Uganda To Produce 5,000 Cars Annually In Its First-Ever Car Factory
Uganda’s Kiira Motors Corporation has started working on its first USD 263 Mn car factory which is set to begin production of the vehicles by mid-2021.
Upon its completion, the 100-acre factory site targets 5,000 vehicles yearly which will consist of the solar-powered bus and Kiira Motors prototypes with a long term plan to produce trucks, pick-ups, and sport utility cars.
The company has so far received an initial investment of USD 40 Mn in seed funding for the 150,000 unit facility, according to CEO, Isaac Paul Musasizi, the firm is leveraging on partners who will supply technology, an equity stake in the plant or undertaking of joint ventures.
“We are talking to the big fish in the automotive industry,we have reached out to players across the globe.
“We should be in a position to encourage the purchase and driving of locally made cars whose prices should be competitive. Government officials and Ugandans should be in a position to drive cars produced by Kiira Motors with pride just like it is in Malaysia and other vehicle producing countries,” he said.
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The car initiative was launched in 2011 by Makerere University students who built the prototype Kiira EV (electronic vehicle) and the solar-powered Kayoola EV bus in 2016
The immediate market for the locally produced vehicles is Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi, according to Musasizi, EAC offers a lucrative opportunity because at least 85% of its vehicle imports are used, models.
National Enterprise Corporation Construction Works and Engineering has been contracted to work on the project.
A similar initiative to mass-produce a car that serves private transport needs was previously made in Kenya — the Nyayo Pioneer in Kenya in 1986. It, however, collapsed and not a single vehicle was sold.
Featured Image Courtesy:East African Standard
