Google revealed today that 40,000 new developer scholarships will be available in Africa. The scholarships, which were developed in collaboration with tech companies Pluralsight and Andela, will be available to developers for mobile, web, and cloud development. These scholarships will be available for both beginner and intermediate residents of Africa. Furthermore, the top 1000 students will receive a scholarship to be certified in these technologies.
The news was shared both in a virtual event, as well as in the company’s blog post. The company invited the most prominent start-ups and companies in Africa’s technological industry.
Additionally to the scholarship program, Google has also announced the next edition of the Acceleration Program for African start-ups. This year it will be the 6th time that they are releasing it. The three-month-long program will start on 21 and the application process will close on May 14.
Head of Google Accelerator program for Africa stated: “Last year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first virtual class of Google for Startups Accelerator Africa was launched. It was the first all-online iteration of Google’s accelerator program for Africa and saw 20 startups from seven countries undergo a 12-week virtual journey to redefine their offering while receiving mentoring and attending workshops,”.
Google has worked with 50 start-ups from 17 different African countries so far. Furthermore, they want to keep on working and expanding the program even more. It is because of the impact that these programs have. According to the Africa Internet Economy 2020 study, funded by Google and the International Finance Corporation, Africa’s Internet economy is expected to develop at a rate of 5.25 percent over the next five years.
The Google for Startups Accelerator Africa provides start-ups access to the best things that Google has to offer: its specialists, networks, and innovative technologies. Through interactive workshops and labs led by Google experts and mentors, the accelerator educates participating startups on all of the relevant topics such as technology (AI/ML, Cloud, Android, Firebase), product, data, market, design, people, development, and fundraising.
I personally believe that these kinds of programs have a significant impact on Africa’s day-to-day life’s and I hope that this will continue and expand even more by other large tech companies in the future.