“The digital industry is a shining light in the economy and a key driver for economic growth. Digital investment in the media is growing so it makes sense to do this,” he says.
People with digital skills are more employable and people that have more access to jobs means better economic growth for the country, he adds. “The internet has changed how we work and job titles that never existed before, exist today, such as content manager and SEO manager.”
Apart from this, research has also proven that small businesses that are online are more profitable and employ more people.
The one million young Africans will be trained through either the Digify Bytes programme, which will equip them with digital skills to enter a digital career, or Digify Pro, a three-month immersion program for digital specialists that also serves as a good departure point for someone wanting to start their own business.
Apart from these two programmes, the online learning portal digifyafrica.com allows anyone to access different tutorials to learn digital skills. Presently there are nine courses, but the aim is to have up to 50 such courses up and running by July this year. The courses can be done at your own pace and can be completed on or offline.
“The portal is specifically designed for the continent so it can be accessed through a feature phone and is data light so it does not consume much data. The courses will provide career paths in advertising agencies and the marketing department of a corporate,” explains McKend.
In South Africa, with its skills gap, there is a role for organisations to play in this space, says McKend. “The programme is designed to change the shape and demographics of the media industry.
“The question we asked ourselves was how could we scale this and get as many young African people into the programme to give them the biggest opportunity. With partners such as Livity Africa, we plan to accelerate this growth. The programme has the potential to change lives and that is what Google and its partners want to do.”
