Bolt to halt food delivery in Nigeria

Johnstone Kpilaakaa -

Just under two years since its launch in Nigeria, Bolt Food intends to cease its operations by December, according to Techpoint Africa. "The decision to exit this market is necessary to streamline our resources and maximise our overall efficiency as a company," Bolt Food said in a statement.

The food delivery company asserts that it has collaborated with 10,000 restaurants, facilitated the delivery of over one million meals, and enlisted 23,000 agents and 12,000 merchants thus far.

Bolt Food's plan to quit the Nigerian market is coming a few weeks after Sola Masha, its country manager told Vanguard that "lasting in the [food delivery market] will be dependent on providing quality service across the board and ensuring operations excellence".

However, he acknowledged the intense competition within the market, especially because of the increasing low purchasing power of Nigerians which has been increased by the economic downturn. Also, in Nigeria, the recent fuel subsidy cut is taking a toll on businesses; especially those offering logistics-related services, as well as rising food costs.

The company has had to contend with established players like Jumia Foods, Glovo and Chowdeck, the latter recently achieved a monthly order value of $1.2 million.

While Bolt Food is withdrawing from the food delivery market, other Bolt verticals, including the ride-hailing platform, will continue to operate. It's worth mentioning that Bolt Food also ceased its operations in Sweden earlier this year.

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In 2021, there were 23.2 million users of platform-to-consumer online food delivery in Africa, according to Statista. The data analytics platform also disclosed that about 39.1 million restaurant-to-consumer online food delivery users were recorded in the same year; by next year, the number is projected to reach 53.8 million.

Meanwhile, the online food delivery market in Africa is projected to reach $7.45 billion at the end of this year.
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