President Museveni has vowed
that nothing will stop a group of
Ugandan innovators and manufacturers to spearhead Uganda’s transition from fossil fuels to E-mobility to reduce pollution
and offer an organized -cheap transport solution for Kampala city and other
urban centers.
The President said that
the move will shift the country from the
use of fuel energy to E- mobility that will involve big- fully electric buses with
a capacity of up to 90 -passengers, mini
buses as well as electric motorcycles . According to the president these quick
interventions will help to decongest the
city as commuters will adapt to a modern , quick , safe and clean Rapid Mass Transport System
within Kampala city and other urban centers.
The challenge ,President Museveni noted
will be the manufacturing of lithium -ion batteires that are used to power
electric vehicles .
“Batteries are a very crucial step for this
intervention . We shall give you all the support to manufacture the batteries
locally ,” Museveni told a group of scientists , innovators and entrepreneurs
in the E- mobility space who were led by
the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation , Dr. Monica Musenero.
“In the medium term we shall have to make the
batteries here, so I am very glad to hear that there is some body among you who
is already involved in electric batteries,” the President noted.
President Museveni pointed out that although
Uganda will be processing its oil in a few years to come, this will not stop
the effort of having clean energy mobility technologies deployed on our roads.
Uganda boasts vast deposits of lithium, nickel,
cobalt, manganese, and graphite which are used in the manufacture of batteries
for electric vehicles. President Museveni disclosed that the government will
develop a vertically integrated industry in steel manufacturing -since Uganda has
a high grade of iron ore which is 70% pure
and the best in the world followed
by that of Peru which is only 58 %.
He allayed fears that development of the
automotive industry with special focus on E- mobility will undermine the oil
and gas sector. “ The oil will be used for textiles, polyesters, plastics,
aviation fuel , fertilizers among others,” he explained .
Kampala, Uganda’s capital which is home to more than two million people- ranks
among the world’s most polluted cities- with pollution levels up to seven times
higher than the World Health Organisation’s safe standards, according to the
2021 World Air Quality Report. Around 28,000 people per year die as a result of
air pollution in Uganda, according to GAHP.
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