A video of the Nord Tank, the latest Made-in-Nigeria car, produced by Lekki-based Nord Automobiles, has emerged online and has got Nigerians excited. The conversation is based off the fact that Nigeria might be getting closer to becoming the leading automobile industry in Africa.

In a Twitter post, Ajayi Oluwatobi, Founder and CEO of Nord Motors, wrote, “Made in Nigeria by Nigerians for Nigerians and the world.”

Nigerians have since been celebrating this great milestone. But, some people have expressed concerns over the pricing and durability of the vehicle while others are calling on the government to create an enabling environment for enterprise to thrive to enable Nigeria-made-cars to compete favourably with leading global brands.

Based on research, Africa currently has about nine recognised countries that are into automobile manufacturing and Nigeria is one of them. Others include Algeria, Tunisia, Uganda, Kenya, Ghana, Egypt, South Africa and Morocco. South Africa, Egypt and Morocco currently have the highest number of automobile manufacturing in Africa, while Nigeria, Tunisia and Kenya are next.

Nigeria has proven that we have great untapped potentials in automobile manufacturing and with more Nigerians going into the industry, we just might be on our way to overtaking the current leaders in the African market with the potential of competing with global brands.

Less than a decade ago, Nigeria could not boast of one locally made vehicle. But we have been able to produce two notable automobile manufacturers in Nigeria between 2007 and now. With this development, we can be confident that more locally made brands will be established in the near future to set us on the path to becoming Africa’s number 1 automobile industry. 

Uroupa Kiakubu