UD Trucks Southern Africa (UDTSA) brought together dealer principals, business leaders, and key stakeholders from across Southern Africa and the broader African continent for its Annual Importer and Dealer Conference 2026.
Held in South Africa recently under the theme: ‘Own the Future’, the conference reaffirmed the company’s growth ambitions and provided a platform to align on strategy, performance, network excellence, and future opportunities across the region.
The annual conference remains one of the most important events on the UD Trucks’ calendar, providing a platform to align the importer and dealer network behind the company’s strategic priorities, strengthen partnerships, share best practices and recognise excellence across the business.
This year’s conference marked a significant milestone for the organisation. For the first time, the opening day was dedicated exclusively to Sub Saharan African (SSA) Markets, reflecting UD Trucks Southern Africa’s commitment to expanding its footprint across the African continent and supporting its long-term growth ambitions towards 2030.
The dedicated SSA Markets programme created a platform for collaboration, knowledge sharing and strategic alignment among partners from the continent, reinforcing the importance of Africa in the company’s future growth strategy.
Speaking at the conference, Fabrice Gorlier, Senior Vice President International Sales at UD Trucks, highlighted the critical role played by the dealer network in delivering sustainable business success.
“As customer expectations and the transport industry continue to evolve, our dealer network remains one of our strongest competitive advantages. By driving network excellence, strengthening capabilities, and expanding our market presence, we are positioning ourselves to capitalise on the significant growth opportunities emerging across the region.”
A highlight of the SSA Markets programme was the recognition of top-performing professionals through the UD Champions initiative. The awards celebrate excellence across key dealership functions, including service advisory, technical expertise, parts sales and driver training, reinforcing the critical role that competence and customer focus play in delivering exceptional customer experiences.
The evening programme followed a more celebratory tone, with an awards ceremony to recognise the region’s highest-performing dealerships, with Motruck Eswatini receiving the SSA Markets Medium Importer of the Year award and Nors Namibia the prestigious SSA Markets Importer of the Year
The second day of the conference commenced with a Dealer Council meeting attended by members of the UD Trucks global executive leadership team, providing dealers with an opportunity to engage directly with leadership on matters shaping the future of the business and the transport industry.
The business sessions that followed focused on market trends, customer needs, operational excellence, retail performance and the opportunities that lie ahead for the UD Trucks network.
Reflecting on the significance of the conference, Filip Van den Heede, Managing Director of UD Trucks Southern Africa, said:
“The Annual Importer and Dealer Conference remains one of our most important platforms for aligning the network around a shared vision, strengthening collaboration, and recognising those who consistently deliver excellence. As we continue to evolve our business and expand our presence across Southern Africa and the broader African continent, our dealers remain at the heart of our success. Their unwavering commitment to our customers, our products, and our brand enables us to deliver on our promise of Going the Extra Mile every day, while positioning us for sustainable growth in the years ahead.”
The conference concluded with the highly anticipated 2026 Dealer Awards ceremony, where dealerships were recognised for their outstanding contribution to the business and commitment to delivering value to customers.
Among the major award recipients were: Service Dealer of the Year (Medium) – UD Trucks Lichtenburg, Service Dealer of the Year (Large) – McCarthy Commercial Vehicles Alrode, Medium Dealer of the Year – UD Trucks Ermelo and Dealer of the Year – CMH Commercial Pinetown.
Commenting on the significance of the dedicated SSA Markets focus, Graham Kolm, General Manager: SSA Markets at UD Trucks Southern Africa, said:
“The decision to dedicate a full day to SSA Markets reflects the growing importance of our business across the African continent. We see significant opportunities ahead and are committed to working closely with our partners to strengthen market presence, develop capabilities and unlock sustainable growth. Owning the future means investing today in the relationships, skills and foundations that will drive our success tomorrow.”
The conference concluded with a strong message of partnership, growth and shared accountability as the network looks towards the future.