According to the firm, for medium/heavy trucks and buses, volume is forecast to almost double between 2012 and 2027.

Demand for new light vehicles (GVW of up to six tons) has consistently reached more than 1.6 million units since 2012 and is forecast to grow to almost 2.7 million units sold annually by 2027, IHS added.

Numerous factors are driving this growth, it said. While economic development is stemming from agricultural exports and mining of natural resources, investment in infrastructure and foreign direct investment, regional integration is resulting in evolving trade relationships.

Key automotive-specific factors are fuelling this growth as well – including the fact that several African governments led by South Africa and followed by countries in North Africa are developing automotive industry development plans in an attempt to spur employment and economic expansion. Finally, the majority of African countries are looking to restrict or ban used vehicle imports of a certain age that fail to pass basic safety and environmental standards tests This development is expected to result in significant opportunity for auto sales in the region.

“From a light vehicle perspective, just a couple of countries in Africa are expected to see double-digit annual growth by 2027,” said Walt Madeira, senior analyst, light vehicle sales forecast at IHS Automotive. “While volumes continue to be small in most countries, Nigeria is a notable exception with a double-digit growth rate and volume forecast to about 260,000 units in 2027,” he said.

For medium/heavy trucks and buses, Kenya is expected to show the most pronounced growth among African countries, quadrupling in size between 2012 and 2027, said Andrej Divis, global director, commercial vehicle forecasting at IHS Automotive. “With that, Kenya will round out the top three markets in terms of annual volume, joining Algeria and South Africa,” he commented.