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Johannesburg - South Africa can reach its target of manufacturing one million vehicles a year, but only 10 years after its originally planned to do so.
Johan van Zyl, Toyota South Africa president and CE, and president of the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa, reckons this target can be reached by 2020.
He says the South African motor industry must identify its strong points and build on them, and a focus on components manufacture could make the country more competitive a manufacturer.
But he acknowledges that there are many problems.
The Motor Industry Development Plan has, according to him, laid the foundation for the Automotive Production and Development Plan (APDP) which is to replace the MIDP in 2013.
The APDP is designed to stimulate growth in the industry up to a production level of 1.2m cars a year by 2020, afford the country's component industry greater depth, and fire up local manufacturing.
Companies will receive incentives to achieve these goals.
Van Zyl admits that it is not possible to build an industry solely on the basis of incentives, but in the case of the South African motor industry landscape they are essential to survival.
One aim is to boost the local content of vehicles from an average of 30% to about 80%. To increase this percentage, raw materials such as steel will have to be made available at lower prices.
Vehicle and component manufacturers are currently spread across the country and this makes it possible to use local suppliers.
Domestic labour costs are also a problem, but Van Zyl thinks this is rather a problem of low productivity.
John Parker, deputy executive chairperson of Ford's Asia, Pacific Ocean and Africa unit, says South Africa will have to work much harder than other countries to earn its place in the global vehicle industry - otherwise it will never be able to compete.
Countries such as China, India and other Asian countries offer lower production costs, better infrastructure and more attractive government incentive packages.
He reckons the country will not be able to protect its domestic market forever.
- Sake24