New digital behaviour
Users needed to move from familiar offline transport booking to a digital ride-booking experience.
GO BACK
Designing a locally adapted ride-hailing platform for Sierra Leone
End-to-end product design for a ride-hailing platform built for Sierra Leone and designed remotely from Nigeria.
- Scope
- UX Research, Product Strategy, Interaction Design, High-Fidelity UI, Prototyping
- Year
- Feb 2024
- Role
- Product Designer
- Engagement
- Contract
- Platform
- iOS & Android
- Tool
- Figma
Overview
GoSalone is a ride-hailing platform built to connect riders and drivers across Sierra Leone.
I joined the project as the sole Product Designer, working with a four-person team to design the product from zero. I led the design across the rider app, driver app, and operations platform, covering product flows, interaction design, UI, prototyping, design systems, and implementation reviews.
The product was built and launched for the Sierra Leone market, with the first rider app version released in February 2024.
The Challenge
GoSalone aimed to introduce app-based ride-hailing to Sierra Leone while adapting the product to the local market.
Local payment limits
The product relied mainly on Orange Money, which meant payments went directly to drivers and created a risk around platform remittance.
Remote product design
I designed the product from Nigeria, so I could not speak with riders and drivers directly. I relied on client feedback and worked closely with the Product Manager to test and refine key decisions.
Approach & Process
I owned the product design across the rider app, driver app, and operations platform.
I worked from product definition and user flows through to UI, prototyping, design system, and implementation reviews.
Because I designed from Nigeria without direct access to riders and drivers in Freetown, direct field research was not possible. I worked closely with the Product Manager and engineering team to understand the local context, test assumptions, and refine the product as we built it.
- 1
Understand the Context
Learn how people travel, pay, and use digital services in Sierra Leone through client input, stakeholder feedback, and market research.
- 2
Define the Key Assumptions
Identify the areas where a wrong decision could affect the rider, driver, or business experience most.
- 3
Map the Core Flows
Define the key journeys across booking, driver onboarding, trip management, payments, earnings, and operations.
- 4
Design the Experience
Turn the agreed flows and product rules into clear screens and interactions.
- 5
Test the Interaction
Use prototypes and team reviews to check key flows, edge cases, and unclear states before development.
- 6
Build with Engineering
Work alongside engineers through regular stand-ups and implementation reviews to resolve gaps between the design and the working product.
- 7
Refine and Repeat
Review the product as it takes shape, then refine the design based on new findings, technical limits, and changes to the product.
Designing the Rider Experience
Getting users started
Before users could book a ride, I designed a short onboarding and account setup flow to introduce the service and get them ready to book.
I kept onboarding focused on the key steps needed to get riders into the product and ready to request their first ride.
Making the ride journey clear from booking to drop-off
The rider experience needed to make app-based ride booking simple for people using the service for the first time. I designed the main journey from setting a destination to completing a ride, with clear steps and states throughout the process.
- 01
Clear booking details
Riders can review their trip and fare before placing a request.
- 02
Driver information
Important driver and vehicle details are available before pickup.
- 03
Clear trip status
The interface keeps riders informed as the trip moves from pickup to drop-off.
- 04
Simple completion
Riders can confirm the end of the trip and leave feedback.
Designing the Driver Experience
Helping drivers manage rides from request to completion
The driver app needed to help drivers handle each stage of a ride with clear actions and useful information. I focused on making the ride flow easy to follow while also supporting the rules that controlled driver activity on the platform.
- 01
Ride Request
Drivers can review key trip details before accepting a request.
- 02
Clear trip state
Clear ride states help drivers track each stage of the trip.
- 03
Trip Completion
A clear completion state confirms the ride has ended.
Designing Earnings & Remittance
GoSalone relied mainly on Orange Money for payments.
This meant drivers received payment directly, creating a risk around the platform's share of each completed ride.
I worked with the Product Manager and engineers to design a system that gave drivers visibility into their earnings while helping the platform track remittance.
Trip Earnings
Each completed ride shows the amount earned.
Remittance Status
Drivers can see the amount due and their current remittance status.
Account Status
The system reflects whether a driver's account can continue receiving ride requests based on their remittance status.
Outcome & Impact
I designed GoSalone from zero across the rider app, driver app, and operations platform.
I worked with the Product Manager and engineers through design and development.
The product launched with the core tools needed to run a ride-hailing service, including ride booking, driver matching, trip tracking, driver management, earnings, and payment tracking.
The rider and driver apps are publicly available, with the rider app first released in February 2024.
What I Delivered
- 50+screens across three product areas
- Rider appfor booking and tracking trips
- Driver appfor managing rides and earnings
- Operations platformfor managing the service
- Design systemfor shared components and patterns
What this project taught me
GoSalone showed me how product design decisions can affect both users and the business.
I had to design a two-sided product, work within local payment limits, and make key decisions without direct access to end users.
The project strengthened how I approach product thinking, system design, and working with engineering from the start of a product to launch.
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