The Michelin Group and French company CFAO Group have signed an agreement to join forces to import and distribute Michelin tires in Kenya and Uganda.

Through the joint venture, the new entity will provide the African countries with tires for vans and light trucks and will import materials handling, two-wheel, civil engineering and agricultural tires. CFAO’s Automotive wing will own 51% of the venture while Michelin gets 49% under the agreement between the two companies.

Michelin wants to accelerate the distribution of its high-end tires, with their proven longevity and durability, by seizing this growth opportunity in two regional African powerhouses. The joint venture will rely on Michelin’s long-standing partners in Kenya and Uganda. The governance is equally divided between CFAO and Michelin, the French tiremaker said in a press release.

“With growth rates of 4.5 percent for Uganda and 5.5 percent for Kenya in 2017, these markets are very dynamic,” said Richard Belle, CFO’s chairman and CEO. “As a result, they are of interest to the biggest players in the global industry. CFAO’s alliance with Michelin illustrates our know-how on the continent – providing our partners with immediate solutions to develop markets and to offer consumers high-quality products and services.”

Combined, Kenya and Uganda make up a total population of over 90 million people.

“The growth prospects of the African continent are immense,” said Yves Chapot, a member of Michelin’s Executive Committee and its director of automotive business lines and Asia, Africa, India and Middle Eastern regions. “We want to offer Kenyan and Ugandan motorists and businesses, the best of our technologies to sustainably support their mobility. It is with this ambition in mind that we are working with CFAO, whose expertise and commercial footprint on the continent will be two of the levers for the success of this partnership serving our East African customers.”