MRM pg 1-5.pdf - Mabati Rolling Mills

THE LAUNCH OF SAFAL, HORN OF AFRICA REGION
MABATINEWS
Amid pomp and fireworks, SAFAL Group
was officially launched on the 26th of
October, 2006 in a colourful ceremony
in Nairobi. In attendance were both local and
foreign guests. The unveiling ceremony was
carried out by Dr Manu Chandaria, Chairman
of the Comcraft Group of Companies,
accompanied by his wife Aruna, and
Mr. D.P. Shah, Senior Director, together
with his wife.
SAFAL incorporates four clusters
mainly Horn of Africa region, Great
Lakes Region, Southern Africa and
South Africa. The Great Lakes Region
launch was carried out in August 2006,
in Kampala.
SAFAL Horn of Africa region includes
Mabati Rolling Mills Ltd., Athi River,
Nairobi and Mariakani, Insteel Limited
and Ethiopian Steel PLC. Mr. Kaushik
Shah is the CEO. In his welcoming
address, he had the following message
to share:
“In today’s business environment,
more than at any one time in history,
the only constant is change. Markets,
Products, Technology and Competitive
Conditions are rapidly changing ... What this
means for us and, indeed for all organizations,
is that we must possess the capacity and
goodwill to adapt to these changes effectively.
Indeed, any organization, large or small, that
fails to change could pay a very heavy cost,
which could impact on its very survival!
On the other hand, organizations that
effectively manage change by continuously
adapting their bureaucracies, strategies,
systems, products and cultures to survive
the shocks of change; should benefit and
prosper.
Reality today is that leaders and managers
MUST become Masters of Change and
Renewal to effectively lead their organizations
to greater levels. Those who do not will
continue to struggle.
Tonight, Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be
celebrating the results of our organizations’
renewal … As my role was to welcome you, I
will not delve into the details of this important
step that we have taken.”
Mr. Sarit Shah, Director for South and
Southern Africa Region, took the audience
through the genesis, current state and future
of SAFAL.
Dr. Manu Chandaria, in his usual jovial
mood, gave an inspiring address, highlights
of which are reproduced here:
“The recent World Bank report
on Africa says that Africa is listed
as the most difficult place in the
world to do business. However
there are lots of opportunities
and some of the companies are
doing extremely well in spite of
all the problems of insecurity,
famine, HIV/aids and difficult
political situations. All of us
who are here know all this and
yet we are running successful
businesses. This is largely due to
our commitment, dedication and
hard work. SAFAL is no exception.
Thanks to all of you for your support
to us, the SAFAL Group is now in a number
of countries in eastern Africa and southern
Africa and hope it will have its presence
in many more countries in Africa. In my
various speeches I keep on addressing the
government that Kenya’s best resource is
its human resource - its professionals and,
above all, its entrepreneurs. Our workforce
can be quickly trained and our professionals
are equally a brand on their own not only
in Kenya but also in many African countries
and in Europe and the United States. Our
entrepreneurs are second to none. They are
not only entrepreneurs of Kenya but also
of the region. Today our world
is a global village;
it's global
in nature, it's global in
manufacturing, it's global in
trading, its global in services.
Under these circumstances
economies like China, India,
Brazil and Russia are going to
compete for the same Kenya
shillings or any other African
currencies which are in the
pockets of our people. Today’s
trend is that they are out to invest
in Africa for natural resources
and, against that, they will flood
the markets of Africa with goods
which are manufactured in their
countries. Because of the scale
of manufacturing, they are cheaper than ours.
This onslaught is going to upset a number
of economies unless we all get together and
continue to keep our markets and propagate
“made in Africa” as our first responsibility and
keep jobs of our people and our children. This
will require a lot of Africanness.
Today in Kenya we are seeing a period
of turbulent politics; but we are also seeing
M A B A T I N E W S
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