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Google promises 300,000 jobs in South Africa

South Africa’s official unemployment rate was last reported at 31.9%, with youth unemployment for those aged between 15 and 35 sitting at 44.6%, according to Statistics South Africa’s labour force survey for Q4 2024.

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10 months ago

March 24, 2025

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Google says its investment in data centre infrastructure in Johannesburg, part of a greater R18 billion investment in Africa, should help create 300,000 jobs and contribute R1.7 trillion to the South African economy by 2030.

Mybroadband reports that the tech powerhouse added that South Africa also has the unique opportunity to rapidly develop its nascent artificial intelligence sector to become an AI leader on the African continent and the global stage, given its youth bulge and high unemployment rate.

This is according to Google’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa President Tara Brady, who spoke during a press conference on Wednesday at the launch of the company’s Johannesburg cloud region.

“I do believe that when you have a large number of organisations willing to invest in training, you could leapfrog many other countries and become an AI leader,” Brady said. Brady was commenting on the 300,000 jobs Google said their infrastructure investment in Johannesburg would help create by 2030.

He added that Google has identified a unique advantage in South Africa due to its high unemployment rate, which is not seen in other countries around the world.

“When you have such high unemployment, it means that we can put those people to work, which is an opportunity that we don’t have in other regions,” Brady said.

“So if South Africa wants to, we are prepared to invest in AI together here.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced in 2021 that the tech giant would invest $1 billion (R18 billion) over five years in digital transformation on the continent.

Brady said that while a “large chunk” of this was dedicated to the cloud region, it also focused on skilling people in Africa and aiding tech startups in the region.

South Africa’s minister of communications and digital technologies, Solly Malatsi, who did not attend the event but delivered a prerecorded address, emphasised the importance of these skilling initiatives in the country’s vision of a digital future.

Related Topics:Featured Google jobs Google Jobs South Africa

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NTA didn’t introduce VAT on charges collected by banks — NRS

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) wishes to address and correct misleading narratives circulating in sections of the media suggesting that Value Added Tax (VAT) has been newly introduced on banking services, fees, commissions, or electronic money transfers.

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4 hours ago

January 16, 2026

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Photo: NRS chairman, Zacch Adedeji

The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has clarified that the Nigeria Tax Act (NTA) did not introduce VAT on banking charges, nor did it impose any new tax obligation on customers in this regard.

In a statement made available to newsmen and signed by Dare Adekanmbi, Special Adviser on Media to the NRS chairman, Zacch Adedeji, the service said the claims are incorrect.

According to the NRS, VAT has always applied to banking services and was not introduced by the Nigeria Tax Act.

The statement reads:

“The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) wishes to address and correct misleading narratives circulating in sections of the media suggesting that Value Added Tax (VAT) has been newly introduced on banking services, fees, commissions, or electronic money transfers.

This claim is categorically incorrect.

“VAT has always applied to fees, commissions, and charges for services rendered by banks and other financial institutions under Nigeria’s long-established VAT regime.”

Business

LIRS gives employers Jan 31 deadline for filing 2025 tax returns

The Executive Chairman of LIRS, Dr Ayodele Subair, who gave the directive on Thursday, reminded employers that the obligation to file annual returns is in line with the provisions of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act 2025.

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5 hours ago

January 16, 2026

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The Lagos State Internal Revenue Service(LIRS) fixed statutory deadline of January 31, 2026, for all employers of labour in the state to file their annual tax returns for the 2025 financial year.

Subair explained that employers are required to file detailed returns on emoluments and compensation paid to their employees, as well as payments made to service providers, vendors, and consultants, and to ensure that all applicable taxes due for the 2025 year are fully remitted.

He emphasised that the filing of annual returns is a mandatory legal obligation and warned that failure to comply would attract statutory sanctions, including administrative penalties, as prescribed under the new tax law.

Business

Nigeria To Review Inflation Reporting First Time In 15 years

The agency said the expected spike in December inflation did not reflect actual price movements in the economy but was largely a statistical distortion caused by the rebasing of the Consumer Price Index.

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1 day ago

January 15, 2026

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Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has announced plans to revise its inflation reporting methodology.

This followed concerns that December’s year-on-year figure may be artificially inflated due to the impact of last year’s rebasing exercise.

Reuters reported that the rebasing, the first in 15 years, adopted December 2024 as the index reference point.

Officials explained that the change is likely to exaggerate the year-on-year inflation figure for December without accurately capturing prevailing market trends.