Late last week, we carried a report that the Taxi Hailing space in Kenya was facing some exit. Sendy, which has fast established itself in the logistics space announced it was exiting the space and will instead focus on its core services of delivery services. Taxify, on the other hand, announced it was terminating its relationship with Digital Online, its Nairobi partner and instead focusing on setting up its own local operations. These moves suggested our earlier concerns that smaller players were bound to feel the heat going forward, as Uber and Craft Silicon’s Little continue to emerge as the top players.
One of the plays adopted by players in the taxi hailing space has involved the diversification of services with a focus on Boda Boda services. Boda Boda have fast become a prominent means of transport in the city, making them lucrative for these companies. This has seen Mondo Ride, a Dubai based taxi hailing service look to launch a boda boda hailing service. The service will charge a minimum fare of Kshs. 100, a base of Kshs. 50 and a per kilometer charge of Kshs. 25. In a move aimed at enticing riders to the service, Mondo Ride will not charge a percentage of the fare to its Boda Boda riders for three months.
The service will not be the first attempt by at conquering the boda boda market. Mara Moja and Sendy have all made attempts with little success. A while back, MaraMoja CEO told Techweez they shelved plans for their service owing to the lack of smartphones among boda boda riders while those with the devices would not keep charge for long periods of time. It will definitely be interesting to see how Mondo tackles these challenges.