US moves to end duty-free trade benefits for South Africa, Rwanda over human rights concerns

US moves to end duty-free trade benefits for South Africa, Rwanda over human rights concerns

 The United States says it plans to suspend South Africa and
Rwanda from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a duty-free trade
programme for sub-Saharan African countries, from January 1, 2027.

 

Jamieson Greer, US trade representative, spoke in a
statement on Monday.

 

Greer said President Donald Trump has determined that the
two countries’ governments are engaging in practices inconsistent with the
programme’s eligibility requirements.

 

The trade representative cited concerns about human rights,
corruption, barriers to American trade and investment, and threats to US
national security and foreign policy interests.

 

 

“President Trump found that the governments of Rwanda and
South Africa are engaging in practices that are inconsistent with AGOA’s
eligibility criteria,” Greer said.

 

Enacted in 2,000, AGOA provides eligible sub-Saharan African
countries with duty-free access to the US market for thousands of products.

 

South Africa was the programme’s largest beneficiary,
exporting about $1.7 billion worth of goods to the US under AGOA in 2025. Its
major exports include car parts, citrus fruit and wine, while Rwanda exports
coffee and minerals.

 

 

US CITES HUMAN RIGHTS, TRADE CONCERNS

The planned suspension comes amid strained relations between
Washington and Pretoria.

 

The Trump administration had accused South Africa’s
government of persecuting white South Africans, an allegation Pretoria has
rejected as false.

 

The White House also criticised South Africa’s foreign
policy, particularly its genocide case against Israel at the International
Court of Justice. Israel denied the allegation.

 

 

Leo Brent Bozell III, US ambassador to South Africa, said
the country’s removal from the programme was a consequence of its government’s
rejection of concerns raised by Washington.

 

“It is regrettable that South African policies led to the
termination of AGOA for South Africa,” the ambassador said in a post on X.

 

“This was a predictable and preventable outcome resulting
from the rejection by South Africa’s government of real concerns raised by the
US Government.”

 

South Africa’s trade ministry said it is prepared for an
unfavourable outcome from the eligibility review but remains open to dialogue
with the US.

 

 

The ministry also said exports under AGOA accounted for
about 10 percent of South Africa’s total exports to the US and 1 percent of its
global exports.

 

President Cyril Ramaphosa said the country is preparing for
a possible loss of the trade benefits by seeking new markets and pursuing trade
agreements with partners, including China.

 

 

RWANDA FACES SEPARATE TRADE RESTRICTIONS

Washington also raised concerns about human rights and the
rule of law in Rwanda.

 

 

The proposed suspension comes amid tensions over the
conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where the US had accused
Rwanda of supporting rebels.

 

The US had imposed sanctions on several Rwandan individuals
and institutions, including the country’s military and a gold refinery.

 

 

Rwanda has also faced a partial AGOA suspension since 2018,
when Washington barred its apparel exports under the programme over import
tariffs it considered a barrier to trade.

 

The latest suspension is scheduled to take effect on January
1, 2027.

Source: US moves to end duty-free trade benefits for South Africa, Rwanda over human rights concerns



The story behind the headline — analyzed by 10 AI models, updated 4x daily. → drux.space/hub