Uber celebrates its 4th birthday in Africa

Uber today celebrates its fourth anniversary in Africa.

Our sister site Ventureburn first revealed the company’s plans for an African expansion in July 2013. Uber then began secret tests in August later that year. Now, the company operates in 16 cities across the continent.

In honour of the occasion, the on-demand transport company dug up some of the numbers behind its four year stint on the continent. Some of the figures are rather remarkable.

The company has moved over 1.8-million people within the four years, with more than 230 000 rides scheduled. It also created more than 29 000 economic opportunities within that period.

It also revealed that request times differ in its largest African markets.

While Ugandans, Kenyans and Ghanaians rely on Uber most on Friday nights, Tanzanians’ most popular request times are Saturday evenings at 7pm.

Uber has moved nearly two million people in Africa in its four years on the continent

But the number that left us most baffled was the “longest trip” recorded on the continent: a journey from Cape Town to Durban via Bloemfontein, for a total of 3190km.

Happy 4th Birthday, Africa! This has been the journey of a lifetime & we couldn’t have done it without you. https://t.co/VoVvFMzKrc pic.twitter.com/XC2WjI2Y9e

— Uber South Africa (@Uber_RSA) September 28, 2017

“It all started with the tap of a button, and has led to so much more — from exploring new cities together, getting you to that big moment on time and to thousands of economic opportunities created. You’ve been a part of every moment and we couldn’t have done it without you!” the company notes in a post.

Yeah, we’re also still trying to work out if we could afford a ride to Durban.

But before you accidentally book a road trip to a foreign country, have a look at the rest of the stats below.