Lincoln Wamae, a self-taught Kenyan innovator, is solving mobility issues and garbage pollution all in one invention: electric wheelchairs out of recycled materials.
Reports say that it all started out as a hobby, but eventually, it turned into a passion. Lincoln started building electric chairs using scrap metal after an accident left him injured.
The 30-years-old innovator spent three years planning out his electric wheelchair design. Moreover, batteries from old laptops and materials he got from junkyards were all utilized in his invention.
“My wheelchairs are powered by lithium-ion batteries,” Wamae revealed. “I source them from old laptop batteries. In the process, I am saving the environment because I’m using e-waste.”
However, unlike many seasoned African entrepreneurs, Lincoln was self-taught. “The secret is just trying,” he told in an interview.
After years and years of work, Wamae’s passion has transformed into a business. What first started out as electric trikes became electric wheelchairs after noticing the need to help alleviate the struggles of persons with disabilities.
Furthermore, the young innovator hopes to mass-produce his designs in the future and sell them all over Africa.
