Uber and Bolt were forced to suspend services in Tanzania following the government’s regulatory changes that were enforced effectively from March 2022. PHOTO | THE CITIZEN
Tanzania says Uber and Bolt ride-hailing services will resume after weeks of controversy over the two companies, which had cited stringent regulatory environment.
Uber suspended services in April, while Bolt switched to corporate clients only in August after the government’s regulatory changes were enforced in March.
The Land Transport Regulatory Authority (Latra), which sets and approves fares for ride-hailing operators in Tanzania, issued guidelines that doubled the per-kilometre rate to Tsh900 ($0.39) and cut commissions the firms charge to 15 per cent from a maximum of 33 per cent.
Latra’s director Habibu Suluo on Monday said the companies’ challenges had been sorted following a meeting with the government.
“We met both companies on September 5 and 6, 2022 and had a dialogue with their Africa representative and the two parties agreed to resume services,” he said.
He said the agreement was favourable to both companies and members of the Tanzania online taxi drivers’ association.
