AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT CENTRE (AIDC): Building a More Competitive Auto Industry

South Africa’s automotive industry has long been one of the country’s industrial success stories. From vehicle assembly and component manufacturing to exports and aftermarket support, the sector contributes hundreds of billions of rand to the economy while supporting thousands of jobs across a deeply integrated value chain. Yet the industry is also facing a defining moment. Global competition is intensifying, electrification is reshaping manufacturing priorities, and emerging automotive hubs across Africa are racing to attract investment.

At the centre of South Africa’s response is the Automotive Industry Development Centre (AIDC), a Gauteng government-owned agency tasked with strengthening the competitiveness of the country’s automotive ecosystem. Established more than two decades ago, the organisation has become a bridge between government and industry, working closely with OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, entrepreneurs, training institutions, and communities to ensure that South Africa remains a serious automotive player.

The organisation’s role is broad, but the mission is sharply focused.

“We are all about making the SA automotive industry globally competitive. Everything we do is aligned to making the companies here globally competitive,” Executive: Industry Development, Anton Fiets tells Enterprise Africa.

“Without being competitive, SA’s auto industry might be irrelevant in the next five to 10 years. Morocco has overtaken South Africa as the top producer of vehicles in Africa as of last year. This means, our competition is not only outside of Africa.”

That reality has placed urgency behind the AIDC’s work. As international markets accelerate towards electric mobility and advanced manufacturing, South Africa’s automotive industry cannot afford to stand still. The country remains deeply connected to global automotive supply chains, with exports into Europe and other major markets making competitiveness essential for long-term sustainability.

South Africa’s automotive sector contributes around 5% to national GDP and remains one of the country’s largest manufacturing industries. Investment into new technologies and supplier development continues to gather momentum, while international manufacturers still see the country as a strategic gateway into African markets. The AIDC has increasingly pushed the conversation around New Energy Vehicles, battery supply chains, and industrial readiness as the transition towards cleaner mobility gathers pace.

For Fiets, the challenge is not only about maintaining the industry but ensuring it evolves.

“Everything is about competitiveness and every programme we deliver is to enhance global competitiveness. We believe that is the only way we will stay relevant. We represent the government and we want to connect government and industry, and we have done that fantastically over the last two decades.”

Beneath a broad mandate sits a series of practical programmes and initiatives that are shaping the future of the sector.

BOLD FOUNDATIONS

One of the AIDC’s flagship assets is the Automotive Supplier Park in Rosslyn, Pretoria. Positioned strategically near major OEMs including BMW and Ford, the park has become an important manufacturing ecosystem for suppliers operating within South Africa’s automotive value chain.

“It is 160 hectares in total, of which we have developed around 60 hectares so far,” explains Fiets.

“We have a number of component manufacturers that supply the likes of BMW, Ford, Nissan etc. We offer the full ecosystem support in that supplier park including medical support facilities, housing, education centres, and general support in terms of buildings – we are the landlord for multinational investors.”

The supplier park model allows manufacturers to reduce logistics costs and improve efficiencies by operating in close proximity to assembly plants.

“The suppliers in our automotive park supply in time and in sequence to big OEMs. We are just 1.5km from BMW, 30km from Ford – our position is strategic as logistics is a big cost for companies,” Fiets reiterates.

“We have a supplier in the park who owns a warehouse that supplies the entire SADC region with aftermarket parts. All dealerships in the region are being supplied, from our park, through this investment.”

The organisation is now preparing for its next growth phase. A feasibility study on an additional 100 hectares has already been completed as the AIDC looks to attract further investors into the park.

“It is a key strategic project and we want more factories and more businesses based here,” says Fiets.

The expansion comes at an important time for the local industry, with production volumes improving and international brands continuing to invest in local operations.

“Production at the Nissan plant will soon come to an end and Chery will take over. We are excited to be part of the transition and will provide new opportunities,” says Fiets.

SUPPLY NETWORKS

Beyond large manufacturers, the AIDC works extensively with smaller suppliers and businesses operating within the automotive value chain.

“We handle supplier enterprise development, which is critical, and we have a team that looks after efficiencies within smaller companies, including industrial engineers that do consulting work to make the industry competitive. The team helps to get companies certified in terms of ISO 9000 standards etc.”

Around 20 companies are onboarded annually into programmes focused on productivity improvement, quality development, and operational efficiency.

“There are more than 200 supply chain companies in Gauteng alone, of all sizes. We support, through training and consulting, with many companies in the auto value chain.

“The SA automotive value chain is integrated into the global value chain, and our suppliers work with local OEMs and global OEMs in various markets,” says Fiets.

The AIDC’s support extends beyond consulting and training into entrepreneurship and incubation. Working with OEMs including Ford and Nissan, the organisation has spent more than a decade helping entrepreneurs integrate into the automotive value chain where the results are beginning to show.

“We have had some fantastic success stories where entrepreneurs have exited the programme and secured contracts with the world’s biggest automotive companies,” Fiets highlights.

LOCAL IMPACT

While much of the AIDC’s work centres around industrial competitiveness, the organisation is equally focused on ensuring that economic participation reaches deeper into communities.

Through its Township Automotive Hubs programme, the organisation has been formalising informal automotive businesses and creating structured support systems for township entrepreneurs.

“We have a programme called the Township Automotive Hubs through which we operate in townships and we identify government buildings that we refurbish from a building and equipment perspective before we take informal entrepreneurs, or backyard mechanics, and formalise their business within the hub,” Fiets details.

The model gives entrepreneurs access to operational assistance while allowing them to focus on delivering services and growing their businesses.

“Within the hub, the entrepreneur can do business with the support of AIDC with invoicing systems, health and safety, financial, HR etc, and the entrepreneur can focus on their value add.”

The organisation already operates successful hubs in Winterveld and Krugersdorp and plans further expansion.

“This financial year, we want to add one or two more hubs to expand this programme as the township economy is so big and provides a real opportunity to advance the automotive industry,” Fiets underlines.

The country already possesses many of the ingredients needed to remain a major automotive force: a mature manufacturing base, established OEM presence, regional export access, and decades of technical capability. The challenge now lies in modernising quickly enough to stay globally relevant.

With targeted investment, smarter collaboration, and continued industrial support, the industry still has the potential to become a continental powerhouse.

“We will continue to effectively manage this value chain as we expand the park and take it to the next level,” says Fiets of the Rosslyn asset.

For a sector that remains critical to GDP, exports, industrialisation, and employment, the work being done by the AIDC could prove central to ensuring South Africa’s automotive industry not only survives the next decade, but leads it.