KENYA: Uber Says Kenya Is Second Largest Market In Africa

Taxi firm Uber has 363,000 active users in Kenya, according to the latest statistics released by the company to mark its fourth year of operation on the continent.

The statistics by the San-Fransisco-based firm show South Africa as Uber’s biggest market in Africa with 969,000 active riders, while Kenya is second.

The data, released Thursday, also showed that 5,000 and 12,000 Uber drivers are signed up in Kenya and South Africa, respectively.

Kenya remains Uber’s most vibrant market in the region as Uganda and Tanzania have 48,000 and 53,000 active riders, with each country signing-up 1,000 drivers.

Ghana and Nigeria have 140,000 and 267,000 active riders respectively.

About 7,000 drivers are on Uber platform in Nigeria while Ghana has 3,000.

The data shows that there are 1.8 million active users of the Uber app in Africa.

We have more than 29,000 driver-partners taking advantage of Uber’s earning opportunities.

Drivers love being as flexible as they like; earning what they want, when they want to supplement their income, said Uber General Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, Alon Lits.

Commitment to our driver-partners is a key priority; ensuring they receive the latest in technological innovations means they can be at the top of their game, said Mr Lits.

Nairobi has topped Uber for Business (U4B) sign-ups in Africa as more firms take up the service to manage corporate travel online.

The capital also emerged the second-biggest market for the ride hailing company’s business platform after London in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

The platform-which first debuted in 2014- was unveiled locally in January 2015 alongside UberX service.

The platform enables corporates to track, manage and get billed for their business travel under a single account.

Out of the 1,200 companies that have so far signed up for the service in Kenya only half remain active for the service also available in South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana and Nigeria.

In London, over 50,000 companies have signed up to it.

Most companies sign up with U4B because of the reliability, convenience and safety that Uber for Business assures their employees,Uber’s East Africa spokesperson Janet Kemboi said.

San Francisco-based taxi-hailing firm, Uber, has so far made more than 12 million trips locally since launch in January 2015.

Uber said in a statement it had seen an increase in the number of trips after lowering its fare and offering occasional discounted rides.

The ride-hailing app, available in Mombasa, Nairobi and Thika, has also seen the number of partners increase to 6,000.

Globally, Uber has made more than five billion trips in the over 570 cities where it is currently available.

To mark the milestone, the firm announced that it would embark on building a more modern, dynamic, intelligent features for riders and drivers to further grow the platform.

To this effect, Uber on Wednesday officially unveiled an ‘in-app’ chat feature locally to enable riders and drivers to communicate through short message services.

Either party can initiate a chat on the app.

Every great ride starts with the pickup, so we are always thinking about ways to make the pickup experience as frictionless as possible for riders and drivers alike, said Uber general manager for East Africa Loic Amado.

Taxi-hailing app company Uber has now increased its fares, giving in to pressure from their drivers and MPs.

Drivers and MPs have sought higher fares, saying it would benefit thousands of independent contractors and level the playing field for other players.

In Nairobi, it will now cost Sh42 per kilometre, up from Sh35, and the minimum fare has been increased to Sh300, up from the Sh200 previously charged.

The base fare remains at Sh100 and the fee for time spent on the road remains Sh3 per kilometre.

In Mombasa, the price per kilometre is also up to Sh42 while the minimum was increased to Sh200 from Sh150.

The base fare was increased from Sh50 to Sh70.

We have always promised to closely monitor driver-partner’s economics; keeping cognisant of how inflation and fuel prices can affect drivers using our app.

We continue to stand by that promise because Uber succeeds when our partners succeed, the company said in a statement late Wednesday.

That is why today we are raising our prices in Kenya.

We believe driver-partners will earn more as a result of these changes and that riders will continue to enjoy access to a safe, affordable and reliable service, the company said.

Officials from the company and the chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee on Transport had at a meeting last week suggested that a middle-ground had been agreed upon between the company and the Transport ministry.

Starehe MP Maina Kamanda, the chairman of the parliamentary committee, wanted the company to increase the fare to Sh60 per kilometre and said even Sh45 would be unacceptable.

The company used to charge Sh60 per kilometre when it entered the Kenyan market two years ago.

It would later drop the fare to Sh35 per kilometre, just a day before competitor Little Cabs came into the picture, in what it said was a bid to get more people using the app.

But car owners and the independent contractors who use the app to locate customers ended up complaining that their take-home pay had reduced significantly.

Last month, they submitted a petition to the committee chaired by Mr Kamanda.

Pressure on the company was also increased by the submission of a petition to the same committee by members of the Kenya Taxi Cab Association, who asked the MPs to come up with a way to regulate the sector.

The committee is mulling over the idea, which would face legal questions because Kenya is a free market economy, but base their assertions on the fact that there is already price regulation for fuel.


Tourism Observer

KENYA: Uber Adds Feature,Riders To Make Stops Before Reaching Final Destination

Uber has added a feature on its app that allows customers to make stops before reaching their final destination.

Users of the app can enter up to three stops on one trip before or during their rides.

Multiple Destinations lets you add up to two extra stops along your route. You can add, change, or remove a stop from the on-trip screen — accessible from your app home screen,” read a notice sent yesterday to Uber users.

The new feature will be available to users in Kenya in the next day or two.

We are always looking to enhance user experience, said Janet Kemboi, Uber Communication Associate for East Africa.

The price is adjusted automatically with each change of destination.

The San Francisco-based taxi-hailing firm has so far made more than 12 million trips locally since its launch in January 2015.

It has signed up more than 6,000 partners in Nairobi, Mombasa and Thika.

Increased competition has been pushing taxi apps to innovate to keep their users engaged.

The app a fortnight ago added an ‘in-app’ chat feature locally to enable riders and drivers to communicate through a short message service.

Either party can initiate a chat on the app.

The company also recently integrated Snapchat filters into its platform, allowing tech-savvy riders to take selfies and see their feed from the app.

In addition, the firm released a security feature that runs real-time photo ID security checks every time drivers go online, to protect their accounts from fraudsters and boost safety of riders.



Tourism Observer

KENYA: UBER Drivers Walk Away From Discussions

Reports from Nairobi suggest that the present phase of negotiations between taxi hailing giant UBER and their Kenyan drivers have come to naught when representatives of the drivers walked away from the talks.

Yet new demands by the local management of UBER appear to have triggered the walkout and it has been suggested that a prohibition order on arbitration was the main point of contention, combined with attempts to shift the legal setting from Kenya to Holland.

UBER managers in Kenya got rattled by a series of walkouts by drivers who have demanded better fares after the company, in the face of strong competition by the likes of Little Rides - backed by Kenya's leading telecom company Safaricom - dropped fares to stay in business, but literally putting their drivers out of business with fast diminishing returns for their investment in cars.

The result will very likely be further walkouts by drivers amid more reports that a growing number is walking away from UBER and either joined other organisations of the same kind or else returned to becoming independent operators.

UBER has been under siege in the global arena over negative comments made and recorded by UBER CEO Kalanick and an emerging scandal within the company's headquarters.

Sexual harassment allegations, shareholder troubles and claims of technology theft came hot on the heels of massive financial losses last year, only making matters for the company worse.

Links by Kalanick to the Trump administration also cost the company dearly after over 200.000 UBER users in the US deleted their application link earlier in the year in a rare form of political mass protests again against Kalanick.

Global pundits are already talking of UBER unravelling and by the look of it only the arrogance and impunity of their top bosses is to blame for that.

What the immediate future for UBER in Kenya will hold remains to be seen, so keep watching this space to remain updated on the latest developments.

KENYA: UBER Kenya Joins Sidian Bank And Zohari Leasing To Increase Fleets

Boosting vehicle numbers as well as improving vehicle quality has seen UBER Kenya launch a new initiative which is now available for its contracted drivers.

Together with Sidian Bank and Zohari Leasing will vehicles be made available for prices between 1 million Kenya shillings to 1.5 million Kenya Shillings at interest rates of just over 10 percent and a repayment period stretched to a maximum of 36 months for drivers meeting the various criteria for participation.

Speaking in Nairobi, Sidian Bank’s Chief Executive Officer Titus Karanja noted that this partnership is well aligned to the lender’s mandate to support enterprises to thrive. 'We are glad to be part of this deal, which is enabling enterprises to grow. In addition to financing, we will also provide technical assistance to the beneficiaries of this arrangement. This deal is part of our efforts to consolidate our new positioning that is focused on enabling individuals to own their tomorrow' he said.

'To make this unique opportunity as widely available as possible, the qualifying criteria for both the finance and leasing options are focused more on the applicant’s proven Uber experience than on his or her credit history' Karanja explained further before adding 'and the primary qualifying requirement is more than 500 trips and an Uber rating of higher than 4.6. We expect speedy uptake of this financing package, with the entrenchment of Uber’s services in Kenya'.

It is understood that even drivers with no experience or track record on the Uber platform have the opportunity to benefit from the Vehicle Solutions Programme because, provided their credit record is in good standing, they can apply for classic financing from Sidian Bank for up to 90% of the purchase price of vehicles that are of sufficient quality and reliability to give them entry into the Uber driver-partner network.

Anderson also pointed to the launch of the UberFinder platform in Kenya as a way to help those drivers and fleet partners not operating on the platform gain access to vehicles that they can use to build up their Uber track record in order to eventually qualify for the Sidian finance or leasing solutions. 'Through the UberFinder system, fleet partners are able to rent their vehicles to drivers on the platform rather than employ full-time drivers. while drivers have a unique opportunity to rent the vehicle they need to gain the required Uber experience needed to eventually qualify to finance their own'.

Anderson went on to add: 'The Vehicle Solutions Programme is an excellent example of the power of collaboration and partnership across industries as a means of driving economic opportunity in Kenya and it is another way in which Uber and Sidian are demonstrating their commitment to being proactive in developing business people and consumers in the country by making accessible and affordable transport a reality for all'.

Considering the challenging start UBER experienced with hostile reactions from taxi drivers and association is this a remarkable step forward and it will no doubt also be made available in new markets UBER had signalled it will enter soon, like Uganda and Tanzania.