COVID19: Facebook Invests $100 Million in 30,000 SMEs

With the escalation of the COVID19 outbreak, Facebook has embarked on different measures to keep people safe by way of stopping misinformation and supporting global health experts. In addition to those measures, Facebook announced that it is investing $100 million to help 30,000 small businesses in over 30 countries where it operates.

In a statement, the company said, “We’ve listened to small businesses to understand how we can best help them. We’ve heard loud and clear that financial support could enable them to keep the lights on and pay people who can’t come to work. That’s why today I’m announcing that Facebook is investing $100 million to help 30,000 small businesses in over 30 countries where our employees live and work.

“We also want to make it easier for businesses everywhere to find help and receive training and support from our teams. We’ve made our Business Hub—a resource for Facebook employees and health experts—readily available for all. We are also creating new virtual training to support businesses operating in this new and unsettling environment,” they added.

According to the company, its focus has always been to keep people safe and informed by making sure everyone has accurate information.

READ MORE: COVID19: Facebook, Twitter Joins Google to Crack Down On Misinformation

“In recent weeks, we have seen inspiring examples of individuals and groups helping each other. People across the globe are stepping up, rising to the enormous challenge in front of us. We want to do our part too. Small businesses are the heartbeat of our communities, and many of the people who run these businesses are heavily affected by the crisis – especially as more and more people sensibly stay home. The longer the crisis goes on, the greater the risk to small businesses and to the livelihoods of their owners and employees,” Facebook said.

Teams across the company are working every day to help businesses, and are looking at additional ways to host virtual training – and will have more to share in the coming weeks.

Facebook says it’s finding more ways to help people connect and learn to use technology through Blueprint and free e-learning training program.

“Whatever happens next, we will be working to help businesses weather this storm. Please keep safe and look out for those around you,” the company said.