Senegal

Written by: Theresa Smith

The AfDB’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) will provide a $1 million technical assistance grant to the Green Mobility Facility for Africa.

The Green Mobility Facility for Africa (GMFA) provides technical assistance and investment capital to accelerate and expand private sector investment into sustainable transport solutions. It works in seven countries: Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone and South Africa.

SEFA is a multi-donor Special Fund that provides catalytic finance to unlock private sector investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The Fund’s overarching goal is to contribute to universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy services for all in Africa, in line with the New Deal on Energy for Africa and Sustainable Development Goal 7.

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his particular grant to the GMFA will help to create an enabling environment for electric vehicles (EVs); regional coordination; the design of EV business models and guidelines for public and private sector; the development of a bankable pipeline of e-mobility projects; and knowledge sharing among upstream activities to help catalyse follow-on private sector financing during the subsequent investment phase of the GMFA.

Nnenna Nwabufo the AfDB Director-General for the East Africa Regional Development and Business Delivery Office pointed out that mobility is a fundamental lifeline that connects people to critical services, jobs, education and opportunities. “The African Development Bank is committed to building a sustainable and more climate-resilient future by catalysing private investment in low-carbon solutions. We believe GMFA will have a tremendous impact on the African market by accelerating the shift to green mobility, reducing over 2,175,000 carbon dioxide equivalent tons  of greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating the creation of 19,000 full-time jobs.”

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Clare Akamanzi, Rwanda Development Board CEO said they expect future demand for mobility solutions and vehicle ownership will increase with rapid urbanisation, population growth and economic development.

“We see this as a vote of confidence in our efforts to shift to e-mobility solutions and advance Rwanda’s transition a low-carbon economy,” said Akamanzi.