By Temitope Ponle
The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA), of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, would provide a one-million-dollar technical assistance grant to the Green Mobility Facility for Africa (GMFA).
In a statement issued on the website of the AfDB on Tuesday, GMFA would provide technical assistance and investment capital.
This is to accelerate and expand private sector investments in sustainable transport solutions in seven countries.
The countries are: Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and South Africa.
Nnenna Nwabufo, Director-General, East Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office, AfDB, said mobility was a fundamental lifeline that connected people to critical services, jobs, education, and opportunities.
“The African Development Bank is committed to building a sustainable and more climate-resilient future by catalysing private investment in low-carbon solutions.
“We believe GMFA will have a tremendous impact on the African market by accelerating the shift to green mobility, reducing over 2,175,000 carbon dioxide equivalent tons of greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating the creation of 19,000 full-time jobs.”
Also, Clare Akamanzi, Chief Executive Officer of the Rwanda Development Board, said the future demand for mobility solutions and vehicle ownership was expected to increase.
“Future demand for mobility solutions and vehicle ownership is expected to increase with rapid urbanisation, population growth, and economic development.
“We are delighted to receive this support from AfDB. We see this as a vote of confidence in our efforts to shift to e-mobility solutions and advance Rwanda’s transition to a low-carbon economy.”
Rwanda is one of seven pilot countries for GMFA.
The SEFA grant is expected to support the creation of an enabling environment for Electric Vehicles (EVs), the design of EV business models and guidelines for the public and private sector.
It would also support the development of a bankable pipeline of e-mobility projects, regional coordination, and knowledge sharing amongst other upstream activities.
This is to help catalyse follow-on private sector financing during the subsequent investment phase of the GMFA. (NAN)