Report: Demand for African Developers by Global Firms at an All Time High

Demand for African developers has reached an all-time high according to the findings of a study conducted across 16 Sub-Saharan African countries.

The Africa Developer Ecosystem Report 2021 indicates that recruitment of developers in the continent reached a record high in 2021 against the backdrop of a global economic crisis and the impact of the pandemic.

The report indicates that following a 22% increase in the use of the internet among small and medium businesses on the continent, the need for web development services also increased alongside higher demand for remote development work as 38% of African developers work for at least one company based outside of the continent.

For instance, Nigeria’s professional developer population added an estimated 5,000 new professional developers to its pool in 2021.

“While Africa’s tech innovation sector is making great strides, global tech companies, educators, and governments can do more to ensure that the industry becomes a strategic economic pillar. At Google, we are intent on further igniting training and support for this community by bridging the existing developer skills gap and concentrating our efforts in upskilling female developers who face pointed challenges,” said Nitin Gajria, Managing Director, Google in Africa.

According to Gajria, Google is planning to leverage its developer advocacy, startup acceleration, training programs, and global technical mentorship to train 100,000 developers across the continent by end of this year.

Africa is currently home to more than 150 active Google Developer Groups and 100 Developer Student Clubs in Africa. Combined, these groups reach over 200,000 community members in 40 of the 48 countries in the Sub-Saharan African region.

“Africa Developer Ecosystem Report 2021” is the second in a series of studies on the state of the continent’s Internet economy. The first, published in conjunction with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), found that Africa’s Internet economy has the potential to reach 5.2% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025, contributing nearly $180 billion to Africa’s economy. The projected potential contribution could reach $712 billion by 2050.

“In order to reach this potential, we have to provide better access to high-quality, world-class skilling on mobile technologies platforms coupled with increasing connectivity in Africa. Our effort to increase connectivity is focused on infrastructure, devices, tools, and product localization,” adds Gajria.


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