CAIRO, Feb 27 (Aswat Masriya) - Uber Egypt said on Monday that it aims to provide funding for its drivers to help them buy new cars over five-year instalments through its partnership with Rawaj company.

During a press conference, Uber Egypt’s General Manager Abdel Latif Waked said that 40 per cent of Uber drivers do not own a car, adding that the target is to remove the costly barriers to purchasing a new car by providing easy financing.

Uber offers this type of financing in several countries where it operates, but this is the first time it introduces it in Egypt. The company’s target is to enable 30 per cent of its drivers to purchase a car through this deal by year end.

Rawaj Company for Recruitment works in the business of providing its clients with funding for purchasing cars.

Mahmoud Ezzat, board member at Rawaj, said the arrangement with Uber will provide easy financing for drivers with a “reasonable” interest rate which would be commensurate with the driver’s monthly income.

Since its launch in Nov. 2014, Uber has employed 50,000 drivers, according to its statistics.

In the press conference, AUC Economics Professor Naglaa Rizk said that 70 per cent of Uber’s employees are 18 to 35 years old, more than half of them have acquired a college degree, and consider their salary from Uber as their main source of income.