Peter Nyanzi
10 November 2005
Kampala — A Japanese car trading company has introduced a groundbreaking system where by Ugandans can buy used vehicles from Japan over the Internet.
Officials of Trust Company Ltd (TCL) on Tuesday told car dealers during a briefing at Grand Imperial Hotel in Kampala that the system is the most convenient way of buying used vehicles from Japan.
TCL, which is one of only three authorised used vehicle exporters in Japan, is listed on the Stock Exchange. He said some vehicles cost as low as $1,000 dollars (Shs1.8 million) or even less.
NEW: Mr Tugume (R) and Mr Takekawa during the launch of TCL in Uganda on November 8. Photo by Wandera w'Ouma
The African Market Development Project Manager, Mr Yushi Tateishi, and the Sales Team Leader for Africa Region, Mr Masaru Takekawa are in the country to sensitise Ugandans about how the system works.
Tateisi said all that one has to do is log on to www.japanesevehicles.com to view all the available vehicles in stock and follow the instructions to place an order.
"The interactive website allows the processing of an invoice and subsequent sending of the vehicle from Japan up to Mombasa port in Kenya. All the relevant documents are sent to the buyer by international courier," he said. This follows the sending of a telegraphic transfer of the money from an authorised bank.
Flitlinks International Ltd, a local forwarding company, represents TCL in Uganda. Flitlinks Managing Director, Mr Denis Tugume, said the company helps to handle the vehicle from Mombasa up to its registration with the Uganda Revenue Authority.
He said on average, a vehicle takes about a month to reach Kampala because the ship goes through South Africa and the mid east before coming to East Africa. But on a direct route, it could take slightly over two weeks.
The clearing and registration could take 3-4 working days.
Some dealers complained about poor quality vehicles being sent to Africa.
However, Takekawa said the government of Japan has introduced new rules, which have made it very difficult for Japanese companies to export poor quality vehicles anywhere in the world.
"It is now more difficult to export poor quality vehicles from Japan," he said.
An IT specialist and lecturer at Makerere University, Dr J.K Ssewanyana, gave the traders a presentation on online shopping.
He said it is cheaper as one does not have to spend money on air tickets and hotel bills to travel to Japan. But he warned that those who wish to buy online must be on the lookout for fake companies that have conned people of their money in the name of Internet selling.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2005 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
