One African company is turning the continent’s transport crisis into an industrial awakening

Spiro, which has deployed 65,000 electric motorbikes across six African countries and built hundreds of swap stations, has raised US $100 million to scale up production and create thousands of new jobs while cutting carbon emissions across the continent’s fastest-growing transport sector.

In an interview with Global South World, the CEO of Spiro, Kaushik Burman, explained how the African company has found not just a market, but a mission.

“I love Africa,” he said. “I’ve already converted myself to Africa. I love the spirit of Africa.”

The African company is behind what is now Africa’s largest-ever investment in electric mobility. In October 2025, Spiro closed a US$100 million funding round.

Spiro began not in a boardroom, but in a field. Its founder, Gagan Gupta, who also leads the Equitane and Arise groups, was visiting an agricultural site in rural Togo when he witnessed how costly and difficult gasoline transport had become. The realisation sparked an idea: if the continent could leapfrog to mobile banking, why not leapfrog to electric mobility?

By 2022, Spiro had launched its first fleets in Benin and Togo, two West African neighbours whose bustling motorcycle taxi networks are the lifeblood of local economies. In less than three years, the company has expanded into six countries, including Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Nigeria, Benin and Togo and is preparing to enter its seventh, Cameroon.

The overall African two-wheeler market is estimated at US $9.15 billion in 2025, and projected to reach US $11.11 billion by 2029, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 4.97%.

65,000 electric motorbikes have been deployed, nearly 2,000 battery-swap stations already operating, 20 million battery swaps and a target to double that to 4,000 by year’s end. Each station works like a miniature power hub. Riders pull in, exchange their depleted batteries for fully charged ones in under five minutes, and ride off.

“Think of it like filling up gas,” Burman explains. “Except this time, you’re filling up with clean power.”

Riders pay only for the energy they consume, eliminating the up-front battery cost that often makes EVs unaffordable.

According to Burman, a typical rider saves between US$1.50 and $2 a day compared to petrol bikes, a small figure that translates into life-changing relief for many in Africa’s informal transport sector.

“That’s school fees. That’s food on the table,” Burman said.

Spiro has already created over 10,000 jobs across its six markets, from factory workers and engineers to sales teams and swap-station operators. Its Spiro Academy, launched last year, trains local youth and women in assembly, servicing, and maintenance. Nearly 45 percent of the company’s workforce is made up of women.

“It’s not just about mobility,” Burman insists. “It’s about dignity. It’s about creating pathways into the financial ecosystem for people who were left out.”

Every Spiro bike on the road saves about two tonnes of CO₂ per year compared with a petrol motorcycle.

The environmental argument is matched by a macroeconomic one. Many African nations spend billions of dollars importing fuel each year. By reducing dependence on petrol, Spiro’s model helps conserve foreign exchange and stabilise local currencies.

Across the continent, electric mobility is accelerating. The Africa E-Mobility Alliance reports that electric two- and three-wheelers grew by 38 percent year-on-year in 2025. Research firm Mordor Intelligence projects Africa’s two-wheeler market to reach US $11 billion by 2029, with electric models leading growth.

For Spiro, the next phase is growth — in capital, markets, and impact. The company plans to raise more funds to scale its manufacturing footprint and extend its swap network. But the vision is long-term.

In a world too used to seeing Africa as a consumer of technology, Spiro is flipping the script — turning the Global South into the stage for the next industrial revolution.