Nigeria has moved closer to establishing a domestic electric vehicle industry after signing an agreement with South Korea’s Asia Economic Development Committee (AEDC) to set up what officials describe as Africa’s first electric vehicle manufacturing plant.
The agreement, signed on January 30, 2025, by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Enoh, and AEDC Chairman Yoon Suk-hun, is a key step in the country’s efforts to localise vehicle production and expand the use of green technologies.
According to a statement shared on the official X (formerly Twitter) account of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), “On January 30, 2026, the Federal Government of Nigeria, through Senator John Enoh, Hon. Minister of State for Industry at the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with South Korea’s Asia Economic Development Committee (AEDC) to establish an Electric Vehicle (EV) manufacturing plant and develop critical charging infrastructure nationwide.
This landmark collaboration aligns strongly with Nigeria’s National Energy Transition Plan (ETP) and National Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP).”
The project will be rolled out in phases, starting with vehicle assembly before expanding into full in-house manufacturing.
Once fully operational, the plant is expected to produce up to 300,000 vehicles each year and create around 10,000 jobs, according to the NADDC.
Nigeria’s automotive industry continues to face major challenges, including weak local component production, high assembly costs and a heavy dependence on imports.
The country imports between 400,000 and 720,000 vehicles annually, with between 74% and 90% being used vehicles.
In 2023 alone, vehicle imports reached 700,000 units, while passenger car imports were valued at $1.05 billion in 2024, making Nigeria one of the world’s largest markets for second-hand vehicles.
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To encourage electric vehicle adoption, the federal government launched a 20 billion naira ($12 million) consumer credit scheme in December 2024.
The programme supports the purchase of locally assembled electric vehicles, motorcycles and tricycles, working with domestic manufacturers such as Innoson, Nord, CIG (GAC), PAN, Mikano, Jets, NEV (Electric) and DAG to widen access and support the growth of a local EV industry.
Previous electric vehicle efforts in Nigeria, including a NASENI partnership with Israeli and Japanese firms in 2022 and a collaboration with a Chinese company in December 2025, were limited to pilot projects or partial assembly and did not achieve full-scale production.
By contrast, the AEDC-backed project is designed as a full-scale manufacturing operation, covering assembly, production and supporting infrastructure such as nationwide charging networks.
Electric vehicle adoption across Africa is increasing but remains relatively low. Data from EV24 shows that by mid-2025, the continent had more than 30,000 electric vehicles in use, accounting for less than 1% of total vehicle sales.
Ethiopia leads with about 100,000 EVs, followed by Ghana with 17,000, Morocco with 10,000, South Africa with 6,000, Egypt with between 3,500 and 4,000, and Kenya with nearly 3,800.
Most of these vehicles are motorcycles or commercial units, with adoption slowed by high costs and limited charging infrastructure.
Nigeria’s deal with South Korea’s Asia Economic Development Committee to build Africa’s first full-scale electric vehicle plant underscores the country’s ambition to move beyond simple assembly and develop a sustainable, locally driven EV industry.
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Image Credit: Business Insider Africa
