Google launched Wi-Fi in Uganda for the first time as part of a project to broaden access to affordable high-speed Internet.

Google is making the wireless network available to local Internet providers, who can then charge customers for access. Wi-Fi is now available in 120 key locations in Uganda’s capital, Kampala.

According to statistics, Uganda has nearly 8.5 million Internet users, which makes up 23 percent of the population.

The use of smartphones has dramatically increased in Africa, but high-speed Internet access continues to be too expensive for many Africans to enjoy. Google is working to make access to high-speed Internet affordable for them.

Google estimates that one day of unlimited data using the network will cost around 1,000 Ugandan shillings, the equivalent of 30 cents in the United States, but local providers will ultimately decide how much they want to charge customers for access to the network.

Google said they hope that by improving Internet capacity in the city, local companies will be able to offer faster broadband access for cheaper.

Ugandans would like to see Internet access in rural and hard to reach areas as well.

So far, Google has laid 500 miles of cables in Uganda in order to establish a fiber-optic network. They are working on a more expansive project to improve web infrastructure in Africa.

There are plans to expand the project to the Ghanaian cities of Accra, Tema and Kumasi.

Facebook and Microsoft are also working on their own projects in developing countries with hopes that the whole world will soon have access to Internet.

Tech Times said they believe the more connected countries are, the better the world could be. Google is working to do its part to ensure more places around the globe have Internet access. Wi-Fi in Uganda is just the start of what the company said they hope to achieve.

– Jordan Connell

Sources: AllAfrica, BBC News, Tech Times  
Photo: Flickr