Nigerian agricultural crowdfunding startup Farmcrowdy, through its general investment platform CrowdyVest, has launched bus-hailing service PlentyWaka.
Formed in 2016, the Farmcrowdy platform connects small scale farmers across Nigeria with access to finance sourced from individuals and corporates via its online platform, and has so far empowered over 25,000 farmers across 14 states.
The company has been in the process of reorganising recently, bundling its sister companies Farmgate Africa and Agricsquare into a bigger Farmcrowdy in July, and spinning out CrowdyVest, an investment platform created to deploy crowdsourced capital into agriculture, transportation and beyond.
CrowdyVest has now launched PlentyWaka, a bus-hailing service that already has 25 buses in Lagos. The company will be run independently by managing director Johnny Enagwolor, and has been designed to allow users to schedule their rides from their preferred pick-up locations to their desired destinations.
PlentyWaka has launched its first route – Ajah to CMS / CMS to Ajah – and users can download the app on Android and iOS.
“With PlentyWaka, you can avoid the rush, the noise, and other inconveniences, while you order a ride comfortably from the app. What is more interesting is, not only will you able to order your ride, you can book your preferred seat. For some, that’s a spot by the window and for some others, it’s a seat on the last row,” CrowdyVest said in a blog post.
The first set of 10,000 riders will be able to try the service for free with their first two trips, while people are also able to sponsor project units and receive using the CrowdyVest platform.
