As a part of its 2030 vision for the stainless steel industry, industry body the Southern Africa Stainless Steel Development Association (Sassda) envisions playing an increasing role in the export of stainless steel products as a catalyst for local industry growth.

According to Sassda executive director Michael Basson, 2025 has brought the association to another crossroads, and change is imperative for sustainability and the survival of the local stainless steel industry.

“ The local and international economic landscapes have shifted drastically since Covid-19 and led to an increase in geopolitical tensions. It has, therefore, become imperative for Sassda and the industry to rethink the path towards 2030 to ensure sustainable growth.”

Sassda’s 2030 vision is for the association to be characterised by a sustainable funding model that represents the full value chain, thereby stimulating not only local demand but also growing exports of South African-made stainless steel products.

To achieve this, Sassda aims to provide more focused and specialised service delivery by including more diverse values. The association also believes that this will result in increased membership, which will, in turn, increase its ability to influence and lobby government and the stainless steel industry.

This growth would also help Sassda become an “unbiased lobbyist” – based on the need to balance member interests, regardless of size or turnover – when advocating for the industry, and becoming the preferred source of market intelligence and technical information.

Moreover, the association is developing new strategies, but efficiency, relevancy and value-add remain part of its focus.

“For any organisation, [adapting] to the environment remains important. In a best-case scenario, change happens before it is required,” Basson says, adding that a well-developed vision of the future is required to ensure relevancy and sustainability.

Opportunities for Growth

Basson says the International Monetary Fund’s growth predictions for the African market suggest there is a unique potential for South African companies to export to the expanding African markets north of its borders.

“With trade restrictions and unfeasible logistics costs in many other parts of the world, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) offers excellent export growth potential.

The strategic plan now is for the local stainless steel sector to study the existing challenges within the AfCFTA and develop mechanisms and alliances to address these problems.”

Some of these challenges are fragmented regional policies, poor infrastructure and slow product movement through customs. As such, cross-industry consultation would be required to determine the full scope of these problems, the root causes and potential solutions.



“This is not an easy endeavour and will take hard work to implement. This is a task for industry associations, incorporating government engagement and support, and it is one that Sassda is looking forward to tackling,” he concludes.