Ethiopian Tech Start-up Pilots Ride-Booking Service Focused on Drivers

A new platform has introduced an innovative touch to Ethiopia’s car-hailing business by allowing vehicle owners to preset their routes with customers following up with requests. Gojjeb which debuted last week, avoids the typical flagging down process by granting passengers direct access to drivers en route to a defined location. Customers can select specific seats, relay the exact load if they have plans to send cargo and communicate in real time with drivers.

Tsega Bahr, Gojjeb’s founder, expects their service to simplify the transport-hailing business by flipping the prevalent operation model in the industry

After registering through their phone numbers, customers receive an OTP clearance that confirms their booking on the defined route.  As opposed to passengers requesting a ride on demand, Gojjeb onboards them after a route and destination has been set by a driver.

“Passengers can also compare rates,” Tsega told Shega.

The Platform assigns unique identifying codes on specific routes that users select from. When the booking is finalized, both parties receive a final SMS message. Gojjeb has made two apps available: one for drivers and another for users. Drivers can post their routes as far ahead as a month, and potential passengers are given a lengthy period to parse through for the most convenient arrangement.

The Platform was developed by Gojjebeneas, a one-year-old tech startup started by the founder, who has a computer science master's degree. After a decade of working in the tech industry, including a stint as a university lecturer, the founder decided to leverage his experience for customized innovative technology solutions.

While only around ten years old, Ethiopia’s taxi-hailing industry has seen its fair share of operators enter the business and quickly die out. At its peak, as many as 44 companies were registered to operate with a mere quarter remaining active by June of last year. Two companies (Feres and Ride) account for a bulk of the market share with most drivers working for both companies. Nonetheless, similar operation models are applied by most service providers with varying degrees of efficiency.

Gojjeb places drivers at the forefront of its business model. suggesting potential rides to customers when definite routes have been identified. The Platform has onboarded over six hundred drivers who operate vehicles ranging from typical household automobiles to bigger trucks and even buses.

“While most trip requests are currently concentrated outside the capital, drivers are free to set their routes,” the Founder says. 

The Founders expect the app to be uploaded onto the Google Play Store in the coming few days while the services are currently available through a website portal.

.