Nigerians, others bag N4m in Google competition

Two Nigerians and three others have made it to the final stage of the Google Africa Connected competition, a contest organised to reward young Africans who explored internet space to their advantage.

The five lucky winners are Tim McGuire (South Africa), Nqobizitha Mlilo (Zimbabwe), Mayowa Adegbile (Nigeria), Lamine Mbengue (Senegal) and Steve Kyenze (Kenya).

Announcing the winners at an event in Nairobi, Google Lead for the Africa Connected initiative, Affiong Osuchukwu, said: “There are over 1 billion people living in Sub-Saharan Africa and currently 16 percent of them are online.

“Selecting the shortlist was not an easy task: each winner shares a unique perspective of how they have used the internet to solve a problem, earn a living, or create opportunities, not just for themselves, but also for others around them.”

According to him, Google awarded $10,000 to the winners to help grow their ventures and initiatives for greater social and economic impact.