Transport is an integral component of the energy system, and in Sub-Saharan Africa the demand for transport has been increasing due Faber STILO ISOLA/SP EV8 X A90 Island hood cm. 90 stainless steel - motor in part to population growth and economic development.To demonstrate the extent of this increased demand, emissions from transport in Africa grew by 84% over 6 years last decade [1] until, in 2018 in Sub-Saharan Africa, 15% of final energy consumption was demanded by the transport sector [2].However, a global system change is underway for road passenger transport: a transition from polluting internal combustion engine vehicles to low-emission electric vehicles.Sub-Saharan Africa will not be immune to this transition, especially as a region which currently depends heavily on the import of second-hand vehicles [3]; not to mention the emission and air quality benefits electric vehicles can offer.
Yet, by 2019 only 500 electric vehicles were on the roads in South Africa [4].In this Viewpoint, we aim to dispel concerns that electric vehicles are always unaffordable and will cripple the already overloaded power systems in Sub-Saharan Africa.Instead, we propose that with innovative thinking and context-specific approaches and technologies, different from Cases those in High-Income Countries, electric vehicles could in fact offer benefits to governments, the power systems, and vehicle owner-operators in Sub-Saharan Africa.We lay out how the historically siloed transport and electricity sectors could evolve to support each other in the future.