Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government is mulling over introducing a legal framework for ride-hailing services in the province. If successful, KP will be the first province in Pakistan to have formal regulations for these services.
The suggestion came about in a meeting between KP Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra, Uber’s Head of International Strategy and Policy Matthew Devlin, and Head of Policy for Pakistan Hassan Arshad in Islamabad.
Jhagra said that the tax rate on ride-hailing services is two percent while it is five percent on online marketplace services in KP because the government believes that these services will flourish and create jobs for the youth.
“This will encourage entrepreneurship and protect the incomes of drivers already using the ride hailing-platform,” he said, adding that it will provide favorable conditions for job creation and investment while being a sustainable revenue source for the government in the coming years.
The meeting discussed the regulatory policy framework for ride-hailing services, growth and potential partnerships between the provincial government and Uber.
Devlin said that ride-hailing services provide employment to thousands of Pakistani drivers. Even the jobless people with higher education have joined the services to make ends meet.
