The ceremony was held in Kigali on December 11th, 2019 and brought together government officials including Dr. Colette Ruhamya, the Director-General of Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), the United States Ambassador to Rwanda, Peter Vrooman, the Ambassador of Germany to Rwanda, Thomas Kurz as well as Sarah Metcalf, The head of a DFID country office among others.

In May 2019, 20 e-motorcycle taxis were launched in Kigali to transport people and goods as a pilot scheme to test their performance on the Rwandan market.

The e-motorcycles use a battery swap model and stations were established around town to facilitate drivers in operating them.

The achievement of 250,000 kilometers proves that e-motorcycles are fit for the Rwandan market and can benefit many more citizens.

Gatete said that Rwanda aims at a zero-carbon future where people and goods can be transported by vehicles with the least carbon dioxide emissions.

“The Government of Rwanda cares about the environment and aims at providing transport means that will not contribute to further climate change.”

Ampersand Chief Executive Officer, Josh Whale says there are so many benefits in using e-motorcycles.

“Ampersand e-motorcycles use a battery swap model and we have established stations across Kigali to support drivers in operating them. They come at a relatively cheaper price and are made with top-notch technology that allow owners to gain more income. That technology will also allow Africa to achieve a zero-carbon future.”

Ampersand has an assembling plant in Kigali and offers e-motorcycles at cheaper prices. The motorcycles have noise cancellation features and other advanced technology features surpassing many other models in performance.

In Rwanda, almost half of the transport facilities available are motorcycles and most of them use petrol that gets more expensive with time and contributes to more greenhouse gases effects.

Ampersand has so far built three recharge stations and will continue to establish more stations to ease the utilization of the e-motorcycles. Charging one battery costs Rwf 920 but it does not require waiting for the battery to be full since you are provided with a fully charged one at the stations.

Ampersand e-motorcycles’ uniqueness is etched in emitting less to no carbon dioxide and research has shown that they contribute to the reduction of 75% in carbon dioxide emission.

Riders identify level of the battery strength on a dashboard indicator and when it is due for recharging.

A 2017 report by REMA showed that cars, motorcycles and charcoal and wood emissions contributed to the release of more greenhouse gases.

The report also showed that 95.2% of cars in Rwanda were manufactured more than 10 years ago. 56.6% were manufactured before 1999 while 77.2% were manufactured before 2000.

The Ministry of Health in Rwanda reports that every year, 3 million patients suffer from respiratory problems among which 13% were affected by air pollution.

Electric motorcycles transport for 250,000 km in total on Rwandan territory

The Minister of Infrastructure, Claver Gatete joined Ampersand, a society that deals in electric vehicles and charging systems in celebrating 250,000 kilometers their e-motorcycle taxis traveled in Rwanda.

The achievement of 250,000 kilometers proves that e-motorcycles are fit for the Rwandan market and can benefit many more citizens.