Facebook Express WiFi - All You need to know.

Nigerians were thrown into excitement last week with the 'unannounced' arrival of Founder and CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerburg, to the country. Mark Zuckerburg visit to Nigeria was his first to sub-saharan Africa and a lot of buzz was generated after he was pictured walking on the famous streets of Yaba and having an early morning jog on Africa's first suspension bridge, the Lekki-ikoyi link bridge. On his Facebook page, he posted a pic of one Mrs Rosemary Njoku who runs a Facebook Express WiFi stand in Lagos. This raised a lot of questions, What is Facebook Express Wifi? Why should we get excited about it? Not to worry, I have all the answers to your questions.

WHAT IS FACEBOOK EXPRESS WiFi?

Facebook ExpressWiFi or ExpressWiFi is an innovative service by Facebook in partnership with internet.org to work with network carriers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Local enterpreneurs to help expand connectivity to undeserved locations around the world.

WHAT COUNTRIES ARE USING FACEBOOK EXPRESS WiFi?

As at 1st of September 2016, India and Nigeria are the only two countries using Facebook Express WiFi.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Facebook Express WiFi works like every WiFi service. All you have to do is buy any of the cheap data plans then whenever you are close to any of the hotspots, just connect to the internet and start enjoying fast internet. Note that websites like Facebook, Jobberman etc which are part of Facebok Free Basics are FREE to be accessed and you are not charged until you visit another external website.

WHAT ARE THE PLANS AVAILABLE?

Here are the plans available :

Data Bundle	Cost	Validity
100MB	N40	24hrs
300MB	N110	24hrs
750MB	N270	7 Days
2GB	N700	7 Days
3GB	N1000	30 Days
5GB	N1600	30 Days

Do You Know?
Zenith bank customers can access FREE WiFi service at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). Find out how here.

HOW CAN I GET FACEBOOK EXPRESS WiFi IN NIGERIA?

Facebook has partnered with Coolink to bring Wifi hotspots to Lagos only (Other states will be included later). At the moment there are about 25 different hotspots spread around the Lagos metropolis. To find which hotspot is close to you, check here.

HOW DO I SIGN UP FOR FACEBOOK EXPRESS WiFi?

Visit the Coolink website and sign up to join the program. You also get a 14 day free trial to test out the network.

My Opinion...

I believe the Express wifi is an awesome opportunity for Nigerian data consumers and even budding entrepreneurs who can sign up to be retailers just like Mrs Njoku, you get the Wifi equipment (including a 1KVA inverter) setup for free and get 15% commission on each purchase of a data plan.

Moreover, the cost of data is very affordable with 5GB worth of data available for just N1600 and did I mention the speed is more than 10Mbps! No scrappy network. This is a wonderful initiative by Facebook who is bidding to take over the Internet little by little. They have already captured Africa's biggest internet user, Nigeria, already.

What do you think about the Express Wifi? Good or Bad? Let's hear your opinion in the comment box!

Credits: Internet.org, TechSuplex