Government policies would be key
Bans on fossil-fuel vehicles around the world are expected to accelerate global EV adoption. European car manufacturers would probably not be as eager to produce more EVs were governments like the United Kingdom not insistent on phasing out ICEVs by 2030, for instance. As these policy shifts abroad would have major implications for the African auto industry, the continent’s governments must be similarly proactive to ensure a win-win outcome.
| African countries with transport regulations & targets supporting EVs | |||
| Country | Key policy measures & targets | Year
announced |
Source |
| Cabo Verde | Targets of:
– 100% of public authorities fleet to be EVs by 2030 – 35% of PLDV sales to be EV by 2025 – 70% of PLDV sales to be EV by 2030 – 100% of PLDV sales to be EV by 2035 |
2019 | Ministry of Industry, Trade & Energy (2019) |
| South Africa | Target of 20% HEVs by 2030 | 2012 | Intended National Determined Contribution (2012) |
Source: IEA Global EV Outlook 2020
Notes: PLDV = Passenger Light-Duty Vehicles; HEV = Hybrid Electric Vehicles
While African countries account for 2 percent of global imports of new light-duty fossil-fuel vehicles, they account for 40 percent of used ones. A global shift to EVs, with estimates of 22 percent of global vehicle sales by 2025 expected to be electric and 35 percent by 2030, raises the prospects of an imminent dumping of ICEVs in African countries if similarly EV transitioning policies are not put in place. Cape Verde plans to stop the importation of ICEVs by 2035, and South Africa aims to have 20 percent of all passenger light-duty vehicles be hybrid EVs by 2030.
For EV adoption to accelerate, African governments must put in place currently non-existent enabling incentives and policies. Ordinarily, fossil-fuel vehicle imports are expensive in many African countries owing to high duty. Financing at atrociously high interest rates also means buying a new car is not an option for many Africans. These constraints are worse in the case of EVs. Import duty on EVs is higher than for ICEVs in some countries. In South Africa, for instance, EVs attract a 25 percent import duty whereas imported ICEVs are charged less at 18 percent.
International development organisations have already started to provide EV transition policy assistance to some African governments. For example, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is currently working on the introduction of electric two- and three-wheelers in Ethiopia, Morocco, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda. UNEP is also assisting with policy development in myriad efficient light duty vehicle initiatives that include EVs in at least 12 African countries.
In any case, some African governments are already warming up to the idea of EVs. Kenya has set a 5 percent target of all registered vehicles being EVs by 2025 and plans to install charging stations in new government buildings. The Nigerian government expects 30 percent of all cars to be electric by 2025 and plans to review its automotive policy towards achieving this target. Cabo Verde, which is the most ambitious African country in regard of EVs, is however a very small market. South Africa, on the other hand, which has set a 20 percent hybrid EV target by 2030, is very encouraging and worth engaging commercially.
An edited version of this article was first published by Nanyang Business School’s NTU-SBF Centre for African Studies, Singapore. References, figures and tables are in the original article. See link viz. https://www.ntu.edu.sg/docs/librariesprovider100/aci-latest/2021-47.pdf?sfvrsn=7652eb60_2
