Uber today is celebrating its 6th year of operations in Ghana. The ride-sharing company which debuted in the city of Accra six years ago is now helping thousands of riders get rides across, Kumasi, Cape Coast, and Takoradi, and celebrating its contribution to local economic growth and empowerment.
Increasing economic access through digital entrepreneurship
To celebrate their 6-year milestone, Uber ran a three-month competition for drivers who use the Uber app in Ghana to find and reward the top six performing drivers. Each driver received a 43-inch Nasco TV, a GHS400 fuel voucher, and Melcom shopping vouchers to the value of GHS1,000. The Uber driver winners were Appiah Samuel Ohemeng, Kemevor Divine, Justice Attigah, Bimpeh Prosper, Edimah Peter, and Tetteh Edmund.
While digital entrepreneurship is flourishing in Ghana with over 60 digital platforms offering unique earning opportunities, Uber understands that access to finance to grow these independent businesses remains a challenge. This is why Uber has worked to increase access to car ownership for drivers through its partnership with Moove, a vehicle solutions company where drivers have access to flexible rental and drive-to-own options.
Marjorie Saint-Lot, country manager for Uber in Ghana and Ivory Coast explains, “Drivers are at the heart of our operations, and we succeed when they succeed. We are aware that there are several other economic factors, including fuel price increases, which impact the cost of moving people and goods and we take the concerns of drivers seriously and actively engage on issues which impact their business.”
“In January, we lowered our service fee to 20%, followed by a trip fare increase across Kumasi and Accra to maximise earnings for drivers using the platform. Our commitment to them is to continuously find ways of maximising their earning potential while meeting the needs of riders,” Saint-Lot adds.
Uber has also launched new product offerings such as Uber Connect, a peer-to-peer delivery option where Uber has witnessed a growing number of small businesses using this option to improve service reliability for their customers.
Safety at the tap of a button
As the business continues to grow and the offerings increase in the region, safety continues to be a top priority. All Uber products carry the same door-to-door safety features such as driver in-app emergency button, Injury Protection, 24/7 support, including driver background checks and screenings. Uber also launched Rider Selfies late last year in response to driver feedback on rider verification. This intelligent safety feature works by prompting cash riders to share a selfie before requesting their first cash trip. This all takes place within a few seconds. The goal is to always provide innovative products and services to help improve the experience for the Uber community.
Saint-Lot concludes, “The country’s accelerated infrastructure development and entrepreneurial culture has inspired us to continue to provide people across Ghana with an affordable, easy and flexible choice to move around the city stress-free. We look forward to the exciting prospects presented by the opportunities in the country and we are eager to continue our work with stakeholders and policymakers to ensure that we drive our vision for urban mobility forward.”
