Multinational ride-hailing company Bolt has announced its intentions to invest €500 million ($530 million) in Africa over the next two years.
This investment, according to Bolt, will create earning opportunities for 300,000 drivers across the continent.
The company also announced that it will invest Ksh13.4 billion ($100 million) in its Kenyan arm. The investment will see Bolt expand to more cities across Kenya. Already, Bolt operates across 16 cities in Kenya.
Speaking on the announcement, Bolt Kenya country manager, Linda Ndung’u, said, “Bolt shall double down on increasing its footprint across Kenya by expanding its services into more cities and town centres. This will provide access to affordable and quality services to customers whilst providing earning opportunities for drivers in Kenya.”
Companies like Bolt and Uber are providing “earning opportunities” for its Kenyan drivers, but the answer to whether these drivers are earning enough might be another story.
Just last week, ride-hailing drivers in Kenya embarked on yet another strike in protest of high-commission fees held by these companies.
“They are charging 29% commission, way up from the NTSA capping of 18%. We have taxi-hailing apps in Kenya like Yego which hit the market recently, but their commission is as low as 12%. We have no issues so far with such companies,” the drivers complained.
Already, Kenya has passed a regulation that caps commissions issued by ride-hailing companies at 18%, but the country is yet to enforce it. In October, the drivers also held strikes in protest against the slow implementation of the new law, but it appears little has been done about it.
In Tanzania, the government reduced commissions to 15%, calling Uber to leave the country and Bolt to cut off its public services and focus just on corporate bodies. But the Tanzanian government has reinstated A higher commission to the chagrin of the drivers.
In Ghana, drivers were recently on radio complaining bitterly about high commissions and the fact that when Bolt and Uber give discounts to riders, they still charge their commissions on what is left for the drivers.
Drivers in Ghana have been on a number of strike actions but they have not been effect because majority of them kept working while a few were on strike and again, most of the taxi doing ride-hailing services belong to politicians who are not interested in cutting down commissions.
