Careem’s female drivers will begin working with the ride-hailing app from today in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, in the first phase of the programme, which will then be expanded to include other cities in the kingdom.
Approximately 2,000 Saudi women have already taken part in training sessions conducted by ride-hailing app Careem’s operational, safety and technology teams in anticipation of this week’s historic lifting of a ban on female drivers in the kingdom, according to Careem’s general manager in the country.
“Following the announcement in Saudi Arabia in September 2017 that women would soon be allowed to drive, we opened our door to female captains – ‘Captainahs’ – and invited them to come and sign up to Careem and receive the initial training,” he said. “We have been overwhelmed by the response.”
In a statement, Careem CEO Mudassir Sheikha said that the company is “delighted to welcome these pioneering women to Careem.”
“In line with Careem’s commitment to create job opportunities across the wider Middle East region, 2018 will see a new focus on attracting women to sign up to the platform,” he added. “We’ve set a longer-term target of having 20,000 females signed up region-wide by 2020.”
Earlier this year, Careem set up a ‘women’s female captain committee’ to examine how to include women on the platform, as well as identify any potential barriers and how to create a conducive environment for them to operate.
“Driving for a ride-hailing company provides the chance to be your own boss, earn an additional income and work your own hours, so it’s particularly geared towards the needs of working mothers,” Elyas noted.
“To date, Careem has welcomed women in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan and the UAE and registered some 2,000 women in Saudi Arabia ahead of the decree coming into effect.”
Currently, about 70 percent of Careem’s passengers in Saudi Arabia are women.
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