The country with capital Addis Ababa has a very ambitious plan linked to electric cars. However, citizens are experiencing problems regarding infrastructure and more
In 2024 theEthiopia became the first country in the world to ban the importation of non-electric private vehicles. A choice made to avoid spending on fuel subsidies and therefore save foreign exchange reserves. Even in the African country, however, some of the problems related to electricity that are the protagonists of the debate in Europe are being encountered. These include the absence of a large network of charging stations and the poor availability of spare parts. The government will try to stem these difficulties by investing in charging stations and in the local production of batteries, which is necessary to avoid being excessively dependent on imports. The latest economic data available on Ethiopia, relating to 2023, speak of a GDP per capita of 1,294 dollars, an increase of 25.92% compared to the previous year. Electricity consumption grew by 327% from 2000 to 2022 but, the International Energy Agency points out, only less than half the population is reached by the electricity grid.
ambitious plan
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The government’s electric car plan led by Abiy Ahmed AliNobel Peace Prize winner in 2019, is quite ambitious and follows the one for the electrification of the country launched in 2017. Since January 2024, or since the ban on importing non-electric vehicles came into force, over 100,000 electric cars per month (data declared by local authorities). The declared objective is to bring the monthly import figure to half a million cars on tap by 2030. On this date, in fact, the dam on the Nile River which is being built by the African country should be at full capacity, guaranteeing a total capacity exceeding 5,000 megawatts. In the meantime, the government raised fuel prices by up to 8%kicking off the plan to phase out all fuel subsidies.
there is no shortage of doubts
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The Addis Ababa government’s plan, as mentioned, is very ambitious. Which is why many Ethiopians have doubts related to the feasibility of the project. In fact, there are many consumers who continue to opt for petrol cars, therefore referring to the used market. Motorists’ concerns are due to the lack of infrastructure and services. In Ethiopia, in fact, workshops capable of repairing electric vehicles are in short supply: “There are only two or three workshops that can repair electric vehicles in Ethiopia and many consumers do not know how to take care of these vehicles”, these are the words of a mechanic from Addis Ababa, capital of the African country, reported by Ap. As mentioned, the Ethiopian government has an investment plan in mind to improve its infrastructure and therefore stimulate demand linked to the electric car market. The Addis Ababa executive, in any case, is in good company: even in Europe and the United States the transition to electric is proving to be difficult to say the least.
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