KARACHI: Restaurant owners in Pakistan’s seaside megapolis of Karachi are boycotting Foodpanda in a protest over what they say are “unethical practices” by the mobile food delivery service which seeks to increase its commission fees.
The All Pakistan Restaurant Association (APRA) announced their protests on Tuesday, accusing the company owned by Berlin-based Delivery Hero SE of increasing commission to “nonviable” levels. From Monday, the protest is going to expand to Islamabad and Lahore.
“Our 250 members have protested over the unfair practices by Foodpanda and boycotted its services from Sept. 15, in the first phase in Karachi. The three-day deadline is ending today. Now our tablets will be closed on Foodpanda in Lahore and Islamabad from Monday,” Ather Chawla, convener of APRA, told Arab News on Thursday.
“They (Foodpanda) are asking for increasing the commission fee from the current 18 percent to 25-35 percent, which is not viable for the business of restaurants whose raw material cost alone is 50 percent,” he said, adding that APRA’s cooperation with Foodpanda has been suspended until the company puts in place “corrective measures.”
Having operations in 50 countries, Foodpanda offers services in 32 Pakistani cities. In Karachi alone, it has some 262 restaurants registered on its platform. A major chunk of the company’s revenue comes from restaurant commissions.
In a letter addressed to the chief executive of Foodpanda, APRA chairman Muhammad Naeem Siddiqui wrote that the company’s managers “blackmail APRA members to increase the commission manifold,” threatening them that their restaurants would be removed from the delivery service’s platform.
Restaurant owners also say Foodpanda is deviating from its original Vendor Delivery concept.
“The original model was that they only book orders through their portal and we would deliver food. Later they also came up with delivery options and now they are forcing us to abandon our own delivery services,” Chawla said, adding that it would reduce the area of delivery from 10 kilometers to four kilometers.
APRA has also written a complaint to the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCOP), accusing Foodpanda of “anti-competitive business conduct by forcing restaurants to sign exclusive contract with them, limiting them to work with other food delivery companies.”
“First they forced restaurant owners to hike commission and when they refused, they were pressurized to sign exclusivity agreements,” Chawla said.
As in Pakistan many other companies such as CareemEats, Eat Mubarak, and Cheetay offer food delivery services, Chawla sees Foodpanda’s policy as “a bid to monopolize food delivery business.”
Despite repeated attempts by Arab News, Foodpanda chief executive for Pakistan, Nauman Sikandar Mirza, was not available for comment.
Karachi restaurants boycott Foodpanda delivery service over commission policy
https://arab.news/cugxn
Karachi restaurants boycott Foodpanda delivery service over commission policy
- All Pakistan Restaurant Association (APRA) protest in Karachi will expand to Islamabad and Lahore on Monday
- Restaurant owners also accuse the Berlin-based company of attempt to ‘monopolize food delivery business’ in Pakistan
Islamabad offers skilled manpower to help Iraq in reconstruction, development efforts
- The development comes during Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari’s four-day visit to Iraq to strengthen bilateral cooperation
- Zardari says current levels of bilateral trade do not reflect true potential of Pakistan-Iraq ties, highlights opportunities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has offered to provide skilled manpower to support Iraq’s reconstruction and development efforts, the Pakistani government said on Sunday, signaling Islamabad’s willingness to deepen cooperation with Baghdad in sectors including infrastructure, technical services and human resource development.
The development comes during Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari’s four-day visit to Iraq to strengthen cooperation in trade, investment, religious tourism, energy and other sectors.
Zardari held a one-on-one meeting with his Iraqi counterpart, Dr. Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, at Baghdad Palace, which was followed by delegation-level talks to review the state of bilateral relations.
“President Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s willingness to support Iraq’s reconstruction and development efforts through the provision of skilled and semi-skilled manpower under the existing Memorandum of Understanding on manpower transmission,” Pakistan’s Press Information Department (PID) said in a statement.
“He also highlighted Pakistan’s capacity in medical services, financial expertise and digital governance, and expressed readiness to share technical experience, including in secure data management, to support institutional capacity-building in Iraq.”
Iraq has been working to rebuild its economy and infrastructure after decades of conflict, including the 2003 US-led invasion and years of instability caused by sectarian violence and the fight against Daesh group. Although security conditions have improved in recent years, large parts of the country still face damaged roads, power plants, hospitals and housing, requiring large-scale reconstruction and public service delivery.
During Sunday’s meeting, Zardari noted that the current levels of bilateral trade do not reflect the true potential of Pakistan-Iraq economic, cultural and security relations, highlighting opportunities in agriculture, defense production, information technology, construction, pharmaceuticals and other sectors. He underscored the importance of business-to-business engagement and the establishment of direct banking channels to facilitate trade and commercial activity, according to the PID.
Zardari also requested improved facilitation for Pakistani pilgrims visiting Iraq and expressed hope for early finalization and implementation of a proposed Memorandum of Understanding on Zaireen (pilgrims) Management, aimed at ensuring orderly travel. He expressed his firm resolve to work with the Iraqi government to stop illegal entry and overstay of those Pakistanis who violate Iraqi law.
“Both Presidents expressed their resolve to fight extremism, terrorism and narco trade and enhance bilateral cooperation,” the PID said. “The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further deepening bilateral cooperation across political, economic and social domains.”
Pakistan and Iraq established diplomatic relations in 1947 and have traditionally maintained cordial ties, though commercial links remain modest. The volume of trade between both countries stood at $268 million in 2023.
Pakistan’s major exports to Iraq include machinery and mechanical appliances, pharmaceutical products, fish, cereals, essential oils and resinoids. Islamabad’s imports from Iraq include mineral fuels, mineral, organic chemicals, edible fruit and nuts.
