Uber Teams up with Takamol to Provide Saudi Women with Access to Affordable Transport

Uber has announced that it has teamed up with “Takamol Holding” to provide women in Saudi Arabia with access to affordable transport solutions. Takamol operates Wusool, a program that has been developed by the kingdom’s Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) with the goal of making it possible for Saudi women to enjoy affordable, subsidized transportation solutions and thus helping them to contribute to the  country’s socio-economic progress. The program has been developed to align with the goals and objectives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

Commenting on the announcement of the strategic collaboration, Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty, VP & Regional General Manager EMEA, Uber said that Uber is a conscientious company which aims to contribute to the development of the communities that it operates in. Uber is expanding exponentially within the Middle East and North Africa region, and Saudi Arabia is one of its fastest-growing markets. Thus Uber would continue to support the Saudi government’s focus on Saudization and the Saudi Vision 2030, which has a stated goal of increasing women’s participation in the workforce”.

“Through this partnership with Takamol Holding for “Wusool”, which is Uber’s largest subsidized transport

program globally, we are able to provide women with the opportunity to achieve their professional ambitions, as well as strive to be catalysts for economic growth in the Kingdom with their active contribution to the overall workforce”, added Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty.

Commenting on the announcement, Dr. Ahmed Al Yamani, CEO Takamol stated that he was delighted to announce Takamol’s partnership with Uber, which is a leader in the ride-hailing industry. He said that the partnership would provide Saudi women with access to transportation solutions for going to and from their workplace, and this comes under one of the strategic objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, which amims to make it possible for women to enter the workforce and bolster it under the National Transformation Program. Currently, about 25,000 women benefit from the program and the plan is for more women to join them by the end of the year 2019.

Saudi women who are in the 18 to 65 age group can apply to the program through Taqat – the National Labor gateway tha tis managed by the HRDF, and based on the eligibility criteria can qualify for to receive partially subsidised “Wusool” rides on the Uber application in the Kingdom. Applicants should be working in the private sector and be earning an income of up to a maximum of SAR 8,000 per month.

In line with the Kingdom’s cultural and economical changes, and Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, the aim of the strategic partnership is to increase the participation of women in the workforce by helping them to overcome the challenges associated with accessing reliable and convenient transportation to/from their workplace, as well as providing flexible economic opportunities.

The partnership aligns well with Uber’s Masaruky (“your path” in Arabic) initiative, which aims to boost the mobility of women in the Kingdom. As part of the “Masaruky” initiative, Uber pledged SAR 1 million to support select women through driving schools. Most recently, Uber has announced the launch of a feature which enables women drivers on Uber to select a preference for women riders, a feature only available in Saudi and a global first for Uber.