Tag: Uber

Uber appoints Saad Pall as its new General Manager for MENA

Frank

MENA – Taxi hailing app Uber has announced the appointment of Saad Pall as the new General Manager for Uber across the Middle East, North Africa (MENA) and Pakistan covering 36 cities across 8 countries in the region. Saad will lead the next phase of growth for Uber’s ride-sharing business across the region, bringing 15 years of strategy & marketing experience from the U.S., Singapore and Pakistan. Saad’s most recent role was as Uber’s General Manager in Pakistan, where he was responsible for all business and operations in the market.…

Read More

Uber set to launch Uber Connect and Uber Hourly for Nigerian market

Frank

NIGERIA – Ride-hailing giant Uber has announced that it will be launching two services; Uber Connect and Uber Hourly for the Nigerian market. According to the company, Uber Connect and Uber Hourly will be available in Nigeria in the “next few months”. “We want to bring innovations designed to help people get anywhere and get anything as cities start to move again,” Tope Akinwumi, Uber’s country manager, said in an emailed statement. “As we want to show our commitment to improving the lives of Nigerians, and more importantly, unlocking access…

Read More

Uber launches electric boda bodas & bicycles in Kenya

Frank

KENYA – Tech company Uber, has launched electric boda bodas and bicycles for drivers on UberBoda, Uber Connect and Uber Eats in Kenya, a first for Uber in Sub-Saharan Africa. The launch of electric Boda Bodas will offer an affordable and reliable manner of transportation within the city and will enable customers to select a zero-emissions ride to help drive a green recovery. Using electric UberBoda will cost the same as a regular journey. The launch of electric boda presents a 45% reduction in overall costs for UberBoda and Uber…

Read More

Uber, Mastercard boost payment digitalization and financial inclusion across MEA

Frank

MEA – Mastercard, an American multinational financial services corporation and Uber, a technology company have partnered to implement a new strategic initiative that will focus on digital payments and advancing financial inclusion in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), reaffirming their long-term partnership. By partnering, Uber will be able to drive digitisation across its business operations by leveraging Mastercard’s single infrastructure to meet all types of payment needs across Uber Rides, Uber Eats, Uber Pass, and Uber for Business. Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President Market Development, Mastercard, MEA explains that…

Read More

Uber rolls out new call-back feature in Egypt to enhance user safety

Frank

EGYPT – Uber Egypt has unveiled new safety feature in its application allowing clients to call and speak to specialized Incident Response Team after the trip. According to Uber, the new feature will provider Uber platform users with a channel to report any safety-related incident during their rides. Users desiring to use the call back feature will be required to request to be called back. The request should be submitted along with the users contact details and a short description of the safety event. Uber explains that once the request…

Read More

SWVL appoints ex-Uber boss Dip Patel to head Kenyan operations

Frank

KENYA – SWVL, a bus transportation network company, has appointed former Uber Kenya Country Manager Dip Patel to lead its local operations, tapping into his experience in the segment. Dip takes over ranks from Sivachi Muleji who resigned from the role at the end of January having served on the top seat since May 2019. Mr Patel joins the company at a time it is locked in licensing row with the transport regulation in a spat that has threated to derail SWVL Kenya operations. The firm says it will tap…

Read More

Uber courts taxi owners in new push to increase driver numbers

Frank

EGYPT – Uber Egypt has revealed that it was seeking to incorporate existing taxi cabs into its ride-hailing services having successfully done so in other markets. Uber said in a statement that taxis were“an integral part” of Egypt’s transportation system, and that  its plan to enlist taxi drivers into the platform is part of its aims to meet the different needs of the Egyptian market. Uber plans have however met resistance from The White Taxi Drivers and Owners Association, Egypt’s biggest grouping of taxi drivers, which has pronounced itself on…

Read More

Uber partners with Nissan to introduce all-electric cabs in UK

Frank

UNITED KINGDOM –  Uber, the world’s largest ride hailing app, has entered into an agreement with Nissan to introduce a fleet of 2,000 Leaf hatchbacks for its drivers. The ride hailing giant said in a statement that the decision was part of a broader push from the company to tackle air pollution by ensuring all of its vehicles in London are all-electric by 2025. The CNBC report quoted Uber as saying that it would offer drivers in the UK electric cars from Nissan at a discount, even as it faced…

Read More

Uber drivers to start setting their own fares as firm seeks to comply with state laws

Frank

GLOBAL – Uber has commenced a trial run for a new initiative to give drivers the ability to set their own fares and make them independent operators rather than employees. Already select drivers are currently experimenting with the scheme in some cities in the United States, with the ultimate aim being granting them (drivers) more autonomy. The Wall Street Journal reported that Uber drivers in Palm Springs, Sacramento, and Santa Barbara in California had been given the ability to determine their own fares. The journal reported that the move was…

Read More

Ridesharing company Uber splashes out billions in deal to acquire rival Careem

Frank

MIDDLE EAST– US-based ridesharing company Uber has completed the acquisition of its Emirati rival Careem in a US$3.1 billion deal. Uber announced in a press release. With this deal, Uber will start operating in over 100 cities in the Middle-East and North Africa region, including Moroccan cities. The company, however, decided to preserve Careem’s brand. Careem’s co-founder and CEO, Mudassir Sheikha, will remain at the head of the company, but the administration board will include three representatives from Uber and two representatives from Careem. The deal allows Uber to penetrate…

Read More