Frontier Tech playbook

Electric mobility is more than a transport solution. It is a pathway to economic transformation, as this pilot demonstrated.

Electric mobility is more than a transport solution. It is a pathway to economic transformation, as this pilot demonstrated.

From February 2024 to April 2026, Frontier Tech Hub and FCDO set out to explore whether electric third- wheel attachments, powered attachments for manual wheelchairs that converts them into a three-wheel electric tricycle (trike), proven in India and Colombia, could work in the informal settlements of Nairobi. The initial questions were straightforward: Could the technology transfer? Would the terrain allow it? Would users adopt it?

However, what we found went far beyond the technical. Within days of deployment, wheelchair users in Korogocho were selling goods, making deliveries, attending political meetings, and mentoring younger people with disabilities. Community members coined a nickname for the devices: “ndege” which is the Swahili word for aeroplane. Not because of speed alone, but because of what movement meant for the people using them.

This playbook documents what was built, what was learned, and what it takes to do it again. It is the product of two phases of real-world evidence, a consortium of Kenyan and international partners, and most importantly, the wheelchair users who tested, rode, and shaped every insight contained here.

It is written for those who want to invest in, build upon or replicate this work such as funders, implementers, community organisations, and policymakers, as well as for those who simply need to understand what inclusive mobility can achieve when it is designed with, not for, the people it serves.