Digi revolution focus in Soweto
GOOGLE: BRIDGING TECHNOLOGY GAP IN AFRICA
Jobseekers, businesses to benefit the most from Digital Skills for Africa scheme.
Google has launched a new stage in its Digital Skills for Africa programme, an initiative aimed at training 10 million young Africans by 2022. At an event held in Soweto yesterday, the search engine giant announced its plans to deepen its focus to ensure that it achieves its target by launching digital skills in communities.
The initiative aims to bring technology literacy courses to jobseekers and businesses to about 100 communities across the African continent, among them South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. Soweto is the first community to benefit from the initiative.
Mzamo Masito, chief marketing officer for Google Sub-Saharan Africa, said: “The digital skills programme provides free training courses, tools and in-person coaching. It helps people get the right skills to find a job, advance their careers or grow their businesses.”
Masito said by engaging at community level, Google hoped to get more business and individuals online and equipped to take advantage of the opportunities the internet offered.
“We know that more needs to be done to support our people to succeed in the digital world, and we want to be part of that,” she said. “The internet offers huge opportunities to start new businesses and grow existing ones, and we’re committed to helping people in Soweto and across South Africa make the most of the digital revolution within their communities.
“This is in line with the government’s National Development Plan, which seeks to create five million jobs in the [information and communications technology] sector by 2030.”
Since first announcing the programme in April 2016, Google has trained more than two million Africans in more than 900 communities in 29 countries across Africa. It reached its first target of training one million people in March last year.
The programme offers 89 courses through its online portal. Google is also collaborating with its training partners to offer face-to-face courses and workshops for communities, small businesses, and government departments.
Lindamahle Management Systems chief executive Zine Nkukwana said: “People who don’t know the digital space are being left behind – they need the skills and digital literacy Google’s programme is providing.”
Lindamahle Management is one of the training partners.