dark
Hand-Picked Top-Read Stories
3 minute read

#CSRWatch: Uber Nigeria is Quietly Reaching Lives in Very Many Unique Ways

David Afolayan
David Afolayan
February 22, 2018
#CSRWatch-Uber Nigeria is Quitely Reaching Lives in Very Many Unique Ways
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

In an environment defined by an increasingly undefinable notion of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme, the Uber Nigeria team has been able to retain a distinguishable CSR template that is worthy of note. Its recent outing has shown that the ride-hailing company has made attending to the needs of the needy a priority.

In this post, I have traced a remarkable trend in the tech company’s projects and perhaps help us remember the good deeds that will perhaps help us realign the purpose of CSR in the first place:

Donations to Sierra Leone Mudslide Victims

When the mudslide, following a heavy rainfall in Sierra Leone occurred, it killed as many as 1000 people and left thousands in need of immediate assistance. The capital of Freetown was badly affected and many lost their homes and personal belongings.

In the wake of the incident, Uber made a call for donations to help those in need. This was executed in partnership with a UK-based charity organisation, Street Child

The plea was targeted at Uber users in Nigeria and Ghana and the organizers claimed that they were used in providing emergency relief and long-term recovery support in Sierra Leone. This contribution, however little, must have been an immense blessing to some victims.

Contribution to JA Nigeria Children’s Day Celebration

Uber Nigeria also contributed visibly to the Junior Achievement Nigeria’s Children’s Day celebration event which was organized by JA Nigeria in partnership with Keystone bank.

Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) is part of Junior Achievement Worldwide, the world’s oldest and largest non-profit economic education organization operating in 120 countries.

It is dedicated to empowering students on financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship through experiential, hands-on programmes. The party was meant to bring happiness to children on their special day and they, evidently, had a lot of fun.

Makurdi Support Donations

Recall the Markudi floods that displaced about 110,000 persons in 24 communities in Benue state, including Makurdi on August 31st, 2017?

YouTube player

 

Well, President Muhammadu Buhari had directed the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to immediately mobilize personnel and resources to provide aid to victims. But, like many other government aids, it wasn’t sufficient (if it was ever available). As a result, many corporate groups and individuals rallied support for the victims.

Although, it wasn’t able to provide the lump sums like many other bigger corporates, Uber Nigeria used its pools of cars to gather donations from its willing customers to deliver relief items to the victims.

Its volunteers were willing to pick up the donated items from each doorstep even in quite unfavourable weather conditions:

And that enabled many Nigerians to turn in their donations in numbers and enjoy some sense of fulfilment:

And the harvest was indeed plenty:

A Visit to the Modupe Cole Memorial Homeschool

This Valentine, while many other tech companies were celebrating their customers and maybe warming up for the #BlackPanther, members of the Uber team took out time to visit the Modupe Cole Memorial Homeschool in Yaba. The school was designed for special kids.

Activities included painting the vocational block and having a fun show with the children!

And the scenes are lifting:

Final Analysis

Uber has shown that it is not merely interested in making some income off Nigerians– its consistent CSR activities are indications of the heart of its policies. Maybe it is high time the tech community saved some resources for funding similar lofty projects. Perhaps, we will be able to soothe the immediate pain of people if more of these activities are channelled towards helping some segments of the society.

This way, we can further strengthen our perception of our communities, and get the inspiration to create solutions that meet actual problems.

 

Technext Newsletter

Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!

Register for Technext Coinference 2023, the Largest blockchain and DeFi Gathering in Africa.

Register to get your ticket

Technext Newsletter

Get the best of Africa’s daily tech to your inbox – first thing every morning.
Join the community now!