Nigeria has set up a technical committee to for develop legal framework for the promotion, adoption, patronage as well as usage of electric vehicles in Nigeria.
Using the framework of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), the country said the general idea is to enhance mobility in the country.
NADDC director general, Jelani Aliyu, who dropped the hint in his address at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), held in Nairobi, informed that NADDC has developed 100 per cent solar powered electric vehicle charging stations.
The stations include Usmanu Dan Fodio, Sokoto, Sokoto, the University of Lagos and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).
In his address with the theme, “Shifting to Efficient and Zero-Emission Vehicles in the Global South,” the NADDC boss further stated that the designed to bring advanced automotive-related technology to the doorsteps of students as an effective technology transfer initiative.
He confirmed that Nigeria has recorded breakthroughs in the manufacturing of electric vehicles. “Hyundai Kona Electric Vehicle already being assembled in Nigeria, Jet Systems Motors has the Jet Mover Electric Van, Max E has developed an electric motorcycle and Phoenix Renewables is converting mini buses from petrol to electric,” he said.
Aliyu emphasised that opportunities exist in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) programme of the United Nations in funding electric mobility research and projects in Nigeria.
According to him, the NADDC has been partnering with the academia from within and outside Nigeria towards solar-powered traction platforms for small farmers, pointing out that the automobile industry will not grow through the importation of vehicles but rather through the development of home-grown technology.
“Future must be achieved through ubiquitous and sustainable industrialisation, enabled by intelligent electric mobility to every nook and cranny of Africa.
“It is clear there is need for massive industrialisation and transformation in Africa and that it must be achieved without destroying the environment and with the abundance of sustainable energy, electric mobility would be the unparalleled solution,” he said.
Aliyu called on African countries and research institutions to adopt and promote electric vehicles, stressing that Africa needs electric mobility more than any other part of the world.
“People of Africa have incredible heritage and history, from the times of the builders of the great pyramid of Giza to the reign of Mansa Musa of Mali to the dreams, hopes and aspirations of modern-day Africans.
“Dreams, hopes and aspirations that must now be realised to positively change the lives of every man, woman and child on the continent at an aggressive pace,” he added.
The workshop was organised to showcase the activities and impact of the United Nations Global Fuel Economy Initiative (GFE) in developing countries and to help them improve the efficiency of their relative vehicle fleets, including developing economies and Electric Mobility policies.
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