Exhibitors, Dealers, Manufacturers Connect As West Africa Automotive Show Holds In Lagos

It has been days of excitement as investors connect at the West Africa Automotive Show (WAAS) which is ongoing at the Landmark Event Centre in Lagos.

The West Africa Automotive Show is the premier event for breaking into the thriving West African Automotive Market. WAAS connects suppliers, dealers, and manufacturers, creating an unparalleled networking environment exclusively tailored for the West Africa Automotive Industry.

Started on May 13, 2025 with more than 300 exhibitors, the West Africa Automotive Show saw the return of the hugely successful WAAS Conference. 

In the imposing exhibition hall where the exhibitors from different countries of the world like India, Qatar and China, among others, some of them spoke to journalists on their expectations and experience.

While in a chat with the media, Mr Eke Eke Urum, Manager (West Africa), R & G Automobile, India, expressed joy at his company being part of the event. He said being the biggest market in Africa, the exhibition couldn’t have come at a better place, saying it would deepen their products and services in the West African sub-region.

“It is a good opportunity to be here because we believe that our presence here will increase our reach in the West African automobile spare parts space,” he said.

“Automotive Industry in Nigeria is basically about importing parts and selling locally to fleet owners, but for us, we want to aggregate the business, develop our own engineering, develop our own mechanics so that we can start production locally.

“We have the sales, we have the consumption but we will integrate into manufacturing gradually from a small parts, even from bolts, spanners to other complex ones like gear parts.

“Nigeria as we all know is the hugest market in Africa; so I want the government and other stakeholders to understand the importance of this sector so that collectively we can gain the momentum,” he said.

Also speaking to reporters, Nduka Noah of Honda Automobile Western Africa Limited said their main aim of coming to the exhibition was to showcase their car care products which were hitherto relatively unknown in the subregion

“You know that Honda is a known brand in both Nigeria and globally, but in Nigeria, many of our customers do not know that we have all these car care products like Honda oil filter because some people think that you can buy just any oil and use it for your Honda car.

“So the purpose of our participation in this exhibition is to show our customers that we have everything made by Honda for Honda.

“It is no more time you buy any oil and use it for your Honda brand. We have our own oil and it is no more a time you buy gear oil from anywhere and use it for Honda gear or Honda car.”

Meanwhile, he praised the Nigerian market, saying the exhibition is a veritable ground to showcase what they have in order to deepen their products to the large Nigerian market.

On his own, Amiya Kumar Gupta, the General Manager (Export), Hartex Rubber PVT Limited, India, said their company are virtually the best in bicycle and wheeler tyres and tubes, the main reason they are in Nigeria for the exhibition.“We are into bicycles and wheeler tyres and we produce very quality tyres and tubes. Our products are very durable because we use the best technology and also we consider environmental factors. “We are very grateful to be in one of Africa’s biggest market and Nigeria is a very nice place to be.

“We hope to consolidate our stay here because our products are very quality,” he said. Abdulrahman Alsahar, the Export Sales Specialist of Kale Balata, automotive experts who are into truck manufacturing, said of their experience and expectations.

“We have been manufacturing and we have been in this job for years; we manufacture such global brands as Ford, Isuzu, and others. We understand that Nigeria is the biggest market in Africa and it is right that we are here to showcase our products.

“We are happy to be here and we hope to connect with dealers and also meet investors, so we are very happy to be here.On his own, Nidal Elayan, Sales and Marketing Director of Qatol Lubricants, Doha, said they brought a new range of oil and lubricants to the Nigerian market.

“We participated in WAAS in 2023 and it was a successful participation. After that we already exist in several African countries and because of that we feel happy to participate for the second time. “In Qatol, we produce exhaustive list of products ranging from heavy-duty engine and transmission oils to brake fluids and coolants that suit all types of vehicles and machinery.

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