How Hellmann is connecting the dots to power intra-African trade

As Africa's manufacturing sector expands and intra-African trade gathers momentum under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), logistics providers are playing an increasingly important role in connecting markets and strengthening supply chains. Hellmann Worldwide Logistics is supporting this transformation through Africa Connect, a dedicated initiative designed to simplify cross-border logistics across the continent, alongside investments in automotive logistics infrastructure. In this exclusive interview, Lee I'Ons, Regional CEO – IMEA, and Patrick Callychurn, Regional Director Africa Development, explain how Hellmann is helping customers navigate Africa's complex logistics landscape while supporting the continent's industrial growth.

How is Africa Connect helping customers navigate cross-border supply chains across Africa?
Patrick Callychurn: Africa presents great opportunities for business, but it also presents significant logistics challenges. Our focus at Hellmann is to simplify this complexity, and that is where Africa Connect comes in.

Africa consists of different countries, each with its own regulations and ways of working. Africa Connect was created to simplify this complexity. Through our network of 258 offices across 62 countries, supported by our network of agents in Africa and a control tower in Mauritius, we provide customers, especially SMEs, with a reliable single point of contact.

This gives customers better visibility, smoother communication and ultimately helps them access African markets more efficiently.

Lee I'Ons: Africa Connect was launched to support both our customers and the Hellmann network. When you look at Africa, you have 54 countries, more than 2,000 languages, different regulations, different currencies, different ways of doing business and different customs clearance procedures. It is a highly complex operating environment.

Through Africa Connect, we created a dedicated structure that simplifies that process for our customers and for the Hellmann network by creating a single point of contact in Mauritius.

If customers need support, they work with the Mauritius team, which helps them understand regulations and, more importantly, compliance. Compliance is a major focus of Africa Connect because it is essential for customers entering different African markets.

"When you look at Africa, you have 54 countries, more than 2,000 languages, different regulations, currencies and customs procedures. Africa Connect was designed to simplify that complexity."
Lee I'Ons

This is particularly valuable for SMEs. Large multinational companies often have the resources and infrastructure to manage expansion themselves. Smaller and medium-sized companies usually do not. That is where Hellmann comes in.

If a customer wants to enter a new market or explore new business opportunities, we help them understand how to move products into or out of that market. Instead of trying to understand every individual country themselves, they work through our team in Mauritius. Patrick and his team help them identify the best logistics solution, understand the regulations and create the most efficient supply chain for their business.

Africa Connect is also expected to support the opportunities emerging under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). How do you expect it to strengthen growing intra-African trade?
Patrick Callychurn: The African Continental Free Trade Area was created to integrate the African market, and that is exactly the direction we want to support.

Infrastructure and regulations continue to evolve, but businesses still need practical logistics solutions. Customers need to move their goods efficiently, and Africa Connect helps bridge those gaps by improving coordination and visibility.

Our objective is to simplify cross-border trade and help companies expand into new African markets with greater confidence.

Lee I'Ons: If you look at the European Union, a significant part of its economic strength comes from domestic trade within the region. In the long term, Africa also has the opportunity to build resilience through increased intra-African trade.

However, a free trade agreement alone is not enough. Cargo still needs to move. Without logistics infrastructure and functioning supply chains, the agreement cannot deliver its full potential.

The African countries are doing a great deal to support this transformation, and we believe Africa Connect is one part of that solution. Alongside the free trade agreement, we can help move cargo from one African country to another.

Africa is a vast continent. Moving cargo from Kenya to Ghana is almost equivalent to international trade anywhere else in the world. Africa Connect supports both global trade and Africa's own economic integration by helping countries move cargo more efficiently across the continent.

Hellmann recently broke ground on a new Automotive Logistics Hub in Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), Dubai, and also formed a joint venture with Motherson. Could you tell us more about both initiatives, why now is the right time for these investments, and what demand trends you are seeing from automotive customers across the GCC and Africa?
Lee I'Ons: Given the current geopolitical situation in the Middle East, some might question whether this is the right time to invest. However, at Hellmann we take a long-term view of the UAE and the wider Middle East.

The UAE has very strong government leadership and has gone through difficult situations before. Each time, it has emerged stronger. We believe there is no wrong time to invest there.

The investment is also being driven by changing customer demand. We are seeing significant growth from Chinese automotive manufacturers expanding into the Middle East. They are bringing highly competitive, high-quality vehicles to the market, and we are seeing our customers expand very rapidly. The Automotive Logistics Hub has been developed to support those growing customer requirements.

Regarding the Motherson joint venture: Motherson is a major Indian company with a global footprint. It supplies many of the world's leading automotive manufacturers across the globe.

The partnership is a natural fit. Motherson supports us, and we support Motherson. Together, we can combine both companies' global footprints to develop integrated logistics solutions and bring a stronger product offering to the market.

Patrick Callychurn: The Jafza hub will also provide significant support to African markets, particularly in the distribution of automotive spare parts. It will help reduce lead times compared with shipping directly from Asia and improve spare parts availability across the region.

The new Automotive Logistics Hub is designed to support spare parts distribution across the GCC, Africa and selected international markets. Which African markets and trade corridors are expected to benefit most from this hub?

Lee I'Ons: Initially, the hub will primarily support the UAE before expanding across the broader GCC. The idea behind the facility is to give customers greater flexibility, allowing them to decide where they want to trade, how they want to move their cargo and where they want to position their inventory.

Looking at Africa, we see strong potential in West Africa and North Africa. Earlier, you mentioned the developments taking place in Egypt and Morocco, and these are markets where we expect increasing opportunities. West Africa is also experiencing strong economic growth and offers significant potential. East Africa is equally accessible from Dubai, making it another important market for the hub.

"As automotive manufacturing expands across Africa, logistics will play an even greater role, with increasing demand for integrated warehousing, inventory optimisation, last-mile distribution and digital visibility."
Patrick Callychurn

Ultimately, the facility has been designed to provide customers with flexibility. As demand evolves, we may also develop additional hubs elsewhere in Africa or other parts of the Middle East. For now, the focus is on supporting the UAE, where we already see significant growth, and then expanding according to customer requirements.

As automotive manufacturing and assembly activities continue to expand across Africa, how do you see the region's automotive supply chain and logistics requirements evolving over the next five years?

Patrick Callychurn: Over the next five years, I expect Africa's automotive supply chains to become increasingly regionalised.

We are already seeing major global manufacturers expanding their footprint across the continent. Toyota continues to expand in South Africa, while Volkswagen is growing its presence across Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana and Nigeria. Renault has established a significant manufacturing base in Morocco, and both Mercedes-Benz and BMW use South Africa as a major export hub for global markets.

As these manufacturing and assembly activities continue to grow, logistics will play an even greater role. There will be increasing demand for integrated warehousing, inventory optimisation, last-mile distribution and, importantly, digital visibility to support increasingly complex regional supply networks.

Lee I'Ons: There are three major trends driving the future of automotive logistics in Africa.

The first is the continued growth of the middle class across the continent. As purchasing power increases, it creates a much larger market for automobiles.

The second is the transition towards clean energy. In many African markets, consumers are moving directly from not owning a vehicle to purchasing electric vehicles, rather than first buying conventional fuel-powered cars.

The third trend is the growing presence of Asian automotive manufacturers. They are producing affordable, reliable and high-quality vehicles that were previously beyond the reach of many consumers. Today, customers can purchase vehicles backed by strong warranties that are well suited to African operating conditions.

Together, these trends will create significant growth opportunities for the automotive sector, and I believe this growth will outpace GDP growth in many African countries.

From your perspective, what are the major automotive trade corridors into Africa today?
Lee I'Ons: Africa generally continues to rely on its traditional logistics corridors.

South Africa serves as the main gateway for Southern Africa while also supporting neighboring markets such as Namibia, depending on the product and commodity.

In East Africa, Kenya remains a major logistics hub, although the preferred transport mode depends on the cargo being moved.

In West Africa, we see strong opportunities around markets such as Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, which have relatively stable infrastructure and can serve as regional distribution bases.

North Africa presents a different picture. Morocco has developed strong connections with Europe, while Egypt has been making significant progress in strengthening its economy, introducing the right controls and attracting new investment.

Each region has its own strengths, and our role is to help customers identify the most efficient supply chain for their specific markets.