Downtown Africa
Nairobi — Proton Holdings Bhd, Malaysia’s national automotive corporation has entered the Kenyan market with the first batch of its flagship automobile offering, the Proton Saga.
The carmaker has announced shipments totaling 30 units of Completely Knocked Down kits, which will be assembled locally by Simba Corporation SimbaCorp.
The consignment was flagged off by Kenya’s High Commissioner to Malaysia, Francis Ndegwa Muhoro, who reaffirmed the importance of Kenya’s international economic diplomacy agenda while encouraging further Malaysian investment in the country.
In his address, Muhoro noted that Proton’s entry into the country is not just as an entry into a market of 51 million people, but also a gateway to a potential African market of up to 1.3 billion people.
The envoy further pointed to Kenya’s potential as an East African automotive hub underpinned by a sizeable middle class, progressive business environment, regional market access and history of automotive assembly, while looking forward to more trade between the two nations.
Proton Deputy CEO Datuk Radzaif Mohamed said the move would see the company’s products in places as diverse as Bangkok, Islamabad, Cairo and now, Nairobi.
The Proton Saga was first conceptualized as Malaysia’s “national car” in 1979, and is today viewed as a “national symbol”. Saga” is an acronym for “Safety, Achievement, Greatness and Ability”. Of the company’s different automobile models, it is Proton’s longest-running and best-selling nameplate.
