Search engine giant, Google, has announced the launch of a $1million pan African fund to support innovative project ideas by nonprofits and social enterprises around digital literacy and online safety of children, young people and families.
The announcement was made to celebrate the Safer Internet Day – an initiative that originated in the European Union two decades ago and is now observed in some 150 countries worldwide.
The fund will be administered by a third party partner, on behalf of Google’s philantropic arm, Google.org.
Organisations interested in this initiative can submit an expression of interest to access the grant here.
Google also announced that it will be expanding programs around its internet literacy through its landmark program for kids, Be Internet Awesome
Starting yesterday Tuesday, 11th February, the program launched in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa. Google will work with its partners across the region to teach kids how to be safe, confident explorers of the online world.
“Be Internet Awesome” is designed to help children practice smart tactics for analysing and evaluating information, sharing media with caution, protecting and securing private data, and handling cyberbullying, for example.