Uber Promises to Honour Data-Sharing Agreement

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The foremost ride-hailing platform, Uber, has expressed its commitment to honouring the data-sharing agreement with the Lagos State government amid threats by its drivers to suspend the use of its services.

Recall that on January 23, 2024, Uber and the state government sealed a deal aimed at allowing the latter access to its database for the monitoring of its services.

It was agreed that the Lagos State government would be able to access an Application Programming Interface (API) for the tracking of its drivers, especially when conveying passengers across the metropolis.

The state government demanded to have access to the data for the safety of the residents of Lagos.

However, the Lagos State government claimed Uber has not honoured the gentleman agreement, forcing the state government to authorise its officials to impound the vehicles of Uber drivers.

The drivers, who are not happy with the development, have threatened to abandon the platform until the issues are resolved as they were being harassed for what is not their fault.

But in a statement made available to the media on Wednesday, March 27, 2024, Uber said it was making efforts to resolve the issues.

“We remain committed to honouring the terms of the Data Sharing Agreement which we entered into with the Lagos State Government on January 23, 2024.

“The signed agreement includes a commitment to share aggregated trip data daily via a secure folder solution, which we have been doing consistently as we work towards API integration.

“Nigeria is an important market to us, and over the past ten years, we have played our part to provide a platform for thousands of drivers to earn a flexible income while offering riders a convenient and safe mobility experience,” the Country Manager for Uber in Nigeria, Mr Tope Akinwumi, said.