Spiro, an electric mobility company, and Entrepreneurial Solutions Partners (ESP), a consulting and investment firm that backs entrepreneurs across Africa, have launched a programme that aims to help 5,000 African women build businesses on electric motorcycles by 2030.
In a statement on 28th October, the partners said 50 women have begun training in Rwanda, the first group in a pilot that aims to reach 500 participants there before the programme spreads to other markets.
The programme, called Women in E-Mobility, is built around three steps. Training comes first, covering safe riding and road rules alongside money management, digital tools and running a small business. Next comes the motorcycle: participants can lease-to-own a Spiro electric bike and swap batteries at the company’s stations. Once they are riding, the programme will link them with ride-hailing, delivery and logistics platforms that can supply customers.
According to Spiro, women make up about 4% of Rwanda’s transport workers sector. A 2025 study in Kigali cited by the company found that 47.7% of women surveyed would consider becoming motorcycle taxi drivers.
“Electric mobility is creating new economic opportunities across Africa, and we want more women to be part of this transformation,” said Anant Badjatya, Spiro’s Group CEO. He further stated that “Our ambition is to encourage a new generation of women entrepreneurs who will help shape the future of mobility on the continent.”
How Spiro and ESP plan to expand the programme
Spiro already has a presence in Rwanda, where it assembles motorcycles and runs a battery-swapping network, contributing to the country’s growing electric mobility sector. This explains why the partnership is starting there. ESP handles the business side of the programme, from building participants’ skills to helping them find financing.
“For women entrepreneurs, having access to a motorcycle is only the first step. Building a successful business also requires skills, financing, customers and ongoing support,” said Eric Kacou, Co-founder and CEO of ESP.
ESP, which started in 2011, has offices in Kigali, Abidjan, Nairobi and Dakar and works across 28 countries. By its count, it has supported more than 12,900 micro, small and medium enterprises, contributed to 43,153 direct jobs and helped businesses gain access to $104.5 million in finance. More than 23,700 young women have taken part in its programmes. The Mastercard Foundation, the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank are among its institutional partners.
The Rwanda pilot is meant to show how participants fare, measured by their progress, earnings and the performance of their businesses. If it works, the programme moves to other countries where Spiro operates between 2027 and 2030.
At that stage, the partners will be seeking backing from development finance institutions, impact investors, governments and commercial partners who could help with financing, training and commercial opportunities.
Spiro describes itself as Africa’s largest electric mobility company. It says it operates in seven countries and has more than 156,000 electric motorcycles on the road, supported by over 2,500 battery-swapping stations and more than 57 million swaps so far. It assembles bikes in Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda.
Read also: Spiro expands into Ghana with its first 100 electric motorcycles
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