The President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has reaffirmed the Bank’s commitment to championing African entrepreneurs and driving industrial innovation across the continent.
Dr. Adesina made the pledge during a visit to Saglev Electromobility Nigeria Limited, an electric vehicle (EV) assembly and distribution company in Ikorodu, Lagos. The facility, which partners with a Chinese automobile group, produces EVs from semi-knocked-down components for Nigeria and other emerging markets.
Currently capable of assembling 2,500 vehicles annually on a single shift—with plans to scale up to 10,000 units—Saglev is positioning itself as a key player in Africa’s green mobility future.
Welcoming the AfDB boss, Saglev Chairman and CEO, Dr. Sam Faleye, said the visit fulfilled a promise made at the 2024 Africa Investment Forum in Morocco.
Faleye, who spent 28 years in the United States as an Internist and Clinical Informatics expert, shared his motivation for returning to Nigeria:
“If I did this project anywhere else in the world, it would not satisfy me as much as this satisfies me.”
Addressing challenges
During a tour of the plant, discussions touched on fiscal policy, logistics bottlenecks, financing hurdles, and the limited local production of critical automotive components. Other topics included battery technology, charging infrastructure, and the importance of capacity building.
Dr. Adesina stressed that affordable power was essential to making EV production competitive in Africa:
“Electric vehicles run on electricity — that is why the AfDB has, in the last 10 years, connected more than 28 million people to electricity, investing heavily in energy.”
Highlighting Africa’s vast renewable energy potential—11 terawatts of solar, 350 gigawatts of hydro, 150 gigawatts of wind, and 15 gigawatts of geothermal—he said EV production aligned perfectly with the continent’s green energy future.
Economic opportunity
Dr. Adesina noted that the global EV market, currently valued at $7 trillion, could reach $59 trillion by 2050, and urged African manufacturers to seize the opportunity.
He praised Faleye for investing his own capital despite Africa’s high borrowing costs, and pledged AfDB’s readiness to “de-risk lending” and provide financial lines of credit to support companies like Saglev.
Skills, inclusion, and diaspora impact
Commending the company’s young engineers and technicians, Dr. Adesina said their expertise reflected the quality of Nigerian technical education. He also applauded Saglev’s gender inclusion efforts in its technical workforce.
Acknowledging the role of the African diaspora, he praised Faleye’s return to Nigeria to invest:
“Africa’s diaspora is valuable not just for the $91 billion in remittances each year, but for the knowledge, skills, and commitment they bring back home.”
The visit underscored AfDB’s determination to link clean energy investments with industrial innovation, while spotlighting Saglev as a model for Africa’s push into high-value manufacturing.
