South Africa to become Google's first African Cloud region

San Francisco: Google announced the launch of its first Cloud region in the African continent on Wednesday. South Africa will join the 35 cloud regions and 106 zones that make up the Google Cloud global network.

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai stated last year that Google would invest $1 billion in Africa over the following five years to support a variety of initiatives, from increased connections to investment in startups, to assist drive Africa's digital transformation.

"The future cloud region in South Africa will bring Google Cloud services closer to our local customers, enabling them to innovate and securely deliver faster, more reliable experiences to their own customers, helping to accelerate their growth," said Nitin Gajria, Managing Director, Google Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to research by AlphaBeta Economics for Google Cloud, the South African cloud region will contribute more than a cumulative $2.1 billion to the country's GDP and will support the creation of more than 40,000 jobs by 2030.

Along with the cloud region, Google said it is expanding its network through the Equiano subsea cable and building Dedicated Cloud Interconnect sites in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Lagos and Nairobi.

"We continue to support African entrepreneurs in growing their businesses and developing their talent," said Google.

"We've also continued to support nonprofits working to improve lives in Africa, with a $40 million cash and in-kind commitment so far," it added.

With inputs from IANS