Google has announced Google Africa Developer Scholarships 2022, an Android and Google cloud training opportunity for developers in Africa. Partnering with Andela and Pluralsight the tech giant will award an additional 30,000 slots to aspiring and professional developers in the continent.
The campaign looks to increase the number of certified software developers in Africa. Applications will be open from May 31. The news coincides with Google’s annual I/O developer conference, where the company discusses Africa’s burgeoning developer ecosystem.
“Opportunities for software developers in Africa are at an all-time high. At Google, we have been supporting developers in Africa through community and training programs for over 10 years.”
“Today, there are more than 180 active developer communities in 30 countries across Africa that provide developers with the opportunity to connect, learn and grow together,” Africa’s Developer Training Program Manager John Kimani said.
Last year, Google disbursed 10,000 Google Developer scholarships to beginners with little or no programming experience and 5,000 scholarships to professional developers with one or more years of experience on Android and mobile web development tracks.
The successful applicants will access carefully curated content on Android app development with Kotlin and Google Cloud to help them prepare for Associate engineer level certification. They will also be supported by a pan-African network of peer learning groups and community mentors.
According to Google and Accenture’s 2021 Africa Developer Report, the flourishing startup ecosystem and global demand for remote work are driving prospects for software developers in Africa.
The ADR research looked at how technology businesses might increase job preparedness and access to these possibilities by implementing education and training programs.
The report also showed that roughly one out of every two engineers in Africa has participated in a Google developer training or community activity.
