Absa backs skills development as SA Auto Week gets under way

The four-day event, hosted at the Durban International Convention Centre, brings together government, automotive manufacturers, investors and other industry stakeholders under the theme “Transforming Tomorrow Today. Resetting Policy. Advancing the Energy Transition. Driving Investment & Inclusive Growth.”

The announcement was made by Kgalaletso Tlhoaele, Absa Group’s Executive: Enterprise Development, during his keynote address on Transformation Day. The Absa Group CSI Trust will invest the R13.5 million over three years to provide 600 students with skills intended to help them participate in the new energy vehicle (NEV) sector.

The initiative comes as the industry faces the transition towards electrification and the need to develop the skills required to support new technologies, manufacturing and related business opportunities.

Investment and industrial competitiveness:

The programme continues Wednesday and Thursday with the Africa Auto Indaba and an automotive exhibition. Discussions are centred on investment and industrial competitiveness, with infrastructure, energy and logistics identified as important factors in enabling investment.

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition is participating alongside naamsa and the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government. Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Parks Tau is scheduled to take part in discussions on barriers to supplier participation and possible interventions to accelerate transformation.

The programme also includes the unveiling of South Africa’s Automotive Policy Roadmap, a State of the Auto Industry press conference and discussions on infrastructure readiness. These sessions are expected to address issues affecting the sector’s competitiveness, investment prospects and ability to respond to changes in the global automotive market.

The Captains of Industry Gala Dinner, powered by Absa, takes place on Wednesday evening, while the naamsa Accelerator Awards, powered by WesBank, are scheduled for Thursday.

Presidential address and investment pledges:

President Cyril Ramaphosa is scheduled to deliver a keynote address on Thursday, 15 October, as part of the event’s Presidential Day and investment programme. The published programme also includes an Investment Pledge Ceremony, with the KwaZulu-Natal Investment Conference incorporated into SA Auto Week for the first time.

The final day, Friday, 16 October, is dedicated to industrial plant tours and strategic networking, with planned visits to manufacturing and logistics operations, including Toyota, MAN, Mahindra and Transnet National Ports Authority facilities.

Proposed Free State electric vehicle factory:

The automotive industry’s transition towards new energy vehicles is also relevant to a proposed electric vehicle manufacturing investment in the Free State. President Ramaphosa announced the planned Joylong Automotive Manufacturing project during the launch of the Free State Catalytic Investment and Industrialisation Programme in QwaQwa on 9 October.

The project represents an anticipated investment of approximately R5.5 billion and is expected to create 1 500 direct jobs over five years, with production of up to 8 000 electric vehicles annually. It forms part of a broader industrialisation initiative intended to develop manufacturing, local supply chains and employment opportunities in the Maluti-a-Phofung region. The factory remains a planned investment, with further implementation details still to be established.

• Sources: naamsa | The Automotive Business Council; Absa Group announcement on Transformation Day; South African Government, Presidential address on the Free State Catalytic Investment and Industrialisation Programme; SAnews; eThekwini Municipality.