YouTube has announced the arrival of its YouTube Shorts Fund in each of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, and Morocco markets. Starting December 5, the company will reward creators and artists who make creative and unique Shorts for their contributions. The global $100 million fund was initially announced back in May and is already available in a number of markets around the world.

Shorts is a new feature YouTube rolled out in July for anyone who wants to create short, catchy videos using nothing but their mobile phones. As of July 2021, videos in YouTube’s Shorts player – which helps people around the world watch short videos on YouTube – are receiving over 15 billion daily views.  

“Since rolling out Shorts in the Middle East and North Africa earlier this year, we’ve seen great growth in viewership and creation. The Shorts Fund was the logical next step as we build our long-term monetization plan for Shorts,” Tarek Amin, Director of YouTube in the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement.

“YouTube has helped an entire generation of creators and artists turn their creativity into businesses, and in MENA the number of creators earning five and six figures from YouTube continues to grow year on year. The fund is yet another tool in YouTube’s storytelling toolbox,” he added.

In order to be eligible for the fund, creators must meet the following criteria:

  • Channels need to have uploaded at least one eligible Short in the last 180 days.
  • Channels need to abide by YouTube’s Community Guidelines, copyright rules, and monetization policies.
  • Channels uploading videos with watermarks or logos from third-party social media platforms, non-original videos (for example, unedited clips from movies or TV shows), or videos reuploaded from other creators’ channels, will not be eligible.
  • Channels do not need to be currently monetizing on YouTube to be eligible.
  • Creators must be above the age of majority in their country/region.

For more information on eligibility, click here.

Qualifying channels can earn anywhere between $100–$10,000 USD each month to start, with bonus payment amounts adjusted based on the channel’s total Shorts performance and their audience’s location.YouTube plans to expand the fund to even more countries in the coming months.

The Shorts Creator Fund is one additional way through which creators and artists can monetize their content on YouTube — from advertising to Paid Digital Goods, merchandise, branded content, and more.

Over the last three years, YouTube has paid more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media companies. In the Middle East and North Africa, the YouTube creator community continues to grow in revenue and subscription:

  • In the UAE, the percentage of YouTube channels making six figures or more in revenue (AED) is up over 40%, year over year.
  • In Saudi Arabia, the percentage of YouTube channels making six figures or more in revenue (SAR) is up over 20%, year over year
  • In Egypt, the percentage of YouTube channels making five figures or more in revenue (EGP) is up over 50%, year over year
  • In Egypt, over 4,000 channels have over 100,000 subscribers, an increase of over 40%, year over year.
  • In Egypt, over 400 channels have over 1 million subscribers, an increase of over 45%, year over year.
  • In Saudi Arabia, over 2,500 channels have over 100,000 subscribers, an increase of over 25%, year over year.