The government of Kenya aims to increase the uptake of electric vehicles in the country in the next five years with a goal to have 5% of all registered vehicles in Kenya being electric vehicles by 2025. According to a new government strategy, all new public buildings are required to have charging stations.
The number of registered motor vehicles in Kenya reached 3.28 million in 2018, consisting of passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, buses, heavy goods vehicles and motorcycles.
Governments across the world are embracing electric vehicles due to their cost-effectiveness and environmental friendliness. Some African countries have made great progress, like Rwanda which launched an electric vehicle pilot project in October 2019.
The electric vehicle industry in Kenya is still young with only 300 electric vehicles in the country as at 2019 according to Dr. Rebekah Shirley, Chief Research Officer at Power For All who recently spoke in an interview with CNBC Africa. Nonetheless, demand for electric cars is projected to grow as the vehicles become more affordable and charging stations become widely available.
Government agencies are working together to provide the necessary infrastructure for non-fuel based cars. In August, KenGen announced plans to roll out an electric car charging facility. In addition, an official from the Ministry of Energy revealed that the government will give incentives like lower import duty for electric cars, motorcycles, and bicycles.
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