Online food delivery platforms in Kenya under investigation

Kenya’s competition regulator is investigating the conduct of online food and grocery delivery platforms to inform its suggestions on regulatory and policy options, to bolster healthy competition and enforcement of consumer protections. consumers.

The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) said the market survey will help them understand, among other things, the “role of data” in their operations, data portability, how they acquire customers , consumer protection issues and provide an overview of the redress mechanisms used. through marketplaces. He also plans to use the survey to determine whether the existing regulatory framework can be applied in digital markets.

Enforcement in digital markets is one of CAK’s main areas of focus. He has conducted similar surveys in the past, including a recent one in the area of ​​digital lending where he made suggestions (including on pricing transparency) that informed aspects of the new Digital Credit Providers Act. .

“The market investigation will seek to uncover how food and grocery delivery platforms operate in practice and suggest regulatory and policy options for competition and consumer protection enforcement,” said said CAK Acting Director General Adano Wario.

“The survey will identify the actors and services involved in the business model of food and grocery delivery platforms in Kenya and examine the relationships between platforms and users with a focus on the parameters of competition (market power and conduct) and player concerns,” Wario said.

The regulator said that by understanding consumer protection concerns, it would be in a better position to provide recourse mechanisms for consumers buying from the markets.

There are a number of major online food and grocery delivery platforms in Kenya including Uber, Jumia, Bolt, Glovo which have gained a foothold in the country as internet and smartphone penetration increases, coupled with the adoption of services such as online shopping and delivery.

The market survey follows the recent meeting of several competition watchdogs in Africa, including CAK, to collectively interrogate the business conduct of global digital companies on competition and consumer welfare concerns in Africa.

Members, which also include Egypt, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Morocco, Gambia and Zambia, aim to ensure effective enforcement of competition law and policy in digital markets, ensuring a competitive market and fostering the growth of African digital businesses.