25-year-old Sourou-Edjareyo Malazouwe from Togo, with no background in mechanical engineering education or training, has made a 4×4 car using scrap waste materials from motorcycles and bus parts.
According to recent World Bank data, Togolese is among the few African countries whose unemployment rate is still considered ‘low’ at 9.7%.
Gen Zers have casual jobs and don’t earn enough to sustain their needs. In fact, young people make up a significant portion of the vulnerable, sleeping rough and struggling with drug addiction in Lomé and other towns.
It’s this economic struggle that inspired 25-year-old Sourou-Edjareyo to build his own vehicle, knowing he could not afford the sports cars he admired.
Out of passion, he started building an ‘RAF-X Raptor’ car. The build was so impressive that he was invited to meet the country’s Prime Minister, Victoire Tomégah-Dogbé, who pledged to support and empower his vision for more widespread sports car construction.