President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Tuesday visit the Toyota South Africa production plant in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, to officiate the launch of the Toyota Cross Hybrid vehicle.<\/p>\n
He will be accompanied by Trade, Industry and Competition Minister, Ebrahim Patel, KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala and the Mayor of eThekwini Municipality, Mxolisi Kaunda.<\/p>\n
The launch of the Cross Hybrid vehicle flows from Toyota\u2019s investment commitment made at the 2019 South Africa Investment Conference.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Monday, the Presidency said this commitment now sees Toyota producing its first generation of hybrid electric vehicles on a South African assembly line<\/strong>. The vehicles will also be manufactured for export to 40 countries on the African continent.<\/p>\n “Government\u2019s South Africa Automotive Masterplan (SAAM) and Automotive Production and Development Programme have catalysed and enabled continued investment in local vehicle and components production.<\/p>\n “Guided by its Vision 2035, the South African Automotive Masterplan encompasses a globally competitive and transformed industry that actively contributes to the sustainable development of South Africa\u2019s productive economy and creates prosperity for industry stakeholders and the broader society,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n The SAAM 2035 objectives include:<\/p>\n The automotive sector has remained one of South Africa\u2019s most investment-intensive industrial sectors with seven light-vehicle producers investing a record R9.2 billion in 2020, awhile the component sector attracted R2.4 billion during the same period.<\/p>\n\n
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