Automotive industry critical for economic development

Teddy Taylor, US Consul General, meets some of the Ford Struandale Engine Plant's engine assembly team.

He confirmed his support for growth initiatives and creating broader trade relationships for the automotive industry in the Eastern Cape.

"It not only applies to providing jobs, but also contributing a great deal to the economy, to the local community and the country in general."

Taylor highlighted the need to focus on creating a stable business environment and fulfilling the objectives of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). This programme aims to improve economic relations between the United States and countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

"AGOA is extremely important for South Africa and for the US because it gives our trade relationship some structure. We would like to develop a broader trade relationship along the lines of what we have with some of our larger trading partners to develop the industry further," Taylor commented.

Social upliftment

The Ford team received praise for their far-reaching social upliftment projects, which last year saw shipping containers transformed into houses for poor families in the Vastrap informal settlement in Port Elizabeth as part of Ford's annual Global Week of Caring. "Your CSR projects are to be commended, and it's great to see American companies taking civil responsibilities as seriously as they do the bottom line," Taylor said.

For the all-South African management team at the helm of the Struandale Engine Plant, the visit was a great opportunity to showcase the huge strides that have been made to ensure the local operations are internationally competitive and an integral part of Ford's global supply chain.

"We have entrenched the Struandale Engine Plant as global centre of excellence for the Ranger engine machining and assembly," stated John Cameron, Plant manager at Struandale. "Last year we began our first-ever exports to the United States with the commencement of engine assembly for the Ford Transit produced in Kansas City, and this was a key development in forging a closer relationship with the US.

"Consul General Taylor highlighted the local industry's main challenges as labour unrest, energy supply and legislation, and these are indeed our biggest stumbling blocks towards growing our capacity and remaining globally competitive," Cameron said. "We look forward to working closely with the Embassy to create a platform that will maximise growth and investment opportunities in the region."