Yamaha Motor Company, a Japanese multinational manufacturer of motorcycles, marine products, says that it is committed to continue to provide good services and products to Rwandan customers.

In an event organised by Yamaha Motor and its local authorised distributor Spear Motors and Sound Ltd, on Tuesday, December 6, customers of Yamaha Motor met with the manufacturer's management and gave feedback on the various products.

The event was also attended by Yukako Ochi, the deputy head of mission at the Japanese embassy in Kigali.

The customers also had time to ask questions about the various products, including the new generation of motorbikes, engines, among others.

"Meeting our clients and the consumers of our products is important because we are able to hear from them about their experiences. With the feedback, we can improve our services and products and after-sales services. Today specifically, we explained the different products that are on the market," Kazunori Nakamira, the sales and marketing manager for Yamaha's in East Africa.

The event was organised ahead of Yamaha's nationwide service campaign week which starts on Wednesday, and during which customers across Rwanda will be able to get repair services, among other things.

Antoine Kajangwe, the director general of Trade and Investment at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, appreciated the contribution of Yamaha Motor to the Rwandan economy and commended them for organising meetings with the consumers of their products.

"Engagements like these give customers the confidence that the products they buy are of good quality, and from a consumer protection standpoint, that is an important thing. It’s also good to see that Yamaha Motors has an ambition to provide after-sales service, with their trained technicians,” Kajangwe said.

"The expertise and skills that they provide to Rwandan technicians, especially youth who are graduating from TVET education, contribute to the local economy.”

Yamaha Motor was founded in 1955 and currently has operations in over 180 countries. The company has been on the Rwandan market since 1976. Spear Motors and Sound was officially approved as Yamaha's distributor in 2018.

"As distributors of Yamaha products, we are very proud of working with a company that produces the best quality products, such as the motorbikes. Over 90 per cent motorbikes that are used in rural areas in Rwanda are Yamaha, which is the most reliable manufacturer of off-road motorbikes," Donatien Murenzi, the director general of Spear Motors and Sound Ltd, said.

"We invited the consumers of Yamaha Motor products not only to appreciate the fact that they made the right choice, but also to assure them that we will continue to provide the products as well as after-sales care services. We want to strengthen our ties with the customers."

He said that Yamaha-made motor engines are the most used in marine transport such as in boats that sail on Lake Kivu.

Since 2018, Spear Motors has sold about 2,000 Yamaha motorbikes of different kinds.

In order to support the government efforts in providing healthcare, Spear Motors donated motorbikes to ease mobility in remote areas such as Nkombo island in Lake Kivu.

Thanks to the cooperation with Spear Motors, Yamaha has operations in all Rwandan districts, Murenzi said.