Osinbajo test-drives Nigeria’s first locally-assembled electric car

By our reporter| The first locally assembled electric car, Hyundai Kona, was on Tuesday test-driven by Vice -President Yemi Osinbajo.

Osinbajo who drove the car during an exhibition tour of made-in-Nigeria products at the opening ceremony of a five-day Nigeria@60 Expo, held at the Eagle Square, Abuja, said he was impressed with the innovation and is hopeful of a bright future for Nigeria.

The event was organised by the inter-ministerial committee on Nigeria@60, in collaboration with Business Visa and Training Company Limited.

“A very good drive. Fantastic! It just shows what is possible. I am glad to see that this is an assembled-in-Nigeria electric car,” Osinbajo said.

“You can literally charge it anywhere. I think it is a very fantastic innovation, fantastic product, and I can tell because I drove it.”

Also speaking, secretary to the government of the federation, Boss Mustapha, said the event was aimed at showcasing what Nigeria can produce with local raw materials.

“To complement the efforts of the federal government at ensuring that we produce what we eat and eat what we produce, in this context, we are to produce what we use and use what we produce,” he said.

The director-general, World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, commended the organisers for their efforts to showcase the growth of Nigeria’s micro, small and medium enterprises.

The vehicle, a product of Stallion Motors, was first launched in Lagos in November 2020 by governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and was unveiled in Abuja on February 2021 by DG of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu.