Commuters making their way through Nigeria can now hear travel advice in a local voice on Google Maps under new features aimed at attracting more users in Africa that were unveiled by the company on Wednesday. The local accents feature, unveiled at an event in the commercial capital Lagos and also available on Google Assistant, is the first move by the U.S. technology giant to offer such a service in Africa.
Rapidly expanding populations, increased mobile phone penetration and crowded cities that are often poorly signposted have led technology firms to identify African countries as potential growth areas. They are now offering transport features from detailed maps to motorcycle ride-hailing services. Google’s motorcycle directions will also be available in Benin Republic, Ghana, Rwanda, Togo and Uganda from Wednesday, the company said.
The technology behemoth owned by Alphabet Inc said it is aiming to capture new users and expand its appeal beyond just drivers. “There are 10 million (motorcycles) in Nigeria, it’s hugely popular,” said Ramesh Nagarajan, Google’s director of product management. “We’re going market by market based on popularity.” Reuters
