E-mobility
The Electric Mobility (E-Mobility) Taskforce team held a public participation forum in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, to gather views from the public on the Draft National E-Mobility Policy, Kenya.
Ibrahim Kinyanjui, a taskforce member, pointed out that the major concern is creating awareness on e-mobility’s role in reduction of Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission.
“Understanding is the main issue from this forum and others, in terms of how to charge, where how long it covers per charge, there is a lot of awareness that needs to be done for people to understand and adopt Electric vehicles,”
He assured the members of the public that there is no phasing out of the Internal combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles. E-mobility’s coming into market, is one of the steps the government is taking in line with the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) it submitted in 2020, to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat that committed to reducing emissions by 32 percent by 2030.
“The reason why the government decided to introduce Electric vehicles (EV), is because of reducing the greenhouse gases emissions,” he said. The County Commissioner (CC), Dr. Eddyson Nyale, applauded the efforts by the transport sector to continuously innovate new and improved means of transport through technology.
He added that the transport sector has revolutionized over the years and with the introduction of Electric Vehicles (EV), the transport sector will immensely contribute to development of infrastructure in the country.
“Transport has evolved over the years, when people used boats, chains, bridges and now vehicles. The vehicles themselves also change with time like a bus that was used before, may vary in terms of shape and the capacity that it carries presently, an indication that the transport sector is ever growing,” he noted.
Nyale said that the National E-mobility Policy will contribute to the national development on environmental growth and sustenance through emission of clean energy gases, which are safe for the environment. He added that the move by the road sector to come up with a policy for roadside hospitality facilities, will provide a strategic position of the electronic chargers, where Electronic Vehicles can recharge on the roads.
“Those roadside facilities by public works, could be one of the avenues for one to apply and install a charging center, as people are taking their meals, their vehicles are charging, and people carry on with their journey. Let us not only focus on petrol stations, but also lay down this strategy by public works using the Mtito Andei approach,” added Nyale.
The County Commissioner affirmed that the introduction of EV will not only bring growth in the country’s infrastructure, but also create employment opportunities for the people.
County Executive Committee Member (CECM), Public Service Management, Administration and Devolved Units, Elijah Kosgei, assured the Task Force that the county government of Uasin Gishu fully supports the new technology, due to its many benefits to the people of Kenya.
He explained that the Electric vehicles (EVs) are relatively cheap, as they would only require charging as compared to other vehicles, hence will enable people to save on fuel.
Kosgei further noted that EV will reduce air pollution, hence, stopping the continuous depletion of the ozone layer, which has brought about the effects of the climatic change globally.
Kosgei underscored that the introduction of EVs will have an impact on the business environment and urged the petrol station to be willing to adapt to the changes that will come with the introduction of the EV. “It will create employment opportunities for our unemployed youths, hence, giving them a source of income,” he added.
Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) North Rift Region Chairman, William Ong’are, said that the draft policy should also identify the role played by the private sector and other government agencies to the economy in terms of transport, so as to bring on board all stakeholders for successful implementation.