Some careers are shaped by training, others are redirected by conviction.
For Dr Sam Faleye, CEO of SAGLEV, the journey from treating patients to assembling electric vehicles in Lagos began with an encounter that changed how he viewed mobility.
A physician for nearly three decades, Faleye bought his first Tesla in 2012. “Once I drove that first EV, it was obvious to me these things would change the world,” he says.
What started as curiosity became a mission: to make clean mobility practical and affordable for African markets.
SAGLEV was founded in 2017, initially with Ghana in view. Regulatory resistance slowed the plan, turning Faleye towards Nigeria.
He had long calculated that once petrol prices crossed a critical threshold, electric vehicles would become the stronger economic choice.
Nigeria’s 2023 fuel subsidy removal confirmed his belief and accelerated SAGLEV’s moves to Lagos.
The company converted an abandoned beverage factory in Imota, Ikorodu, into sub-Saharan Africa’s first assembly plant dedicated exclusively to electric vehicles.
By June 2025, production had begun. SAGLEV assembled 55 vehicles and sold 40, confirming demand.
For Faleye, the case for electric mobility is not only environmental. It is economic and social.
- A Lagos ride-hailing driver spending between N30,000 and N40,000 daily on petrol could cover a similar distance with roughly N6,000 in charging costs.
- That difference can protect livelihoods, create jobs and strengthen household income.
His next challenge is financing. Faleye argues that Nigeria’s barrier is credit, not affordability.
With longer-term loans, wider charging access and supportive banks, SAGLEV aims to place 10,000 vehicles on Nigerian roads annually by 2030.
This is more than a doctor’s career pivot. It is a sustainability story about using conviction, timing and enterprise to build Africa’s cleaner transport future.
Watch the full conversation on the Sustainable Stories Africa platform.
