The Ministers in charge of Industry of ECOWAS Member States met on May 10, in Accra, Ghana, to examine and validate the Regional Policy Framework on the automotive industry on which they have been working for several years.

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Promotion of SMEs, Souleymane Diarrassouba, took part in this important meeting alongside nine of his peers from the region. And the meeting was chaired by Nigerian Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Aisha Abubakar.

This common policy that West African countries want to adopt globally aims to create a sustainable value chain for the automotive industry in the community area by 2030. A vision that involves the implementation of several strategic axes which were discussed.

This involves, among other things, putting in place effective measures relating to the substitution of imports of used vehicles; harmonize regional regulations relating to import policies, tariff regimes, rules of origin, common standards and customs control measures; to strengthen and deepen regional integration and intra-regional automotive trade and to develop more efficient distribution networks and outsourcing industry in the manufacture of automotive components and spare parts in the region.

Souleymane Diarrassouba made important recommendations for the success of this policy. The Ivorian Minister in charge of Industry insisted on the need to have a strong involvement of the private sector, to establish solid financing mechanisms and to set up one or more regional platforms for the promotion of the automotive industry, platforms that could be broken down into fairs, forums or conferences.

The automotive industry is still embryonic in the West African sub-region, apart from Nigeria and to some extent Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire which are gradually distancing themselves from the other 12 member states of ECOWAS.

While the demand for vehicles in the ECOWAS area is constantly growing, estimated at 450,000 vehicles (new and used) each year.

In Côte d'Ivoire, the market for new vehicles in particular is estimated at 20,000 units per year. The region is also full of assets, particularly in human terms with a population estimated at 370 million inhabitants, made up mainly of young people and raw materials essential to the automotive industry.

Today, given its strong development potential in the region and the recognized catalytic effect it could have on the development of the manufacturing industry in general and therefore on the economy, the automotive industry is the object of special attention from the leaders of ECOWAS.

A roadmap for the implementation of the regional policy was also defined and was the subject of the meeting of ministers. This indicates that in 2023, ECOWAS should increase the local production of semi-assembled vehicles to 50,000 units per year.

At the same time, study programs likely to produce a highly qualified workforce for the automotive sector should have been developed, as well as automotive industrial parks should have been created.

In 2026, the leaders of the region expect 150,000 vehicles assembled to a high standard. And in 2031, they envision semi-assembly facilities being transformed into full-car manufacturing plants.

The ministers who took part in the meeting saw fit to give themselves a little more time in order to deepen their understanding that all the countries are already drawing up their development plan for the automobile industry, as they have already does Nigeria and Ghana and Ivory Coast (very advanced). Plans that will have to be part of the regional policy on the automotive industry.