UD Trucks expanding its Ultimate Women programme

UD Trucks Southern Africa (UDTSA) has announced the expansion of its ‘Ultimate Women Programme’ in collaboration with the Commercial Transport Academy (CTA).

Following the programme's success over the past two years, the CTA has launched its inaugural Bus Driver Development Programme. This initiative is a joint effort involving the CTA, Southern African Bus Operators Association (SABOA), Clarendon Transport Underwriting Managers (CTU) and UDTSA. Around 30 women trainees will benefit from this transformative programme, and to bolster the training process, UDTSA has provided CTA with a new Croner Bus PKE 280 65-Seater.

The ‘Ultimate Women Programme’ by UDTSA was initiated in 2022 with the goal of promoting gender transformation within the transport industry. At its launch, UDTSA donated two new Kuzer light-medium duty trucks.

Nicci Scott, the founder of the Commercial Transport Academy, says: “We are delighted to partner with UDTSA in our shared vision of increasing female representation in the transport industry and fostering an equitable society. The programme has made significant strides since its inception and we are immensely grateful to UDTSA for their unwavering support and the profound impact this has had on the lives of these young women.

“With the new focus on training bus drivers, we are committed to working closely with all our partners to ensure the successful completion of the programme.”

Participants in the Bus Driver Development Programme will undergo a comprehensive 12-month training course that will include technical modules on vehicle operation and control, defensive driving techniques, traffic laws and regulations and route navigation or planning.

Additionally, the programme will feature a strong theoretical component, covering essential topics such as stress management, professionalism and effective passenger communication.

Filip Van den Heede, Managing Director of UD Trucks Southern Africa, remarked: “Our partnership with CTA has been transformative in our ongoing mission to empower women in our industry and make a lasting impact on the communities we serve. Expanding the programme to include bus driver training underscores the success of this important initiative and our commitment to creating a better life for people, the planet, and the logistics sector.

“We wish the new candidates a fruitful journey in the coming months and are confident they will contribute to a brighter future.”

https://bit.ly/3Xn7qlq

Colin-on-Cars - New graduates from VWSA training programme

Massive investment since it was launched in 2011, has seen a number of candidates processed through Volkswagen South Africa’s Dealer Principal Apprentice Programme (DPAP).

The programme offers candidates personalised mentoring and coaching, which is structured to provide broader training exposure, using a blended learning model. It is uniquely designed and developed for Volkswagen and focuses on principles of leadership and management within the automotive industry.

Transformation

“Volkswagen Group South Africa (VWSA) has invested more than R1-billion in transformation programmes in the past 10 years. The DPAP promotes economic inclusion and diversification of the dealer network as well as fostering a true spirit of transformation and black economic empowerment,” says Nonkqubela Maliza, VWSA Corporate and Government Affairs Director.

The fourth wave of the programme took 10 candidates through a development journey that covered subjects such as retail business, finance, leadership and general management. The programme is developed by Optima Training, a global specialist in development and management learning programmes.

Promoted

Of the total 33 candidates who have graduated from the DPAP programme in the past decade, 17 have been promoted into Dealer Principal positions whilst others have been promoted to Group Financial Director and management roles.

VWSA has invested in transformation and B-BBEE programmes through its Business Support Centre in Kariega, Automotive Industry Transformation Fund, the VWSA B-BBEE Initiatives Trust, Ntinga Project and the DPAP.

“The goal of our initiatives is to make a lasting and valuable impact in the transformation of the South African automotive industry.

Furthermore, VWSA has also provided meaningful work opportunities to more than 2 000 unemployed youth through the Youth Employment Service (YES), an investment of R128-million,” concluded Maliza.

https://bit.ly/3QPZTER

Colin-on-Cars - Boost for auto industry in Senegal

Development of the automotive industry in Senegal will be getting a boost from the Coega Development Corporation (CDC) that will provide advisory services and expertise to the West African country.

This follows this year’s Intra-African Trade Fair Conference opened by President Cyril Ramaphosa, and is part of the Coega Africa Programme.

“Final negotiations between Senegalese Investment Agency, PAIMRAI, and the CDC have recently concluded with the CDC and Automotive Investment Holdings (AIH) being appointed to elaborate a strategy for the development of the automotive industry in Senegal,” says Dr Ayanda Vilakazi, CDC Head of Marketing, Brand and Communications.

The Intra-African Trade Fair 2021 took place from 15-21 November 2021 under the theme African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) - a single market for goods and services across 55 countries, aimed at boosting trade and investment.

Analysis

The Senegalese Automotive Industry Strategy developed by the CDC and AIH will provide a comprehensive analysis of the automotive industry in Senegal, its potential and the upstream and downstream linkages that can be developed with countries such as South Africa and Morocco, which are the leading vehicle manufacturers in the continent. 

The appointment of the CDC sees the organisation expanding its project footprint throughout the continent, with projects currently in Zimbabwe, Cameroon for the Central African Republic, and now Senegal. Drawing from 21 years of expertise in project managing mega and complex infrastructure projects in South Africa for public and private sector, the Coega SEZ has successfully developed its Automotive Zone and attracted investment exceeding USD 895-million.

Dr Vilakazi explains the Sub-Sahara Africa automotive sector currently accounts for less than 3% of global production, against 30% for China, 22% for Europe and 17% for North America.

“The motorisation rate in this region was very low in 2018, with 42 cars per 1 000 inhabitants, against 837 in the United States, 173 in China and 214 in South Africa, for a world average of 180 cars per 1 000 inhabitants.

“This rate hardly exceeds 3% in Senegal, which means only 30 people out of 1 000 own a private vehicle.”

Nascent

Apart from Nigeria and Ghana, the automotive industry remains nascent in the member countries of the Economic Community of West African States, whose process of industrialisation faces the threat of used car imports from Europe, Japan, United States, Canada, and other countries.

The sub-regional and regional integration, through the development of upstream and downstream links in the automotive industry value chain, will stimulate industrialisation and competitiveness throughout Africa. According to research conducted by Dakar’s Foreign Trade Office, about 100 000 vehicles are imported to the country every year, which require constant replacement of parts due to difficult climate and infrastructural conditions.

Senegal imports almost all spare parts. However, strong government focus on encouraging automotive industry in the country is an important driving force for Senegal. Stringent environmental regulations on pollution and carbon emissions are necessitating heavy investments.

As the leading Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Africa, the CDC is poised to foster collaboration with the rest of the continent to promote the coordinating, championing, and driving of the implementation of free trade across borders and take advantage of supply chain networks and technological advancement.

“We believe the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will provide investors with easy access to new, rapidly developing markets while it has the potential to lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty but achieving its full potential will depend on significant policy reforms and trade facilitation measures,” says Ms Nkuli Mxenge-Mayende, CDC’s Global Market Manager.

https://bit.ly/3cBnEyx

 New intake of women in truck driver training programme

The move to infuse more women into the transport industry continues with a further 30 female candidates joining the Volvo Trucks South Africa Iron Women commercial vehicle driver training programme. 

Iron Women is aimed at enhancing the capacity of professional drivers and to ultimately enable them to contribute to their future employers’ fleet safety, profitability, and efficiency.  This qualification, which is approved by the Transport Education Training Authority, is based on both theoretical and practical modules. 

To date, 40 women have graduated from the programme. 

Marcus Hörberg, vice president of Volvo Group Southern Africa, in his introductory message said the successes of the previous Iron Women instalments have inspired the company to continue the programme, and in the process create real change in society. 

“Over the past couple of years, the successful Iron Women candidates have proven their worth and are employed by some of the leading transport and logistics companies in South Africa,” says Hörberg. “We wish our new candidates every success and know they will go on to make a lasting and positive impact on our industry.” 

Prof H Mkhize, deputy minister of the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, said in her relayed message that according to Statistics South Africa, economic data indicates the transport, storage, and communication sector contributes 9,3% to South Africa's GDP. 

“Whilst transport alone contributes about 6,5% to employment creation in South Africa, women are severely underrepresented in this industry. It is therefore important that we support the establishment of initiatives that will help increase the pool of skilled women drivers in the country,” says Prof Mkhize. 

Volvo Trucks’ Iron Women programme will also form part of the Women Inspiring Women to Lead in Transport initiative (WIWLT), that will see 120 female professionals, 300 entrepreneurs and 495 truck drivers being trained and mentored over a three-year period. 

The initiative led by the Commercial Transport Academy (CTA) is supported by United States Agency for International Development (USAID). 

“The reality is that greater participation of women within the sector is important for diversification, yet the last recorded data from StatsSA suggests that women only make up around 17.5% of the working population,” says Nicci Scott, CTA’s Founder. “This reinforces that the sector remains a non-traditional environment for women.” 

“Our programme provides an opportunity for greater community upliftment, as we know that when women are developed, empowered, and have access to equal employment opportunities, it increases diversity and equal payment opportunities,” she concluded.