Uber vows to employ one million women drivers by 2020

Taxi app Uber has vowed to employ as many as one million women as drivers by 2020.

Uber’s CEO Travis Kalanick has teamed up with the United Nations to chalk out a plan for “advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women everywhere”.

In the past year, Uber has been embroiled in a lot of controversies for its attitude towards women. In December 2014, the app was banned in Delhi after an Uber driver was accused of raping a woman. (Read: Why has Uber been banned from these places?)

Uber and the UN haven’t revealed specific details on their plans to employ more female drivers.

In a statement, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, executive director, UN Women, and Uber’s Kalanick said:

“Today, UN Women and Uber are launching a partnership to work together around the world toward a shared vision of equality and women’s empowerment.

“We intend to invest in long-term programs in local communities where we live and work, as Uber commits to creating 1,000,000 jobs for women globally on the Uber platform by 2020.

“This important mission can only be accomplished when all women have direct access to safe and equitable earning opportunities. We look forward to a partnership where UN Women and Uber will drive more access to these types of opportunities around the world”

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