Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure (MININFRA) is developing a master plan for electric vehicle charging stations, with focus on increasing such infrastructure upcountry to ensure that no car travels more than 50 kilometres without coming across a charging station. ALSO READ: Four most common misconceptions about electric vehicles in Rwanda This initiative, according to the ministry, aims to guide investors in developing charging infrastructure and to “prevent the development of idle or obsolete stations” in efforts to scale up charging infrastructure across the country. “The master plan includes identifying the necessary number of charging stations nationwide by focusing on high population density and traffic areas, as well as leveraging existing petrol stations and commercial buildings,” reads part of a related statement. ALSO READ: Rwanda extends import tax exemption for electric vehicles A preliminary geospatial analysis identified over 226 potential sites for EV charging infrastructure across the country. As of August, there were 24 public charging stations for vehicles (AC and DC-based charging facilities), 4 stations for direct chargers for motorcycles, and 49 stations for chargers coupled with swapping stations as per data from the ministry. Chargers “installed in homes are not counted.” ALSO READ: Rwanda on course to grow electric mobility market As noted, the ministry is elaborating a master plan of charging stations countrywide to support the optimisation of this infrastructure and ensure their optimum spatial deployment. Electric vehicle charging infrastructure is one of the main components of the e-mobility ecosystem, considered by the ministry as the backbone of the system. Farmers get animal feed at affordable cost In Nyamagabe District, the adoption of e-mobility is providing affordable transportation for animal feeds, as noted by the district’s Acting Director of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Vicent Uwimana. He said: “Electric cars are not only environmentally friendly but also cost-effective, leading to reduced prices for essential goods such as animal feeds. “Our farmers get animal feeds at affordable costs—cheaper transport—compared to fuel vehicles. The whole network uses renewable energy, evidencing that the new model of transport is more efficient than petrol or gas.” According to him, a chicken farmer earlier got feed at Rwf600 or Rwf700 per kilo but with the introduction of electric cars, prices started reduced by Rwf100 to Rwf200 per kilo. Business people, such as Vestine Mukanziza, are benefiting from the use of electric vehicles for transporting feed and harvest to the market, resulting in lower costs and increased efficiency. “Electric cars are transforming our lives; we now get feeds at affordable prices,” said Mukanziza. ALSO: Call for more e-charging stations to deepen adoption of EVs According to data from Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA), electric cars gradually increased from 19 in 2020 to 512 this year, while hybrid cars soared from 28, as of 2021, to 6,660, this year. Of the 7,172 cars imported, from 2020 to 2024—both hybrid and electric—only 512, or 7 percent of the total, are electric.
