Supply Chain fragility exposed by Middle East crisis
The conflict in the Middle East has thrown global supply chains into disarray, exposing the risks of over-reliance on concentrated hubs.
- Industry News
- 10 April 2026
Itumeleng “Tumi” Seage has been appointed General Manager at Hino South Africa reporting to Anton Falck, Vice President for Hino SA.
The appointment follows the retirement of Pieter Klerck. Itumeleng has been working in the motor industry for over 18 years and has extensive experience in all aspects of the business, with an in-depth knowledge of the dealer network.
He began his career at Hino SA in 2006 and has filled various positions at Hino in Marketing, After-sales, Demand Planning, Pricing, Dealer Sales and Network as a Manager and Senior Manager.

His most recent post, prior to his recent move back to Hino, was as Senior Regional Manager for the Central Region at Toyota SA Motors.
He has a BCom in Business Management and a BCom in Marketing Management.
Another appointment is Masafumi Kawabata of Hino Motors Japan as the new Senior Executive Co-Ordinator of Hino South Africa. He takes over from Yusonori Otani, who served in this position from February 2020 and is now returning to Japan.

He has been working for Hino since 2006, having started his career with North American businesses for 12 years, including being transferred to Hino Motors Sales USA for six years, where he was in the department responsible for Business Planning, Vehicle Sales, Demand & Supply, Pricing and Aftermarket Parts Sales.
His next career change was to take responsibility for the global product planning of Heavy Commercial Trucks in 2019 and in his most recent position he was based in Japan as Project Manager for Extra Heavy Commercial Trucks and Buses in markets outside Japan.
The conflict in the Middle East has thrown global supply chains into disarray, exposing the risks of over-reliance on concentrated hubs.
Volkswagen Group Africa (VWGA) has reached another major milestone with the production of the 500 000th unit of the current Polo for the export market.
Nissan South Africa has agreed to sell its Rosslyn production facility after 60 years of operation. The plant, which produced models such as the 1400 ‘Champ’ bakkie, NP200 and Navara, was acquired by Chery SA. The Chinese automaker has sold over 80,000 vehicles locally since 2021 and is now strengthening its African presence.