By Ebi Azly Abdullah
I try to not post work stuff on FB, but I would like to highlight some interesting stuff that we have been doing since I joined Grab in March.
Many may not know, Grab started off as a start-up; a social enterprise, initially to help solve a key problem in Malaysia – our taxi services.
It grew rapidly and transformed the transport sector significantly.
Now everybody knows Grab does more than just providing you a ride, but food deliveries, e-mart, e-Wallets and even money lending for our partners.
While all know Grab moved its HQ to SG, Grab never ‘left’ Malaysia.
We have 120,000 MOT-registered drivers and riders, and with more than 12 million active users of the integrated app, Grab now play a key role in the lives of most Malaysians.
Want to travel somewhere but don’t have a car? Use Grab.
Hungry? Need food? Use Grab.
Need to send stuff to mother in law? Use Grab.
Transfer money to daughter? Use Grab.
But I feel with such an influential platform, we can do so much more.
With great powers come great responsibilities lah katakan…
So, we started talking to the government and key agencies.
Not just on laws pertaining to transport, and being reactive to things… but on being an enabler. A platform to help more people.
Of course, there will always be some issues. But none that can’t be addressed. We offer solutions at national level. Just like the old days.
Some interesting facts:
* Over 10,000 individuals joined the gig economy and two times more merchants move their business online in the last 3 months alone.
* In Malaysia, Grab rolled out 11 initiatives to support small businesses, driver- and delivery-partners, frontliners, as well as communities impacted by COVID-19.
* Onboarded 133 traditional Ramadan bazaar vendors to an online platform, who were able to fulfill more than 66,000 orders through the Grab e-Kitchen Bazar Ramadan.
* Grab also expanded GrabMart to 5 cities across Malaysia within 3 weeks to bring on board more types of businesses – pharmacies, florists, grocery stores etc – and to create more earning opportunities for delivery-partners.
In collaboration with the government, this included:
Shop Malaysia Online: supporting new businesses on GrabFood and GrabMart with incentives. Through the initiative, Grab will invest in promotions and discounts.
DesaMall: Piloting an initiative with the Ministry of Rural Development (KPLB) to help 5,000 rural entrepreneurs digitalise their business, sell their goods and earn income opportunities through GrabMart and GrabFood.
Inisiatif Digital Selangor-Grab: Bringing more market vendors, food hawkers and traditional grocery stores onto digital platforms.
Ok. Enough on work stuff. Let’s talk about Liverpool being champions again!
- Writer is Country Head, Government and Public Affairs Grab Malaysia
