The adjustments were made following a thorough review of the current fuel subsidy removal and are aimed at ensuring sustainable earning opportunities for drivers while maintaining an affordable service for riders.

Tope Akinwumi, Country Manager for Uber in Nigeria, in an email to TechEconomy, Thursday, emphasized the company’s commitment to supporting drivers and making Uber the preferred platform for them.

Akinwumi stated, “Drivers are at the heart of everything we do, and we continue to work on initiatives and engage with drivers to help make Uber the app of choice for drivers while maintaining an affordable service for riders.”

In order to better reflect the existing economic conditions, Uber updated fares on its app on June 3rd and June 9th, 2023.

These changes are intended to assist drivers in increasing their earning opportunities. It is worth noting that in February 2022, Uber reduced its service fee from 25% to 20% to enable drivers to earn more.

Akinwumi further explained, “We want the best for drivers who operate on the Uber platform and frequently engage with them directly through roundtables, surveys, phone, and in-app channels to better understand and receive feedback on the realities they face in their businesses.”

As a global company operating locally, Uber closely monitors local dynamics and implements changes accordingly. The fare increases in June 2023 are specifically aimed at helping drivers cover the recent surge in fuel costs, rather than the entire cost of fuel.

The service fee collected by Uber contributes to the smooth functioning of the Uber app and supports ongoing investments in technology to enhance the overall experience for both riders and drivers.

Akinwumi emphasized, “Uber takes into consideration the economic climate in rolling out any price reviews.

We believe this fare increase will have a positive impact on driver earnings while maintaining an affordable service for riders. It is essential to strike a balance to ensure that price options remain attractive to riders, thereby creating more earning opportunities for drivers.”

Uber acknowledges the challenges drivers face due to the increasing cost of living and remains committed to providing them with essential safety features and support.

Drivers on the platform continue to benefit from safety tools such as the In-App Emergency button, 24/7 in-app support, and Ride Check.

Uber recognizes that fare adjustments are a regular part of any business and are influenced by factors such as seasonality and the macroeconomic environment.

The company remains dedicated to monitoring local dynamics and implementing changes that benefit both drivers and riders

This year’s internship program, dubbed ‘The Bolt Outternship’ is aimed at empowering young women by providing opportunities to start their careers in tech, and is set to run for three months from June, 2023. 

Bolt launched the #WomeninTech program in 2021 across Africa empowerg young women who are interested in undertaking careers in the tech field.

The program is designed to train, mentor and empower young women by offering placements across various departments including Operations, Engineering, Public Policy, PR and Marketing.

The young women will also be paired with women in Bolt leadership, to mentor and guide them as they go through the three months program.

Bolt’s Regional Manager for West Africa, Ireoluwa Obatoki, said: “We started the Bolt internship program in 2021 to empower young women to take up space and grow their careers in the tech world.

We are elated to launch the third edition of the program considering that we have been able to provide young women with valuable work experience over the years that will accelerate their career growth.

We strongly believe that increased representation of women in tech will promote a more inclusive, diverse, and progressive society.

As such, Bolt as a company, through this initiative, is expressing its commitment to positively impact the communities it operates in.”

In 2022, Bolt offered 12 young women from Africa including three from Nigeria the opportunity to take part in the internship program and this gave them a chance to contribute to the growth of the ride-hailing industry in the market by being part of various departments.

Kenechi Jacob, one of the 2022 interns from Nigeria, shared her experience at the end of the program. “My overall experience with the internship at Bolt was nothing short of remarkable and brilliant.

I enjoyed every single day and the learning opportunities it brought. I worked with the Bolt Food team where I learnt many skills including goal setting, organization, perseverance, and patience.

If I could pick one thing that I will miss from the Bolt internship program, it would be the people. Bolt has been able to create a work environment that positively impacts its team, and this has transferred to the input and output of its work.”

This year’s internship program will kick off in April with the application process and will avail 20 slots for women in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa to gain valuable skills in Operations, Engineering, Public Policy, Account Management, PR and Marketing. The three months paid internship will run from June to August 2023.

To be part of the program, interested candidates are to visit the Bolt website and follow the guidelines provided. One can also nominate a friend to be part of the program.

The Company will review all applications and contact the successful candidates in April.

Bolt hopes to continue providing more opportunities like the internship program to women across its business portfolio through such initiatives and more that will work towards achieving gender equality for a sustainable tomorrow.

Bolt as a business is also focused on offering earning opportunities to women in the ride-hailing industry and encourages women to join the ride-hailing business by offering safety, and economically viable opportunities for them to work independently and with flexibility.

The newly added features, which further demonstrate Bolt’s concern for drivers’ safety, will allow them more control over the efficiency of their rides.

The driver score function is a visible metric that helps drivers improve their in-app performance, encourages improved driving behaviors, and supports their efforts to provide the greatest rider experience possible.

The component is intended to improve service quality and is therefore fundamental to a satisfying driving and riding experience.

Drivers can exchange a link with information about their current travel using the driver trip sharing tool, which provides an additional layer of protection.

The link allows any third party with access to it to track and follow the driver’s ride status and whereabouts in real-time. It can be shared by email, SMS, or instant messaging apps.

Ireoluwa Obatoki, Regional Manager for Bolt in West Africa, said, “Drivers are core to our business, so we are always innovating to improve their experience on our platform.

The new features we have introduced add to our in-app customer experience and are aimed at helping drivers have more control of their Bolt rides and maximize their earnings within a safe environment.

The driver score and driver trip sharing features are in line with the entrepreneurial desires of the drivers and improve the overall user experience of the Bolt app.

We believe that drivers want to offer great services to riders. With the driver score feature, drivers can get constant feedback about their performance which will help them improve.

The driver trip sharing feature, on the other hand, will act as a deterrent to people with potentially malicious intent against drivers on the Bolt platform.

Overall, riders have the best chances of being paired with a driver who is committed to high-quality service,” she concluded.

Bolt, which launched two new products since the start of the pandemic, has operations in 45 countries and over 500 cities across Europe and Africa now – an increase of over 200% in the period prior to the pandemic.

Globally, Bolt has tripled its number of customers to over 100 million since the beginning of 2020, added more than 2 million new drivers to the platform, and more than doubled the size of its workforce to over 3,000 employees.

The business has also opened several new offices over the past year, including engineering hubs in Berlin and Nairobi, and continues to advertise over 350 open roles with a view to hiring 700 more employees by the end of the year.

The announcement of these new stats comes as Bolt marks its ninth anniversary since Markus Villig founded the company in Tallinn, Estonia, in 2013.

Then, as just a teenager, Markus personally recruited the first drivers to the platform on the streets of Tallinn and has since built a business valued at €7.6bn at the time of its latest funding round.

Markus Villig, CEO and Founder, said: “The pandemic was the biggest economic shock in generations, so hitting milestones like 100 million customers and operations in over 500 cities are achievements we’re really proud of.

“When Bolt was first founded, our mission was to challenge the traditional taxi industry in Tallinn through a new ride-hailing service. Now our size and the range of products we offer to put us in a unique position to revolutionize how people move around the cities. By providing an alternative to private cars, we can help create cities that are greener, safer, and more pleasant to live in.

“It’s important to stay grounded though—rising levels of inflation and interest rates mean we have to be disciplined when assessing how and in what markets we invest.

This could mean prioritising growth efforts in our existing markets instead of expanding our services into new countries. Our culture of frugality helped us come out of the pandemic in a strong position, but the challenges are not going to stop, and the team is focused on preparing for and responding to them.”

Since Bolt’s launch in Lagos in 2016, it has expanded its operation into 25 states and 33 cities since the pandemic to provide seamless mobility offerings to Nigerians.

In 2021, Bolt extended its Bolt Food service to Nigeria increasing its product offering in the country. The introduction of Bolt Food in Nigeria came after the platform accessed post-pandemic realities and decided to help provide easier access to daily essentials such as food.

Oludele Dare, Country Manager, Nigeria said: “We are happy to see the post-pandemic growths that the business has experienced. When we first launched in Nigeria, our mission was to transform the ride-hailing and mobility sector.

Scaling during the pandemic was a challenge but our focus on providing seamless mobility services to Nigerians ensured that we maintained growth. Our business in Nigeria is built on efficiency and easing mobility for riders while offering drivers a flexible opportunity to earn more income.”

The Bolt Driver’s League competition, in its third edition, is a driver support initiative aimed at celebrating top performing drivers on the platform by rewarding winners with brand-new cars and other prizes. 

Similar to the 2021 edition, the competition will be held for an 8-week period with drivers grouped into different leagues.

Overall winners will be selected from the leagues and rewarded with prizes of an overall value of N20 million including brand-new cars as well as home appliances.

The Driver’s League contest showcases Bolt’s commitment to advancing and easing mobility in Nigeria while also supporting the economy with extra earning opportunities. 

Commenting on the initiative, the Regional Manager for Bolt in West Africa, Ireoluwa Obatoki, said, “We launched this driver support initiative in 2020 and have continued it because we have seen an impressive level of dedication from our community of drivers… The Driver’s League initiative is just one of the ways we appreciate and reward drivers on the Bolt platform for staying with us throughout the year.

We have other initiatives focused on driver welfare, including health insurance for top drivers, and on-trip accident insurance amongst others, but the Driver’s League initiative is the big scheme we like to have towards the end of the year.

The team at Bolt remains committed to the welfare of drivers and wishes to use this as a channel to demonstrate our appreciation to drivers who are central to our operations. “

The Bolt Driver’s League is divided into a Rookie League, Premier League, and Championship. The Championship and Premier League are both for existing drivers and will be rewarded with brand-new cars, while the Rookie League is for new drivers on the Bolt platform.

Drivers will be evaluated based on different criteria unique to the different leagues, including trips taken, online hours, quality of service, and so on.

The contest which is scheduled to run till the 2nd of October 2022 will also award other prizes including refrigerators, washing machines, and other home appliances. 

Since it began the yearly driver reward campaign in 2020, Bolt has rewarded drivers with brand-new cars worth over N50,000,000, over N1,000,000 worth of fuel vouchers, household appliances, gift hampers, and other gifts worth millions of naira to participating drivers.

Moove, which provides revenue-based financing to mobility entrepreneurs, has expanded from its African roots to Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bangalore to provide accessible vehicle financing to driver partners on Uber’s platform. 

In what will be one of Uber India’s largest vehicle partnerships, Moove will be launching 5,000 EV and CNG vehicles within the first year, with plans to scale to 30,000 over the next five years, creating sustainable employment opportunities in a rapidly developing economy. 

Moove Transforming mobility gig economies through vehicle finance

Half of the world’s 1.1 billion gig workers are denied access to financial services and lack access to credit because traditional banks rely on historical data to underwrite their loans. In emerging markets across Africa, Asia and MENA, poor credit penetration is restricting the ability of millions of people from buying new vehicles – India has extremely low vehicle ownership with less than 25 per 1,000 people compared to Europe where it is 600+ per 1000 people. 

Founded in 2020, Moove was launched to democratize access to vehicle ownership. It is leading this charge in the ‘mobility fintech sector’, a white space created by Moove which is solving the challenge of limited access to vehicle financing for millions of people in emerging markets.

To do this, the company leverages proprietary performance and revenue analytics to underwrite loans to customers who have previously been excluded from financial services. Over the past two years, Moove has enabled sustainable job creation and a path to asset ownership with its customers having completed over 5 million trips in Moove-financed vehicles. 

The company is now bringing its impact-led model to India, its first expansion outside of Africa, as part of its mission to close the finance gap for mobility entrepreneurs globally. Similar to sub-Saharan Africa, Moove’s innovative model will help thousands of drivers return to work, by putting 5,000 vehicles on the road within the first year, with the intent of scaling to 30,000 vehicles and becoming Uber India’s mega-fleet partner across 300 cities over the next five years. 

Powering the electrification of mobility

Moove aims to be a global leader in the electrification of ride-hailing and mobility with a commitment to ensuring that 60% of the vehicles it finances globally are hybrid or electric. India has recently set targets for improving renewable energy uptake and reducing harmful emissions by 2030, creating the perfect market opportunity for Moove to provide accessible financing for fuel-efficient and electric vehicles. 

Ladi Delano, Co-founder, and co-CEO at Moove said, “As our first global expansion outside of Africa, launching in India is a very special moment for the whole Moove team. 

We’re excited to be expanding our revenue-based vehicle financing model to enable the sustainable creation of jobs across the country, where there are some of the lowest vehicle ownership rates in the world, in part because of the lack of access to credit. We are delighted to be expanding our Uber partnership to solve this problem for our new customers in India.” 

Binod Mishra, Regional GM for South Asia at Moove, said, “We’re looking forward to working closely with the Uber India team to roll out Moove’s innovative platform, starting in Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bangalore, and scaling up to many more cities over the next five years.” 

Abhilekh Kumar, Director, Business Development, Uber India South Asia, said,  “This partnership is aimed at enabling access to vehicles among mobility entrepreneurs at a time when capital availability is the key issue. The Moove team has created an innovative “rent to own” model that can fundamentally transform vehicle ownership in the country.

We’re excited about their potential to unlock sustainable livelihood creation by removing the existing barriers to ownership. It’ll help drivers seamlessly grow their own businesses and create a more sustainable mobility infrastructure in India.

With demand from riders higher than ever in India, we’re looking forward to partnering with Moove to ensure we can provide an unparalleled experience to both drivers and riders on our platform in our top markets.”