The Ministry of Transport has intensified its stakeholder engagement on the draft National Electric Vehicle Policy, the latest being an engagement with some sections of the Ghanaian media.
So far the Transport Ministry has held consultative engagements in 14 out of the 16 regions, with Greater Accra and Upper West Regions to go.
Government, under the Paris Climate Accord, has drafted a National Electric Vehicle Policy to solicit stakeholder inputs and enable the country to switch from the use of fossil fuel vehicles to Electronic Vehicles to curb greenhouse gas emissions and global warming.
The draft policy, whose framework was developed in June 2022, is aimed at drawing up a comprehensive implementation plan and an investment strategy to ensure a seamless transition.
The Director of Policy Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation at the Ministry of Transport, Irene Messiba, said the engagement is meant to solicit the views of journalists before the final draft is completed.
A Deputy Minister of Transport, Hassan Tampuli, noted that as global automotive markets begin to phase out fossil-fuelled vehicles for electric ones, Ghana risks becoming a dumping site if synergetic efforts are not harnessed to switch to EVs.
“As we move along, what do we do with the existing means of transport that we have? So, as we are thinking of rolling out EVs, we are also thinking very critically of what to do with the existing vehicles so that they do not become waste.”
He said Ghana stands at the threshold of history if it gets it right with the transition to electric vehicles.
“If we get it right, we carry the entire subregion along. Between Ghana and Nigeria, we account for 75% of the petroleum products consumed in the West Africa sub-region. So if we are able to do this right, Nigeria becomes a potent market for us.”
