‘Uberization’ as Neoliberal Governmentality: A Global South Perspective

Abstract

Using the neo-Foucauldian literature on neoliberal governmentality as conceptual lens, this paper critically examines Uber’s influence on the governance of urban transport. It argues that ‘uberization’ represents a form of neoliberal governmentality in which Uber replaces the state as the arbiter and protector of citizenship. It distils the underlying logics of uberization through four discursive moments of subjectification and subjectivation in Ghana’s transport sector. Mainly conceptual but interlaced with empirical moments, the paper makes a vital contribution to the literature on how new forms of neoliberalization manifest through varied techno-material instruments in global south cities.