FRANKFURT (Bloomberg) -- Volkswagen Group has resumed building vehicles in Nigeria for the first time in 25 years in a bid to foster sales growth in Africa.

Assembly began Tuesday in Lagos of models that will include the Passat, Jetta and CC sedans as well as the Amarok pickup truck, Stallion Group, VW's manufacturing partner, said in a statement.

VW confirmed the start of production without specifying planned volumes.

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous nation with about 170 million people and has the continent's largest economy. The country is emerging as a key growth driver for the entire continent.

Global automakers have been expanding manufacturing outside traditional car markets to benefit from tax breaks and avoid import duties. Additional sales in those countries would also cushion the effects of slowing growth in China and contractions in Brazil and Russia.

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