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Uber, the ride-hailing giant, is getting pickier about where it wants to compete in Africa. Last week, it shut down its operations in Nigeria and Uganda, following its exit from Tanzania in January. But Kenya is getting a very different treatment. Uber says the country remains a key market with “strong potential,” even as fuel and operating costs rise.

What’s different about Kenya? Uber has spent more than a decade building beyond basic car rides. It operates in Nairobi, Mombasa, Eldoret, Kisumu, Nakuru, and Naivasha, and has added Uber Eats, motorcycle taxis, electric bodas, and premium rides. Its 2023 economic impact report estimated that the platform supported KES 17.3 billion ($134 million) in economic activity that year, while drivers earned an additional KES 2.2 billion ($17 million) through the platform.

The market itself also gives Uber reasons to stay. Kenya’s economy grew 4.6% in 2025, while transport and storage grew 3.7%. Tourism is another useful demand pool: it contributed $12.7 billion, or 9.3% of Kenya’s gross domestic product (GDP), in 2025, and supported 1.8 million jobs, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). Kenya’s growing tourism and transport sectors give Uber more room to grow bookings. 

What about South Africa? Uber is showing the same strategy there, but at a much larger scale. It plans to invest R5 billion ($310 million) over three years in mobility and delivery, including motorcycles, electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, and Uber Go. Yet, has also discontinued UberX. That is not necessarily a retreat. Uber said several products used the same vehicles, so it is simplifying the range while pushing customers towards products it thinks can work better.

Zoom out: Uber seems to be separating markets where it sees enough demand, scale, and room for new products from those where the economics no longer justify staying. Kenya has a growing digital economy, a large informal transport market and strong tourism demand. It also has fierce competition: on Monday, Bolt said it has invested over KES 19 billion ($147 million) in Kenya and reached more than eight million riders.

What could change? Kenya stops being a priority if growth slows while fuel, vehicle, and regulatory costs keep rising, or if competition makes it harder for Uber to earn enough from each ride. Nigeria is a useful warning. Its exit came as fuel costs, inflation, currency volatility, and competition put more pressure on the economics of ride-hailing.

For now, Uber appears to be betting that Kenya has enough demand and enough room to build a broader mobility business to make those costs worth absorbing.