Ride-hailing companies Uber and Bolt have temporatily suspended operations in Nigeria because of the lockdown imposed by the President to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari on March 29, 2020, directed that all forms of movement will be halted for the next 2 weeks in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja in an attempt to contain COVID-19.
According to a statement from Uber,
As announced by President Muhammadu Buhari on March 29, 2020, there will be a restriction of all movement within Lagos and Abuja during the 14-day lockdown which begins at 11 pm on Monday, 30th March.
“Based on this directive, Uber will temporarily cease operations for the period of the lockdown, subject to any further government announcements. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by COVID-19 in Nigeria,”
Bolt, as reported by WeeTracker, has halted ride-hailing services temporarily and pivoted to deliveries.
in a statement obtained by WeeTracker, Bolt Nigeria revealed that it has just launched Bolt Business Delivery service in Lagos and Abuja today.
Bolt Nigeria says the new service works by connecting businesses with couriers on the Bolt platform and allows vendors to place orders online to deliver products to their customers affordably within the same day or even hour.
“Bolt has been working around the clock to provide innovative solutions to assist Nigerian businesses and our micro-economy workforce to continue generating revenue safely during the lockdown,” says Femi Akin-Laguda, country manager for Bolt in Nigeria.
“Being agile and identifying ways that businesses can work together is key to our economy’s survival through this crisis.”
The lockdown started on Monday 30th of march at 11.p.m. and is expected to last for 14 days.
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