By: Gad Senyuiedzorm Ashiagbor
In 2017, I found myself captivated by a momentous event: Elon Musk delivering the first Tesla Model 3 vehicles to customers in California. This marked the arrival of the first truly mass-market electric vehicle (EV). While the subsequent production challenges were un-anticipated, they seemed secondary to the broader implications of this innovation.
The introduction of an affordable EV sparked numerous questions in my mind about its potential impact on Africa. How would it reshape our transport systems, urban planning, culture, economics, and politics? It became evident that the adoption rate of e-mobility in Africa would hinge on overcoming several barriers.
To understand these barriers, I developed a visualization tool, represented by a triangle with three key edges:
1. Price: Encompasses the entire cost of acquiring an EV, including purchase price, duties, insurance, financing, and licensing.
2. Infrastructure: Covers the necessary support systems such as charging stations, road infrastructure, and payment systems.
3. After-Sales Support: Involves a robust ecosystem for repair and maintenance, including skilled technicians and readily available spare parts.
A detailed exploration of these barriers will be discussed in a separate article. For now, it’s important to note that addressing these barriers requires comprehensive capacity building and skill development across various sectors.
Key players in the e-mobility ecosystem in Africa face significant knowledge and skill gaps:
On that fateful night, the seeds of AfricaNEV were sown. Realizing that Africa was not a primary focus for major EV manufacturers like Tesla, it became clear that we needed to drive our own e-mobility agenda. One of the key ideas born from this realization was the “Electric Vehicle Technical/Technician Training Program” (EVTT).
The EVTT was designed to address the skill development needs specific to the African context, considering our existing automobile industry and attitudes towards training. Key features of the EVTT include:
Initially conceived in 2017, the formal curriculum for EVTT1 was developed in 2019. This introductory program has since expanded to include more advanced courses, such as EVTT2, which covers high and low voltage systems for both assembly line workers and repair technicians. Work is underway on the EVTT3 curriculum to cover all relevant technical areas for EV training.
EVTT1, our flagship program, has successfully trained diverse cohorts, including participants from non-technical backgrounds. The program’s core involves a complete teardown and reassembly of an electric vehicle, ensuring practical competence. Objectives and outcomes of EVTT1 include:
The above chart is representative of how innovation spreads. As of today, now single African country has 1% of its annual vehicle sales been electric. As the market grows and evolves, the skills gaps, training methods, training modules and content will need to change as well.
So, if you are interested in the e-mobility space or are a technician looking to enhance your skills, our training programs will be highly beneficial.
You can reach out to us: [email protected]
Gad Senyuiedzorm Ashiagbor is the founder and Executive Director of AfricaNEV
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