Having the right people
on the ground remains
the one key ingredient
for success in Africa,
according to UTi’s Michelle
Tinkhof and Gerald Povey.
The supply chain management
company has continued to see
growth in its African operations
year-on-year and says that
while a client-centric focus
with innovative solutions goes a
long way in Africa, the biggest
asset for success is the people
employed.
“Africa is vast and
different. No two
countries are the
same,” says Tinkhof.
“We have found that
the Francophone
countries are more
challenging than
the Anglophone and Lucophone
countries due to the bureaucracy
and language barriers to
operate in these territories. One
therefore needs the right people
on the ground that converse
and understand the policies and
procedures.”
According to Povey there has
been substantial growth in the
company’s business into sub-
Saharan Africa from South
Africa and other developing
markets.
“Our main growth has been
in our core verticals which are
automotive, pharmaceutical,
consumer and retail. Our
original Africa strategy was
developed around
the projects, mining
and energy sectors
and in these markets
we have also seen an
upturn over the last
12 months.”
Tinkhof and
Povey agree that
corruption remains a challenge
in parts of Africa. “UTi is a
signatory to the Foreign Corrupt
Practice Act (FCPA) and
therefore will not get involved
in any acts of corruption. This
is very important for companies
operating in Africa.
At the same time it is just
as important to have a full
understanding of local policies
and procedures within the
different countries before
operating in them and then
finding the right partners
to deliver enterprise-wide
solutions is crucial.”
Tinkhof says much
effort goes into finding
the right people to work
with in each country.
“There is no one size fits
all approach. The same
goes for service providers as it
is about having the right people
in place to provide a predictable
service in airfreight, seafreight
and roadfreight.”
This helps to overcome the
challenges of bureaucracy and
corruption.
“Africa has major potential
and we are definitely seeing an
improvement in infrastructure,
particularly on roads and ports
in the Southern and Eastern
parts of Africa, while there are
also areas in the West where the
upgrades are taking effect. Rail
infrastructure, however,
remains lacking throughout the
continent.”
According to Povey, as more
infrastructure goes up more
opportunities become available.
“UTi sees Africa as a growth
region for the organisation and
has prioritised certain countries
and regions of Africa to expand
and grow our services into.”
He said Southern and East
Africa as well as selected
countries in West Africa had
been identified.
INSERT
There is no one size
fits all approach.
