New Energy

Ethiopia’s Fossil Fuel Car Ban Is a Vision of the Future

The African country also slashed tariffs on electric vehicles, leading to an EV boom.

A delivery rider for Klik, a logistics company that supplies everything from meals to medicines, on his electric bike.Photographer: Amanuel Sileshi/Bloomberg

In 2024, Ethiopia did something revolutionary. It banned the import of fossil fuel cars and cut tariffs on electric vehicles.

This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi talks with producer Oscar Boyd and Ethiopia-based EV entrepreneur Yuma Sasaki about the EV boom that ensued and what that tells us about the growth of EVs in rapidly developing countries like Ethiopia.