Citi's Approach to Financing Africa's Green Mobility

The African electric vehicle (EV) market is projected to grow by 25 percent annually over the next five years. This means that stakeholders, including financiers, have to plan for this expansion if they are to benefit from the sector. In this week's conversation, Kwasi Frimpong from Citi discusses the challenges and opportunities in financing EVs in African countries. He highlights the economic barriers to EV adoption, including high upfront costs, limited infrastructure, and restrictive tariffs. The discussion also covers the role of government policies, the impact of Chinese investment, and the need for diversified funding sources to support emerging mobility companies. Kwasi emphasizes the importance of sustainable business models and the potential for exponential growth in the EV sector by 2030. The key takeaways from this conversation are the significance of the e-mobility promise for Africa and how to diversify funding sources to address the economic barriers. There's also a surprise insight that e-mobility is not considered a high-risk sector by the bank, which is interesting given that the sector is still in its infancy in many African countries. Kwasi also discusses how Chinese investment is reshaping the African auto market, as well as the future of the auto sector in Africa, considering the competing and complementary factors. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: X: @ChinaGSProject | @hakeenah Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC: Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth