Swedish SMEs Drive Sustainable Public Transport Projects in West Africa

Swedish companies are playing a pivotal role in advancing sustainable public transport infrastructure in West Africa, with a special emphasis on the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Anthonia Adenaya Huard, regional manager for Northern and Western Africa at Business Sweden, highlights the crucial involvement of SMEs, which contribute significant expertise in biofuels—key to these projects' success. Business Sweden is facilitating several infrastructure initiatives aimed at reducing emissions and creating jobs, particularly in rapidly urbanizing cities like Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and Lagos, Nigeria.

A landmark project in Abidjan involved a feasibility study that determined a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system powered by biofuels from agricultural waste as the optimal sustainable transport solution. Supported by Team Sweden and financed with the help of international partners such as the World Bank and the African Development Bank, the project included delivery of 450 buses compatible with biodiesel by Scania.

Building on this model, Lagos is set to introduce 2,000 biogas buses that run on energy derived from municipal waste. Business Sweden is also fostering partnerships between Swedish and African municipalities to exchange knowledge about waste management and bioeconomy, further enhancing sustainability efforts.

Huard encourages SMEs to reconsider the African market not as a risk but as an opportunity, underlining Business Sweden’s existing regional presence and understanding of market dynamics. Currently, Africa accounts for a small fraction of Sweden’s exports, a gap these initiatives aim to address by leveraging Swedish technology and know-how to foster sustainable urban mobility in West Africa.