The Road to Africa Expedition Reaches Zambia
Bringing Africa to the EV capital of the world
For years, conversations around electric mobility in Africa were often framed around future potential. At the Nordic Africa EV Summit, the tone felt markedly different. The discussions in Oslo reflected a sector that is already moving, with governments introducing ambitious policies, startups scaling across cities, investors paying closer attention, and regional institutions beginning to coordinate around long-term frameworks for implementation.
Across the continent, electric motorcycles are becoming increasingly common in urban transport systems. Electric buses are entering public transit fleets. Charging companies are expanding infrastructure networks. Utilities are beginning to prepare for higher electricity demand from transport. Logistics companies are exploring electrified fleets as fuel costs continue to fluctuate. What once sounded experimental is steadily becoming part of everyday economic planning.
Now more than ever, global instability and oil market volatility are reinforcing the urgency of finding alternatives to fossil fuel dependence. Conflicts, geopolitical tensions, and fluctuating fuel prices continue to expose how vulnerable many economies remain to external shocks tied to petroleum supply chains. For African countries, where fuel imports place enormous pressure on national budgets and transportation costs affect nearly every aspect of daily life, electric mobility is increasingly being viewed through the lens of economic resilience and energy independence as much as climate action.
One of the strongest examples discussed throughout the summit was Ethiopia. The country’s restriction on internal combustion vehicle imports has positioned it as one of the boldest policy environments for electric mobility globally. Delegates also pointed to the rapid growth of EV adoption in cities such as Addis Ababa, where vehicle numbers are increasing faster than charging infrastructure can currently support. That imbalance was repeatedly described as one of the continent’s largest infrastructure opportunities for investors, energy providers, and mobility companies.
Kenya also featured prominently in discussions around innovation and market adoption, particularly in the two- and three-wheel sector, where electric mobility is already beginning to transform urban transport economics. Participants emphasized that Africa’s transition is likely to follow a very different trajectory from Europe’s. Public transportation, motorcycles, logistics fleets, and shared mobility systems are expected to drive much of the continent’s electrification, shaped by the realities of rapidly growing cities and young populations.
Urbanization emerged as a major theme throughout the event. African cities are expanding at some of the fastest rates in the world, creating urgent demand for cleaner, more efficient transportation systems. Delegates discussed electric mobility alongside wider conversations about air quality, public health, affordability, energy security, and liveable urban environments. The transition was presented as far larger than a vehicle conversation alone. It increasingly touches energy infrastructure, industrial policy, urban planning, and long-term economic resilience.
The summit also highlighted how Africa is becoming more organized at a continental level around mobility transition strategies. One of the major milestones announced during the gathering was the launch of the African Union EV Framework, aimed at supporting greater coordination between African countries as they develop policies, standards, infrastructure strategies, and investment pathways for electric mobility.
Another major launch during the summit was the “State of E-Mobility Africa 2024” report, alongside the unveiling of the Africa 50 EV Companies report, both of which reflected the rapid growth of the sector across the continent. Together, the reports showcased emerging companies, policy developments, market trends, infrastructure gaps, and investment opportunities shaping Africa’s evolving mobility ecosystem.
The inauguration of the Nordic Africa Clean Energy & Mobility Cluster also signaled a growing push toward long-term collaboration between African and Nordic stakeholders. The initiative aims to strengthen cooperation across clean energy, transport, infrastructure, financing, and technology sectors, while creating stronger links between companies, governments, and institutions working across both regions.
Throughout the event, Norway’s experience with EV adoption served as an important reference point. Delegates acknowledged that Nordic countries spent decades building supportive ecosystems around incentives, charging infrastructure, and long-term policy consistency. Those lessons remain highly valuable for African countries seeking to accelerate transition timelines while avoiding some of the slower and more fragmented approaches seen elsewhere.
Still, many of the conversations in Oslo carried a broader realization: Africa is entering the electric mobility transition at a unique moment. Technology costs are falling, battery development is accelerating, renewable energy capacity is expanding, and many African countries have the opportunity to build transport systems around electrification earlier in their development cycle than many Western economies did.
The economic implications of that shift were impossible to ignore during the summit. Conversations around battery value chains, mineral processing, industrialization, and workforce development reflected growing interest in ensuring that Africa captures more value from the global clean energy economy. Delegates repeatedly pointed to the continent’s critical mineral resources and rapidly growing youth population as strategic advantages in the years ahead.
