GOOGLE WANTS TO CREATE JOBS IN SA

Tech giant Google is planning to create 300,000 jobs in South Africa by 2030.

This bold statement is backed up by the US-based company’s R1.7 trillion contribution to the South African economy.

Google believes that South Africa can become the AI leader on the African continent and the global stage due to the country’s high number of young people and high unemployment rate.

During a press conference at the launch of Google’s Johannesburg cloud region, Google’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa President Tara Brady said he believes in South Africa’s potential.

“I do believe that when you have a large number of organisations willing to invest in training, you could leapfrog many other countries and become an AI leader.”

For once, South Africa’s high unemployment rate is counting for something positive.

“When you have such high unemployment, it means that we can put those people to work, which is an opportunity that we don’t have in other regions.”

According to MyBroadband, South Africa’s unemployment rate was last reported at 31.9%, with youth unemployment for those aged between 15 and 35 sitting at 44.6%.

Solly Malatsi, South Africa’s minister of communications and digital technologies, said the government is excited about the opportunities ahead, thanks to Google.

“We look forward to working with Google to explore how we can collaborate in advancing digital skills development, thereby ensuring that this investment has both economic and social impact.”

Image credit: MoreBranches