Beyond Uber: Yoyei Pioneers a New Path for Nigeria’s Mobility Industry

LAGOS, Nigeria-Uber’s exit from Nigeria may have closed one chapter in the country’s ride-hailing industry, but it has also created fresh opportunities for locally developed mobility companies.

While the departure of one of the world’s biggest ride-hailing platforms has raised questions about the economics of operating transportation businesses in Nigeria, the demand for reliable, affordable and convenient mobility remains strong.

For Beril Bunuzigha, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Yoyei, the changing landscape presents an opportunity to rethink how transportation solutions are designed for the Nigerian market.

“Nigeria’s mobility market is being reorganised. Global platforms are reassessing the market, but the need for reliable mobility has not changed,” Bunuzigha said.

He added that Yoyei is focused on developing an electric mobility ecosystem built around Nigerian realities and economics.

Yoyei’s Local Approach to Mobility

Yoyei is a Nigerian electric mobility company developing transportation solutions specifically for the local market.

Its model combines electric vehicles, fleet operations, charging infrastructure, payment systems and strategic partnerships to provide cleaner and more dependable transportation for riders, drivers, fleet owners and businesses.

According to Bunuzigha, understanding Nigeria’s unique transportation challenges is critical to building a sustainable mobility business.

A Market That Still Needs to Move

Uber played a major role in changing transportation habits in Nigeria’s major cities, helping make app-based ride-hailing part of everyday urban life.

However, its departure does not necessarily mean the end of technology-driven transportation in Nigeria.

Instead, it highlights some of the challenges facing mobility companies, including vehicle acquisition costs, fuel prices, financing, infrastructure, traffic congestion and consumer purchasing power.

Local operators could potentially benefit from having a deeper understanding of these conditions.

Yoyei says it has already begun testing its model in the Nigerian market.

During a three-month pilot of its electric mobility service, the company said demand from riders exceeded the capacity it had available.

The pilot also provided the company with operational data on rider behaviour, vehicle performance, charging requirements, fleet utilisation and driver productivity.

“The pilot gave us evidence, not assumptions,” Bunuzigha said.

“People wanted the service, demand was stronger than the capacity we had available, and the operating data showed us where the model creates value and where it must be strengthened.”

Electric Mobility Goes Beyond the Vehicle

For Yoyei, electric mobility is not simply about replacing petrol-powered vehicles with electric cars.

The company believes the wider ecosystem must also function effectively for electric mobility to succeed at scale.

This includes charging infrastructure, financing, maintenance, fleet scheduling, payments and efficient vehicle deployment.

Nigeria’s electricity challenges make charging infrastructure particularly important. Charging locations need to be strategically positioned, while vehicle availability, routes and operating schedules must be coordinated to ensure that riders can access transportation when needed.

Bunuzigha believes the financial case for electric mobility must be as compelling as its environmental benefits.

“Electric mobility in Nigeria will succeed when it solves an economic problem as well as an environmental one,” he said.

“A lower energy cost means little if the vehicle is unavailable when a rider needs it, or if the charging and financing model does not work for the operator. The entire system has to make sense.”

Creating Value Across the Mobility Chain

Yoyei’s model is aimed at addressing the needs of different participants across the transportation ecosystem.

For riders, reliability is a key priority. Drivers and fleet owners need operating costs that enable sustainable earnings, while businesses, hotels and other organisations require dependable transportation partners.

By combining electric vehicles with fleet management, charging infrastructure, payments and partnerships, Yoyei hopes to create a connected system in which each component supports the others.

The company says its objective is not simply to copy an international ride-hailing model, but to develop a mobility platform designed around Nigerian conditions.

Yoyei: Not the Next Uber

Despite the attention generated by Uber’s departure, Yoyei does not describe itself as an Uber replacement.

Bunuzigha believes Nigeria’s large and diverse mobility market can accommodate different operators and transportation models.

For Yoyei, the immediate focus is electric mobility, local demand and sustainable operating economics.

That could become increasingly important as Nigerians continue to face rising transportation costs, fuel pressures, traffic congestion and concerns about the environmental impact of conventional vehicles.

From Pilot to the Next Phase

The three-month pilot has provided Yoyei with operational insights that the company says will guide its next phase of development.

Fleet operations, charging infrastructure, payment systems and strategic partnerships are expected to remain central to the company’s expansion.

Yoyei’s ambition therefore extends beyond putting more electric vehicles on Nigerian roads. The company is seeking to build an integrated mobility system capable of operating within the realities of Nigeria’s economy and infrastructure.

For Bunuzigha, the demand demonstrated during the pilot reinforces the opportunity.

“People wanted the service. The operating data showed us where the model creates value and where it must be strengthened.”

As Nigeria’s mobility sector adjusts to a changing ride-hailing landscape, the emergence of locally focused companies such as Yoyei could signal a shift towards transportation solutions designed specifically for the Nigerian market.

The question may no longer be simply who will replace Uber.

Instead, the bigger question is whether Nigeria can build a mobility industry of its own, shaped around the country’s people, infrastructure and economic realities.

Yoyei believes it can.

The company’s ambition is to demonstrate that cleaner transportation, dependable mobility and sustainable business economics can coexist within a Nigerian-built mobility ecosystem.

For media enquiries and further information about Yoyei’s electric mobility solutions, Yoyei Technology Limited can be reached through its website.

Yoyei website: www.yoyei.com