Chloe Andries
TechInAfrica- The American technology giant, Google, is slipping into the Nigerian mold to address Nigerians. The company unveiled a new feature that allow it to strengthen its interaction with Africa’s most populous country.
Now, travelers wanting to travel to Nigeria can hear travel advice in local languages on Google Map. Unveiled at a ceremony in Nigeria’s economic capital, Lagos, the feature, also available on Google Assistant, is the first of its kind deployed by Google on the continent.
But the charm operation does not stop there. The company now offer transportation services ranging from detailed maps to motorcycle calling services. Google’s driving directions will also be available in the Republic of Benin, Ghana, Rwanda, Togo and Uganda. This is an alternative way to remedy defective addressing of roads, both for drivers and their customers.
What Google really hope is that people who might take a trip to an unknown city, perhaps a trip they don’t usually take, can discover the information they need to make that trip.
In the coming months, the functionality will also allow Lagos residents and tourists to stay informed about danfos, the tiny yellow buses that travel almost every road in Lagos. Information on traffic, weather and road conditions, but also the expected fare, travel time and even photos of bus stops should be available.
African politics
The technology giant owned by Alphabet Inc. said it aims to capture new users and broaden its appeal beyond drivers alone.
“There are 10 million motorcycles in Nigeria, it’s extremely popular,” said Ramesh Nagarajan, director of product management at Google. “We’re going to market by market based on popularity.”
For the development of this new application, Google relied on the local start-up Road Preppers Technologies Ltd to collect data on the different available routes.
In recent years, Google has made no secret of its attraction for African countries, which are considered to be areas of rapid growth, thanks in particular to their rapidly growing demographics and high mobile phone penetration. In Nigeria, in particular, Google has set up Wi-Fi hotspots in Lagos since 2017 and launched a training program for millions of Africans who are passionate about technology.
Source: Africanews
