7% Of All New Motorbike Registrations In Kenya In 2024 Had been Electrical!

Good issues are occurring in Africa, particularly within the electrical car sector. We’re beginning to see important traction in a lot of international locations on the African continent. In Ethiopia, a complete ban on the import of totally constructed ICE automobiles has resulted in an unbelievable enhance within the variety of electrical autos on the roads. In Senegal, a ground-breaking 100% electrical fast bus transit service is up and working. Plenty of international locations are additionally pushing for adoption of electrical buses. Over 90% of all autos imported in most African international locations are available as used autos. With the rising variety of used electrical autos in Europe, China, and America, we’re additionally beginning to see much more used EVs coming to West, East, Central, and Southern Africa.

One of many hottest subjects in Africa in the intervening time, nevertheless, is the rise of the electrical bike sector. Bikes are a very large deal in lots of African international locations, with most of them deployed as taxis. Near 30 million bikes on the continent are used on this bike taxi trade. With virtually 99% of them nonetheless being inner combustion engine bikes, there’s a big alternative and a big addressable marketplace for electrification. The transfer in the direction of electrical autos in Africa, particularly on this electrical bike sector, has primarily been pushed by the personal sector by small startup corporations.

A lot of the developments in Africa’s electrical bike sector have been concentrated alongside what’s now generally known as the “boda belt.” The boda belt, a time period coined by Tom Courtright, is a stretch of nations on the African map the place bike taxis have been distinguished through the years. This belt stretches from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to the outskirts of Dakar, Senegal. There’s additionally important exercise in North African international locations akin to Morocco, the place smaller scooters are used primarily for private transportation, not like in East Africa and West Africa, the place a lot of the exercise is for industrial transport functions.

The significance of accelerating the transition to electrical bikes alongside this belt and decarbonizing transport generally is gaining extra consideration. Electrical two-wheelers clear up the air and save drivers on common 45% a 12 months on gasoline and upkeep, bettering lives and livelihoods and driving entrepreneurship and social mobility. The unit economics might be a key driver within the quest to drive adoption. As extra electrical bikes hit the street now, confidence in in electrical bikes in these markets is rising. With a number of corporations within the electrical bike house now shifting from early commercialization of their merchandise to full industrial operations at first rate scale, there’s now lots of exercise alongside this boda belt.

One of many international locations alongside this boda belt that’s seeing lots of motion and important traction within the electrical bike sector is Kenya. There are over 2 million inner combustion engine bikes in Kenya. Bikes make up simply over 50% of Kenya’s complete car fleet. Motorbike taxis are popularly generally known as boda bodas in Kenya and different markets. The bike taxi trade is a crucial phase of Kenya’s financial system. Transitioning this sector to electrical will make an infinite distinction within the pockets of the house owners of the bikes in addition to the riders. Lots of the startups which are energetic in Kenya’s electrical bike ecosystem are providing revolutionary financing preparations together with fashions the place one should purchase the bike after which lease the batteries, lowering the upfront prices. Vary anxiousness fears are additionally eradicated by providing battery swap companies.

Additionally it is essential to speed up the adoption of electrical motor autos in Kenya’s largest car phase to scale back emissions. Kenya’s grid is already exceptionally clear. Renewables present round 90% of Kenya’s electrical energy era. By progressively growing the penetration of electrical bikes in Kenya, important financial savings in CO2 emissions might be achieved. This may be achieved by incentivizing purchases of recent electrical motorbikes. 2023 was the primary time the Kenyan bike gross sales market noticed a noticeable enhance within the share of electrical bikes within the general new registrations market. In 2023, there have been 70,691 bikes bought in Kenya. 2,557 of those had been electrical. Which means 3.6% of bikes bought in 2023 in Kenya had been electrical. That’s virtually 4%. So, we didn’t anticipate it to be lengthy earlier than the market share reached the important 5%, which is mostly considered because the tipping level indicating the beginning of mass adoption. The share of electrical bikes rose to three.6% in 2023 from 2.8% in 2022 and 0.5% in 2021. 2024 was even higher because the market share surged to 7.1%. The KNBS Financial Survey Report (2025) reveals that 68,804 new bikes had been registered Kenya in 2024. Of those, 4862 bikes had been electrical in response to knowledge introduced by the Electrical Mobility Affiliation of Kenya (EMAK). That’s the place the 7.1% market share comes from.

A number of local-based corporations have executed an impressive job to construct this trade from scratch from about 7 years in the past. After going by way of the varied levels of early pilots, additional pilots, a number of iterations and pivots, leading to a lot of them discovering the candy spot after which graduating into early commercialization phases of their merchandise. These corporations needed to dig deep of their analysis and growth phases to provide electrical bikes that may deal with the calls for of the boda boda trade, and on the identical time, deal with the native terrain in addition to tough street circumstances. It’s because for his or her merchandise to take off, they actually wanted to make merchandise which are sturdy sufficient to match or exceed the ICE merchandise which are at present available on the market. That meant they may not simply deliver off the shelf merchandise and parts from abroad, however they actually needed to adapt their designs for these circumstances. After that, the following factor was to point out that these new electrical bikes had a decrease complete price of possession. Then the following step was to forge strategic partnerships with companions which are already within the distribution and financing ecosystem for conventional bikes. This is able to unlock essential channels that align with their path to market methods.

It appears all of those efforts are bearing fruit, because the sector is making regular progress given the growing market share of electrical bikes in Kenya. Going from 0 to 7% in about three years is absolutely cool. Nonetheless, it must be famous that this market share has been aided by the startling decline within the gross sales of recent bikes in Kenya, from a peak of 285,203 bikes bought in 2021 to simply 68,804 in 2024. This big drop in gross sales has been attributed to decrease shopper buying energy which has diminished the day by day utilization of boda bodas in Kenya, and consequently additionally diminished the day by day unit profitability for bike taxis as a consequence of increased gasoline prices in latest instances. Different elements embrace increased financing prices on high of elevated sticker costs for some fashions.

Given their decrease complete price of possession, this might be a key second for electrical bikes in Kenya. Gamers within the electrical bike trade might benefit from this and capitalize on diminished demand for bikes, which have historically been largely ICE bikes through the years, by emphasizing potential financial savings that might be derived from switching to electrical. Might we see an extra decline within the general market in 2025? This is able to imply the market share of electrical bikes would surge to even increased ranges, provided that a lot of gamers within the Kenya market are beginning to ramp up manufacturing of their electrical bikes. 14% market share for 2025? Allow us to wait and see.