Alphabet is expecting to train another million students under its Digital Skills for Africa program in the next 12 months, the company reportedly saying at events in Lagos, Nairobi, and Johannesburg.
The announcement was made following the company's 1 million mark milestone achieved today and also the opening of Google's Launchpad Accelerator for African startups earlier this month - tracking a growing presence by the global internet services firm on the continent, as reported by TechCrunch.
"Across Africa...one of the things that hold people back from taking advantage of the web is a lack of understanding on how to use digital tools," said Bunmi Banjo, Google's Growth Engine and Brand Lead for Sub-Saharan Africa. "We are providing training to young people and business owners to succeed however, they define success for themselves-finding a job, growing a business, starting on email," she added.
In Africa, Google currently has country heads in core economy nations such as South Africa (Luke Mckend), Nigeria (Juliet Ehimuan), and Kenya (Charles Murito). The Launchpad Accelerator-which offers 6 months of equity free Google startup support with two weeks in Silicon Valley-is now allowing Africa applications for acceptance.
Google provides financial and capacity support to five African tech hubs namely Kenya (iHub), South Africa, Ghana, and Uganda, and Nigeria (CCHub). The company has also initiated programs and partnerships to overcome Africa's internet access and connectivity barriers.
Though progress on mobile phone ownership and ICT infrastructure has been on-going over the last decade, the continent remains digitally disconnected in most areas. While some countries, such as Kenya and South Africa, have achieved high usage, Africa's internet penetration remains at less than one- third of the continent's, which is about 1.2 billion people.
Nonetheless, African search activity has increased significantly in recent years, which explained the rationale behind Google's effort to improve the internet infrastructure in this region.
