Green Hub Kampala – E-mobility ecosystem for climate change mitigation and improved livelihoods
Uganda’s transport sector runs almost entirely on imported, non-renewable energy, causing alarming rates of greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. Meanwhile, commercial boda driving (i.e., taxi motorcycles) is one of the biggest sources of informal employment in the country. This maturation project established and validated the business case of recycling and replacing old bodas (taxi motorcycles) with e-bodas running on solar energy. The project targeted women drivers and addressed gender-based barriers preventing women from fully participating in e-mobility, as they face restricted access to finance, limited vocational training, and social stigma in traditionally male-dominated roles.
The business model and profitability of scrapping old motorcycles was done but proved not to be profitable for the women. A full logistics chain was developed with import of both e-scooters and spare parts from India together with local customs, registrations, and delivery in Uganda. A full maintenance lease-to-own model has been developed and tested and proved feasible and profitable. The operations of the lease-to-own model has included the establishment and operations of aftersales services including training of EV mechanics as well as payment collections and fleet management. In addition, a rental model was developed and tested as well and has also proven competitive for the market and affordable for the riders based on their weekly earnings. No solar-power charging infrastructure was installed, because the assessment indicated that installation of solar power would not be cost efficient in comparison to using the existing charging stations in Kampala, which are all grid-connected. The grid power is already 95% green.
The Maturation Project:
- Created green livelihoods for women and youth, validating the business case for the e-boda drivers
- Proved there is an increase potential of the income to exiting boda drivers when they change to E-boda
- Validated the business case for the commercial partner, Green Hub East Africa, collected data information, lessons learned and solving challenges during the project period. This creates foundation on the way for the company to scale the business.
Administrative Partner LM International Key Commercial Partner Kjaer Group A/S Other Partners Green Hub East Africa Ltd, Women Rising for Africa Country Uganda Sector Transport Open / Closed Open Duration April 2025 - December 2028 Approval Year 2024