Opinion: Why is East Africa still waiting for an EV passenger market?

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While East Africa is eager to see its passenger EV market thrive, many stakeholders are still falling short, notes Matt Lloyd, Managing Director of Associated Vehicle Assemblers. Financiers brand themselves as ‘green’ but rarely fund genuine green initiatives, importers wait for tax breaks instead of investing, and policymakers continue to lack both transparency and clarity.

• Mr Lloyd has been AVA’s Managing Director for nearly five years, following his role as Chief Officer of Shared Services at Simba Corporation. He now drives AVA’s EV assembly efforts and strongly advocates for localised production. 

• The back-and-forth situation has turned East Africa into a dumping ground for old, fully built electric vehicles, which should not be the case. This trend is hindering the development of EV skills, job creation, and innovation, says Mr Lloyd.

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By Matt Lloyd

Everyone talks about the promise of EVs, yet the passenger market in East Africa remains stuck at the starting line. Why? Because too many players are sitting on their hands.

Pricing remains prohibitive. Passenger EVs are still out of reach for the majority of buyers. Without bold moves to break the cost barrier, the market will remain elitist.

Financiers talk green, but don’t fund green. Banks and DFIs proudly market their “green financing” products, but when start-ups seek working capital to build distribution, inventory, and aftersales networks, doors slam shut. EV entrepreneurship cannot survive on press releases.

Importers are waiting for duty breaks instead of investing. The obsession with lowering import duties for Fully-Built EVs (FBUs) has created a dangerous “wait & see” mentality. Everyone is lobbying for easier imports, while few commit to building a real ecosystem through local assembly and value addition.

The result? East Africa risks becoming a dumping ground for imported FBUs rather than a hub of EV innovation, skills, and jobs.

It’s time to stop waiting. Policy makers must provide clarity, financiers must fund what they preach, and industry players must decide if they are serious about building a future—or just waiting to skim the market.

The hard question: who will take the first bold step, and who will be left behind when the market finally moves?