![[Ethiopia] KIA Motors signs agreement with Belayab Motors to set up car assembly plant](Kia-Motors.jpg)
[Ethiopia] KIA Motors signs agreement with Belayab Motors to set up car assembly plant
Ethiopia’s vehicle assembly company Belayab Motors PLC has entered into an agreement with South Korean car manufacturer KIA Motors Corporation that will see the manufacturer assemble cars in Ethiopia even as it contemplates expanding such operations to the rest of Africa.
"It is important to penetrate the African market. We are also looking at the prospects of opening similar plants in Algeria and other countries," Soon Nam Lee, President of Kia's Middle East and Africa said.
Speaking at the agreement signing ceremony, Mr. Fekadu Girma, General Manager of Belayab Motors, expressed his excitement at the partnership. “Our company has been in the forefront building the automotive industry in Ethiopia since 2006. This agreement with Kia Motors is a testament to our unwavering efforts towards accelerating the growth of the local manufacturing industry.”
Mr. Fekadu noted that Belayab’s commitment is evident to the success of the Ethiopia’s Growth and Transformation Plan (GTPII) by intensifying its investment and facilitate foreign direct investment (FDI) through its alliance with KIA Motors. “This potentially adds value to the Ethiopian Economy at a macro and micro level” said the Manager.
The agreement will bring the global automotive brand to Ethiopia as the first car assembly plant in East Africa for Kia. Mr. Soonnam Lee, Kia Motor’s President of Middle East & Africa Regional Headquarters explained that Kia’s business partnership with Belayab will allow the company to expand production capacity to meet growing global demand. "As one of the most youthful and exciting brands in the world today, Kia offers some of the best-looking, high quality vehicles to its customers and we are excited to bring our products to Ethiopia with this partnership. Kia Motors’ agreement with Belayab is also partnership based on mutual understanding on the need for capacity building and knowledge transferring endeavors,” he said.
The assembly facility will have the capacity to assemble 12 cars per day in a single shift; 240 cars per month. It is estimated that a total of 3000 KIA vehicles will be assembled each year. The 30,000 m2 assembly plant located in Adama expects to add 100 more employees who recently graduated from the technical college. The first Kia vehicle assembly is expected to be completed in January 2017.
Ethiopia produces about 8,000 commercial and other vehicles a year for the home market, about a quarter of which are cars. Among those present include Chinese firms Lifan and Geely.
Though a minnow in the continental market, the government wants to turn the industry into one of the biggest on the continent through incentives such as cheap labor and tax breaks.
