Isuzu East Africa in collaboration with UD Trucks Corporation on Saturday launched UD Trucks models in Kenya.
Speaking at the Launch in Mombasa, Rita Kavashe, Isuzu East Africa’s Chair of the Board and Managing Director said that the collaboration with UD Trucks will create synergies through technology transfer and promote job creation in support of the Buy Kenya, Build Kenya vision.
“We are grateful to UD Trucks Corporation and Isuzu Motors Japan for entrusting us with this special responsibility in the region. Our customers have supported Isuzu EA strongly over the years, and this is the reason Isuzu Motors chose us to assemble and distribute UD Trucks in Kenya,” Rita said.
The trucks are locally assembled at the Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers (KVM) Plant in Thika and are designed and developed for the tough African market.
“UD Trucks in Kenya come with a respected heritage of product strength, reliability and durability. It’s no wonder customers fondly refer to the vehicles with nicknames such as “Ndovu” (Elephant), and “Nyati” (Buffalo) symbolizing their robustness and durability. The strategic acquisition of distributorship rights for UD Trucks is a testimony of our commitment to provide our customers with the highest quality vehicles that meet their growing expectations,” Rita explained.
Isuzu East Africa is now responsible for assembly, sales, and aftersales support of UD Trucks in Kenya.
“The long-term vision for this alliance is to give customers more choice in East Africa by introducing innovative technologies in our vehicles that will meet the logistics requirements of our customers,” said Tetsuya Ikemoto, Director of the Board, and Managing Executive Officer, Isuzu Motors Ltd.
The customer launch at the new UD Trucks service facility in Jomvu, Mombasa County follows the appointment of Isuzu East Africa as the first Isuzu Motors Limited subsidiary to distribute Isuzu and UD Trucks brands under one organization in early 2024.
“I would like to congratulate the Isuzu East Africa team for working hard over the years to build strong relationships and brand loyalty with our customers in this market,” added Ikemoto.
The company has set up two dedicated UD Trucks service centers in Nairobi and Mombasa to serve as training and best practice centers to support customer requirements in the region.
“UD Trucks’ partnership with Isuzu East Africa exemplifies our shared value of providing top-notch products and comprehensive aftersales support to our customers. Kenya is a major logistics and transport hub in Africa and UD Trucks is honored to have a strong partner in Isuzu East Africa to look after our customers and growth opportunities,” said Koichi Ito, Chairman of UD Trucks Corporation during the launch.
