Ford and Nissan seek Africa car sector fixes

Agroup of carmakers led by executives from Ford Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. will seek to work with Kenyan authorities to develop an auto-manufacturing industry in the east African country, building on talks with Nigerian lawmakers about their market.

The African Association of Automotive Manufacturers, which also includes Toyota Motor Corp., General Motors Co., BMW AG and Volkswagen AG, has formed to take advantage of a new surge of interest from African governments in building vehicles locally. In August, the group urged Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and senior officials to limit the inflow of barely used secondhand cars and firm up policy for prospective carmakers and parts suppliers.

Talks held

“What we talked to them about in all the meetings is that, if you are really interested in this, then it can’t just be about bringing assemblers in,” Ford sub-Saharan Africa Chief Executive Officer Jeff Nemeth, who chairs the group, said.

The interest in developing auto industries in sub-Saharan Africa has grown as oiland commodity-dependent countries seek to diversify their economies amid weaker prices. Vehicle ownership per thousand people is about a quarter of the global average and there’s barely any automotive manufacturing between South Africa and the countries in the north of the continent.