Kenya's e-bike initiative aims to revolutionize transportation

author: FutureCar Staff    

The Kenyan government has announced plans to introduce electric motorbikes across the country. President William Ruto revealed the initiative in collaboration with African startup Spiro, just days before hosting the first Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi next week. Kenya currently has about two million motorbikes on its roads, with the majority being "boda bodas" or two-wheeled taxis commonly used in the continent.

Ruto emphasized that the adoption of electric mobility is a crucial step to address pollution, adverse health effects, and fuel costs. He further stated that Kenya aims to phase out combustion engine-powered motorbikes in the future, as the increasing use of such vehicles across Africa has serious implications for climate change and air quality. Despite Africa contributing only two to three percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it suffers disproportionately from the effects of climate change.

Spiro, an African startup, has already introduced nearly 10,000 electric bikes in countries like Benin, Togo, Rwanda, and Uganda. The company plans to establish 3,000 battery-charging and swapping stations in Kenya, in addition to the 350 already present across Africa. They also have a potential rollout of over one million electric vehicles throughout the country.

Ruto, who is leading African efforts to combat climate change, stated that Kenya has the potential to generate 100 percent of its energy from renewable sources like hydroelectric, geothermal, solar, and wind power by 2030. Currently, more than 90 percent of Kenya's energy comes from renewable sources, such as hydroelectric and geothermal power.

However, the country faces challenges with frequent power cuts. A recent massive outage left several regions, including Nairobi and its international airport, without electricity for hours. This incident occurred when a generator serving the main terminals failed to work. Additionally, fuel prices have reached their highest levels in over a decade, exacerbating the economic hardship faced by Kenyans due to a cost-of-living crisis and new taxes.

According to government figures, the number of registered electric vehicles (EVs) in Kenya is less than one percent of the total 4.4 million registered vehicles. This highlights the need for further adoption and implementation of electric mobility solutions in the country.

FutureCar Staff