Naamsa

Naamsa, stylised in lowercase, is a nonprofit trade association (representative body) and public benefit organisation within the South African automotive industry. Founded in 1935 and headquartered in Pretoria, the organisation represents numerous businesses in the new vehicle sector, including the country's automotive manufacturers and importers.

The association is a trusted source for data relating to the SA auto industry, such as new vehicle sales figures; national vehicle production, import, and export figures; automotive industry performance, investment, employment, and capacity utilisation data; and industry forecasts.

As of 2026, Naamsa represents a total of 42 companies manufacturing, assembling, distributing, and/or importing new vehicles in South Africa. The country's automotive retail market is represented by a different association - the Retail Motor Industry Organisation.

History

The organisation was founded in 1935 in Port Elizabeth, as the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA). It was established with the goal of representing SA automotive manufacturers and importers.

In March 2021, Naamsa announced it was changing its name to better represent the increased breadth of industry players it represented. Thus, the organisation switched from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa to simply Naamsa, or, more formally, Naamsa - The Automotive Business Council.

Published data

Naamsa is a major source of automotive industry data and research, including for:

New vehicle sales, with comparisons and market commentary (monthly) National vehicle production, import, and export figures (monthly) Automotive industry performance, investment, employment, and capacity utilisation data Industry forecasts for sales, production, and exports Research on topics such as EVs/NEVs, AGOA, BRICS+, trade policy, decarbonisation, and industrial policy A CEO Confidence Index for the auto industry A Quarterly Review of business conditions An Automotive Trade Manual, comprising an industry overview, key statistics, and information pertaining to government policy, trade, investment, manufacturers, and suppliers

Structure

Naamsa is led by a CEO, a role currently held by Mikel Mabasa, as well as a Board of Directors. Current board members are as follows:

Title Name Industry position President Peter van Binsbergen CEO, BMW South Africa Vice-president (Manufacturing) Andrew Kirby President and CEO, Toyota South Africa Motors Vice-president (Retailing) Thato Magasa CEO, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Vice-president (Heavy Commercial) Jan Aichinger CEO, MAN Automotive South Africa Immediate Past President Billy Tom CEO, Isuzu Motors South Africa

SA Auto Week

Naamsa hosts an annual industry conference, SA Auto Week, a business-to-business automotive conference and exhibition. It is not a public motor show, and is aimed at vehicle manufacturers (OEMs), component manufacturers and suppliers, importers and distributors, government ministers and policymakers, regulators, the media, industry associations, academics, financial institutions, and the like.

At the conclusion of each SA Auto Week, Naamsa presents the Accelerator Awards, recognising excellence across the South African automotive industry. The awards began in 2002, and are sponsored by WesBank. Many of the awards are data-driven, rather than based on a judging panel.

Naamsa

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