Uber Kenya bows to pressure, adjusts prices to pacify drivers
Uber Kenya has raised its base fare by 10% in response to mounting pressure from drivers who recently went on strike demanding better earnings.
The ride-hailing company increased the minimum fare to KES 220 ($1.71) and introduced a priority service option that charges an additional KES 110 ($0.85) for faster service.
In a statement, Imran Manji, Uber’s Head of East Africa, explained the decision, “Uber has made these pricing updates to ensure that drivers continue to have the opportunity to maximise their earnings while driving on the Uber app and at the same time, remaining at an affordable price point for riders.”
However, the fare adjustment has not fully satisfied the demands of the drivers. Driver representatives have indicated that the changes fall short of their expectations, suggesting that further negotiations or actions may follow, Tech Cabal reports.
Zakaria Mwangi, Secretary General of the Ridehail Transport Association (RTA), expressed disappointment, stating, “We don’t really feel it. We made our demands clear that we want at least KES 300 as the base fare among other demands. They’ve not gotten to 10% of our demands. We will be back at it again.”
Uber's move comes as the company seeks to balance the needs of its drivers with maintaining competitive prices for customers.
On July 16, drivers staged a strike demanding that ride-hailing apps raise the minimum fare to KES 300 ($2.33). They also called for a review of the companies' policies on account suspensions and deactivations in disciplinary cases.
