Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir on Wednesday presided over the licensing and onboarding of 400 delivery riders onto the Bolt platform, in a ceremony held at the Tononoka Social Hall aimed at equipping the county’s youth with sustainable sources of income.
Speaking during the event, the governor said the initiative forms part of his administration’s broader strategy of partnering with the private sector to open up practical pathways to employment for young people in the coastal county.
“Our youth do not lack ambition; they need opportunities, and we are determined to open those doors,” Nassir told the gathering, which drew a large turnout of newly registered riders donned in orange reflector jackets.
The riders underwent a licensing process built on a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) framework, an arrangement that formally acknowledges skills and experience riders have already gained working in the ride-hailing and delivery sector, rather than requiring them to undergo lengthy fresh classroom training.
The model equips them with the necessary credentials to operate on the Bolt Food delivery platform, giving them formal access to the growing gig economy in Mombasa.
The onboarding builds on a partnership between Mombasa County and Bolt that dates back to Bolt Food’s entry into the Mombasa market in April 2023, when the company onboarded its first couriers in the city.
The collaboration was significantly deepened in September 2025, when Governor Nassir hosted a Bolt delegation at his office to strategise on scaling up operations and expanding rider integration county-wide, with RPL-based licensing identified as a central pillar of the partnership.
Under the current arrangement, which currently provides livelihoods for over 1,000 riders across the county, Bolt has been working to strengthen its presence in Mombasa by leveraging public market spaces as operational hubs, an approach designed to make it easier for more young people to join the platform and access decent work.
The initiative is structured as a public-private partnership in which the county provides venue and regulatory support while Bolt manages onboarding, credentialing and platform access.
Nassir reiterated his administration’s commitment to inclusive growth, noting that partnerships of this nature form part of a wider agenda to unlock jobs, support innovation, and create an enabling environment for private investment in Mombasa.
The event, which attracted hundreds of attendees to the packed hall, was met with enthusiasm from residents as a cause to celebrate the job opportunities created for the county’s youth.
By Joan Kinuthia
