Volkswagen opens facility in Ghana

By Tajudeen Adebanjo

Volkswagen has extended its market in Sub-Saharan Africa with the opening of a vehicle assembly facility in Accra, Ghana.

Ghana becomes the fifth Volkswagen assembly location in Sub-Saharan Africa; the other locations are in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda.

Universal Motors Limited, a licensed Volkswagen importer since 2005, has been awarded the contract for the initial phase of the project. The Universal Motors facility in Accra has an installed capacity to assembly 5, 000 units per annum. The models to be assembled using Semi Knocked Down (SKD) assembly kits are Tiguan, Teramont, Passat, Polo and Amarok.

The event to announce Volkswagen’s investment and the unveiling of the first vehicle assembled in Ghana was attended by Ghana President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Minister of Trade and Industry, Alan Kyerematen, and cabinet ministers.

The opening of the facility is the realisation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Volkswagen signed with Ghana in the presence of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, nearly two years ago.

Ghana has also fulfilled its MoU by developing a comprehensive Automotive Industry Policy with the announcement of the Ghana Automotive Development Policy (GADP).

GADP has paved the way for Volkswagen to solidify its commitment in Ghana with the initial investment for the first phase of its long term vehicle assembly plans. Volkswagen thereby is committed to helping Ghana to develop a modern automotive industry as part of the country’s industrial transformation agenda.

At the same time, the establishment of Volkswagen Ghana was announced, which is the first automotive company to be registered under GADP. Volkswagen Ghana is a 100 per cent subsidiary of Volkswagen. It will be responsible for the import of the SKD kits and Fully Built Units (FBU). Jeffrey J. Oppong Peprah has been appointed as the CEO of Volkswagen Ghana.

Volkswagen is strengthening the regions and focusing on new up-and-coming markets as part of its TRANSFORM 2025+ brand strategy. The Sub-Saharan region plays an increasingly important role. Although the African automotive market is comparatively small today, the Sub-Saharan region has the potential to become an automotive growth market of the future.