SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Uber Technologies Inc ( UBER ) and iFood, a Brazilian food delivery app, on Wednesday announced a strategic partnership in Brazil, where delivery and ride-hailing services have grown rapidly in recent years.

Under the collaboration, iFood users will be able to book Uber ( UBER ) rides directly from the iFood app, while Uber ( UBER ) users will gain access to iFood's food, grocery, pharmacy and convenience delivery services within the Uber ( UBER ) app. The new tabs are scheduled to launch in the second half of the year, according to the companies.

"Today, only around half of iFood and Uber ( UBER ) customers in Brazil use both platforms. So this partnership represents another big milestone in our mission to help people go anywhere and get anything at the tap of a button," Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber ( UBER ), said in a statement.

The partnership comes three years after Uber Eats, Uber's ( UBER ) food delivery app, left the Brazil market after struggling to pierce iFood's dominance. 

Uber ( UBER ), which has been in Brazil since 2014, has approximately 30 million active users and a network of more than 1.4 million registered drivers and couriers in the country. Uber ( UBER ), founded in 2010, has completed more than 61 billion trips globally and around 11 billion in Brazil.

iFood, which holds a dominant position in Brazil's online food delivery market, has reported 55 million active users and a network of 360,000 couriers. It processes over 120 million orders per month, in approximately 1,500 cities across Brazil. 

"This partnership represents a major step forward, with both companies innovating together to offer a new way to access everyday services," said Diego Barreto, CEO of iFood, in a statement.

The partnership comes just days after Meituan, China's largest food delivery platform, said it would invest 5 billion reais ($890 million) to enter the Brazilian market, according to ApexBrasil, the government's trade and investment agency. The Chinese firm will operate in the local market under its Keeta brand.