DAKAR (Reuters) - A subsea cable owned by Google that promises to double internet speeds for millions in Africa arrived in Togo on Friday, the company said, the latest step in a multi-year project to provide cheaper access to users across the continent.
The Equiano cable, the first of its kind to reach Africa, has wound its way from Portugal and will double internet speed for Togo's 8 million residents, Google said in a statement.
That may be a taste of things to come for other countries set to benefit in a region where internet use is rising fast, but where networks are often cripplingly slow and are a drag on economic development.
The new line will also make land in Nigeria, Namibia and South Africa, with possible branches offering connections to nearby countries. It is expected to start operating by the end of the year.
Sub-Saharan Africa is the world's least-connected region, with around a quarter of the population still lacking mobile broadband coverage compared to 7% globally, according to a 2020 report by GSMA Intelligence.
Most countries in West Africa are at the bottom of a World Bank global ranking on internet penetration.
Togo will be the first to benefit. The cable is expected to reduce internet prices by 14% by 2025, according to an Africa Practice and Genesis Analytics assessment commissioned by Google.
Google said the cable will indirectly create 37,000 jobs in Togo by 2025 and boost GDP by $193 million
Google had announced in its 2021 I/O conference some interesting new features coming to mobile search. Android users will now be able to delete the last 15 minutes of their search history via a new update.
The feature was first spotted by Rahman of Developers, who claimed that he was tipped about the update, and is currently rolling out. To check availability, users can open the default Google app on their Android phones and tap the profile picture icon. This should open an account settings page, which contains a new option, letting you delete the last 15 minutes of search history.
Google had rolled out this update on iOS devices back in July 2021, but failed to meet its initial deadline for the Android release. The update is expected to be available to everyone in the next few weeks, and can only be used on the default Google search app. Users can access this by tapping the search bar on the home screen or by simply sliding up on their device.
It is unclear whether the company plans on bringing the feature to desktop, as during last year’s I/O event, they never specified what the target platforms are. It was not until July, that Google launched the feature for iOS and is now, expanding onto Android.
This year, Google will be hosting its annual developer conference on May 11 and 12, live from its Shoreline at the Mountain View headquarters, and will be streamed online for free. The event will be broadcast in front of an invite-only live-person audience, which is a far cry from its 2021 digital event and the cancellation of its 2020 show.
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