The San Francisco-based ride-hailing company Uber has announced that it will be extending its aid to Ukraine. Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, took to LinkedIn to announce the aid, and said,
"As the horrific war and humanitarian crisis continues to escalate in Ukraine, I wanted to share an update on Uber's global response. Since the Russian invasion began last week, our top priority has been to work 24/7 to keep riders, drivers and employees safe. This included pausing operations across Ukraine and helping employees relocate to safer parts of Ukraine and nearby countries."
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi with driver partners.
In a company blog, Uber has announced that it will be supporting Ukrainian communities with:
a. Humanitarian aid - Uber will be launching an in-app donation button to allow Uber riders in the US to make donations to the International Rescue Committee. "We plan to make in-app donation features available to Uber users in more countries in the coming days. Uber will match donations made through this feature up to $1 million. We are also making an additional $500,000 donation to the International Federation of Red Cross and World Food Program USA in support of the UN World Food Programme’s humanitarian efforts in Ukraine and neighbouring countries," said the blog by Uber.
b. Free rides at the border - Uber will be providing unlimited free trips between Ukrainian border and the Polish cities.
c. Essential supplies - Uber has collected 60 tons of essential supplies in Romania, and it is now working with the International Red Cross to transport them to communities in Ukraine.
Uber will also be working to keep the drivers and riders safe, and it will continue to provide advance payments to all drivers in Ukraine, and "we are exploring how Ukrainian refugees can have access to work on the Uber platform in neighbouring countries where they operate," stated a post on the blog.
"We are helping Ukraine staff and their families relocate to other countries or to areas of Ukraine not currently in danger of the conflict," it added.
With Russia's invasion of Ukraine growing in scope, some of the biggest technology firms in the world are stepping in to help in any way they can.
Whether it is a large data-based platform like Google, a tech expertise company like Microsoft, a satellite firm like , or even a product company like Apple, everyone is trying to do their bit.
Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta and Anju Narayanan