Uber’s ride-hailing rival in the Middle East, Careem announced on Sunday that it had started a service in Sudan. Sudan is grappling with an economic crisis as a foreign currency shortage and an increasingly expensive black market for dollars weakened its ability to import and made prices soar. The announcement makes Careem on of the few international companies to enter the country since US economic sanctions were lifted last year. Careem, which said its services were now available in Sudans capital Khartoum, has hired 10 Sudanese employees and signed up hundreds of drivers to its app to launch operations. The company expects to have as many as 30 employees in Sudan and be present in at least one other city in the northeast African country by the end of the year. "My goal and aim is to cover as many (cities) as possible in the next one or two years," Careems Managing Director for Emerging Markets Ibrahim Manna told Reuters by phone. Sudan has the potential to be one of Careems biggest markets in terms of number of trips taken due to the population size and demand for transportation services, he added. Careem will compete against several local ride-hailing apps, such as Tirhal, but not Uber Technologies itself, which does not operate in the country. Dubai-based Careem is Ubers main Middle East rival, competing in most of the regions major cities including Cairo, Dubai and Riyadh. Last year it became the first ride-hailing firm to operate on the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Careem plans to reinvest revenue earned in Sudan back into the country over the next two to three years as its grows its business there, Manna said. Remitting cash from Sudan can be difficult due to the countrys hard currency shortage.