How Google for Africa programme will help drive your business digitally
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Focused on metamorphosing sustainable and resilient changes in the African tech ecosystem, Google for Africa plans to develop an environment where the internet would be more beneficial to individuals, businesses, and organisations in Africa.
The ultimate goal is to keep unlocking the benefits of the digital economy globally, while simultaneously accelerating Africa’s digital transformation.
Since 2016, Google has periodically hosted similar events across several African countries, including Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa. The Google for Africa is the first virtual edition of its kind, involving several African countries at a time.
In 2019, the third Google for Nigeria event was held. Themed ‘Making our products more helpful to more people’, Okada mode and Danfo directions were introduced in Google Maps and the Nigerian voice in Google Go and Google Maps as well as the emPawa initiative to support emerging music artists, were announced.
Still in 2019, the second Google for Kenya was hosted. The programme was themed ‘Preserving our culture, and helping Kenyan businesses grow.’ The digitised collections from the National Museums of Kenya, “Utamaduni Wetu: Meet the People of Kenya” and Bolo, the reading app to help children learn in English, were launched.
Finally, the first Google for South Africa event, themed ‘Digital inclusion’, also took place in 2019. The goal of the event was to create a more helpful internet for South Africans.
The improved Google Assistant allowed users to order an Uber or read South Africa-specific news from their favourite local news outlets. Google Go and Bolo, the reading app to help children learn in English, was also launched.
The programme seeks to leverage on the changes brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of access to digital tools and reliable information becoming a necessity. The programme is set to ensure the role of technology is well played. This includes facilitating connections, enabling remote learning and helping communities recover from the effects of the pandemic.
Committed to working together with partners to address the challenges across countries, the programme also drives at ensuring technology helps small and medium-sized businesses recover from the effect of the pandemic, further promoting economic recovery through digital transformation.
Register to attend the Google for Africa programme to drive your business acceleration. The programme will be held on Wednesday, October 6, 2021.
