It has been announced that institutions and individuals engaged in importing and selling electric vehicles must now operate in accordance with the new and mandatory guidelines issued by the Ministry of Transport and Logistics.
This new regulatory system was established due to the increasing number of electric vehicles, aimed at preventing the violation of consumer rights and ensuring the sector is managed according to established standards. Accordingly, five main obligations have been set for any electric vehicle importing institution to fulfill both before and after sales.
These obligations compel importers to go beyond merely selling vehicles, requiring them to provide necessary technical support and long-term warranties to ensure reliable service for customers.
The first and foremost obligation is for the importing company to ensure it has a legal dealership agreement directly with the vehicle's manufacturing factory. The main purpose of this requirement is to control and prevent any substandard, unidentified, or untested vehicles—unsuitable for Ethiopia's climate and road conditions—from entering the Ethiopian market.
When an importer has a direct legal agreement with the factory, it significantly contributes to holding the manufacturer accountable for any manufacturing defects or technical issues that may arise in the vehicle. This, in turn, helps ensure that buyers have full confidence in the product they purchase and that their ownership rights are legally protected.
The second and third obligations concern quality assurance and the provision of technical training. The importing institution is mandated to provide a separate and reliable warranty document for both the vehicle and its battery. Specifically, requiring a warranty period of up to eight years for batteries is crucial to protecting consumers from market fraud.
Furthermore, as electric vehicles have a completely different operating system compared to fuel-powered vehicles, the importing company must provide training to buyers on how to properly use the vehicle. Since the company is required to have qualified personnel and necessary training equipment to provide this instruction, it enables the user to minimize safety and quality issues by operating the vehicle correctly.
The fourth and fifth obligations involve the provision of original spare parts and the establishment of a standardized repair facility. When an electric vehicle breaks down, the replaced parts must be originals sourced from the factory; this helps the vehicle perform at its full potential and prevents damage to its safety systems.
Beyond this, selling a car is not enough; the importing company must have its own standardized repair facility to fix vehicles it has sold when they encounter issues. This repair center must be equipped with the necessary tools and staffed by trained technical personnel, ensuring that customers do not face confusion about where to go when their vehicle breaks down and that the vehicle remains in service for a long time.
In summary, these five obligations ensure that importers do not just sell vehicles but also guarantee post-sales maintenance and spare parts supply, thereby providing a complete after-sales service for consumers.
The strict control the government is exercising in this sector will contribute significantly to strengthening the country's economic capacity, beyond just reducing dependence on fuel.
These new guidelines, rather than slowing down technological progress, are measures taken to build the credibility of the sector by protecting users from fraud and poor quality. Consequently, a call has been made for all stakeholders to move in accordance with the established direction and play their part in upgrading Ethiopia's transport sector to a modern and sustainable level.
