Demand with direction.
Clear expectations and predictable volumes can strengthen the business case for cleaner freight services.
GREEN FREIGHT PROCUREMENT
How we buy freight can move markets.
Freight buyers have the power to help create demand for cleaner transport. By working with operators and partners, they can turn purchasing decisions into a catalyst for electric freight and a fairer transition.
THE POWER OF A CLEAR SIGNAL
Buying freight is more than a transaction.
Demand↓Confidence↓Investment↓Cleaner freight
PEOPLE · POLICY · PROGRESS
01 WHY PROCUREMENT MATTERS
A purchase can be a signal for change.
Every shipment is part of a bigger system. The way freight is purchased can help shape what that system becomes.
When buyers ask for credible emissions data, include environmental performance in tenders and work with transport providers on practical solutions, they send a clearer signal that cleaner freight matters.
Predictable routes, longer-term commitments and aggregated demand can give operators, financiers and infrastructure providers greater confidence to consider the investments needed for electric freight.
Partners at the table.
Buyers and transporters can work with workers, energy providers, financiers and government to address shared barriers.
Progress we can measure.
Consistent baselines and reporting can make performance visible and help turn ambition into practical decisions.
02 A PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK
Five steps.
One direction.
The supplied framework is for East African shippers. Its principles can inform local conversations across Africa, adapted to each market and its freight needs.
KNOW YOUR FREIGHT SYSTEM
Understand.
Map routes, volumes, transport providers, vehicles, costs and the operational realities behind every shipment.
BUILD A BASELINE
Measure.
Gather fuel and energy use, distance and tonne-kilometre data. Estimate emissions using a consistent method and make the scope and assumptions clear.
WORK WITH TRANSPORTERS
Engage.
Bring operators and drivers into the conversation. Share data, agree practical targets and performance measures, and identify skills and capacity needs.
CREATE THE CONDITIONS
Enable.
Use contracts, aggregated volumes and predictable routes to support planning. Engage energy and finance partners on charging, depots, grid access and investment.
TRANSFORM THE MARKET
Scale.
Build on measured experience to explore green lanes, shared charging, greener ports and electric freight corridors suited to local conditions.
Outcomes depend on routes, vehicle use, energy supply, infrastructure and implementation. A credible transition measures progress rather than assuming results.
03 A SHARED VISION FOR SOUTH AFRICA
One vision.
A future we build together.
EVITAL Fund endorses a shared vision for a safer, smarter, lower-carbon, more competitive and inclusive road freight system for South Africa.
Turning that vision into action calls for freight buyers and operators, drivers and workers, government, financiers, energy and infrastructure partners, civil society and communities to work together.
Reading the vision
The diagram sets out a shared vision and intended actions, rather than reporting completed results. Its 50% emissions-reduction ambition is distinct from the 5% reduction by 2050 stated in South Africa’s 2018 Green Transport Strategy. Read the strategy ↗
Read the action-plan diagram in text
Capability and market transformation: The vision combines safer stops, professional truck-driver programmes, eco-driving, road-freight performance and emissions measurement, green freight procurement and workforce readiness. The diagram identifies training objectives of 10,000 drivers and 1,000 transport managers.
Electric truck action: It brings together weights and dimensions reform, energy and infrastructure planning, local assembly, market activation and aggregated demand. The illustrated N3 pilot envisages 50 electric trucks and four to five charging or battery-swapping nodes.
Working together: Freight buyers, cargo owners, operators, drivers, government, civil society, finance and energy partners all have a role. The diagram connects procurement, finance, measurement and infrastructure across corridors, ports, warehouses, truck stops and depots.
PATHWAY A
Build green freight capability.
Support safer roads, professional drivers, efficient operations, skills, emissions measurement and market readiness.PATHWAY B
Enable electric freight.
Advance practical policy, predictable demand, energy and charging readiness, finance and local industry.Capability enables change. Procurement helps drive demand. Finance, evidence and infrastructure help turn ambition into action.
04 MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER
A market is built by many hands.
A just transition depends on the people who buy, move, power and shape freight having a meaningful voice.
Buyers & cargo owners
Use procurement to set clear expectations, share demand and engage transport providers.
Operators, drivers & workers
Bring operational experience, skills and practical insights into the design of solutions.
Government & communities
Help shape enabling policy, safer roads and a transition that reflects local priorities.
Energy & finance partners
Work on charging, power, investment and the conditions for freight electrification.
EVITAL’S ROLE
Connecting evidence, advocacy and action.
We bring perspectives together, advocate for enabling policy and support the innovation, training and local opportunity needed to move from shared vision to practical progress.