Beginning January 1, Ford will lump three regions in Africa — sub-Saharan, North Africa, and South Africa – and the Middle East together to form one business, Fox Business reported.

According to the article, over the next two years, 17 new vehicles will be launched within the joint Africa-Middle East region. With an expectation that auto production will hit 5.5 million units by 2020, sales are expected to jump 40 percent.

“The Middle East and Africa is poised to become one of the next big automotive growth markets and we want to be there for these customers with great new cars and trucks,”  Stephen Odell, Ford of Europe, Middle East and Africa president said in the report.

Catering to 47 markets in total, Ford’s Africa-Middle East region will be headed by Jim Benintende who’s been with the company for 36 years – and who’s also worked in the region prior to taking on his new position.

Fox Business, noted that both the Middle East and Africa are experiencing middle class growth as well as flourishing auto markets – the reasoning behind the shift.

According to South Africa Info, in 2010, 271,000 vehicles were exported from South Africa alone. Twelve percent of the country’s manufacturing exports stem from the auto sector, which accounts for six percent of South Africa’s GDP.

Also by 2020, the South African government looks to push auto production to 1.2 million units, through the newly launched Automotive Production and Development Programme, South Africa Info reported.