Senegal’s electric bus service was chosen by the independent panel of judges to win the IJGlobal ESG Awards 2024 trophy as the best example of its deployment in the PPP sector.

One of the judges said of the 18.3km Dakar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) PPP that it was a “great project” and that it “addresses an important need for Dakar and its residents”.

Another of the judges added: “It is great to see key areas of consideration around accessibility and safety for women and children in this excellent mass transit solution that will also have a significant environmental impact.”

The IFC advised the government of Senegal on the groundbreaking and transformative Dakar BRT with the World Bank financing construction of the infrastructure and systems.

The project has significant climate, gender and E&S impact, is aligned with the Paris Agreement and is the first international BRT to have a 100% electric fleet, supporting climate adaptation and resiliency with around 59,000 tonnes of GHG reduction in Senegal.

As lead adviser, IFC was expected to carry out due diligence, structuration, and support the government in a competitive tender to select the private operator.

However, it ended up playing a much more significant role once realisation dawned that the original design was suboptimal – 9,000 capacity. The existing project was redrafted with tripled capacity of 27,000, more durable and environmentally friendly materials along with an optimal operational plan.

To encourage modal shift from polluting vehicles, IFC also proposed an integrated network of feeder buses to bring more ridership to the BRT.

This project was hugely impactful as Dakar is highly congested and dominated by an aging fleet of dirty diesel buses and informal operators which have an impact on quality of life and air for inhabitants.

With a 100% electric fleet, the BRT helps in the fight against air pollution as well as reduction in the emission of health hazards and skin irritant pollutants and cuts travel time by 50%.

The BRT and its feeder network are not only connecting communities, but invigorating local businesses, accelerating the renewal of neighbourhoods. It adds significant climate-friendly landscaping improvements (vegetal fencing with weather compatible trees, ground covering plants, landscaping on platforms and between bus lanes, etc.) that create a more liveable city for residents.

The service will place 59% of the city’s job opportunities within an hour’s journey, dramatically improving people’s access to employment opportunities, especially women, as well as to health and education services.

Projections show almost half the inhabitants with low economic resources – many of them women – will have access to more than 8,000 additional jobs.

In addition, projections showed that the BRT will have a particularly significant impact on accessibility to health services and businesses: 60% of residents will be able to access at least one additional health centre in less than 30 minutes, 62% will have access to at least one additional pharmacy; and accessibility to educational opportunities ranging from secondary school to higher education will be significantly improved.

Dakar BRT is innovative on many levels, primarily that it is the first BRT in the Sahel Region; the first BRT international PPP in Africa to have closed; and the first BRT of that size in the world with a 100% electric articulated bus fleet.

The PPP transaction will pave the way for others to follow because of its innovative structure with an unusual scheme where – contrary to typical urban transport projects – market risk remains with the operator which is also required to share revenues with the state and paid an upfront fee. It involves an expected private investment of $200 million over the 15-year concession.

The service will provide increased comfort, including air conditioning, GPS connected vehicles, modern payment for users through contactless smart cards that allow for integrated fares and interoperability with other mass transport systems like the new LRT in Dakar.

IFC also worked with GoS to include energy efficiency through solar panels in stations.

The BRT design also comes with the very first bike lanes of Dakar, which is now a catalyst for the development of softer modes in other parts of the city.

On the gender equality front, the project has already achieved higher than the national average.

The technical control room of the BRT is managed by a team of female employees who received training in sophisticated transport systems. Furthermore, the BRT offered opportunities for 25 female drivers – a first in Senegal.