
We want to work with the government to speed up the digital revolution.
Careem General Manager in Iraq: We aspire to collaborate with the government to accelerate digital transformation
Corporate social responsibility has always been the cornerstone of the country’s economic and technological development, as it contributes to fulfilling the needs of the society and ensures continued growth.
Careem, the region’s leading multi-service platform, has shown great interest in digital transformation and has a proven track record of providing diverse, new and advanced services to the market and to customers. Careem participated in the “Digital Transformation in the Transportation Sector” event that was recently organized by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in Baghdad as part of their “Tawasul” program. During the event, the General Manager of Careem in Iraq, Hussein Al-Bayati, spoke about “the Importance of Digital Transformation in the Transportation sector and its impact on the economic growth of the country.”
According to Al-Bayati, “the development we are seeing in the transportation sector in terms of the digital and technological aspects has brought positive impact to the economy at different levels, where studies show that a 10% increase in the level of digitization of the country leads to an 0.7% growth in per capita (GDP). He added: “The increasing demand for transportation as a result of the improvement of the economy and the increase in imports and exports represent one of the most important opportunities that drive investment in digital and smart transportation in Iraq.”
The event also highlighted the important role digital and smart transportation plays in creating flexible work opportunities by ensuring a safe environment for transportation, which helps in improving people’s income and their social status, as well as the service quality. Moreover, this could help encourage foreign investment and enable a better work environment for startups in Iraq.
Careem believes that the collaboration between the private sector and the government sector is essential, particularly in terms of providing the right infrastructure and improving the regulations. Al-Bayati highlighted the importance of developing this sector and working on a national strategy for digital transformation that involves improving the ICT infrastructure, stressing on the positive impact of the collaboration between the government and the private sector on providing greater and faster opportunities for development through exchanging data and putting the right strategies and plans.
Al-Bayati also emphasized on the positive impact of the legislative improvements on developing the work of organizations, which are part of the economic growth, highlighting that these improvements should include the companies’ registration law, and improving the financial system.
Careem is committed to simplifying people’s lives by providing technological solutions to local challenges and improving transportation and e-Payment services in the region. Careem is one of the region’s first big technology companies to expand to the Iraqi market and is currently operating in 4 cities in Iraq including Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil and Basra.