East African e-commerce firm, Sokowatch yesterday announced the groundbreaking launch of electric tuk-tuks to its delivery fleet in Uganda making the vehicles the first of their kind to be used commercially in East Africa. These new tuk-tuks are a part of the company’s effort to build cleaner and more sustainable environments in its operating markets.

According to Sokowatch‘s country manager for Uganda, Peter Muzoora, Kampala’s air quality is six times worse than global standards. This is partly what drove the firm to directly address the issue and let go of its fuel-driven tuk-tuks.

“We launched in Kampala last year and when we arrived, we made a commitment to be a business that would add and not take away from our local communities. The launch of our electric tuk-tuks shows this wasn’t just lip-service. Every day, we witness the impact of carbon emissions and noise pollution on this city, which is why this project is so important and also why we’re proud to be a company leading active change in Kampala,” says Muzoora.

Start off your week with tech news recap and trending conversations in your inbox

Enter valid email-id

Subscribe

I prefer it on Telegram

Built by Gayam Motor Works, the new fleet of vehicles take just three hours to fully charge and last approximately 2-3 days on a single charge. Notably, Gayam is known for working with companies like Amazon, IKEA and Flipkart.

These electric tuk-tuks are then used to deliver to an estimated 35 shops per day within 2 hours of order carrying up to 500kg worth of commodities.

Image courtesy Pctech

Sokowatch states that these new vehicles will play a vital role in the company’s service which employs tech-enabled solutions to improve supply chain inefficiencies for informal retailers.

More importantly, these vehicles add weight to the agenda of electric mobility that Africa still struggles to move towards.

So, would you want to see similar tuk-tuks in Kenya?