Ethiopia embarks on e-mobility transition amid rising fuel prices, quest for green development
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Loading... - Irene Afenynu
- 08 Aug 2022
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A striking phrase written in Amharic, Ethiopia's working language, is visible on each side of cars displayed inside a showroom located on the outskirts of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. The phrase reads "An Electric Vehicle" -- a rare sight in a country where electric mobility is in its infancy.
The showroom, which exclusively displays a wide range of electric vehicles for potential Ethiopian buyers, belongs to Green Tech Africa, an East African-based renewable energy company that works in partnership with major Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers as part of its aspirations to promote electric mobility in Ethiopia and beyond across the African continent.
As the Ethiopian government recently engaged in an ambitious effort to fast-track the transition into electric mobility in the face of the global fuel uncertainties, the company has recently partnered with the Ethiopian Ministry of Transport in a series of events that envisaged creating public awareness of e-mobility.
One such initiative is a one-month-long free electric vehicle transportation campaign for Addis Ababa residents.
The phenomenon has caught the attention of many on the streets of Addis Ababa, most of whom are experiencing their first-ever battery electric vehicle excursion.
Kidem Tesfaye, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Green Tech Africa, said that a growing number of Ethiopians are lately interested in electric cars.
The Ethiopian government, preoccupied with the mammoth cost of fuel that was further exacerbated by the current global fuel price hikes, is recently promoting electric vehicles as a viable solution.
The East African country spends an estimated annual average of 4 billion U.S. dollars for the purchase of fuel, according to government figures. For comparison, Ethiopia's overall export revenue during the Ethiopian 2021/2022 fiscal year that ended earlier this month was 4.12 billion U.S. dollars. Read More...
