Zipline, Jumia Pioneer Drone Delivery To Homes Across Africa

Jumia, the leading e-commerce platform in Africa, and Zipline, the world’s largest instant delivery service, on Thursday, announced a collaboration to deploy automated, on-demand delivery for e-commerce in Africa.

Pilot programme and testing were launched a few months ago in Ghana.

The collaboration will integrate Zipline’s automated, on-demand delivery system with Jumia’s existing distribution network to enable customers to receive instant, on-demand delivery of exactly the products they want, exactly when they want them and from the comfort of their homes.

Executive vice president and group chief operating officer, Jumia, Apoorva Kumar, said “Using the latest instant logistics technology will allow Jumia to offer our consumers on-demand delivery of the products they need – instantly. Whether they’re ordering electronics, fashion, health, and beauty, or other categories, Zipline’s instant logistics system will provide fast and convenient access. This will support Jumia’s commitment to sustainability and innovation and provide much-needed access to rural and remote areas where conventional delivery services have challenges.”

An initial pilot was carried out across multiple use cases with varying product assortment logging up to 2,500km in testing. Deliveries to outlying Jumia hubs as far as 85km from the take-off location at the Zipline operational hub in Omenako (Ghana) were completed in less than one hour with real-time visibility of the drone for all stakeholders in the delivery cycle. Eventual plans call for expansion to Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria, and ultimately to other countries in the future.

Senior vice president, Zipline Africa, Daniel Marfo, said: “Zipline is pleased to partner with Jumia to use instant logistics to improve the lives of customers across Africa. This collaboration will increase access to goods for customers and help small and medium sized businesses grow.

“Zipline’s safe and efficient instant logistics system will make shopping on Jumia even more convenient, sustainable and accessible for its customers.”

Jumia’s logistics network includes 30+ warehouses and 3,000+ drop-off stations and pick-up stations, located across Jumia’s 11-country market. In 2020, Jumia announced that its logistics service would now be available to third parties seeking to leverage the network, technology, and expertise for last-mile deliveries across its 11 countries in Africa.

Zipline’s instant logistics system, on the other hand, is made up of a world class autonomy platform, fleet of light, electric aircraft, and flight management systems that reduce green-house gas emissions by 98 per cent compared to delivery by car. This system is designed to enable all consumers, from the most urban to the most remote, to access the products they need in 45-minutes or less while reducing the carbon emissions of last-mile delivery up to 98 per cent compared to traditional cars.

Jumia’s partnership with Zipline is part of its commitment to providing affordable and eco-friendly delivery of online orders for consumers. In addition to its partnership with Zipline, Jumia works with Solar Taxi in Ghana and eBee in Kenya to achieve a fully green footprint using clean and sustainable renewable energy.