Indigenous technology firm, LoadMoto Technologies Ltd has unveiled LoadMoto, a ride-hailing and delivery app poised to disrupt the existing market structure in Nigeria.
While currently available services are restricted to passenger cars with specified manufacture years, LoadMoto would accept vehicles in perfect condition regardless of the year of production.
For delivery purposes, motorcyclists would be allowed on LoadMoto, along with cars, buses, Keke Marwa, minibuses, and vans. For wealthy citizens, executive motoring is another option.
Speaking with the media on LoadMoto, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the firm, Nigeria-British citizen, James Jegede, said the uniqueness of the platform is that logistically, there are opportunities for drivers and riders to get more services anytime.
Jegede, who described LoadMoto as a technology tool that simplifies the movement of goods and persons from one point to another, disclosed that the platform is launched with every form of mobility, which is in the market today.
According to him, LoadMoto’s concept actually started four years back but became a reality in September 2022 with focus on disrupting existing markets and giving Nigerians the ability to make the country proud.
While activation is on to bring in more drivers and riders, the LoadMoto boss said the app can be downloaded from IOS, Android platforms and also the web base.
“Logistically, we want a situation, where when a delivery person takes a good from one point to another, he won’t return empty but would be able to get another order while returning,” he stated.
Jegede, who is a train driver instructor in the United Kingdom for about 17 years now, said the app, which was co-built by developers in Nigeria, India and America to enrich its functionality is user-friendly.
He revealed that while activations of the app have started, the firm would be visiting parks in every part of Lagos to register bikes and all vehicle types and models on the platform and sign them on.
The CEO, who assured that riders, and drivers, among others would enjoy the sharing formula, appealed to the government at various levels to remove bottlenecks crippling and slowing business development in the country.
According to him, challenges such as lack of infrastructure (the country losing billions to lack and poor road networks); insecurity; the menace of motor park boys and incessant security interference, which according to him, could be done intelligently are affecting the logistics business.
He believes that the experience gathered while working for British Rail would propel and help LoadMoto navigate the Nigerian terrain adequately well to make life more comfortable for Nigerians. He added that as things improve, “we hope to extend our services beyond Nigeria, especially India.”
Jegede said to ensure that riders and delivery guys behave responsibly, LoadMoto has a training institute, where those, who come on board would be trained and re-trained to ensure service professionalism.
He said the training institute would work with major manufacturers and distributors to train delivery agents to install and offer basic maintenance of electronics and equipment.
On the safety of goods, he said there are terms and conditions, “where we educate our riders that their commissions on fare might be part of insuring the goods if they damaged it. For the customers, we tell them if they want to get insurance that may attract a higher fee for the goods. This is what is done, especially when you are travelling to another country, the airline will ask if you want your goods insured and that attracts more money. So, we shall be applying that on LoadMoto.”
Speaking also, the co-founder, Joseph Ogobor, described LoadMoto as an app that will change logistics and transportation businesses in the country, adding that the platform is all-encompassing.
Ogobor, who said the app is futuristic, stressed that it caters to the need of pedestrians and other sophisticated means of mobility.
Describing the ingenuity behind the app, Ogobor, a software developer, said users of the app could book delivery agents to help them move goods from one place to another in the country.
According to him, because of the app algorithm, the technology behind it allows users, especially for logistics purposes to monitor the movement of goods from point to point to ensure transparency. He said there is real-time tracking on the platform.
He said though, like other ride-hailing apps, LoadMoto also does not own any means of transportation, “but we hope to have virtually all means of transportation on the platform.”
Ogobor also assured that the LoadMoto is firmly secure, and cannot be easily compromised because of the various authentication processes.
