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Kenya gets $377m for first electric bus lane in East Africa

Published

2 years ago

April 1, 2023

A consortium of European agencies has provided Kenya with KSh50 billion ($377 million) to build a dedicated electric bus lane in Nairobi to ease congestion.

It will be the first Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) lane in East Africa and will be part of a system of five such lanes to be developed in Kenya in the near future.

The deal includes running ways, bus stations, bus depots, and station access supporting infrastructure including pedestrian bridges, fare collection, and validation systems.

In addition, there is a bus fleet (110 articulated buses), interchange stations for feeder bus services, park-and-ride facilities, a BRT control room, and a real-time passenger information system.

As part of the deal signed in Brussels on Wednesday following President Ruto’s visit, the EU will provide KSh6.47 billion ($48.79 million) in grants, whereas the European Investment Bank (EIB) and French Development Agency (AFD) will jointly fund the projects with KSh33.9 billion ($255.64 million).

The Director of the Mobility Department at AFD, Lise Breuil, said in a statement that “AFD is very pleased to be part of this Team Europe initiative and to actively contribute to the preparation of this important project for Nairobi and Kenya.’’

EIB Vice President Thomas Östros said, “the European Investment Bank welcomes today’s milestone agreement with President Ruto and looks forward to finalising $218.5 million (KSh28.8 billion) support for the visionary Nairobi BRT scheme through EIB Global.”

Local investment in electric cars has been on a steady rise lately. Mobility startup, BasiGo, a Nairobi-based electric car manufacturer, recently partnered with Associated Vehicle Assemblers Ltd (AVA) to assemble electric buses in the country.

State enterprise and Kenyan sole power distributor, Kenya Power in February also announced plans to convert its 2,000 petrol and diesel-driven vehicles to electric over the next four years.

Related Topics:Electric Cars Featured Kenya

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IMF, Egypt reach agreement for fourth review of Egypt’s $1.2 billion loan request

Published

2 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have reached a staff-level agreement over the fourth review of the Extended Fund Facility arrangement, which might lead to a $1.2 billion payout under the program.

In March, Egypt, struggling with rising inflation and cash shortages, consented to the $8 billion, 46-month facility. Its economic problems were made worse by a precipitous drop in Suez Canal revenue over the last year due to regional tensions.

Over the next two years, Egypt’s government has committed to raising its tax-to-revenue ratio by 2% of GDP, according to the IMF, emphasising removing exemptions rather than raising taxes.

According to a statement from the IMF, this would allow it to expand social expenditure to support vulnerable populations.

“While the authorities’ plans to streamline and simplify the tax system are commendable, further reforms will be needed to enhance domestic revenue mobilization efforts,” the statement said.

According to the IMF statement, Egypt had also committed to maintaining its commitment to a flexible currency rate and to taking more urgent action to guarantee that the private sector became the primary driver of development.

The IMF’s executive board still has to accept the fourth review’s staff-level agreement.

VenturesNow

Libya’s eastern govt accepts petrol subsidy elimination

Published

2 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In a recent statement, the eastern government of Libya claimed it had reached a consensus on a plan to eliminate gasoline subsidies and would draft a mechanism to carry out the accord.

Additional information on the idea was not released by the administration led by Osama Hamad, a challenger to the internationally acknowledged Tripoli-based government.

However, it is uncertain if Hamad’s government would be able to carry out the plan in the divided nation.

According to the Global Petrol Prices online tracker, a litre of gasoline costs just 0.150 Libyan dinars ($0.03) in OPEC member Libya, making it the second-cheapest in the world.

Following an uprising against former ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, smuggling networks have thrived in the ensuing political unrest and armed fighting. In 2014, conflicting eastern and western governments separated the nation.

A World Bank analysis estimates that the annual value of fuel smuggling from Libya is at least $5 billion.

In a meeting with Mari Barrasi, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Libya (CBL), located in Tripoli, and four members of the bank’s board of directors, Hamad in Benghazi supported the idea of removing subsidies.

The CBL’s Benghazi branch offices served as the venue for the conference.

The eastern parliament appointed Hamad in 2023 to succeed Abdulhamid Dbeibah, who had been put in position in 2021 under a U.N.-backed procedure that the parliament said had lost its legitimacy.

Dbeibah, who is located in Tripoli, stated in January that he will conduct a public poll on the topic of eliminating gasoline subsidies, but he hasn’t done anything about it since.

According to CBL figures, gasoline subsidies cost 12.8 billion Libyan dinars between January and November of this year. 4.8 Libyan dinars to $1 is the official exchange rate.