Rwanda rolls out electric motorcycle project to promote carbon-neutral economy

KIGALI, June 10 (Xinhua) — Rwanda on Thursday launched a pilot electric motorcycles project in the capital Kigali to help the country become a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.

The project, which will retrofit petrol powered motorcycles that edges to the end of life into electric motorcycles with new motor and battery, was initiated by the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) with financial and technical support from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Rwanda.

Rwanda is focusing on gradually phasing out of the use of petrol-powered internal combustion engine motorcycles by converting them to electric ones, said Rwandan Minister of Environment Jeanne d’Arc Mujawamariya during the launch.

“The project will help Rwanda achieve its target of becoming a carbon neutral economy by 2050,” she said.

According to her, the initiative will also help to accelerate the transition from petrol-fuelled motors, which account for more than 80 percent of the total motorcycle population in Rwanda, to electric ones.

The project is also in line with Rwanda’s ten-year climate action plan to reduce 4.6 million tons of carbon dioxide by 2030, she said.

Speaking at the launch, UNDP Resident Representative in Rwanda Maxwell Gomera said that Rwanda is debunking the myth that a country has to choose between development and green growth.

“Using a smart combination of finance and policy, we are pioneering a vision of development without fossil fuels, effectively detoxing the transport system,” said Gomera.

Adopting the use of electric transport system will avert the pollution related diseases before they can cause damage, putting the economy and society on a greener and healthier pathway, he said.

A local company, Rwanda Electric Mobility, will implement the pilot phase in Kigali. The company retrofitted several motorcycles from combustion engines to electric power at the ceremony.

The 2018 Inventory of Sources of Air Pollution in Rwanda report by REMA showed that vehicle emissions are the leading cause of air pollution in Kigali and other urban areas in the central African country. Enditem