Côte d’Ivoire: Electric vehicles will soon be put on the road to reduce pollution.
In Côte d’Ivoire, the government intends to push further the fight against pollution, in particular by reducing the impact of pollution from the car fleet through the introduction of electric vehicles in the economic capital, Abidjan. This project targets public transport and taxis in particular.
According to studies carried out by the Ivorian Ministry of the Environment, the car fleet emits excessive carbon dioxide and vehicles running on diesel emit too much sulphur. It is therefore time to change course. A gentle change through the introduction of electric cars.
The first to be affected by this project are administrative vehicles, public transport and taxis. For Dr. Etien N’Dah, coordinator of the electric mobility project at the Ministry of the Environment, these first targets have the opportunity to acquire electric cars at reduced prices. “It’s not a question of starting by telling people to buy electric vehicles. That is expensive. It would be good to start with the public service fleet: buses and minibuses (the Gbaka). We are also going to encourage taxis to leave the thermal ones. We need to move towards real mass transport. If we are at 30% in the next five years, it is not bad,” he explains.
As for the transport actors in Côte d’Ivoire, they say they recognise the harmful effects of their vehicles on the environment. However, they mention logistical issues concerning the location of charging stations, but also the supply of spare parts. “The vehicles that are used allow us to operate throughout the day. We will have, basically, a silent vehicle and, beyond that, we also think that access to spare parts could be improved,” said Vamoya Karamoko, deputy secretary of the federation of the Abidjan metered taxi employers.
In addition to these points raised by Vamoya Karamoko, the training of mechanics and drivers is a step to be taken into account in this process in which the authorities intend to renew about 30% of the public transport fleet with electric vehicles.
Miss OLY
