eCommerce giant Jumia and Zipline have jointly announced a collaboration to deploy automated on-demand delivery in Africa.
They also announced that a pilot program and testing were launched a few months ago in Ghana to commence the deployment.
This collaboration will integrate Zipline’s automated on-delivery system with Jumia’s existing distribution network. The initial pilot involved multiple use cases with varying product assortment logging up to 2,500km in testing. The companies stated that deliveries between Jumia Operational hub at Omenako Ghana and outlying Jumia hubs 85km were completed in less than an hour.
The new venture is part of Jumia’s plan to reach its growing customer base in such areas, which make up about 27% of the company’s deliveries, a Jumia spokesman told Reuters, adding he could not immediately give financial details of the project.
According to EVP Jumia Group’s COO, Apoorva Kumar, in a statement, “Using the latest instant logistics technology will allow Jumia to offer our consumers on-demand delivery of the products they need – instantly. Zipline’s instant logistics system will provide fast and convenient access. This will support Jumia’s commitment to sustainability and innovation and provide much-needed access to rural and remote areas where conventional delivery services have challenges.”
“Zipline is pleased to partner with Jumia to use instant logistics to improve the lives of customers across Africa. This collaboration will increase access to goods for customers and help small and medium sized businesses grow. Zipline’s safe and efficient instant logistics system will make shopping on Jumia even more convenient, sustainable and accessible for its customers,” said Zipline Africa’s, senior vice president, Daniel Marfo.
Both companies say that they intend to expand this service to Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria next, and ultimately to other countries in the near future.
Jumia says that this new venture will help its commitment to sustainability and innovation and provides access to rural and remote areas where conventional delivery services have challenges.
The use of drones for delivery really picked up during the COVID pandemic as countries and companies used innovative ways to reach people when movement of goods was restricted. In 2019, Zipline launched a drone service to cater for 2,000 health facilities and 12 million people in Ghana
