RibiPeople
Meal Allowance

Feed your team, wherever they work

Monthly meal credit for restaurants, food delivery, and groceries — employees choose how they spend it.

In most African cities, eating well during the workday means spending real money. Street food, delivery apps, restaurant lunches — the costs add up fast. A RibiPeople meal allowance puts that decision back in your employees' hands, funded by you, with zero paper vouchers or manual distribution.

A recurring monthly credit your company loads to each employee's employee benefits wallet. They can spend it at partner restaurants, load it to local food delivery apps, or use it for grocery shops — whatever suits their city and lifestyle that month.

94%

Avg. monthly redemption rate

18+

Cities with restaurant partners

6

Delivery platforms supported

2 weeks

Go-live time

Step by step

How it works

1

Your company sets a monthly meal allowance per employee tier.

2

On the 1st of each month, the credit appears in each employee's employee benefits wallet.

3

Employees choose: dine at a partner restaurant, order delivery, or shop groceries.

4

Vouchers and credits are issued instantly in-app. No paper, no claims.

5

Unused credit resets at month end.

What's included

What employees get

Restaurant vouchers redeemable at 50+ partner restaurants per city

Food delivery credit loaded to leading local delivery platforms per market

Grocery vouchers for major supermarket chains and local market partners

Flexible split — use across multiple channels in the same month

Real-time balance visible in the app

For HR

Why companies choose this.

Zero admin overhead

No manual voucher distribution. No end-of-month reconciliation. The platform handles everything automatically.

Improve talent attraction

Meal allowances are one of the most valued employee benefits across Africa. Include it and stand out in competitive talent markets.

Tax-efficient in most markets

In several African markets, employer-funded meal benefits qualify for tax exemptions. Our team will advise on your specific markets.

For employees

Why employees love it.

Spend how you want

Restaurant this week, groceries next week. No restrictions on how you split your allowance.

Works in your city

We activate local restaurant and grocery partners where your employees actually live — not just in the capital.

No paperwork

Book a restaurant, get a voucher code instantly. Show it at the door. Done.

Why not just add it to salary?

Because cash disappears into rent, debt repayment, or savings — and employees don't associate it with you. A ring-fenced meal credit is used for meals every single month. Employees see your company name every time they eat. That visible, recurring value builds loyalty in a way an equivalent salary bump simply doesn't. Studies across African markets consistently show that named benefits have 30–40% higher perceived value than equivalent cash.

Who it's for

Built for how your team actually works.

Office-based teams

Daily lunch is a real cost. A meal credit covers it and removes a daily decision employees otherwise make alone.

Field & sales teams

Reps eating on the road spend personally. A meal credit removes the reimbursement cycle entirely.

Remote & hybrid workers

No office canteen. A meal credit compensates for what office workers take for granted.

All-staff programmes

Meal is the most universally valued benefit category — it's the right place to start if you're building a benefits programme for the first time.

The difference

What changes when you switch.

Manual voucher distribution every month

Credit loads automatically on the 1st

Employees lose paper vouchers

Digital credits in-app — nothing to lose

Only Lagos restaurants covered

50+ cities across 6 markets covered

Finance team reconciles manually at month end

Fully automated reconciliation and reporting

Zero visibility on which benefits are used

Real-time usage dashboard for HR and Finance

Our employees used to ask why we didn't offer meal allowances like competitors. Six weeks after launching on RibiPeople, that question stopped completely. The app makes it visible — they see the credit land every month and they know exactly who put it there.

Adaeze Nwosu

Head of People · Nigeria

Coverage

Live in these markets today.

Nigeria (Lagos, Abuja)Kenya (Nairobi, Mombasa)Egypt (Cairo, Alexandria)South Africa (Johannesburg, Cape Town)Ghana (Accra)Morocco (Casablanca, Rabat)
Common questions

Frequently asked

Does unused meal credit carry over?

No — meal credit resets monthly. This encourages regular use and keeps the benefit simple for both employees and HR.

Can I use meal credit for dinner, not just lunch?

Yes. Restaurant partners accept meal credit at any time of day. Some companies set rules (e.g. weekdays only) — that's configurable.

Which delivery apps are supported?

Coverage varies by market — we activate the leading delivery platforms where your employees are. Ask your onboarding contact for the full list in your specific cities.

Ready to set this up?

Bring meal allowance into your employee experience.