevating podcasting and amplifying the voice of podcasters in Nigeria and beyond.”
What you should know
Notable local podcasts leading in popularity among Nigerian listeners include The HonestBunch Podcast, I Said What I Said, Menisms, So Nigerian, and Tea with Tay.
These podcasts resonate with Gen Z and Millennials due to their engaging content, focus on trending topics and candid conversations.
Regarding preferred podcast listening times in Nigeria, Spotify data reveals that most listeners tune in between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., likely during commutes, while stuck in traffic, or while preparing for the day.
Manzi highlighted Spotify’s efforts to make podcast creation and consumption more accessible. Spotify for Podcasters offers a one-stop shop for content creation, interactive features like Q&A and polls, and advanced analytics to track a show’s growth.
For listeners, Spotify continually enhances the listening experience, introducing features such as auto-generated transcripts, expanded podcast chapters, and updated podcast show pages.
As podcasting continues to evolve, understanding Gen Z’s preferences and behaviours will be crucial for all stakeholders in Nigeria’s podcasting ecosystem, particularly considering that Gen Z constitutes 50.9% of the country’s total population, according to Manzi.
“Especially, as they lead with 50.9 per cent of the total population in the country,” he said.
In Spotify’s global roundup, Nigeria secured the second position, following Brazil, which is one of its fastest-growing podcast markets.
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