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During the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) held in Paris in 2015, 196 countries put pen to paper the Paris Climate Change Agreement, a legally binding international treaty on climate change.
The goal of the agreement was to keep global temperatures below 2 degrees Celsius and pursue efforts to limit temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius. To achieve this, countries agreed to limit greenhouse gas emissions by 43% by 2030.
The world’s wealthiest countries emit the most greenhouse gases.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), China is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases. The country emitted 13,739 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2018.
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Other countries, such as the United States of America (USA), Germany, the Russian Federation, India, and Brazil, among others, have also emitted quite a lot of greenhouse gases in the last decade.
Enter electric cars
Some countries have since enforced measures to curb carbon emissions by limiting reliance on energy sources such as coal. For instance, in 2019, Germany announced it would close 84 of its coal-fired plants.
One of the other efforts has been the switch to electric cars.
According to UNEP, a typical passenger vehicle emits about 4.6 metric tonnes of carbon per year.
This assumes that the average gasoline vehicle on the road today has a fuel economy of about 22.2 miles per gallon and drives around 11,500 miles per year. Every gallon of gasoline burned creates about 8,887 grammes of carbon.
The government of Uganda has shown interest in transitioning from fossil-powered cars to electric cars, which are regarded as environmentally friendly.
Kira Motors Cooperation, an electric automobile company, is evidence that perhaps the government is willing to go the extra mile, given that it has invested billions of shillings in the company.
According to Allan Muhumuza, a team lead at the Mobility Bureau of the Science, Technology, and Innovation Secretariat, Uganda's embrace of electric cars would save the country from its heavy reliance on foreign supply chains and emission of heavy carbons into the atmosphere, a major cause of climate change.
"Petrol and diesel rely on logistics. The two are imported from the Middle East, shipped here, and stored. We are relying on a global supply chain; no wonder when the Russia-Ukraine war started, we were affected on this side. This is not the case for electric cars. Everything is in our control; the government has invested heavily in the sector. We have a lot of electricity that is not being consumed to its capacity. We will also have less carbon emissions if we switch to these cars," he says.
President Museveni said during his year-end national speech last year that the government would provide electric motorcycles as a trade-in option for those who now ride internal combustion engine (ICE) motorcycles.
This programme, he said, would help motorcycle operators cut costs by half while simultaneously promoting the switch to cleaner transportation.
Uganda has teamed with investors to finance this extensive programme, which will make use of electric motorcycles made in Uganda.
Muhumuza says Uganda is laying the foundation for a more environmentally friendly future by putting an emphasis on encouraging legislation, innovation, and cooperation.
He adds that the widespread use of electric vehicles will lessen reliance on fossil fuels while also promoting a healthier environment and better air quality.
"It is estimated that the economic cost of climate change in Africa would equal 1.5 to 3% of GDP by 2030. About 10% of greenhouse emissions in Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, are attributed to transport mobility, especially vehicles. The average age of vehicles in Kampala is about 16 years. No wonder Kampala is the 5th most polluted city in Africa," he said.
"Adoption of electric cars, according to a study by Mackenzie, is projected to reduce carbon emissions by 25%. It will take a global effort to address it. When it comes to air quality, that is a local problem. Adopting electric cars is a step towards living in a cleaner environment."
Uganda's preparedness for electric cars
There are, however, concerns about the country’s readiness to fully switch to electric cars, given that there has been slow implementation.
The Acting Assistant Commissioner, Energy Efficiency and Conservation, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Eng. Birimumaso David, says the decision to switch to electric cars is backed by two factors, which include sustainability and the availability of abundant energy to support electric cars.
"If you have been following, our electricity generation capacity is around 1300 megawatts plus, and we are expecting 600 megawatts from Karuma, meaning we have enough capacity in terms of electricity capacity," he says.
Birimumaso says that there are efforts to ready the country into fully switching to electrics given the enormous advantages that would come with the switch.
"We have plans to make sure that the charging infrastructure is put in place. We want to start with pilot projects. We have already secured funding to put pilot charging points in place. With the first funding we got from Germany, we installed charging points on Masaka Road for motorcycles. We have also partnered with some private players, such as Zembo Electric, to establish those charging points," he says.
He adds: "We are also working with Kira Motors Cooperation to locate points where we can put up pilot chargers in Kampala Metropolitan. We have a first target of ten charging points to be located in Kampala. These pilot points are meant to showcase the usage of electric cars so people can pick up an interest.
On the advantages of electric, Birimumaso says: "The amount of money you spend on petrol or diesel is very high compared to the amount of money you would spend on charging a car for every 100 kilometres. So, you have more than 50% savings if you transition to electric cars. The Ministry is interested in this transition because the nation will save enough and it would improve our supply of energy supply and generation."
He says there is a multi-sectoral approach that includes stakeholders such as the works ministry, Uganda Revenue Authority, finance ministry, energy ministry among others.
The approach, he told this reporter, is aimed of promoting the use of electric cars.
Eron Kizza, a climate change activist and founder of Environment Shield, a non-governmental organisation focused on climate change, says embracing electric cars would help achieve a cut in global emissions in sub-Saharan Africa. He pointed out, however, that they are overpriced, which may be a barrier.
"Every time we drive fossil fuel cars, we are leading ourselves to death. Pollution kills Ugandans every day. There’s a direct linkage between fossil fuel cars and climate change," he says.