LSF Team

Dedication. Expertise. Passion.

At LSF, our team brings together deep industry knowledge and a shared commitment to supporting South Africa’s manufacturing growth.

Executive

Irshaad Kathrada

Chief Executive Officer

Irshaad Kathrada is the Chief Executive Officer of the Localisation Support Fund. He previously served as the Special Advisor to the South African minister responsible for trade and industry and has nearly a decade of investment banking experience with JPMorgan in New York, London and Johannesburg. He is a visiting research fellow at the Wits School of Governance; a Senior Associate at the Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership; and holds an MSc in Sustainability and Enterprise from the University of Oxford, as well as a Bachelor of Business Science from the University of Cape Town.

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Leon Naidoo

Head of Operations

Leon Naidoo is Head of Operations at the Localisation Support Fund. He brings over 25 years of global manufacturing, procurement, and supply chain leadership to South Africa's localisation agenda. His career spans the automotive, defence, and energy sectors, with roles at Toyota South Africa, Denel Vehicle Systems, and General Electric Steam Power, having run Sub-Saharan African supply chains for multinational blue-chip companies. Leon is an Industrial Engineer by training, holds a Master's degree in Procurement, Logistics, and Supply Chain Management, and is a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (MCIPS).

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