Bolt, the mobility service app, plans to invest €500m in its operations in Africa over the next two years.

The funds will be used to expand Bolt services on the continent and create opportunities for over 300 000 new drivers and couriers to join the platform in 2023.

Having launched in South Africa in 2016, Bolt now operates ride-hailing and delivery services in six further countries – Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania and Tunisia – with over 47 million customers and 900 000 drivers on the platform. Bolt is available in 23 cities in South Africa with over 40 000 driver-partners.

Bolt operates three of its core products in Africa – ride hailing, food and grocery delivery. Bolt Business, the company’s corporate travel arm, also has clients in Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Tanzania and Kenya. 

In another announcement, Bolt said it had surpassed one billion rides in Africa in just seven years and expects the number of drivers on the platform to hit over one million in the next six months. 

Markus Villig, Founder and CEO, said: “Over the past seven years, we have built a strong team of 500 people in Africa and we remain committed to investing into local communities for the long-term.

“At a time when many countries are facing economic challenges, we will continue to grow our presence in Africa through this new investment which offers massive potential to create new jobs and income opportunities for drivers and couriers.”

Women-only category

In December 2020, Bolt introduced a new service that allows female riders to choose a female driver for their journey.

Takura Malaba, Bolt’s Regional Manager, East, and Southern Africa, told Tourism Update that it was the only ride-hailing service with the women-only category.

“The Bolt women-only category connects women with women drivers on the Bolt platform. Requests from women passengers will not be visible to male drivers,” Malaba said.

Rides on the Bolt women-only category cost the same as the main Bolt category, with no surcharge for this service.

This option is now available in 12 cities in South Africa – Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, Emalahleni, Mbombela, Mthatha, Pietermaritzburg, Thohoyandou, Polokwane, Gqeberha, East London and Rustenburg.

This new category not only increased safety for both drivers and riders in South Africa, but also provided women with a way to explore new earnings opportunities.

Following the success of the category in South Africa, it was also launched in Kenya in Nairobi and Mombasa.

Safety features

Aside from the women-only category, Bolt is continuously developing safety features and tools that directly address drivers' and passengers’ safety concerns, Malaba said.

“This includes an in-app integrated SOS emergency button that shares the driver’s details and location with our 24/7 tactical response provider and immediately deploys private security and emergency services. Passengers can share their trip details via SMS and WhatsApp with friends or family members.”

Bolt has also introduced the driver Selfie Verification feature, which stops driver impersonations and renting profiles on the platform.

Driver vetting

Bolt’s vetting process for drivers follows the unequivocal rule that all drivers require a Professional Driving Permit (PrDP) issued by local authorities to be accepted on to the Bolt platform.

“This permit is only granted to applicants with a Police Clearance Certificate from the SAPS,” Malaba said.

Bolt also conducts its own additional criminal background checks as an extra layer of driver verification, which are performed by an independent provider, Managed Integrity Evaluation (MIE).

MIE assists in verifying and checking an individual's criminal record by capturing digital fingerprints and checking their prints against the SAPS database.